Giannis Antetokounmpo wearing the JBL Endurance Peak II Wireless headphones.

The Logitech G Pro X, SteelSeries Arctis Pro, and HyperX Cloud II are popular gaming headsets among top esports players due to their durability, high-quality sound, and clear microphone capabilities.

Beats by Dre is NBA's current headphones sponsor and for good reason. A lot of NBA players use and endorse their products. Most notably, NBA stars such as LeBron James, James Harden, and Anthony Davis have all been seen sporting Beats Studio3 headphones before entering the court.

So why do esports players wear two headsets? The answer is simple: the over-ear headphones or headsets the event organizers provide are typically used to eliminate external noise in the tournament. The ones on their necks are from sponsors that players must show as part of their contract.

All Reviews

The headphones that the pro-gamers are wearing over their head pump out white noise to aid in dampening crowd noise and voice-overs of the commentators that would give away the other players' positions in the game. They use earbuds underneath the headphones to hear the game audio and their teammates.

One of the most popular BTS collaborations with Samsung was for the company's Galaxy Buds Live earbuds, with the guys filming a mock “proposal” video using the earbuds and their wireless case.

Noise-cancelling headphones keep sound out, so players can focus on their game audio and team chat. Noise-isolating headsets prevent sounds other than your voice from being picked up by the mic. Both of these features are very important, but the better each performs, the higher the cost of the headset will be.

IMMERSIVE AUDIO But with a gaming headset, the audio is direct and up-close in your eardrums without any of the sound of your room added in, making for a much more immersive experience.

Most of JBL's headphones have decent build quality, but the ones we've tested feel plasticky, especially given their price range. No open-back models. While it may not be an issue for casual listeners, JBL lacks an open-back model to create more spacious soundstages suited for audiophiles.

Headphones are bigger, so they've got a wider soundstage which lets you hear every tiny sound in the game, making it more enjoyable. They've got some great bass for those intense moments – like when you're creeping around the battlefield.

Gaming headsets are also gatekeepers, in a sense. They not only keep the sound of the room out of your ears, they also keep the sounds of your game out of the room. For those playing in a household with people who might not want to hear your latest victory on the digital field of battle, this is a major benefit.