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Sony Pulse Explore Earbuds Hands-On: Absurdly Good Sound

While designed to be used with Sony's PlayStation 5 gaming console, they're among the best wireless earbuds for music listening.

www.cnet.com

Sony’s Pulse Explore earbuds deliver immersive audio and one very useful trick

The first PlayStation wireless earbuds don’t disappoint.

www.theverge.com

Sony PlayStation Pulse Explore

Versatile PS5 earphones with serious fit issues

me.pcmag.com

Sony PULSE Explore wireless earbuds review -- Planar Magnetic Thumpers

Sony doesn’t make a lot of peripherals, so when they do it’s best to pay attention. Whether you choose to pair them with your PlayStation VR2, PlayStation 5, or brand new PlayStation Portal, or link them with a Steam Deck, Nintendo Switch, or all of the above, this gaming audio solution is a cut...

gamingtrend.com

PlayStation Pulse Explore Wireless Earbuds Review - Seamless Connectivity And Clear Audio

PlayStation Pulse Explore Wireless Earbuds Review - Seamless Connectivity And Clear Audio

always-on.com.au

I assume that there will be more reviews coming up, so I'll try to add more in the OP.

I already got mine pre-ordered, how about you guys?

 

[analog_future]

Sounds like they're fine, if unremarkable.

 

[fart town usa]

I am a self-admitted fanboy for Sony hardware but their headsets are borderline trash IMO.

The Gold broke for no reason just a few months into owning one and the Pulse 3D has an absolute trash mic and it's a total stepdown from from mid-tier JBL BT headphones I own. The passthrough for the Pulse 3D is awful too.

It's the one product of Sony that I get nervous from and I avoid their headsets whenever possible.

 

[rofif]

I am a self-admitted fanboy for Sony hardware but their headsets are borderline trash IMO.

The Gold broke for no reason just a few months into owning one and the Pulse 3D has an absolute trash mic and it's a total stepdown from from mid-tier JBL BT headphones I own. The passthrough for the Pulse 3D is awful too.

It's the one product of Sony that I get nervous from and I avoid their headsets whenever possible.

pulse 3d sounds fantastic and I like the comfort well enough.
The mic is something I rarely use but nobody complaints about it when I do

 

[TexMex]

I like the Pulse and I have these ordered as well.

My standard for a mic quality is can my team hear and understand what I'm saying yes or no. I don't need radio production for my friends when we're playing Call of Duty they can get the fuck over it.

 

[Sleepwalker]

I like the pulse 3d well enough for ps5 gaming, my phone came with a free set of buds 2 pro so both these new earphones and headset are a hard sell for me.

 

[fart town usa]

pulse 3d sounds fantastic and I like the comfort well enough.
The mic is something I rarely use but nobody complaints about it when I do

Yea, the sound is fine, I just worry that it's going to break for no reason like my Gold did.

If you go from an aux setup, which utilizes the controller mic, or aux with PSVR2 which utilizes the VR mic, you'll instantly hear how much worse the Pulse is when you're going pure wireless.

 

[Elios83]

Already preordered.
I don't like headsets (they feel heavy and they make my ears hot after a while) and the only other option to enjoy good 3D audio so far was wired earbuds connected to the Dualsense (I have a couple of great models of those from Bose and Sennheiser).
This product is what I was looking for, the audio quality of premium wireless earbuds to be used for gaming and 3D audio.

 

[rofif]

Yea, the sound is fine, I just worry that it's going to break for no reason like my Gold did.

If you go from an aux setup, which utilizes the controller mic, or aux with PSVR2 which utilizes the VR mic, you'll instantly hear how much worse the Pulse is when you're going pure wireless.

I don't care much about mic.
Just sound quality over wireless and it's great on pulse3d.
For what it's worth - i have mine since release and looks brand new. And it's so cheap, I would be happy to get another one.
Well... elite is coming out soon so I will get that. Planar magnetic for 150

 

[Nankatsu]

Yeah, no. I'm fine with wired Portal.

 

[Imtjnotu]

I need a comparison between these and the in zone buds.

 

[CrimsonSquall]

3:58 has some of the best words I’ve heard from an IGN reviewer in a long time.

Seems like if you are buying this for gaming, it’s exceptional. Music, microphone, extras? Not so much

 

[FrankWza]

3:58 has some of the best words I’ve heard from an IGN reviewer in a long time.

Seems like if you are buying this for gaming, it’s exceptional. Music, microphone, extras? Not so much

They are meant to be used as Bluetooth WHILE you game with the lossless connection. So take a call or listen to a podcast if possible with your device. But, there's a good chance that you can use an OTG adapter if another device does USB audio and get extra Link adapters to get some or most of the Link advantages.

