The Sony Inzone H6 Air is a compelling case to ditch wireless cans and use open-backs for gaming — here’s my honest verdict

At the time of writing, open-back headphones designed specifically for gaming haven’t been around for that long, and Sony has just dipped its toe into these waters. The Sony Inzone H6 Air is nothing short of a triumph, and the brand’s first-ever gaming open-backs offer studio-grade sound quality in both gaming and for listening to music.

Sporting a lightweight build that’s ridiculously comfortable for long gaming sessions, the H6 Air is a 10/10 in the design department. It’s compatible with an array of consoles and devices, making it the only headset you’ll ever need. The 40mm drivers are from Sony’s studio monitoring headphones, tuned here for gaming rather than production, so you know you’re getting best-in-class sound quality — regardless of what you’re playing or listening to. With a decent mic to boot, the H6 Air has quickly become one of my favorite sets of cans.

Is this the best gaming headset for you? Read my full Sony Inzone H6 Air review to find out.

Sony Inzone H6 Air review: Specs

Sony Inzone H6 Air review: Cheat sheet

• What is it? Sony’s first-ever open-back gaming headphones for all-day play
• Who is it for? Anyone who wants a comfortable headset with studio-grade sound quality
• How much does it cost? The Sony Inzone H6 Air retails for $199 / £179
• What do we like? The comfortable design, multi-platform compatibility, studio-grade sound, and great mic performance
• What don’t we like? The underwhelming software

Sony Inzone H6 Air review: The ups

There’s so much to love about the Sony Inzone H6 Air, from its comfortable open-back design and multi-platform compatibility, to the studio-grade sound quality in video games and music.

Ridiculously comfortable for all-day play

Not only have I reviewed my fair share of gaming headsets, but I’ve extensively used them outside of a work capacity. Comfort level is the first thing I consider before buying (or while testing) a gaming headset, because there’s no point spending any amount of money on an uncomfortable set of cans. The Sony Inzone H6 Air is the most ridiculously comfortable gaming headset I’ve used so far.

The H6 Air bears striking resemblance to the Sony Inzone H9 II ($349) but the biggest difference is that the H6 Air is an open-back headset. As is the nature of open-back headphones, the H6 Air offers superior comfort by allowing air to pass through the earcups. On sealed headphones, like the Fractal Design Scape ($199) and the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 ($199), rear air pressure buildup is common as there’s nowhere for the air to go. By opting for an open-back design, the H6 Air reduces fatigue and eliminates sweat buildup — and I can confirm that.

I’ve used the H6 Air extensively, and the longest I’ve worn it for has been a nine-hour gaming session. Not once did I feel like my ears were too hot or uncomfortable. Also aiding the H6 Air’s comfortable fit is its lightweight build. The headset weighs just 7.01oz (without cable and mic), making it much lighter than the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 (11oz) and the Fractal Design Scape (12oz). The suspended headband helps reduce pressure you’d otherwise feel on the top of their head, while the light nylon ear cushions nestle your ears like two clouds loosely hugging them. No complaints from me in the design and comfort department.

One headset to rule them all

A big advantage of using a wired headset is that, more often than not, it’s compatible with more consoles and systems than a wireless headset is. The Sony Inzone H6 Air, like all Inzone gear these days, is theoretically PC-gaming-first. However, it comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack as well as a USB-C Audio Box, so it’s compatible with essentially every console you own.

This includes PC, macOS, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, and iOS and Android smartphones. You’ll be able to use it with your Steam Deck and other handheld consoles too. I tested the headset with my PS5 Slim by plugging the 3.5mm jack into the DualSense controller, and it worked like a charm.

Exceptional studio-grade in-game sound

The Sony Inzone H6 Air is an exceptional headset offering detailed, crystal clear sound quality, regardless of the video game genre you’re playing. The headset utilizes 40mm Open-Back Dynamic drivers. You’ll also find these drivers in the Sony MDR-MV1 studio monitoring headphones, but for the H6 Air Sony has re-tuned them for gaming with enhanced bass, and they’ve given me nothing to complain about.

The H6 Air covers a frequency response range of 10Hz-20,000Hz, which is standard for the best gaming headsets, covering from the highest frequencies down to deep bass tones. I was able to hear every soft footstep and every loud explosion with the utmost clarity, and it made for an immersive gaming experience. To test the headset, I played Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Cyberpunk 2077, and Control.

Cyberpunk 2077

In Cyberpunk 2077, I found infiltrating enemy bases stealthily a walk in the park as I could hear NPCs clearly behind closed doors. I could pinpoint their movements exactly, and I made a mental note of their patterns so that I could quietly open the door, take them out, and continue my approach.

This doesn’t mean the bass takes a backseat. Cyberpunk 2077 features a busy, techno soundtrack that often kicks in when you’re fighting an enemy or executing a stealthy takedown. I found the tonal separation to be fantastic, and the soundtrack never once sounded muddy. Even with the soundtrack at its peak, I could still hear enemies flanking me in close quarters combat, which helped me determine the direction of my attack.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

I also loved the emphasis on sharp audio cues in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which helped me time my parries perfectly in battles. The treble never sounded overzealous or like it cut through the rest of the soundscape. On the contrary, every aspect of the soundstage was perfectly balanced. I could still appreciate the bass-heavy orchestra soundtracking my battles, while appreciating the sound of my magical and physical attacks landing.

Roaming the vast open world in Expedition 33 was thoroughly enjoyable too. The gloomy yet vibrant atmosphere of the game was conveyed well through the H6 Air. The transition between my character walking on concrete and then scattered petals was loud and clear as I could hear the soft crunch of the petals.

