As a gamer, I know that communication is a key element to online and multiplayer gaming. In order to have success in high-intensity titles such as Battlefield 2042, being able to talk to your teammates can be the difference between victory and losing the match. That said, it’s also preferred that a headset is able to provide more than just the ability to communicate, but also the sounds needed for your environment and comfort for long-term use.

Fosmon has released a new Wired Gaming Headset that features red LED lighting and an adjustable microphone that can be removed when not being used. In concept, this headset sounded like a perfect budget headset, but after using it… I have to say that I am a bit disappointed.

What’s in the box

Opening the box, you will find the headset itself, an unplugged microphone that can be connected to the headset, an unplugged adapter that can make the single jack separate into two jack’s (one for the microphone and one for the speakers), and a small instruction pamphlet (which really just shows the different parts of the headset). On the surface, it looks like you have everything that you need.

Aesthetics and Build Quality

Now that you have all of the cables out of the box, you simply need to figure out if your computer needs the two jack cables or if it can function with a single jack to do both sound and microphone functions. After you get it plugged in, you have to plug in the USB plug that is hanging with the jack cable in order to get the red LED lights to work.

Putting on the headset, you will get your first experience with their cushioned headphones and can start adjusting the mic to your preference. Here’s where you are likely to notice the first few issues as the mic itself isn’t designed to properly fit the slot where you are meant to plug it in, so it doesn’t have the needed support to stay where you adjust it to - despite the fact that it bends as needed.

Specs and Audio Quality

When it comes to the speakers on the headset, the sound quality is pretty fair. It isn’t a phenomenal sound experience, but you can hear everything just fine. You also have a volume wheel on the headset cord that can be used to adjust the volume. The mute switch is also found in the same location as this volume wheel.

The microphone though provides rather poor quality. You can speak through it and your teammates will be able to hear you, but they will also be able to hear a loud buzzing sound. This apparently didn’t happen in every game nor on every system, as when I tested it on Discord it was working clearly, but in-game and on self-recording devices, the static sound is very noticeable.

What It Could Have Done Better

The cushions on the headset were barely soft enough to make it somewhat comfortable to wear for longer than a few minutes. It really isn’t a comfortable fit and I had to take it off every now and again to give myself a break, or perhaps to let the cushions re-puff up before I could put it back on again.

Why have a detachable microphone that doesn’t fit the slot it is meant to go into? This was a baffling realization to me when I first saw it and was amazed that they would include an adjustable mic without providing it a solid base. Since it didn’t fit into the slot, when I would adjust the mic where I liked it, gravity would just pull it down to my chin. I ended up having to leave it mostly straightened out just to get it to stay above my chin.

I’m not sure if this is from a faulty wire or what happened, but I had a lot of trouble getting the headset to work initially. It is meant to be a simple plug-in and it works headset, but when I tried it on both my tower PC and my laptop, it refused to work. It wasn’t until I tested it on my PlayStation and Nintendo Switch that it worked the first time and from there I tested it on my PC once more where it finally started to work. This was a strange way to get it to work and I don’t feel it should have been necessary as I did nothing different when it comes to plugging it into the PC.

Verdict

The Fosmon Wired Gaming Headset isn’t a great one, but it does get the job done if you just need something to communicate with. Overall, the quality is rather poor and I wouldn’t consider it anything more than a backup or last-resort headset. I’m just not sure we are living in a generation where the bare minimum really cuts it anymore.