The Edifier G5 Max delivers main character energy without the luxury price tag — here’s why it’s excellent

The best gaming headsets can truly elevate your experience by making you feel like the main character — and that’s exactly what the Edifier G5 Max does. Though it enters a crowded market where premium features are no longer reserved for premium prices, it certainly makes an impression.

With support for Hi-Res Audio, THX Spatial Audio, and an eye-catching 305-hour battery life, the G5 Max gives you little to complain about. In-game audio is outstanding, while the headset itself is extremely comfortable for all-day wear. While it isn’t flawless, as its mic(s) aren’t anything to write home about, I still think the G5 Max is worth the asking price.

To find out if this is the right headset for you, read my full Edifier G5 Max review.

Edifier G5 Max review: Specs

Edifier G5 Max review: Cheat sheet

• What is it? A wireless gaming headset compatible with PS5, Nintendo Switch, PC and smartphones
• Who is it for? Anyone who wants an immersive gaming experience without breaking the bank
• How much does it cost? The Edifier G5 Max is available for $149 / £159
• What do we like? The comfortable design, immersive in-game audio, great music capabilities, long battery life, and more
• What don’t we like? The lack of a macOS companion app and the subpar mic performance

Edifier G5 Max review: The ups

The Edifier G5 Max is extremely comfortable and boasts all-round great sound in video games and while listening to music. Its companion apps make customization easy, too.

Extremely comfortable

As someone who reviews gaming headsets for a living (and uses them in her free time too), I’ve been spoiled by the likes of the Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Headset ($229) and the Razer BlackShark V3 Pro ($249) when it comes to comfort. Though the Edifier G5 Max doesn’t cost as much, it’s an extremely comfortable headset, and one that hasn’t made my ears sweat, unlike the Final VR3000 EX ($149).

The G5 Max’s earcups feel very spacious and sit comfortably around my ears. The cushions and the headband are made of memory foam and “skin-friendly protein leather.” These are designed to elevate pressure you’d otherwise feel on the top of your head and around your ears. Having worn the headset for six straight hours, I can confirm that I didn’t feel any discomfort, so the G5 Max is great for prolonged wear.

Aiding the G5 Max’s comfort level is its lightweight body. The headset weighs just 10.75oz, so it’s lighter than the Final VR3000 EX (13.72oz) and the first-party Sony PlayStation Pulse Elite (12.2oz, $149). Speaking of, for the same price, the G5 Max’s build quality — especially of the earcups — feels superior to the PlayStation Pulse Elite’s.

Immersive in-game audio

The Edifier G5 Max makes games sound simply gorgeous, thanks to its 53mm dynamic driver which covers a frequency response range of 20Hz to 40KHz — so the entirety of the average human hearing spectrum and then some. In addition to that, the G5 Max features custom 7.1.4 Spatial Audio (Windows-only) co-developed by HECATE and THX. This essentially puts you at the center of a 360° sound sphere, creating an immersive gaming experience.

And the G5 Max works extremely well. I played Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Assassin’s Creed Shadows on my PS5 Slim to test the headset’s general console capabilities, and Cyberpunk 2077 on the Alienware 16X Aurora to test the Spatial Audio.

As soon as I booted up Expedition 33, I was drawn into the Belle Époque world, with every orchestral score, environmental effect, and combat cue carrying immense detail. During a post-endgame secret boss fight, I appreciated being able to hear every combat cue so that I could time my parries perfectly, and these didn’t get lost as the symphonic metal background track swelled. I also enjoyed hearing my attacks land with plenty of low-end impact and oomph.

In Assassin’s Creed Shadows, I appreciated the G5 Max bringing the world of feudal Japan to life — from the rustling of the leaves in the wind and the trickling of waterfalls, to the clash of swords during heated battles and the protagonist’s hidden blade making a sharp shing. Dialogues sounded loud and clear, too, even when there were multiple voices speaking at once. I also appreciated the headset’s directionality in Shadows, as I could hear NPCs speaking in the right earcup — and then traveling to the left when I changed my direction.

Cyberpunk 2077 really showed off what the G5 Max’s THX Spatial Audio could do. Walking through the neon-laden, chaotic streets of Night City felt extremely immersive, with different sounds emerging from different directions which made me feel like the main character. During firefights, I found it much easier to pinpoint where my enemies were positioned, thanks to the precise acoustics, which gave me a competitive advantage. This also made infiltrating enemy camps easier as all I had to do was listen out for footsteps and then execute stealth takedowns.

Overall, the G5 Max is ideal for a number of genres, including RPG and FPS titles. Combine that with the supreme comfort and you don’t even realize hours have gone by.

Great for music, too

Alongside being excellent for gaming, the Edifier G5 Max is great for listening to music, too. It carries Hi-Res Audio and Hi-Res Audio Wireless certifications which means it can transmit and reproduce high-resolution digital audio formats with its 96KHz/24-bit sampling rate. This gives it a leg-up over other similarly priced gaming headsets, such as the Final VR3000 EX and the Asus ROG Pelta ($129) which aren’t Hi-Res certified.