Control

In a similar vein, the spooky atmosphere in Control was exaggerated by the H6 Air, and it truly felt like I was walking through a derelict, haunted building. Hissing noises in the hallways, droplets trickling down walls, alien-like NPCs croaking, and the protagonist Jesse Faden’s shallow breathing after she’d just sprinted down the hall, all added to my immersion.

There are plenty of dialogue-heavy cutscenes in Control, and I was able to hear every word spoken with clarity. Words never bled into one another, and I love that the headset made it feel like I was there, with the characters. For instance, in a cavern, the characters’ voices echoed well, but not too much so that it felt unpleasant or like I couldn’t understand what they were saying. If it’s lifelike audio you’re after, the H6 Air should be your port of call.

Superb for music listening, too

Because the Sony Inzone H6 Air utilizes studio-grade drivers found in monitoring headphones, I had to listen to music to test the headset’s caliber — and I was not disappointed. The opening acoustic guitar in ‘Black Water’ by Poets of the Fall had startling clarity, and I could hear the zip of fingers sliding from note to note. When the other instruments kicked in, the headset never got overwhelmed. Sony’s 360 Spatial Sound made the vocals feel like they were swirling around my head rather than playing left or right.

The H6 Air’s drivers produce tight, accurate bass and clear, airy high frequencies, and this was apparent when listening to ‘First Light’ by Lana Del Rey. Although the track doesn’t have a pounding bassline, it provides a subtle backbone to the song, and the bass through the H6 Air sounded nice and airy. This, in turn, made the orchestral crescendo feel grand rather than simply loud.

The headset creates a great 3D effect with the secondary vocals in ‘First Light’ too. The "Will you? Will you?" whispers felt like they were positioned at different depths, and Lana’s primary vocals had the centerstage here. This made the Bond theme feel more immersive and cinematic.

Great mic quality

The Sony Inzone H6 Air utilizes a detachable cardioid boom mic. A cardioid mic is like a unidirectional one, with a heart-shaped polar pattern that is most sensitive to sound at the front, and least sensitive at the back. This type of mic is great for gaming headsets, as it ensures that the words coming out of your mouth are the only ones that are heard. While it won’t replace the best microphones for streamers, it’s still decent for a headset.

To test the H6 Air’s mic, I first recorded myself with nothing else playing in the background. As you can hear in the clip above, my voice sounds loud and clear. It also sounds textured and true to what I sound like without a microphone. Unlike the similarly priced SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 and the Fractal Design Scape, my voice doesn’t sound tinny or unpleasant, and there’s no clipping either.

I then played an episode of Veep in the background, at approximately 50% volume on my phone, to see if the H6 Air isolated my voice. In the clip above, you can hear some background noise (i.e. characters’ voices) but it doesn’t particularly overpower my voice. The plosives are still clear and my words aren’t bleeding into one another. Again, better performance than the other two headsets previously mentioned.

Sony Inzone H6 Air review: The downs

The only real issue with the Sony Inzone H6 Air is that the companion software is a little underwhelming.

Underwhelming companion software

To customize the Sony Inzone H6 Air, you’ll need to download Inzone Hub on your Windows laptop. There’s no software available on macOS, Android or iOS, so you’ll be left feeling shortchanged if you don’t have a Windows laptop to hand. While Inzone Hub is easy to use, there isn’t much you can do in terms of customization on the H6 Air.

You’ll need to plug in the H6 Air using the included USB-C Audio Box to customize the headset, and once you’ve adjusted the settings, they’ll be saved to the Audio Box so that you can use them across consoles. Within Inzone Hub, you can customize the 10-band equalizer, adjust the sidetone, and enable spatial sound. There’s also the option to boost the bass or toggle an FPS profile, but I found the former to be overpowering and the latter didn’t really make much difference, as the H6 Air’s already tuned to give you an advantage in competitive gaming.

Wired cans in general don’t usually have companion apps, or when they do, there isn’t much there in terms of personalization. If you want extensive customization, you might want to consider a wireless headset, like the Fractal Design Scape or the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2.

A little on the pricey side

The Sony Inzone H6 Air is a capable and competent gaming headset, and one of the finest I’ve ever tested. It’s a little on the pricey side but before you start panicking, trust me, this headset is worth the premium. The H6 Air retails for $199 / £179 at Amazon and, at the time of writing, hasn’t received any major discounts yet (as it just came out in April 2026).

But a great thing about the H6 Air is that it doesn’t feel like an overpriced headset. A ridiculously comfortable and lightweight design, studio-grade sound quality and multi-platform compatibility make it worth paying full price for — unlike the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 which we thought was $25-$50 overpriced. And hey, the H6 Air is cheaper than the Asus ROG Kithara open-backs, which costs a whopping $299.

Sony Inzone H6 Air review: Verdict

“Are open-back headphones good for gaming?” The Sony Inzone H6 Air certainly proves they are. Sony’s first open-back gaming headset is simply outstanding. Packing 40mm studio-grade drivers, the headset delivers well-rounded, fine-tuned sound in video games and music. You feel like you’re the main character. If, like me, you love spending your weekend gaming away, you’ll be pleased to know that the H6 Air is extremely comfortable and fit for the job.

Would I change anything about the H6 Air? The software could certainly use a bit more oomph, but as I mentioned earlier, that isn’t a dealbreaker. If you want powerful sound quality with exceptional bass, treble and mids, there’s no reason to not get the H6 Air. This headset has quickly become one of the best products I’ve tested so far, and I’m now hesitant to go back to wireless cans.