Beyerdynamic MMX 300: a gaming headset up to its ambitions

Ergonomics

How do you recognize the audiophile ambitions of a gaming headset right away? Most of the time, to its aesthetic sobriety. The MMX 300 is an illustration of this, with its matt black finishes of total discretion and its forms simply taking the typical design of Beyerdynamic helmets. Anyone who has already placed one of the German manufacturer's DT series helmets on their head (DT 770, DT 880, DT 990 ...) will find themselves in perfectly familiar terrain when fitting their little brother dedicated to the game.

We can only rejoice, since this makes the MMX 300 a very comfortable helmet, capable of adapting to the vast majority of body types and which can be worn for hours without any discomfort - or almost. We would have simply appreciated the use of slightly thicker foams, which might have slightly lessened the feeling of pressure that can appear on the base of the jaw. Nothing to say however on the side of sound insulation, excellent.

The velvet pads can very easily detach from the ear cups - and be replaced, since Beyerdynamic offers them for sale in spare parts. The same goes for the headband cushion, which is covered with imitation leather and attached with a simple velcro.

On the other hand, the microphone is welded to the left atrium of the helmet, and is not retractable either. It is certainly mounted on a pivot allowing it to be raised vertically, but it then forms an inconspicuous and unattractive appendage.

The MMX 300 is supplied with two detachable cables: one measuring 1.2 m and ending with a 4-point mini-jack, the other measuring 2.5 m and ending with two separate 3-point mini-jack; the second is obviously indicated for use with a fixed PC, while the first will go perfectly with modern game consoles (PS4, Xbox One, Switch) and mobile platforms. The short cable even has a one-button remote control to pause / play and answer calls.

Both cables also have an analog volume control dial. As always, we can not help seeing this with a suspicious eye, since the volume control potentiometers are often of quite relative reliability: how many months, even weeks before one of them starts to "spit" and destroy the volume balance between the left and right ear cups? It is all the more annoying here that the connection between the headphones and the cable is made via a proprietary connector. Admittedly, there again, the manufacturer offers replacement cables for sale, but we would have greatly preferred not to have to ask these questions. It is this only point that pushes us not to assign the maximum score to the MMX 300 on this part devoted to ergonomics.

To conclude all the same on a positive note, Beyerdynamic has the charming attention of offering its helmet with a rigid storage box allowing to transport it with confidence. Finally, note the inclusion of a 6.35 mm jack adapter, a testament to the hi-fi ambitions of this helmet.

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Audio

And let's say it straight away and unadorned: without the slightest challenge possible, the MMX 300 proves perfectly worthy of its ambitions.

Beyerdynamic's helmet produces a very balanced reproduction, without however achieving perfect neutrality. A slight V-shaped signature is heard, giving the sound a turn that is both fairly warm - a consequence of the emphasis on low frequencies - and very incisive, due to a significant energy peak around 8 kHz - peak greatly exaggerated on our curve due to a measurement artifact, but still real. This peak, however, is not annoying here, because the treble is also perfectly controlled and precise. No trace of distortion to deplore, no more than a parasitic flicker; on the contrary, the top of the spectrum lets perceive a very generous amount of detail and richness - of a kind that we actually usually associate much more readily with a very demanding hi-fi headset than with a gaming product. Admittedly, we cannot however promise that this little extra nervousness will be to everyone's taste, and some users will find it more difficult than others to get used to the slightly grainy side that it brings to the sound. In absolute terms, however, we can not blame him, especially since it works as well in music listening as on audiovisual content.

It might be feared that such a profile could cause some hearing fatigue during long listening sessions, but this is fortunately not the case. In the high mids, there is a slight dip in the cutting edge, around 3 and 4 kHz, a characteristic common to many gaming headsets; but it is here very little pronounced enough to cause no loss of naturalness or any deficit in presence. Instead, it prevents the sound from falling into hardness and relieves the ear on these frequencies which are those to which it is most sensitive. What's more, this frequency zone can once again boast impeccable precision, which allows the MMX 300 to shape an extremely clear soundstage, where the appreciation of distances to sound sources is perfectly easy. Already very effective in "simple" stereo, these qualities also go perfectly with binaural spatialization treatments such as Dolby Atmos for Headphones. Ideal for admiring the abundant soundscapes of today's games in great detail.

There is hardly that in the serious ones that one finds a small reservation to formulate towards the helmet of Beyerdynamic. Certainly perfectly clean, the low frequencies still lack sometimes an ounce of control and sharpness. We would certainly not qualify them as messy, but we can find them slightly purring and too little "punchy". Rest assured, the overall sound base remains more than satisfactory, in particular thanks to an excellent extension of the sub-bass that easily descends below 20 Hz.

At the time of the final assessment, this small annoyance therefore does not prevent the MMX 300 from being close to excellence in terms of audio reproduction and hovering well above the mass of headsets "for players".

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Microphone

As we said above, the Beyerdynamic MMX300 is equipped with a non-detachable and non-retractable gooseneck microphone. However, the pivot on which it is mounted allows a wide latitude as to its placement in front of the mouth - all the more since the malleability of the pole is ideal.

As for the voice capture that this microphone offers, it is simply impeccable. Not only is the timbre of the voice reproduced in a perfectly natural way, but the extreme directivity of the microphone means that almost no surrounding noise risks disturbing its intelligibility. The icing on the cake, the included windshield provides extremely effective protection against breath noise and plosives. Absolute flawless.

! [. Signal amplified to +10 dB, no other processing applied.] (An oral conversation takes place less than 3 meters away)

Finally, note the fairly high sensitivity of the microphone, which allows you to be heard perfectly by your game partners even without having to activate any amplification. At most, people with particularly calm voices can allow themselves +10 dB - but be careful not to get too caught up in the heat of the moment: saturation awaits ...

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Conclusion

The Beyerdynamic MMX 300 easily establishes itself as a reference for headsets - not to say the reference. It benefits from its first-rate sound reproduction, just tinged with a light but fairly incisive V signature, which could slightly disconcert some users; but this is only a matter of personal preference. Add to that a microphone among the very best encountered on a gaming headset, excellent comfort, a robust design - except for these damn analog volume controls - and easily repairable ... You have to search long to find small reproaches to do to this helmet .

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