Røde NTH-100

The NTH-100 looks like a classic over-ear headphone, however, this is a bit different. While not being solely made for professional use, Røde does make a lot of pro products, and this is more akin to a pro-grade product than it would like you to believe, and aimed at more serious content creators, video and music editors. In short, it's not exactly what gamers would look for, and that is why you should consider it.

It does mean that the NTH-100 lacks something very basic for a gaming headset: there is no microphone. However, that can be purchased on the side, as Røde makes an attachable microphone specifically for this model, but if you have a "real" standalone microphone, or like me, just don't fancy talking with other human beings, then you don't need to pay for it. If you are really lazy, Røde actually has a separate SKU, the NTH-100M where the microphone is included.

The NTH-100 may be a studio design, but does offer some creature comforts for gaming users such as cooling gel in the ear cushions, which are clad in Alcantara. The same with the FitLok headband adjustment system, which makes it very easy to get just the right fit.

While Røde in general does have a sober marketing language, especially compared to many gaming brands (I still don't understand what an "acoustic construction" entails) and cooling gel isn't exactly 'revolutionary' - as this has been in the market for at least a decade - the Røde implementation works really well. Also, while neodymium magnets might be made of a rare-earth metal, it is not uncommon, to the level that most studio equipment from the last decade if not more, and a lot of even mid-range gaming headsets, have also used it for years.

However, there are a lot of areas that are spot on. It is clearly meant for more professional use, meaning frequency response is more linear and accurate. The earcups are very comfortable with its memory foam and great passive noise cancellation, and more interestingly, the detachable cables with TRRS connectors can be connected in either earcup, which is something I haven't seen before, and it really does add some flexibility when combined with a cable length of 2.4 metres. Oh, and there is a useful lifetime warranty to boot.

The 40mm drivers are 'custom made' - meaning it's done by hand one would assume, and "precision crafted" - and if they are crafted by hand and not not made by a machine, the pricing is even more impressive.

The drivers have a custom aluminium voice coil and a mylar diaphragm coupled with a neodymium magnet system. There are also colour coded rings, and a 3.5mm to a quarter-inch adapter included, and the earcup and headband cushions are replaceable. It's all pretty nice for a £130 headset - which is about half the price of truly premium gaming headsets.

With a sensitivity of 110dB and an impedance of 32 Ohm, I sort of expected them to be relatively easy to operate, but no, I strongly recommend extra amplification, as in all fairness, they are not made for front ports on your computer. The 32 Ohm does make it possible for the headphone amplifiers on a motherboard to work, but they do need a real amplifier to perform correctly. That way you can also get surround sound as, like most headsets on the market, these do not actually offer surround, but get a decoded surround signal from a DAC that does all the lifting, thus negating one of the draw backs of using a dedicated stereo headset for gaming. So, anything with an active amplification works, but they do require some quality power behind it for optimal performance.

The sound isn't completely neutral, but is clearly aimed at a linear reproduction. These are by far some of the most high resolution headphones I have used in this price range, in regard to actual clarity in both mid-range and bass, while giving a coherent sound profile. However, fully neutral they are not. I used them with a lot of music and as many games as possible, and by design these are very bass heavy, and therefore not always easy to detect tonality with. They have a slightly raised bass from the mid-range, while treble and high mid-range is raised a lot more. However, unless you listen to violin and piano music, you won't notice, but I wouldn't use them for mixing classical music anyway. However, if they are tuned to the Harman Reference then this frequency response would be excellent, as the Harman Reference is what more and more are aiming for, as its target isn't to be linear, but to be the most pleasant to listen to with emphasis on voice recognition. It really makes a lot of sense to tune headphones in this way.

At half the price of premium hardcore gaming headphones, you get a lot with the NTH-100, including a mic if you splash out a few extra pennies. While the surround may require an external system with a sound card in it, so does a lot of the competition. As for the sound quality, this is above what we are used to as gamers, and the great comfort in everyday use is just the cherry on top. Røde has made a strong first attempt at good quality headphones without the price becoming completely bananas.