Is The Tritton Kama Better Than Xbox One’s Standard Headset?

For those of you who own an Xbox One, you might have noticed that the standard Xbox One Chat headset included with the Xbox is a piece of crap. More than likely it will break within a year, as I have learned first hand. A replacement headset will set you back $25 brand new or $17.99 used from Gamestop.

Another option is to purchase a third party headset. Now I’ll admit I’ve never used one of these stereo headsets until I purchased the Tritton Kama, so I was in for a bit of a surprise. Having spent some quality time with the headset I’m ready to give my feedback on whether or not its worth the price.

The setup

Now unlike a standard headset, stereo headsets require setup. There’s a quick setup guide (the closet thing you’ll get to an instruction manual), a mini USB chord and of course the adapter. The setup is pretty straight-forward and you will need to update your controller (yes that’s a thing now).

I would advise anyone going through process to not wear the headset during this process. The setup is necessary due to fact that the Xbox One was not equipped for third party headsets. Overall the setup is fairly painless and shouldn’t take more than a couple minutes.

Design And Durability

The headset itself is made mostly of plastic and has a glossy black finish. It’s adjustable for people of various head shapes.  In addition the speakers rotate 90 degrees for easier storage. There is also some padding on the outside to provide comfort. The microphone itself is made of metal and is flexible. Tritton’s Xbox adapter is comparable to one that Microsoft sells with buttons that adjust both the game’s volume and the chat volume.

Due to the limited or therefore lack of a instruction booklet, I had issues figuring out the game volume buttons and experienced some moments where the game volume drowned out the chat volume. Another complaint I have seems to be echoed by other consumers and this is the the way the speakers fit around your ears. Anyone with larger ears might experience discomfort during extended gaming sessions.

The durability is something I have reservations about since it’s made of plastic. The part that seems the most flimsy is the headset adapter. It doesn’t fit the controller as tightly as it could, but it is replaceable.

The Sound

Obviously this is were it counts. To be honest I was looking for a no frills alternative to the standard chat headset and my expectations were undoubtedly exceeded. Having never used a stereo headset I was blown away by the quality sound.

As anyone who has played hours of online multiplayer will tell you, being able to hear someone trying to sneak up on you is a major plus. Having the game sound come through headset is useful for anyone who plays during late night sessions and doesn’t want to wake a roommate.

The Verdict

The Kama stereo headset by Tritton isn’t perfect but at a retail price of $29.99 I’d recommend it to anyone who needs a replacement headset and doesn’t want to break the bank. It’s certainly better for communicating with your teammates than through the Kinect’s built in mic and TV speakers. Considering Christmas is around the corner, you can probably score a good deal on any headset comparable or better. Either way I would ditch the Xbox One Chat headset.

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