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When it comes to gamer-centric products, we tend to see a lot of Over the Top and RGB light-riddled products. That’s one thing that adds a lot of fun to being a gamer, and pretty much anything can be a gaming product with the right flare. If you’re in the market for some TWS earbuds with gamers in mind, then I have an over-the-top and RGB-riddled item for you. I was given the opportunity to review the Hecate GX05 gaming earbuds.
When it comes to earbuds, one would wonder what will make them great for gamers. Well, there are a couple of things that a company can do to make headphones great for gamers. The company that owns Hecate, Edifier, is the company known for giving customers amazing audio experiences. So, this company providing gamers what they want should be a guarantee.
But, does it actually give gamers what they want? Sure, being over the top and adorned in RGB lights is one thing, but what’s also important is providing those core usability features and gamer-centric goodies. So, are the Hecate GX05 the perfect earbuds for the gamer and you? Let’s find out in this review.
Hecate GX05 Review: Design
When it comes to gamer Hardware, design is pretty much half of the experience. These are devices that should look great being shown off in a Twitch stream. In terms of the design of the Hecate GX05, the company really took things to a new level.
Charging case
Starting off with the charging case, this is definitely a device that looks like no other. The charging case is rather large. In it, we see the slots for the two earbuds and the USBC dongle. Above those, you’ll see a little triangular gate that rotates. This is a nice aesthetic touch. It definitely has a no-holds-barred high-octane look to it. Honestly, it looks like something out of a sci-fi movie.
Once you rotate the gate, you’ll see another standout feature of this case. Along each Edge, you see an LED strip that lights up. This is where we get the RGB light goodness. These lights will turn on, flash, and pulse based on the setting you assign. On the bottom of the case, there’s a multi-function button.
When you single press the button, you will change the lighting mode. You’ll be able to cycle through multiple colors. There’s cyan, green, red, blue, and purple. There are also different light modes. One mode has the lights stay on consistently, another mode has the light breathe, and the last mode has a rainbow of colors circling around clockwise.
The charging case is cool, futuristic, and angular. It’ll definitely catch people’s eyes.
The earbuds
The design of the actual earbuds is also pretty unique. It has a curvy ergonomic design that contrasts with the angular design of the case. However, this helps them fit inside of your ear. On the outside of the earbud, we see a gray bit of plastic that resembles brushed metal. That adds to the overall futuristic aesthetic.
Also on the outside of the earbuds, there are small LED strips. These will also light up. They light up when you place them inside of the charging case to indicate that they are charging. Also, the color of the earbuds’ light will reflect the colors of the case. The earbuds’ lights will also flash, breathe, or stay solid along with the case’s lights. Overall, both the case and the lights are very pretty. They make an amazing combination, and they’ll definitely make them stick out.
Hecate GX05 Review: Build Quality
When I said that these earbuds are over the top, I didn’t only mean in terms of design. When I first took the charging case out of the box, I was immediately shocked. I didn’t expect the case to be so hefty. The case is very heavy, and it gives it an extremely premium feeling. Basically, it does not feel like I’m holding a cheap plastic set of earbuds trying to look more expensive. I actually feel like I’m holding an expensive and premium set of earbuds.
That’s just going by the case, but the individual earbuds also have a nice quality to them. They said pretty heavily in the hand, and they all look very well built. They’re made from plastic, but that’s not an issue. I would say that these are very quality-made earbuds, and I’m sure that they will last you a long time if you get them.
Hecate GX05 Review: Audio Quality
The audio quality for these earbuds is a story with layers to it. I definitely have my reservations about the quality itself, but it’s completely justified because of one of the core gaming features of these earbuds.
Overall sound quality
So, this is something that did surprise me a bit at first until I realized what kind of earbuds I was dealing with. Again, this company is owned by Edifier, and Edifier makes some very high-quality Equipment. With these earbuds, especially with the Neo Buds Pro 2, I always got crisp and clear audio with amazing balance. I’d hear awesome clarity with a good emphasis on the low end. This is the kind of performance I expected from the Hecate GX05.
For the most part, that’s what I got. I hear a certain emphasis on the treble, which doesn’t surprise me. Many of Edifier’s earbuds that I reviewed have the same Focus. Also, the treble is supported by some very powerful and extremely clear bass. So, they pretty much lived up to my expectations. However, I could hear that the actual quality of the audio is a bit diminished compared to others. It sounds like the audio coming through the earbuds it’s just slightly lower quality.
However, this is very understandable because of a very important feature of these earbuds. That is the latency.
Latency
If you know about using Bluetooth audio equipment, then you would know about the latency (the amount of time between when the action occurs on your device and when you hear it). Bluetooth technology has not evolved to the point where there’s zero latency. Sending a high-quality signal over the air and converting it into an audio signal that you can hear takes time.
This is why Bluetooth earbuds aren’t quite great for gaming. You do not want to have a large delay between when you perform actions and when you hear them in the game. It just throws everything off, and there are some games that pretty much require you to react to actions in a split second. So, this is why many gamers stick with wired headphones… Well, with companies dropping the 3.5mm headphone jack, you can see how that could be frustrating.