I need a comparison between these and the in zone buds.

These use Planar and are compatible with Portal. The Inzone do not and are not able to connect with Portal directly. Those are 2 big points for these.

 

[FrankWza]

I am a self-admitted fanboy for Sony hardware but their headsets are borderline trash IMO

They purchased Audeze. If they assisted in development, which is probable because of Planar connection, there isn't anything really to compare besides the Pulse name. These are also Link compatible and older Pulse are not.

 

[Flabagast]

Waiting for the headset instead

 

[R6Rider]

Not a big fan of earbuds for gaming or anything long session.

I'm more interested in that other headset, but even then I've been fine with my Pulse 3Ds.

 

[rofif]

3:58 has some of the best words I’ve heard from an IGN reviewer in a long time.

Seems like if you are buying this for gaming, it’s exceptional. Music, microphone, extras? Not so much

I don't understand in what world headphones that are good for music are bad for gaming.
Good sound is good sound.... like what are we doing here?

If music sounds good, game will sound just as good. Directionality of audio is a separate topic.
Obviously it is harder to pick direction of low tones but are we all playing Apex?!

Good headphones are good for music and single player games. My pulses 3d are great for music

 

[Games of Today]

I am a self-admitted fanboy for Sony hardware but their headsets are borderline trash IMO.

The Gold broke for no reason just a few months into owning one and the Pulse 3D has an absolute trash mic and it's a total stepdown from from mid-tier JBL BT headphones I own. The passthrough for the Pulse 3D is awful too.

It's the one product of Sony that I get nervous from and I avoid their headsets whenever possible.

I had to go buy Steelseries headphones because my friends said that I sounded like I was talking through a straw with the Pulse 3D.

 

[skit_data]

I don't understand in what world headphones that are good for music are bad for gaming.
Good sound is good sound.... like what are we doing here?

If music sounds good, game will sound just as good. Directionality of audio is a separate topic.
Obviously it is harder to pick direction of low tones but are we all playing Apex?!

Good headphones are good for music and single player games. My pulses 3d are great for music

Sampling rate between most music and movies/games is different (44100 Hz vs 48000 Hz) so there might be some high end (like very, very high end) parts of the frequency spectrum that might get more accurately reproduced by these in games and not in music (I very much it's that high end he means is "muffled"/lowpassed) but I very much doubt that is what the reviewer means by them sounding good in games and bad for music.

It makes me kinda curious what connection codec used because there is a clearly audible difference between AAC and LDAC for example.

Edit: I gotta say, I am a bit worried that he says they come off as unbalanced in terms of frequency response, I prefer very flat sounding headphones. But it's not a biggie, these will mostly be used for podcasts when commuting and games at home. I have better reference headphones anyway.

 

[Ronin_7]

Where are the Pros? That's what I want but can't find reviews or whatsoever.

 

[FrankWza]

I don't understand in what world headphones that are good for music are bad for gaming.
Good sound is good sound.... like what are we doing here?

If music sounds good, game will sound just as good. Directionality of audio is a separate topic.
Obviously it is harder to pick direction of low tones but are we all playing Apex?!

Good headphones are good for music and single player games. My pulses 3d are great for music

These connect to the sources in different ways. The music is via Bluetooth and the PS5 connection is via the Link adapter. Different protocols =different results. What he should have done was play music from the same source to compare. I don't think he mentioned specifically but he was talking about Bluetooth and it's also possible he had 2 connections. Planar do better with extra juice. The double connection is a convenient feature but the power is going to be split and both sounds will suffer when used that way.

Where are the Pros? That's what I want but can't find reviews or whatsoever.

They release in February so there are probably no review sets being sent out yet.

 

[rofif]

These connect to the sources in different ways. The music is via Bluetooth and the PS5 connection is via the Link adapter. Different protocols =different results. What he should have done was play music from the same source to compare. I don't think he mentioned specifically but he was talking about Bluetooth and it's also possible he had 2 connections. Planar do better with extra juice. The double connection is a convenient feature but the power is going to be split and both sounds will suffer when used that way.

They release in February so there are probably no review sets being sent out yet.

yeah. he should try gaming with the dongle and then music from the donlge on pc.
bad review all around.

 

[Zathalus]

I'm hoping to get these for my Portal. The Pulse 3D had decent sound but it was one of the most uncomfortable headsets I have ever used, build quality was trash as well. I use the Sony Inzone H9 for my PS5 now and they are so much better.

These look to be comfortable enough, and sound quality looks good as well.

