Headset vs Speakers: Which is best for gaming?

Some guy once said that "sound and music are 50% of the entertainment in a movie". Now, given the inherent differences between movies and videogames, we think that sound plays an even more vital role in our pixelated world, and especially spatial audio. I.e. being able to hear where that sound is coming from.

Knowing where sound originates from is vital for atmosphere, immersion, and yes, competitive play. This means that we need a solution that gives us proper spatial audio. So, headset vs speakers: Which is best for gaming? Let’s take a look at the fundamental differences between these two audio methods, and figure out the strengths and weaknesses of each option.

Ok, yes, the main and most obvious difference is that with one, you wear a headset, and the other, speakers, live on your desk or the walls. But what does that mean in terms of the sound you perceive?

Essentially, speakers have a larger soundstage, meaning that they produce a broader soundscape, allowing for more realism. This makes sense when you think about it, as in reality, sounds come from all over the place. Your ears are really good at differentiating between the location and the distances that sounds are coming from.

This is distinct from headsets or headphones, where the sound originates directly next to your ears, resulting in a smaller soundstage. This creates a sensation that isn’t as realistic as one you'd get from utilizing speakers.

You should note that we are making a lot of generalizations here, as audio science is incredibly complex and ties into human biology to a level that’s outside the scope of a humble web article like this one.

However, if we’re comparing a headset vs speaker, we don’t need to get into the science behind it, instead we’re going over the differences that are actually apparent to the user in practice. Speaking of which, it’s time to talk about drivers.

Speakers, at least mid to high-end ones, have separate drivers, each responsible for a different range of audio frequency. There are three different types of drivers: tweeter, mid-range, and woofer or subwoofer. The tweeter creates high-pitch sounds, the mid-range makes the middle frequencies, and the woofer is responsible for the low-pitch noises. As sound is caused by vibrations in the air, these drivers shake to create those vibrations. The tweeter shakes really fast to cause small vibrations, the mid-range a bit slower, and the subwoofer slower than that.

Typically, the tweeter and mid-range driver are built within a single housing, creating the stereotypical “speaker” look. A rectangular box, with a big circle (mid-range) positioned below a small circle (tweeter). The woofer or subwoofer is usually a separate, larger unit positioned on the floor.

Of course, you can’t fit all of these into the earcup of a headset. Which is why headphones and headsets use something called dynamic drivers. These take on the responsibility of all 3 of the drivers we mentioned, hence the name. What’s wild is that dynamic drivers can cause all 3 speeds of the vibrations we mentioned simultaneously. It’s difficult to explain how this works textually. Luckily, drummer and lover of all things counterfeit, DankPods has a good way of explaining it here. (Start at 2:12 for the dynamic driver explanation.)

So, that’s the technical difference between headsets and speakers in terms of hardware. But how does it make each one suited to a different application. What are the actual real-world differences? Let’s talk about different types of games to help contextualize it.

Competitive games, like Apex Legends, Valorant, and Counter Strike 2 benefit strongly from a headset as opposed to speakers because they require super high accuracy, not realism.

A huge part of playing these games is situational awareness. A lot of this comes from audio; being able to hear an opponent’s footsteps, the noise from them reloading, or the clink as they pull the pin on a grenade.

Of course, this would all sound very immersive with a full surround sound speaker setup, but to precisely pinpoint where the sounds are coming from, you’ll need a headset. For example, our HS80 MAX wireless gaming headset.

Headsets are better for detecting positional audio cues because the drivers are directly next to your ears. This means that you can differentiate where a sound is coming from with far higher accuracy than you could with speakers.

Additionally, if you had the game audio coming from a set of speakers, it would doubtlessly be picked up by your mic, making communication with your teammates far more difficult. You’d also get shouted at for committing one of the cardinal sins of online gaming. Gaming headsets, even open-back ones like the CORSAIR VIRTUOSO PRO keep almost all the sound inside the headset, so the mic stays clear for voice comms.

All of these reasons mean that a headset really is the correct audio solution for competitive gaming, and still a good choice for single player games too, however, this is where speakers really come into their own.

When it comes to single-player games, you don’t need to react to precise position information with a lightning pace. Instead, the experience is elevated with more realistic audio, which comes at the expense of spatial accuracy.

The reason speakers sound more ‘realistic’ is the broader soundstage that we mentioned earlier. The fact that the sound is coming from your actual environment and not a small audio driver positioned up against your ear makes the noise even more engrossing.

Additionally, there’s something very freeing about not wearing a headset. Like going to the cinema you can just sit back and enjoy the experience in a more natural way.

Take a look at our full range of audio gear over at our official website.