However, these earbuds are advertised as ultra-low latency earbuds, and I agree with that claim. Listening to the audio from these earbuds, I could hear a significantly diminished latency compared to other earbuds. I don’t hear the sound instantaneously, but it’s pretty darn close, and it narrows the gap.
So, in order for the audio to be this low-latency, it has to be of a slightly lower quality. The lower quality makes it easier for the audio to be converted from a digital signal to an analog signal.
Imagine bumping a video down from 4K to 480p in order to have it stream smoothly on a slower connection.
Hecate GX05 Review: Touch controls
You can control your media and other functions using the touch controls. Tapping on the sides of the earbuds performs different actions. Starting off with media controls, double-tapping on either bud will play/pause the media. Holding your finger on the left earbud for two seconds will restart your current track, and doing so on the right bud will skip to the next track.
A quadruple tap on either earbud will activate/deactivate the lights for the respective bud. Lastly, triple-tapping on the right earbud will switch between Game mode (where the audio is best tuned for gaming) and music mode (the best mode for music).
Hecate GX05 Review: Balance of Bass and Treble
The balance of the base and trouble with these earbuds is another area where I had a bit of an issue with these earbuds. However, just like with the audio quality, I understand because these are made for gamers. I found that the audio had a strong focus on high-end audio. It wasn’t too bad, as it didn’t sound tinny at all. However, it just lacked some of the depth that I’ve heard with other Edifier earbuds. The audio is not as warm and immersive as I would have liked.
Listening to orchestral music like classical won’t be as immersive as with other earbuds, unfortunately. Listening to more modern and bass-heavy music, I found that the Hecate GX05 performed a bit better. The treble and bass seem to balance out more nicely, but I still wanted more depth.
I’d have to listen to very bass-heavy music to really feel the low-end audio. For example, I listened to some 90s R&B, and I think that music with that level of warmth makes these earbuds really shine.
But, there’s a good reason
Remember, these are gaming earbuds. Music and video games require different kinds of optimizations to sound their best. When you’re playing video games, immersion isn’t quite as important as with music. With video games, you’re going to want some of the higher-pitched sounds to be emphasized like voices, creature noises, footsteps, etc. If you’re playing something like Fortnite or Call of Duty, you’ll want to hear how close your enemies are, so you’ll be listening for footsteps.
So, the Hecate GX05 are designed to give gamers the edge when they’re gaming, and I found that they do. I played games like Fortnite, CoD Mobile, Genshin Impact, Dragonball Z Dokkan Battle, and more. I found that they perform incredibly with these games. Every sound was punchy and impactive.
If you’re planning on using these earbuds as your primary gaming earbuds, you won’t have any issues doing so. I think that these perform much better than traditional earbuds.
Hecate GX05 Review: Battery
It doesn’t matter how good the sound quality is if your earbuds are dead. You’ll want earbuds that can last through extended gaming sessions. Admittedly, the Hecate GX05 aren’t the best in the battery department. They’re behind some other earbuds that I’ve reviewed in the past. Using these earbuds, I was able to get north of four hours on a single charge. I feel that’s a bit below average compared to other earbuds I reviewed from Edifier. Others usually last more than an hour longer.
Using the charging case, I started to approach a full day of battery life. They ran for about 20 hours before dying on me. That’s still behind much of the competition, but I didn’t think that it was too bad. I just wish that they had more juice in them because people game for a long time each gaming session. Sometimes, four hours is just scratching the tip of the iceberg.
Charging
As with most earbuds, the charging is very fast. If you need to do a quick top-up, you’ll be able to get more than an hour of power on a short 10-minute charge. The earbuds charge completely in under an hour, so if they die on you, you won’t be out of the game for too long.
Hecate GX05 Review: What’s missing?
So, it’s obvious that these earbuds have a lot to offer. However, there are a few things that I wish the company added to these earbuds. For starters, these don’t integrate with the Edifier Connect app. This is the app interface that allows you to customize the experience for your audio devices. Since it’s not connected with the app, you don’t have access to the in-depth EQ and other tools that you can quickly access.
There’s no ANC present in these earbuds. That’s unfortunate because Edifier’s earbuds have amazing noise cancelation, and I think that these earbuds could greatly benefit from it.
Next, you can’t change the touch controls. Other earbuds allow you to customize the touch controls through the Edifier Connect app, Unfortunately, you’re stuck with the controls that are built-in.
Hecate GX05 Review: Final verdict
It’s always nice having audio equipment made specifically for gamers. Sure, they look nice with their lights, but it goes deeper than that. These earbuds are built to be great companions to gamers who are looking for a great overall experience. I think that the Hecate GX05 deliver that experience.
The audio quality is very nice, so you know that the listening experience is going to be nice. The audio quality is good, and it’s great considering the compromises made for the lower latency. Speaking of the latency, it’s very low. I got an SS tier on a rhythm game with these on. Now, that’s saying a lot!
The only issues that I have is that the battery life could be better, it’s not connected to the Edifier Connect app, and there’s no noise cancelation. These are definitely missing a few lifestyle features, but I think that they deliver a great fundamental gaming earbuds experience. I recommend that you pick these up.