When you hear about a new headset under the “Inzone” label, most users probably don’t care at first – after all, the market for headsets and headphones isn’t exactly starved. But when you hear that Sony is actually behind the new brand, that immediately increases attention. After all, the inventors of the Walkman have decades of experience in audio hardware and have repeatedly proven this in recent years with very high-quality headphones. But can the Inzone H9, which is explicitly tailored to the gaming market, also convince? We were able to test the premium headset before the official release and will tell you here whether it is convincing and whether it is worth your money in our opinion.
One thing needs to be made clear at the beginning: the manufacturer of the H9 is not Sony Interactive Entertainment, i.e. the PlayStation makers, but the completely independent division, which has developed headsets such as the highly acclaimed WH-1000XM series, among other things. Nevertheless, the proximity to the PS5 cannot be denied, and some features have been adapted to Sony’s current-gen console accordingly. But always in order.
The first impression counts
Of course, the inner values, i.e. the built-in hardware and the resulting performance, are particularly important in daily use. But there’s also no denying that nobody wants to put a boring-looking or poorly-made headset on their head these days. In other words, a contemporary design is absolutely a selling point. This also shows that Sony has not just been active in the audio hardware business since yesterday. The Inzone headset looks very high-quality and modern, both in terms of shape and materials (despite plastic), and the color scheme is clearly based on that of the PlayStation 5 (although the PC is also officially supported with its own software). Everything was very successful, as we think. The good impression continues the first time you wear it. On the one hand, the Inzone H9 convinces with synthetic leather ear pads (in contrast to the also new and cheaper H7 and H3 models, which rely on nylon), but above all with a really good fit. Of course, with circumaural headphones, it can Don’t avoid sweating during the current heat wave. But the H9 manage the balancing act between a comfortable, non-pressing wearing comfort and a secure fit. The padded headband, which skilfully distributes weight and pressure, also contributes to this.
But of course, a good first impression stands and falls with the impressions as soon as you put the headphones into operation. Like the H7 (but unlike the wired H3), the Inzone H9 uses Bluetooth 5.0 and has an operating time of over 30 hours on one charge – at least with noise canceling switched off. Noise canceling in a gaming headset? Yes, you read that correctly: Inzone and Sony have made use of the expertise from the WH-1000XM5, which is leading in this area, and accordingly offers this feature here as well. And while many have used active noise suppression in the office, train or plane up to now, it can of course also be used at home to block out kitchen noise or the neighbors mowing the lawn while gambling. As is standard with relevant headphones, the so-called ambient sound mode is on board in addition to noise suppression. This does exactly the opposite of noise suppression and lets sound through to you using the microphones attached to the outside of the H9. So if you don’t want to suppress kitchen noises, but want to hear as soon as the water boils or the sleeping child reports, then this mode will help.
There is also no weakness in terms of controls. On the left next to the mic is a wheel to control the volume, a button to switch between noise cancellation and ambient mode, and a USB-C charging port. On the right side there is a toggle switch for setting the game/chat balance, a Bluetooth switch and the on/off button. Not overloaded, simply designed and easy to use – that’s how it should be.
