Audeze Maxwell: the new Rolls of portable/gaming headphones?

In 2020, Audeze, a manufacturer of high-end hi-fi headphones, entered the headphone market gaming wireless with the Penrose. A successful first step into the world of wireless gaming, which undoubtedly convinced the brand to push the cursor even further. With the Maxwell, Audeze thus wishes to combine the best of the “gaming headset” format with that of the “nomadic headset”.

A premium look and the promise of hi-fi sound that feels on the scale

The first feature demonstrating this wish is displayed through the design of the helmet. Unlike many models gaming, the Maxwell is extremely sober with its matte black dress, its absence of RGB lighting and a conventional appearance. The materials contribute to giving a very premium look to the helmet. The headband is made of steel, the sliding temples of aluminum, the shells of plastic and the memory foam pads covered with imitation leather. An adjustable hanging headband completes the set.

The use of these materials also weighs on the scale: count 490 g for this Maxwell (for example, the Sony WH-1000XM4 weighs 255 g and the Audeze Penrose 320 g). A noticeable weight which is also due to the use of 90 mm planar magnetic speakers. This technology, very present on Audeze headphones, is in theory less sensitive to the effects of distortion and reproduces more precise bass than the very widespread dynamic speakers.

Wide choice of connectors

In order to affirm its hybrid gaming/nomadic concept, the Maxwell has many connection possibilities. It can thus communicate in wireless mode using a USB-C adapter, or be used in Bluetooth. Moreover, the Maxwell is Bluetooth 5.3 compatible and is ready to accommodate the new Bluetooth LE Audio technologies, as it supports the LC3 and LC3Plus codecs in addition to the LDAC. We invite you to read our dedicated article for further explanations.

In addition to these wireless links, the Maxwell has a mini-jack input and can be connected via its USB-C port.

Technologies do you want some here

The Maxwell comes with a detachable gooseneck hypercardioid mic. This was developed in partnership with Shure and promises a real performance boost compared to what Audeze did previously. The headset also features a set of five microphones beamforming serving in the case of nomadic use.

This model can obviously be managed via the Windows Audeze HQ app, which includes many parameters such as an equalizer, microphone settings, as well as options to improve immersion. In addition, the Maxwell promises a daunting autonomy of more than 80 hours, which would make it one of the most enduring headphones on the market. On paper, it has everything to please. The icing on the cake, however, could have been the presence of an active noise reduction function, but it will not be for this time.

The Maxwell is already available across the Atlantic for $299 for the PS5/PC version and $329 for the Xbox/PC version (a Dolby Atmos for Headphones license is offered with the latter). The helmet will probably be released in early 2023 in France at around 300 €.