REVIEW: Sony PlayStation PULSE Explore Wireless Earbuds w/ Lossless Audio for PS5 Gaming | Hands-on

[@andrewc31394]

At $200 I never understood why people are so obsessed with nothing but bass. I would take finer detail and clarity over overwhelming bass any day

[@tresbb03]

My man!

[@GevatterToth]

Thats The way Bro!

[@Redstar19791979]

I’m absolutely loving my pulse explore earbuds. I just replaced the ear tips with beats fit pro replacement ear tips on Amazon. It fits in my ear absolutely perfectly! No discomfort whatsoever. Sound quality is exceptional! Battery life could be better.

[@ecoustics]

That’s fantastic! Glad you’re enjoying them.

[@Awoken-]

Can you hear footsteps, gunshots, etc as good as regular headphones with them?

[@coprice94]

​@Awoken- yes but the microphone sucks

[@Awoken-]

@@coprice94 damn

[@ilovestiggers]

Thanks for the alt tips... tip!

[@jasonyau5666]

Thanks for the video. I currently own the Sony Inzone Buds and I am curious about the sound quality difference between these two pairs. If the Pulse Explore performs like 15-20%+ better in sound quality, I will grab it specifically for gaming purposes. Do you think it is worth to get this purely just for sound quality in gaming, considering I already own the Inzone Buds?

[@zanychelly]

I have the Inzone buds, to be honest, I found them pretty good. I’m even comparing it against my Audeze Maxwell. Not sure if worth going from the Inzone to the pulse explore, but, with the pulse explore, you could in the future changes some Eqs on the PS5 itself. But personally, I wouldn’t go for it, I would spend the money on the Audeze Maxwell or the upcoming Pulse Elite.

[@pjw4125]

How do you connect the inzones to your PlayStation 5? I’m guessing you had to buy some sort of Bluetooth adapter?

[@zanychelly]

@@pjw4125 the Inzone buds already comes with a USB-C WiFi dongle. Ready for the PS5/PS4 and PC. Switch via Bluetooth.

[@pjw4125]

@@zanychelly oh really? Nice to know. Funny how these PlayStation earbuds don’t include it.

[@zanychelly]

@@pjw4125 the pulse explore uses a usb dongle and the PlayStation link, which is a proprietary connection for the Ps Portal.

[@savvourasjr.2854]

hey, nice review. Are you planning to review the inzone buds and compare them with the explores? I'd really like to see a comparison!

[@HMSKingGamsREX]

I'm in love with my pulse explore earbuds. Reason #1 is they are capable of linking to the PlayStation and to my Android device and I've not experienced any bugs when using it to talk on the phone and if your a hardcore gamer like me then it when it gets to grind time you'll stream series or movies. Reason #2 they work for about 5 hours straight However it only takes 40 minutes to 60 minutes to fully charge again. I'm finally reason #3 They actually look really nice. If your looking for a really decent headset then I would suggest investing in a pair of these they do cost £200 GBP but they'll work for years to come but I also Eva adding them to your home insurance contents insurance or you pay for extended warranty.

[@ecoustics]

Thanks for the feedback. Glad you love them.

[@SwizzulGaming]

The review, editing, presentation made me think this was a 500k sub channel. High quality video my friend

[@ecoustics]

Thanks for the kind words!

[@simonkammeyer4334]

In your opinion. What headset or ear Bud have the best mic for talking with friends? The clearest with least background noise.

[@THSP31011]

Listening to this on the pulse explores. The bass between your talking points sounds so clean. I agree with your audio level as well. After playing the first song on Spotify to test them, I hit max volume just on the first song. However it was still loud, just not the "hurt my ears please" level when you're really really trying to get into a song. But they definitely aren't lacking in volume. Ear fit is so so crucial as you mentioned. I need to use different sizes per ear and once I got the right fit on both the quality boosted tremendously. Haven't tested mic yet

[@ecoustics]

Appreciate the feedback. Thanks!

[@chrisheraldo3943]

Is audio quality still good despite having no active noise canceling?

[@THSP31011]

@@chrisheraldo3943 it's good but not $200 good

[@joesipr]

mines are too low in spotify how can fix that??

[@THSP31011]

@joesipr if you have all your audio put up, then there isn't. These just don't put out that loud. They only reach that slightly under comfortably loud volume. I have mine at max always.