 

[Mitsurugi Reiji]

Already pre-ordered. Need one to play stuff at night when everyone is asleep. Have been waiting on this for a while now.

 

[MaKTaiL]

I'm torn between this and the Pulse Elite. I will wait for the Elite reviews in February before deciding. The lack of noise cancellation on the Explore is a bit underwhelming.
The review itself was trash though. He didn't even show the controls while playing (how easy/hard is to change volume and mute microphone).

 

[Imtjnotu]

They are meant to be used as Bluetooth WHILE you game with the lossless connection. So take a call or listen to a podcast if possible with your device. But, there's a good chance that you can use an OTG adapter if another device does USB audio and get extra Link adapters to get some or most of the Link advantages.

These use Planar and are compatible with Portal. The Inzone do not and are not able to connect with Portal directly. Those are 2 big points for these.

More for sound quality

 

[CrimsonSquall]

These connect to the sources in different ways. The music is via Bluetooth and the PS5 connection is via the Link adapter. Different protocols =different results. What he should have done was play music from the same source to compare. I don't think he mentioned specifically but he was talking about Bluetooth and it's also possible he had 2 connections. Planar do better with extra juice. The double connection is a convenient feature but the power is going to be split and both sounds will suffer when used that way.

Didn’t think about that but you’re definitely right about that.

This review has convinced me to buy the buds but I really dont care abt the music bc I have so many other headphones that can do the job better at this point and that’s not why id buy these anyway.

 

[Dr.brain64]

Preordered the elite, may get explore later.

 

[Skifi28]

I'm really out of touch with audio devices it seems, I was expecting something like 50-100 max and it's 200. Daaamn



Going back to my cave to my ancient wired headphones that I probably bought for 20 like 5 years ago.

 

[FrankWza]

I'm really out of touch with audio devices it seems, I was expecting something like 50-100 max and it's 200. Daaamn



Going back to my cave to my ancient wired headphones that I probably bought for 20 like 5 years ago.

It's really a very fair price for planar wireless buds and the codecs and features it supports.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

I might buy the Pulse Elites but I beyond disappointed with Sony's poor engineering decision not to include PS Link in the new PS5 Slims leaving doubt that it'll be included in the PS5 Pro.

You should not need a dongle in 2023 to use a first-party headset that just launched in 2023 with a first-party console that just launched in 2023.

The Pulse Elite will need to review off the charts for me to buy it at this point. I'm already waiting to get the Apple AirPod Max assuming the next headset is USB-C and hopefully has lossless audio.

 

[alphachino]

I'm kinda done with PlayStation hardware for the moment - something which I never thought I'd say. I'm happy enough with my PS5 DE and DualSense Edge. I also have PSVR2, Pulse 3D and a couple of official controller charging docks plus a few more pieces... but this new round of hardware just doesn't appeal to me much at all. It's the first PlayStation where I don't like how it looks, and I've been there since day-1 PS1 and buying every iteration of their consoles day 1. I'm still delighted they're doing so well and I will be back once stuff more appealing comes along. In a way, I'm glad Jim is gone, as I feel like this is his doing. Either that, or I'm growing out of love with PlayStation. We shall see once the CEO comes online.

 

[FoxMcChief]

Imagine being a doofus and buying first party headsets.

Spoiler

My wife still loves me for my big dick.

 

[TVexperto]

Can someone explain to me the difference to those new Sony earbuds?



Im really confused why sony is releasing so many earbuds

 

[Ronin_7]

Can someone explain to me the difference to those new Sony earbuds?



Im really confused why sony is releasing so many earbuds

These are different teams that actually 'compete' against each others.

In other words, SIE is there to be the best division at Sony and they'll do what they see fit.

 

[Mr Hyde]

Was disappointed with the Pulse 3D and sold them. These earbuds doesn't look like anything special, outside the hefty price, which seems to be the only thing Sony cares about these days. It has no noise canceling and bad battery life. Inzone looks way better.

 

[Tams]

I am a self-admitted fanboy for Sony hardware but their headsets are borderline trash IMO.

The Gold broke for no reason just a few months into owning one and the Pulse 3D has an absolute trash mic and it's a total stepdown from from mid-tier JBL BT headphones I own. The passthrough for the Pulse 3D is awful too.

It's the one product of Sony that I get nervous from and I avoid their headsets whenever possible.

The problem there is that you were using their gaming headsets.

For actual audio products, Sony are at or near the top.

 

[CrimsonSquall]

Can someone explain to me the difference to those new Sony earbuds?



Im really confused why sony is releasing so many earbuds

Everyday vs Gaming earbuds.