I tested the G5 Max’s music capabilities by listening to a few of my favorite testing songs on Qobuz, the best music streaming service for audiophiles. I’ve been thoroughly impressed by the G5 Max’s airy and spacious soundstage, with every instrument and 070 Shake’s breathwork in ‘Elephant’ sounding layered. In ‘Sultans of Swing’ by Dire Straits, each note plucked on the guitar sounded clear and nuanced, while the softer bass provided a powerful backbone to the track.

For the price, the sound quality doesn’t give you a lot to complain about. If you want even better sound, though, I’d recommend spending an extra $50 on the Sony Inzone H6 Air ($199) which utilizes studio-grade drivers.

Listen along to my review with the Edifier G5 Max testing playlist:

Two useful companion apps

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There are two ways to customize the Edifier G5 Max: you can use either the Edifier ConneX Android/iOS app, or the proprietary HECATE Driver Software on Windows. The former is handy for when you want to make on-the-fly adjustments, such as swapping between EQ presets, customizing your own EQ, and remapping the headset’s buttons. I tested it on my Google Pixel 10 Pro XL and appreciated its straightforward and easy to understand interface.

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HECATE Driver Software is more detailed and offers more in-depth personalization. You can enable THX Spatial Audio, adjust the mic’s settings, make extensive adjustments to the RGB lighting, and enable game-specific EQ presets (Valorant, PUBG, Battlefield 5, Overwatch, and more). The desktop app doesn’t feature any intrusive ads or pop-ups, making it a breeze to use.

Astonishing 305-hour battery

If you need a gaming headset that doesn’t run out of battery too quickly, the Edifier G5 Max should be your port of call. I can only describe its battery life as astonishing, as it’s rated for 305 hours over Bluetooth or 227 hours over 2.4GHz. The G5 Max, then, blows its competition out of the water. Other similarly priced headsets, such as the Final VR3000 EX (55 hours), Sony PlayStation Pulse Elite (30 hours), and Asus ROG Pelta (90 hours), simply fall short.

Not just that, but even pricier headsets don’t last as long, like the Razer BlackShark V3 Pro (70 hours), the Alienware Pro Wireless Gaming Headset (70 hours) and even the extortionate SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite (60 hours, $599).

I would have to game a lot to kill the G5 Max’s battery, but after having used it for eight hours and left it running overnight with my PS5 turned on — so a total of 18 hours or so — the battery had dipped by only 7%. That’s great.

Edifier G5 Max review: The downs

The Edifier G5 Max is great but it’s important to note that its microphones aren’t the best, and there’s no macOS companion app.

Subpar mic(s) performance

The Edifier G5 Max features two mic setups: two built-in mics (for answering calls on the go) and one detachable boom mic (for when you want maximum clarity while gaming). Sounds great in theory, but in my testing, I thought both the mic’s performance was underwhelming.

I tested the built-in mics first and wasn’t impressed. As you can hear in the clip above, my voice sounds muffled and a little distant. My words don’t sound clear either, and the sibilance (“s” and “t” sounds) seems to bleed together.

The detachable boom mic, on the other hand, sounds slightly better than the built-in ones. This mic features dual environmental noise cancelation and AI-powered noise cancelation which works well — you can’t hear the TV in the background of the clip above. My voice also sounds better but it’s still fuzzy, and my high pitch in places sounds harsh and piercing. I would recommend the Asus ROG Pelta and its very clear mic if you play online.

No macOS companion app

Annoyingly, the HECATE Driver Software isn’t compatible with macOS machines — even though the Edifier G5 Max itself is. If you don’t have access to a Windows laptop, you’ll need to rely on the Edifier ConneX smartphone app for customization… but that means you won’t be able to enable or use THX Spatial Audio, and you’ll miss out on one of the headset’s key features.

This isn’t a massive flaw, though, as THX Spatial Audio works only on Windows computers. On the PS5, you can enable 3D sound via the console’s settings to get 360° sound. This also isn’t the first time I’ve tested a gaming headset with Windows-only software — the Asus ROG Pelta springs to mind. The Final VR3000 EX doesn’t even have a desktop companion app, and customization via its mobile app is fairly limited.

Edifier G5 Max review: Verdict

The Edifier G5 Max proves that you don’t need to spend top dollar to get an excellent gaming headset. Its combination of exceptional comfort, loooong battery life, immersive in-game audio, and easy customization make it an easy headset to recommend. It’s great for listening to music too as it’s Hi-Res certified — something its closest rivals aren’t.

That isn’t to say it’s perfect, but the G5 Max’s shortcomings feel relatively minor in the grand scheme of things. Its detachable boom mic works fine but doesn’t sound as clear as its competitors, and there’s no macOS app for customization. Neither issue detracts from what is otherwise an impressive package. If you prioritize immersive audio, all-day comfort, and battery life, the G5 Max should be your port of call.