[@xenor9262]

Hi, did you check by any chance if those work one at a time, especially with Bluetooth? Some earbuds only do both or right, can't use left alone.

[@carkdonwah1528]

Just got mine and I’m so disappointed in the lack of low end bass. I play a lot of Division 2 and the weapons sound terrible with the earbuds. My AirPods Pro through bluetooth adapter sound way better. I truly hope they send a firmware update out that improves the bass.

[@chrisheraldo3943]

Is audio quality still good despite having no active noise canceling?

[@zanychelly]

Sorry for the lack of knowledge, but is there other planar magnetic driver in ear buds form? I find amazing that they managed to shrink down planar drivers, my audeze Maxwell is amazing, but heavy and large.

[@bernieful60]

Great review - I just got my pair of Pulse Explore today - was sorely disappointed with the lack of sound profiles / EQ facility as well. They are comfortable enough, sound good but could definitely be enhanced with the availability of even the most basic of EQ options. Pretty average of Sony to charge this price point and then leave out something that is pretty standard on many headphones these days. Think I have learned my lesson to avoid at all costs Sony's own offerings other than the PlayStation itself moving forward, as they regularly disappoint.

[@tomaszstarzZz]

I think the reason why there is no EQ, is because they meant to represent the sound as intended by game creators. I have Sony WH-1000XM5 and I have never used EQ as listening music as per how the musicians intended. Maybe if you write a complain letter/constructive feedback to Sony and few other people, they most likely will release an update with EQ controls. But you actually have to let them know.

[@pokeballx9943]

I completely agree, heavily dissatisfied with these buds, especially for that price range?! The pulse 3D are WAY better.

[@alexsmith6914]

I thought they were garbage. I got mine in the mail from Best Buy yesterday and returned them today. How was audio better on my phone than on my P55?? I’m just going to wait on the headset.

[@LaymanGamin]

Should have got the Sony in zone earbuds

[@alexsmith6914]

@@LaymanGamin I grabbed them because I got the Portal. I can’t believe that there are people saying they were impressed with the Pulse Explore Earbuds…

[@BeHempy]

Skill issue.

[@alexsmith6914]

@@BeHempy Whatever that means… Anyway, the headset blows those garbage earbuds out of the water.

[@SneakerD84]

Is it just me or do these not get very loud??? Mine honestly feel like they only reach about 75% volume.

[@clausbaumann8335]

I have it depending on the game I play between 60 to 80 percent of the available volume. For me that's totally fine, never did use 100 percent so far.

[@TRUMP_2024_PREZ]

THEY SOUND GOOD TO ME 😀😄😀

[@doc86-irl]

Mine too, I think the sound is bad also never mind the volume. Only i paid €220 they would be in the bin already.

[@rudyg6922]

Foam tips are a game changer

[@SneakerD84]

@@rudyg6922 info on the set you purchased? I’ve looked on Amazon but didn’t see any that said they were specifically compatible with the Explores. The set I picked up didn’t work and would come off easily…

[@angel_pro5932]

So what does it mean by having 10 hours in the case? Can you use them for 15 hours straight or they have to charge in the case, if so for how long until you can use them again?

[@ecoustics]

When the battery is empty, fully charging them takes approximately 40 minutes. If you want to use sooner, let them charge for 10 minutes to use for 1.5 hours.

[@angel_pro5932]

Thanks

[@anthonynoya1072]

Thanks for this review. And hello from Reunion island. ✌️

[@TerryTheTee]

Is it possible that Sidetone comes with a update?? the feature i mostly missed....

[@InvisionCommunity]

Has the mic been improved with updates

[@franktodarello538]

If these are only earbuds and they’re $199, why are the Pulse Elite headphones (coming out next month) going to be cheaper at $149? In my experience headphones always sound better than earbuds. Would you know why the headphones will be less expensive?

[@ecoustics]

We suspect the headphones must have lower manufacturing costs.

[@franktodarello538]

@@ecoustics Ahhh, perhaps the small size of the earbuds makes em more expensive to make

[@steelfan187]

is there a game/chat volume? so if i want more game i can turn that on over chat? or does it have to be done in the ps5

[@YoungShizzieGaming]

It’s almost like the mic is inside the headphones in your ear I like that

[@TheTieluh08]

I got the explore to, but mine keep losing connection to my ps5, and than reconnect, and sometimes they lose connection en dont even reconnect. Is there a solution? Are there more people having this problem?

[@EyeForKnowledge.]