 

[nosoynadie22]

 

[EverydayBeast]

Gotta worry about Sony headsets

 

[fart town usa]

The problem there is that you were using their gaming headsets.

For actual audio products, Sony are at or near the top.

Good point.

 

[Gamer_By_Proxy]

I was on the fence and these reviews are leaving me on the fence. I like ear buds cause I don’t like additional weight on my head when playing VR. But can these replace my AirPods for every use? I don’t really need the noise cancelling feature. I also never do the equalizer stuff. Right now I use the anker soundcore for vr and AirPod pros for everything else.

 

[FrankWza]

I was on the fence and these reviews are leaving me on the fence. I like ear buds cause I don’t like additional weight on my head when playing VR. But can these replace my AirPods for every use? I don’t really need the noise cancelling feature. I also never do the equalizer stuff. Right now I use the anker soundcore for vr and AirPod pros for everything else.

They can but if you're using a bunch of apple products these won't be as convenient. They'll sound better for VR and are compatible with Portal.
I would wait for reviews that do a better job comparing. The CNet review is a bit better

Sony Pulse Explore Earbuds Hands-On: Absurdly Good Sound

While designed to be used with Sony's PlayStation 5 gaming console, they're among the best wireless earbuds for music listening.

www.cnet.com

This review talks a little about music too but all these tests are done over Bluetooth. Wait for a review when comparing using the Link adapter connected to a source.

Sony’s Pulse Explore earbuds deliver immersive audio and one very useful trick

The first PlayStation wireless earbuds don’t disappoint.

www.theverge.com

 

[phant0m]

I don't understand in what world headphones that are good for music are bad for gaming.
Good sound is good sound.... like what are we doing here?

If music sounds good, game will sound just as good. Directionality of audio is a separate topic.
Obviously it is harder to pick direction of low tones but are we all playing Apex?!

Good headphones are good for music and single player games. My pulses 3d are great for music

Comes down (mostly) to EQing. Gaming headsets usually accentuate highs & lows for that “punchy” sound and impact. They may also be tuned to have a really wide soundstage for better 3D/“surround” which can make music sound weird.

Can someone explain to me the difference to those new Sony earbuds?



Im really confused why sony is releasing so many earbuds

Inzone is Sony’s “generic” (non-PlayStation gaming brand, similar to Logitech G. They’re compatible with PS5 but also work well with PC or mobile.

These new ones are PlayStation-specific. I’m sure you could use them elsewhere but they’re really designed to be used with PS5 and Portal.

I have the inzones (and really like them) because I wanted wireless buds for PS5 and gave up on waiting for the Explores after Sony went radio silent for 2.5 months after announcing them.

 

[FrankWza]

have the inzones

Don't they have limited Bluetooth codec compatibility though?

 

[Quantum253]

Sony hardware but their headsets are borderline trash IMO.

Which is crazy since Sony's WH series headphones are on point. You'd think, you'd get the same awesome quality in their gaming lineup.

 

[BlitzerRadic]

Comes down (mostly) to EQing. Gaming headsets usually accentuate highs & lows for that “punchy” sound and impact. They may also be tuned to have a really wide soundstage for better 3D/“surround” which can make music sound weird.



Inzone is Sony’s “generic” (non-PlayStation gaming brand, similar to Logitech G. They’re compatible with PS5 but also work well with PC or mobile.

These new ones are PlayStation-specific. I’m sure you could use them elsewhere but they’re really designed to be used with PS5 and Portal.

I have the inzones (and really like them) because I wanted wireless buds for PS5 and gave up on waiting for the Explores after Sony went radio silent for 2.5 months after announcing them.

How well does the audio sync with the inzone buds? The inzones seem so much better on paper and I want to get the white ones when they're back in stock but all the chatter about how great PS Link is making have second thoughts about the Pulse Explorer.

 

[Pedro Motta]

Which is crazy since Sony's WH series headphones are on point. You'd think, you'd get the same awesome quality in their gaming lineup.

You want their gaming lineup to cost over 350 dollars?

 

[FrankWza]

You want their gaming lineup to cost over 350 dollars?

Yeah not a great comparison. And the Inzone buds use the xm 5 buds drivers. I think everything starting with the Inzone buds going forward should be looked at differently. Especially these Pulse since they are the first since the Audeze acquisition.

 

[Quantum253]

You want their gaming lineup to cost over 350 dollars?

Sure, if the quality matches the price. Turtle Beach sell headsets for 100s of dollars and they sell fine. I got an Audio-Technica (AG1x) a few years ago. They sound okay, but are weak and need some type of dac. I much rather have a higher-end Sony headset.