Beyerdynamic Custom Game

These closed stereo headphones come with a goose-neck microphone that’s integrated into the cable. This marks the first customisable element, with the user free to decide whether or not to use a microphone with the headphones. Should you wish, you can swap out the cable for one without. Beyerdynamic offers various accessories in its online store and via specialist retailers, with options including mobile phone remote controls, cables, spiral cables and more.

The microphone can be aligned with a high level of precision, remaining firmly fixed in its chosen position. Should you not need it, you can easily bend it so it remains out of sight. The microphone also features a pop filter to eliminate unwanted noises during audio input. Speech quality is good, with hardly any unwanted noise interference. This is a marked advantage over cheaper headsets.

Let’s take a moment to focus on the cable that comes with the headset. To start, it features an integrated remote that can be used to adjust volume with a simple turn of the dial. The adjustment is incredibly precise, while the control knob itself is firm enough to ensure accidental adjustments don’t occur while you’re on the move. At the midpoint of the cable there is a mute switch for the microphone, along with a further two buttons for controlling call acceptance, media adjustments and temporary muting. These controls all also work when the headset is connected to a smartphone or tablet device. Unfortunately, at least when the headset is connected to an Xbox One console, an unwanted popping sound can occasionally be heard during gameplay. When connected to a PlayStation 4 console, this effect was not noticed. For those who prefer PC gaming, a Y-extension cable is included. Lastly, those with consoles can use the 3.5 mm audio jack cable to connect instead.

Interchangeable Design Covers

The headset also includes a set of six design covers. In order to swap them out and attach to the headset, four small screws on each side must be loosened with the use of the supplied tool. This can be fairly time consuming, taking around three minutes for each side. If you’re not happy with the choice of designs included, you can opt for more options and further accessories. If you would like to opt for something truly individual, you can choose a personalised printed one. It’s a genuinely nice touch and a valued point of customisation.

Adjustable Sound Levels

Here, the headset ears itself a further point for customisation. With both sides of the headset, you can adjust the sound via an integrated sound slider with four stages available for selection. There’s the open ‘Vibrant Bass’ option for intense bass delivery, along with ‘Bass Boost’ and ‘Linear’ selections. Finally, there’s the comparatively closed ‘Light Bass’ option. Furthermore, the headphones seal out more and more external noise as you tighten the fit, enhancing the noise cancelling properties of the device. This all sounds good on paper, but does it deliver in practice?

Open slider and press play to start

When it came to selecting a game for the purposes of this test, I picked “Rise of the Tomb Raider” for no other reason than it had sat unplayed on the shelf for far too long. Lara Croft’s video game adventures are so often closely matched to an action movie, so the open sound slider comes in handy time and again. As it turns out, the choice of game was a good one, with the sound output proving extremely cinematic. During breaks in actual gameplay for cutscenes, I was able to test the different slider settings without distraction. The first thing to comment about here is that I only noticed clear differences in settings at certain volume levels. When I close the slider again, things generally sound thin, with voices coming across quite nasally. This impression is further confirmed by the Custom One Pro Plus. The other three available settings all sound good, but are once again hard to notice when lower volumes are in place. I decided on a quick second gaming test with “Drive Club”, a driving game exclusive to the PlayStation. This second gaming test yielded similar results to the first. Generally speaking, it would be difficult to tell which slider setting I’m using if not confirming with a quick glance of the device itself. A further test, this time with a few rounds on “Grip 2” again delivers similar sound results. However, the issue is nowhere near as noticeable as with my experience with Tomb Raider. Just so there’s no misunderstanding: the Custom Game scores well in the sound stakes in all areas, but there’s a discrepancy evident when playing different genres. With an action-adventure title, a lot more is going on in terms of sound, composition and special effects. This is certainly true when compared to a relatively simple racing simulator or beat ‘em up.

The sound performance sits well, as do the headphones

Gaming headphones are meant to be worn for hours at a time, so comfort is a key priority. Beyerdynamic deserve applause for their efforts here, with the Custom Game sitting very well on the head and ears, with a reassuringly firm fit. The padding is pleasantly soft, with unwanted warming only occurring after particularly long playing sessions. When the headphones are fastened, the heat build-up is normal and to be expected. However, the Custom Game is certainly ahead of the pack in this respect. Those who prefer higher levels of comfort and don’t have an issue with noise leakage should instead take a look at semi-enclosed headphone alternatives.