There's a million gaming headsets on the market bogged down with useless features, but Corsair's latest, the HS55 Wireless Core, aims to solve that.

There is a seemingly endless supply of wireless headsets on the market – we've certainly reviewed our fair share of them. It's a tough market to navigate, especially as needs evolve and the end user is looking for more features and better quality out of their setup. Ultimately, it can make it hard to identify the perfect headset for any user.

Corsair's latest headset seems to be aiming at targeting those users who are lost. The Corsair HS55 Wireless Core Gaming Headset is a no-frills gaming headset designed to do the job. It eschews the on-ear lighting, noise canceling, and other features used by many companies to catch a gamer's eye, all at the expense of raising the price. Fortunately, the no-frills design also means Corsair's latest addition packs expensive quality at an affordable price.

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If you've used a Corsair headset before, you pretty much know what you're getting yourself into here. The HS55 have the same classic design you're used to, and they fit incredibly comfortably. They do lack the floating head strap on other models (such as Corsair's HS80 RGB, which we reviewed last year), but the overall weight - a mere 266g, or .58 lbs - meant the headset never felt too heavy or put too much pressure on our head while it was in use.

Despite its lightweight design, the headset is designed to be durable and feel like it'll hold up to plenty of wear and tear. We noticed nothing about them that would indicate any kind of structural weakness when removing them or adjusting them, and the ear cups flip a full 90 degrees to rest easy when worn around a neck between sessions. The flip-up mic is convenient for getting it out of your way to use as a normal headset but sadly is not detachable.

The earcups themselves are full leatherette and fit comfortably. Though they did naturally get warm after extended use, they were never uncomfortable, and the swiveling mounts for the earcups meant they sit well on your head, minimizing sound leakage for those long gaming sessions.

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Gaming hardware is always changing, and the HS55 is designed to slot into whatever needs you have. Though it does include the standard fare wireless dongle to connect the headphones to USB-compatible devices, the headphones also connect via Bluetooth standard. That means you've got a wide range of connectivity options; we used them with Bluetooth connectivity on our desktop, laptop and mobile phone (a Google Pixel Pro 6 running Android 13) and found the headset worked seamlessly each time.

Bluetooth is enabled via a Multi-Function Button (MFB) seated above the power button. Pressing and holding the MFB enables pairing mode, and when the headset is paired, tapping the power button swaps between the last connected Bluetooth device and the RF-enabled wireless dongle. Swapping between devices never caused a problem, and Bluetooth synced up immediately. The MFB also functions as music controls, allowing us to play, skip and play the previous song all from the headset. Volume controls on the left ear make it possible to control music without being near the keyboard, too.

While we're bummed, as always, that the mic isn't detachable, it does have a wide range of motion, so it was always within reach. The boom arm is omnidirectional, too, so it sounded crisp and clear no matter where we had it positioned. The flip-up mute is a great touch, too, but if you don't want to move it from that perfect placement just to take a drink, there's still a physical mute button just above the volume wheel. It doesn't sound like a lot, especially for a gaming headset, but we found the headset more than capable of accomplishing everything we needed while also serving its primary purpose: just sounding great.

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The Corsair HS55 Wireless Core found a lot of use as a simple Bluetooth headset for our initial testing. Paired with our phone and blaring Spotify throughout the workday, we found the audio to be crisp and clear and had no issue using the MFB to maneuver between songs or pause the audio.

When it came time for gaming sessions, changing the connectivity over to the RF adapter made swapping between devices super fast. We tested the headset out with sessions of Gundam Evolution and Fallout 76, and in both cases, the audio was perfect for gaming. Sounds were clear and immersive, allowing us to easily pinpoint ghouls sneaking up behind us or enemy Gundams being…well, less sneaky.

The microphone obviously has the standard limitations you come to expect with a wireless headset, but it was still one of the better-sounding microphones we've used. The audio was always clear, and we had no complaints, be it in gaming sessions or meetings, about the overall quality of the audio. Despite this, it's still a wireless headset, so there will always be limitations to the quality.

Finally, if battery life is a concern, the headset holds up remarkably well and boasts a roughly 24-hour battery life. The headset does, thankfully, charge over USB-C and charged quickly over any cable we used. To be honest, though, just the fact that it uses USB-C in an era where too many companies still rely on USB Micro is enough for us.

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By now, you probably already have a Corsair headset or two in your repertoire, but if not, the HS55 Wireless Core is a great entry into the ecosystem. It's a workhorse headset; nothing too flashy, no fancy lights and no complicated designs. We're honestly huge fans of the headset's simple, sleek design, and at $99.99, it slots right into the market of affordable but not cheap headset offerings from similar companies.

That being said, it's also not going to revolutionize anything you're doing. The HS55 Wireless Core sounds great and stands out as a quality device. But if you already have a headset you're in love with, there's not a lot offered here that will steer you to upgrade or replace it. If you're in the market for a comfortable, reliable headset that can quickly swap between music on your phone and gaming on your PC, though, you can't go wrong with this one.

Christopher Baggett is CBR's Features Lead and a Producer. He's been with Comic Book Resources since 2017 after spending several years writing for several other websites. He first started writing for the web in the mid-'90s with his website, Anime HomeWorld, which was later renamed The HomeWorld. A comic book collector since he was a teenager, he's also become an avid gamer and content creator with a series of Let's Plays on YouTube and a series of running streams on his Twitch channel, You Shall Be As Games , as well as CBR's own Twitch page. His first published comic book work is in the anthology "Advanced Death Saves: Fallen Heroes of the Kitchen Table," which is available now on Comixology. You can find Christopher on Twitter as @ChrstphrBggtt.

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