Sony Inzone H9 II review: A lightweight marvel

When Sony launched its Inzone gaming sub-brand, it was adamant, right from the start, that it was aiming at PC gamers and not those on its PlayStation 5 consoles. But the prominent white-and-black designs seemed to disagree, echoing the loud-and-proud PS5 visual.

Now, though, it's doubling down with the Inzone H9 II, and thanks to some big upgrades and redesigns, its PC gaming credentials are clearer. While the new headset might not look like a PS5 accessory, I've still been using it with my PS5 Pro and Nvidia PC to see if it can earn its worth as one of the best gaming headsets.

Price and Availability

Sony launched its new range of Inzone gear and accessories in late 2025, and they're now all available to purchase, including the H9 II. The headset is the most expensive in the Inzone lineup, and comes in at £299.99 in the UK, $349.99 in the US and €349.99 in the EU, making it a premium option for sure.

Design and Features

There's very little in common between the original Inzone H9 and this new version visually – stand them side by side and that would be pretty immediately obvious. Sony has redesigned the cans from the ground up, and I have to say that results are really pleasing both to look at and to wear.

The H9 II comes in either a totally black design or a white one that looks at least a little more familiar, but either way the huge change here is a brand new headband system. The H9 II has a rigid but fabric-covered arch over it, under which is suspended a cushioned headband to suspend the headset's weight over your head.

It's a system much like the one used by SteelSeries on its headsets, and can be really easily adjusted on either side of your head using clicky buttons. It also gives the headset an impressively barebones look and feel, which is only enhanced by the fact that it weighs just 260g without the microphone plugged in.

The earcups, meanwhile, are as plain as you could like, each one offering a matte expanse of plastic on the outside, with the inside cup holding a decent but not class-leading amount of cushioning.

There's a removable boom microphone which is clearly directional, as can easily be seen from its design. It's a shame this isn't stowable, rather than removable, since I find this is a hugely user-friendly choice for those who play multiplayer and singleplayer games interchangeably.

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On those earcups, meanwhile, you also get a range of controls and inputs. On the left, there's a USB-C port for charging, a 3.5mm port as a backup for wired audio, a button to toggle between active noise-cancelling (ANC) and ambient modes, and then a volume wheel to control your master volume while playing. On the top of this earcup there's also a textured toggle to mute your mic.

The right earcup, meanwhile, has a recessed power button, a Bluetooth pairing button, and a rocker to change the balance between your chat and in-game volumes, which is super handy – but doesn't work on PS5, only on PC. Those are all the controls you're liable to need, regardless.

The headset also comes with a small USB-C dongle for its 2.4GHz wireless connectivity, and you have the option of being simultaneously connected to Bluetooth while using it, for those who like a dual-audio setup.

On the battery front, you'll get 30 hours on a charge, which is about par for the course at this point, although many headsets at this steep price point either far exceed this number or have systems to let you swap batteries out to avoid being caught short, so this isn't too impressive from Sony.

What's better is the inclusion of noise-cancelling that takes cues from the class-leading WH-1000XM6 headphones that I loved testing this year (as feature in our best ANC headphones guide). It's a good thing it's there, too, as the lightweight nature of the H9 II means its passive seal isn't too great, making this one of the less cocooning headsets out there until you turn on the ANC. This headset uses the exact same audio drivers, too.

While you'll draw your own conclusions about how the H9 II looks, I'm a big fan of its toned-down new design and stripped-back aesthetic. Crucially, it also results in a very light headset that's extremely comfortable to use even for hours at a time (as I proved to myself with some all-day Battlefield 6 sessions). The slight downside there is that it makes the headset feel a little less premium in build terms, but that's a common enough factor and not really a criticism.

You get a nice zip-up carrying bag in the box, too, along with charging cables, which is a final welcome bonus – it even has an external pocket, making it more useful than many others I've seen.

Performance and Sound

When Sony announced the Inzone H9 II, it confirmed that it was using the exact same physical drivers in the headset as it does in the superb WH-1000XM6, which is quite the pedigree. I loved those headphones when I reviewed them, so Sony's news was indeed quite a hype-builder.

In practice, those hoping that the H9 II might be for headsets what the XM6s are for headphones could be a little disappointed by their sound performance, though, which falls into the 'very solid' category rather than being truly exemplary. This is a precise and well-rounded headset, but not one to redefine the category, ultimately.

I used the headset to play a good chunk of Ghost of Yotei and a whole heap of Battlefield 6, the latter on both PS5 Pro and PC – two games that have pretty superb audio design. Both sounded excellent through the H9 II, with a good amount of detail captured but also enough heft that explosions and moments of drama had real impact.

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Compared to a pricier headset like the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite, which I tested recently and use whenever I'm not reviewing a headset, there's a slight drop-off in pin-drop clarity, perhaps, but the gap isn't gigantic. Still, there are times when its tuning feels not-quite-perfect in a way that can be hard to pin down.

This sound is basically no good out of the box for music, in case you were wondering, although you can tweak some EQ settings in a companion app fairly easily to amend things. I'm not convinced many people buy at this price with both gaming and normal use in mind, but if those are your intentions, it might be worth reconsidering.

What's more impressive is the headset's ANC, which does a good job of tuning out background noise. Sony's headphones are excellent in this regard, and the H9 II comes into the top bracket of gaming headset implementations. That's welcome, since (as I've mentioned), the headset is really light and doesn't seal too tightly, making the ANC quite a necessity to get proper isolation.

Thankfully, while I'm a little disappointed at its design, the included microphone is a very good one, which captured my voice really cleanly without any tweaks needed out of the box. This is a must in a headset at this price, and Sony has nailed it.

I found battery life lived up to Sony's claimed 30 hours with ANC turned on, and if you turn it off then you can expect to eke out a good few hours more. That isn't a class-leading number, either, but it is solid enough not to be a major issue.

The included dongle also has a PC mode and "other" mode for console pairing, which is easily clicked between with a switch. I found connectivity solid even when I moved around between rooms while connected, and Bluetooth was similarly reliable.

Verdict

My first impressions of the Inzone H9 II were extremely strong – the headset's one of the most lightweight and comfy I've tried in ages, and I really like the new design.

Its sound performance isn't quite so stellar, though, and its battery life is right in the middle of the road, leaving Sony with some more areas to improve.

If you like the look of it, though, and want a headset that almost feels like it isn't there at times, along with some of the best ANC I've tried in a gaming device, then it's a very solid option indeed.

Also consider

It's the top of my list of the best gaming headsets for a reason, and I'd say the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless remains the headset to beat at this premium price. Its sound is better than Sony's, and has a heap more features, although it's more substantial on the head.

If you'd like to take one step down on the budget front but still get a really excellent set of cans for your gaming, then the Razer BlackShark V2 Pro is a great choice. They're again heavier and chunkier, but sound great, and come in quite a lot more affordably.