Наушники — Audeze Maxwell 2

The Maxwell 2 is a closed-back, circumaural wireless headset from Audeze that uses planar magnetic drivers, sold in versions for Xbox and PlayStation with a maker price of USD 329 to 349. Besides its own USB-C dongle it connects by Bluetooth 5.3, wired USB-C and an analog cable, and it also works with PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch 2, Android and iOS devices.

Key specs that matter

Audeze fits each cup with a 90 mm planar transducer with an Ultra-Thin Uniforce diaphragm. Audeze quotes a frequency response of 10 Hz to 50 kHz, maximum output above 115 dB SPL and distortion below 0.1 percent at 100 dB. Internal amplification is rated at 1.4 W, and the maximum bit rate is 24-bit and 96 kHz. A 1800 mAh lithium-polymer battery gives over 80 hours of wireless playback at 80 dBA, a full charge takes 2 hours, and 20 minutes on USB-C at up to 5 V and 1.8 A adds 25 percent. The headset weighs 560 g.

Engineering and use context

The magnet system is a Fluxor array with N50 neodymium, with Fazor phase management and SLAM acoustic management carried over from Audeze wired designs. Bluetooth supports multipoint, LE Audio, LC3, LC3plus, LDAC, AAC and SBC, while the USB-C wireless link is specified as ultra-low-latency. Over a USB-C cable the headset appears with dual audio endpoints and a game-chat mix, and the analog TRRS input is active. Spatial audio is Dolby Atmos on the Xbox version and Tempest 3D on the PlayStation version. A detachable hypercardioid boom microphone with pop filter uses physical and AI noise reduction, and an internal microphone handles chat when the boom is removed.

Pairing

The box contains the headset, the boom microphone, the USB-C dongle, a 1.5 m USB-C cable, a 0.3 m USB-C to USB-A adapter cable and a 1.2 m 3.5 mm TRRS cable. Lightning-based iOS devices need an MFi certified camera connection adapter to use the dongle. For a console, the matching Xbox or PlayStation version should be chosen, since the spatial format differs between them. Audeze also sells a Maxwell 2 ANC variant with active noise cancelling for buyers who want that function, while this model relies on its closed-back cups for isolation. Multipoint Bluetooth lets a phone stay connected while the dongle carries game audio, and the analog cable covers devices with no USB or Bluetooth link.

Alternatives

The Audeze LCD-5s is an open-back wired planar magnetic headphone for use with a dedicated amplifier.