Nacon has just unveiled its latest wireless gaming headset, and the RIG R8 Spectre Pro HS has a few tricks up its sleeve. With its signature charging hub at its side, and 40mm graphene-layered drivers up front, this is already an interesting proposition – but it’s those extra 2.4GHz receivers that have piqued my interest today.
The headset itself is launching at $179.99 – not too shabby when you consider competitors with similar features range from $150 to $400. At its core, though, the RIG R8 Spectre Pro HS wants to run all your systems in one go, swapping between them at the touch of a button. For that, you’ll also need to shell out an extra $24.99 per dongle – but it could well be worth it.
Nacon RIG R8 Spectre Pro HS
Nacon’s latest gaming headset hits the shelves today, with the RIG R8 Spectre Pro HS offering up 2.4GHz, Bluetooth, and wired connections, a dedicated charging base, 40mm graphene drivers tuned for competitive gameplay, and memory foam padding around both the headband and cups.
Plenty of other headsets have aimed at the same use-case. The Logitech Astro A50 X is the most expensive, coming in at a whopping $399.99 (Amazon). You’re getting the same base station design and graphene drivers, with the additional benefit of KVM HDMI switching.
There are some caveats, though, that make the RIG R8 Spectre Pro HS all the more interesting. First up, Bluetooth is tied directly to Astro’s base station. That means you can’t connect to anything when you’re out of the hub’s range. Next, you’ll need to hard-wire your systems to the hub itself, so you better have your Switch, Xbox, PC, and PlayStation all in the same setup.
The R8 Spectre Pro sidesteps Astro’s issues with separate dongles, that can travel anywhere you need them to. You’re losing that nifty image swapping, but trading it out for a far more versatile experience – for a fraction of the price.
That’s this headset’s biggest strength. Each dongle comes in at $24.99, pushing the final price up to $204.98 if you’re picking up one additional receiver. You do, however, have to weigh up the benefits of this easy connection while moving into a slightly higher price bracket to get it.
Next on the hit list we have the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2, a $199.99 option that keeps your 2.4GHz and Bluetooth connections in a simpler dongle package. There are no additional connections available for this model, so that multi-platform experience is less streamlined, you’re getting a shorter 50 hour battery, and there’s no base station charging involved. However, the Nova 7s do offer simultaneous audio across both calls and music, whereas Nacon’s offering only supports the former. SteelSeries’ device also comes with a mobile app stocked with over 300 game sound-engineered game presets to choose from – a personal favorite of mine.
| Header Cell – Column 0 |
Nacon RIG R8 Spectre Pro HS |
Astro A50 X |
SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 |
Logitech G Pro X 2 Lightspeed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Price |
$179.99 |
$399.99 |
$199.99 |
$279.99 |
|
Drivers |
40mm graphene |
40mm graphene |
40mm Neodymium magnetic |
50mm graphene |
|
Connectivity |
2.4GHz, Bluetooth, wired (USB-C) |
2.4GHz, Bluetooth |
2.4GHz, Bluetooth, wired (3.5mm) |
2.4GHz, Bluetooth, wired (3.5mm) |
|
Simultaneous audio |
Calls only |
Full simultaneous connection |
Full simultaneous connection |
No simultaneous audio |
|
Compatibility |
Xbox version most widely compatible, additional dongles available |
Multiplatform (single hub connection) |
Xbox version most widely compatible |
PC, PlayStation, Switch, mobile only |
|
Software |
Mobile app – EQ, mic, custom profiles |
Logitech G Hub (PC) |
Mobile app – preset profiles |
Logitech G Hub (PC) |
|
Battery |
60 hours |
26 hours |
50 hours |
50 hours |
|
Charging |
Base station and wired |
Base station and wired |
Wired |
Wired |
|
Weight |
364g |
363g |
332g |
345g |
If easy, versatile multiplatform play is your primary goal, the RIG R8 Spectre Pro is well worth investigating further. That 60 hour battery life punches slightly above the $179.99 price tag, you’re covered for all major platforms and connections, and you’ve got the luxury of base station charging and competitively tuned graphene drivers. That’s a pretty compelling package for the cash.
We’re also hunting down the best PS5 headsets and the best Xbox Series X headsets, or check out the best Nintendo Switch headsets for something more portable.
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