Description
What the Audeze Penrose Is and Who It Suits
The Audeze Penrose is a wireless gaming headset aimed at console and computer players. The listing gives the model name as Penrose BT, the model number as 205-PS-1121-01, and describes it as being for PlayStation, Mac, PC and Nintendo Switch in a black finish. Bluetooth 5.0 is listed alongside a wireless connection, with a detachable cable, a lithium polymer battery, a 3 hour charging time, and an over-ear earpiece shape. Noise Control is listed as Sound Isolation, meaning passive isolation from the closed cups rather than active cancellation.
Audeze is a headphone manufacturer that entered gaming from the audiophile side rather than the other way around, and the Penrose reflects that: it is sold on sound quality rather than on lighting effects or software suites. The buyer is a player who cares more about how a game sounds than about the accessories that usually accompany gaming gear. Players comparing this against conventional headphones used for gaming should look at the Audio-Technica ATH-M30x, and console owners might also consider the PlayStation Pulse Explore earbuds.
Dual Wireless: Low Latency Link and Bluetooth Together
The most useful feature in this design is that it carries two radios. The primary wireless connection handles game audio, and Bluetooth 5.0 runs alongside it. That combination solves a real problem for console players: the game audio arrives over the dedicated low latency link while a phone stays connected over Bluetooth for a party chat, a call or music. On a headset with a single radio, those two uses compete and one has to be dropped.
The dedicated wireless link matters for a second reason. Standard Bluetooth adds enough latency that audio can lag visibly behind the picture in a fast game, which is why gaming headsets almost always use a proprietary low latency connection for the game itself and reserve Bluetooth for secondary audio. The listing gives Bluetooth 5.0 for the secondary link but does not state the latency of the primary one. Players who want to compare against a wired approach with no latency at all should look at the Dell WH3022 Pro headset.
Microphone, Controls and Compatibility
Cable Feature is listed as Detachable, which for a gaming headset normally covers both the boom microphone and the wired audio connection. A detachable boom is a practical benefit for anyone who uses the same headset for gaming and for listening away from a desk, since a permanently attached boom looks conspicuous outside the house and gets in the way. The listing does not publish a microphone pattern, frequency response or sample rate, so voice quality cannot be assessed from the retail data.
Compatibility is listed as tablets, gaming consoles, personal computers and smartphones, and the style field names PlayStation, Mac, PC and Switch. Console compatibility is the detail that trips buyers up most often, because the same headset can behave differently on PlayStation and Xbox hardware depending on which wireless standards each platform allows. Anyone buying for a specific console should confirm the supported connection method for that platform in Audeze’s own documentation. Players who use a desktop microphone instead of a boom will find options in the vocal microphone category.
Build, Weight and Wearing Comfort
Material is listed as Plastic, and Earpiece Shape as Over-ear. A closed over-ear cup provides passive isolation, which is what the Sound Isolation entry under Noise Control refers to, and it also keeps game audio from leaking into an open microphone. There is no active noise cancellation in this design.
Weight is the one physical figure a gaming headset buyer really needs, since sessions run long, and the listing’s answer cannot be right. Item Weight is given as 4 ounces, which would make this among the lightest full size headsets ever built and is inconsistent with a wireless over-ear design containing a battery, two radios and a headband. The figure should be treated as unreliable and checked against Audeze’s published specification. Readers who want to compare against a full size wireless headphone with a published weight can look at the Sony WH-CH710N or browse the wider over-ear headphones selection.
Highlights
- Dual wireless design with Bluetooth 5.0 running alongside the primary game audio link.
- Detachable boom microphone, so the headset works away from a gaming desk.
- Listed for PlayStation, Mac, PC and Nintendo Switch.
- Closed over-ear cups with passive sound isolation.
- Lithium polymer battery included, with a 3 hour charging time listed.
- Made by a manufacturer whose main business is full size headphones rather than gaming accessories.
Things To Consider
The customer rating on the source listing is the first thing a buyer should weigh. It stands at 3.4 stars across 416 ratings, which is notably low for a product at this level and well below the scores carried by most headsets in the category. A score of that shape across several hundred buyers usually points to a consistent problem rather than isolated bad units, and prospective buyers should read recent buyer feedback carefully before committing. This review reports the score rather than diagnosing the cause, because the listing data does not explain it.
Several specification entries are unreliable. Item Weight of 4 ounces is implausible for a wireless over-ear headset. Battery Life is listed as 80 hours in two separate fields, a figure far outside the range normal for a gaming headset running two radios, and it should be verified against the manufacturer before it influences a decision. Control Type is listed as Voice Control and Control Method as Touch, while gaming headsets of this type are normally operated with physical dials and buttons. Frequency Range is given as the phrase wide, covering human audible frequency range, which is not a specification at all. Product Dimensions of 11.7 x 9.9 x 4.8 inches describe the package.
Structurally, there is no active noise cancellation, the battery is not user replaceable, and the listing publishes no driver size or type. The product first became available in August 2020, so it is an older design in a category that has moved quickly since.
Who Should Buy It, and Who Should Not
The Penrose makes sense for a player who wants game audio and a phone connection at the same time, who values a detachable boom, and who is buying primarily on the manufacturer’s audio reputation. The dual radio design is the feature that genuinely differentiates it.
It does not make sense for a buyer who wants reassurance from the review score, since 3.4 stars across 416 ratings is a warning worth taking seriously. It also does not suit someone who needs a published weight and battery figure they can trust, because this listing does not provide either reliably. Those buyers should consider a wired headphone with a separate microphone instead.