Summary
As you’ve probably heard, the HyperX Cloud II is a popular gaming headphone that provides 7.1 virtual surround sound. It is capable of providing full-range sound performance for music performances, and deliver great sound effects for cinematic movie scenes. These headphones come equipped with 53mm drivers with neodymium magnets for high quality music transmission. It also has a circumaural ear-cup design that feels very comfortable over the ears.
In terms of bass performance, the HyperX Cloud 2 is fairly decent although the bass isn’t on the level of more bass-heavy headphones such as the Meze 99 classics or ATH M50x. The bass feels controlled and well-defined, and has a subtle background feel to it. The bass does not feel overwhelming or bloated, but neither does the headphone fully develop the lower-frequency bass response range as much as the ATH M50x or Meze 99 Classics do.
How good is the bass on the HyperX Cloud 2?
The bass response on the HyperX Cloud 2 headphones is decent although nothing much to shout home about. It does reproduce the lower-end spectrum nicely and you can hear bits of solid lows and drops. The bass from this headphone is subtle and reverberates through the background, but doesn’t stand out as “bass” on its own. It’s always integrated with the midrange and highs to create a 3D surround sound effect.
Where the HyperX Cloud 2 shines is the 3D spatial surround sound that you get from these headphones. It has a way of allowing you to hear where each sound is coming from and the originating direction of each sound effect. The bass does not feel bloated or muddy into the midrange frequencies. You could probably adjust the EQ settings to boost up the bass response by a bit, but we wouldn’t recommend going down this route as it may affect the overall sound performance of these headphones.
Design
The HyperX Cloud headphones has a noise cancelling microphone via inline sound card, and a wide frequency range between 15 to 25 kHz. The circumaural design provides good sound isolation and blocks up to 20 dB of background noises. We also liked the fact that the Hyper X headphones comes with memory foam ear pads with extra set of velour ear padding and a detachable microphone. The microphone is even TeamSpeak certified and optimized for clarity.
The Cloud II headphones are designed for gamers, but can produce excellent 7.1 surround sound around the ears. It delivers vibrant sound effects with distance and depth to enhance music, gaming and movies. These headphones are essentially plug and play and no additional driver is required. The noise-cancelling microphone comes with an automatic gain control and echo cancellation enabled through the sound card for better voice quality and reduced background noise. We particularly liked the 53mm drivers which deliver rich lows, crystal clear mids and crisp highs with enhanced bass response.
The Verdict?
We would say that the HyperX Cloud II has a fun sound signature, with a tendency towards a V-shaped frequency range that enhances the low-end and highs. The bass on these headphones is decent and sublime, but nothing to shout home about. You can feel the bass and know that it’s there in your in-game sound, but these headphones will not prioritize the bass effects over the midrange or treble frequency ranges.
The HyperX Cloud II headphones connects to PCs and Macs using USB, and is 3.5mm stereo compatible with other devices. You can also easily toggle the surround sound 7.1 syste, on or off with a touch of a button depending on your music preferences.