Did you ever get this figured out? I’m sending my pulse elite back and thinking about these.

[@silversonic360]

The only additional feature I would care about is sidetone

[@simonkammeyer4334]

Thanks for your honest opinion. 👍🏼

[@brettostoich3495]

How is party chat with these ear buds?

[@savvourasjr.2854]

So if you have the sound on 100% does the battery last 5 hours or less?

[@kurtisgarner8108]

I'm sorry but the price tag on these is crazy. These are realistically worth $50-$75 max.

[@tonamg53]

You know there’s a bit more room to fit a mute button on a full-size headphones compares to on a wireless ear bud…😅 Alternative to a mute button on the ear buds is you can just take them off your ears… you basically spend the same amount of your energy as pressing a mute button on the ear buds

[@GevatterToth]

The mute Button is on the controller :D

[@YasserALSharifYasser]

Are they better than iPhone airbods

[@ecoustics]

Depends on your intended use case. For gaming, Sony should be better and have lower latency. For calls, AirPods should be better.

[@GMoneyXL1969]

There are so many options for gaming earbuds like Soundcore, ASUS, Razer, and INZONE. Do your research and choose wisely.

[@alh5470]

thes the only wireless earbuds with planar drivers?

[@pingilio93]

Does voice chat work when using just 1 earbud at a time?

[@tomaszstarzZz]

Like, you have music via your speakers and you are using only one ear bud to communicate?

[@degeautd40]

Great review 🇮🇪💪

[@sswes2476]

I just got them mine disconnected the first day a couple of times but I didn’t have to re-sync it it just reconnected immediately. Second day they didn’t disconnect at all.

[@wtfdude87]

Yeah same happen to me

[@Dryde85]

subbed for good quality.

[@ecoustics]

Not sure what you mean?

[@TheRedman790]

Trying to play God of war, blu rays of South park and the volume on max sounds so low. I've messed with all the settings I can access and watched videos. Dunno. Seems like a huge ripoff so far. My pulse headphones are much louder. Is there something I haven't thought of?

[@karaman4567]

The fit of the eartips is very important. I tried all of the tips provided by the pulse explore and the sound seems to be escaping, because they don´t fit well. Ended up taking off the eartips from another set of earbuds I own and placing them on the pulse explore buds and it solved all my issues.

[@TheRedman790]

@karaman4567 yeah I tried two sizes both smaller but was thinking maybe I needed the larger. I'll have to give them a try later. Thanks.

[@joesipr]

mine sound to low in the phone how cab fix that

[@sswes2476]

Hopefully they’ll add an even better EQ that what they have now

[@JosePerez-wo8rv]

I got mine 2 days ago and fit loose. I tried every ear tip included but had no luck. I thought of buying different tips but i paid $200 for this and i don't want to spend more money. I will be returning them.

[@ecoustics]

Sorry to hear they were too loose. Have you tried other earbuds that fit better?

[@JosePerez-wo8rv]

@@ecoustics I currently own the Samsung Galaxy buds 2 pro and they fit really nice.

[@michaelinzerilli3315]

I think they sound awesome. I mean most should know these features are missing before buying them I can see why too planar drivers are crazy expensive add all those extra features they knew they couldnt sel 3-4 hundred earbuds I think if you get these straight for sound etc they are good.

[@sadisticseabeastNZ]

My Pulse Explore EarBuds always disconnect when I'm playing PSVR2 games, anyone know why and how to please fix?

[@leejones1116]

Hi, did you find any answers regarding using them on PSVR2? thanks

[@sadisticseabeastNZ]

@@leejones1116 no, they're still the same, I'm not sure if they're faulty or a software update is needed, they seem to be fine when playing flat screen games, but when I want to use them with PSVR2 they disconnect and reconnect constantly, it's doing my head in, and I mainly bought them for use with PSVR2 as I have a nice surround sound system for flat screen games

[@tommy_77613]

And even a carpet drop…oh boy, all I needed to know

[@mikariekki5708]

I just hope that Sony wont take any design cues from this video and add lead weights the their next pair of earbuds/case...

[@DoomyRei]

I pre order it and I dont get it until the 21st

[@XiLock_Alotx]

I love these earbuds. And oddly my friends in party said I didn’t sound too odd. But it may bc a bunch of differing factors

[@tomaszstarzZz]

My mate appreciate noise cancelling on my side - they cannot hear me eating, drinking or moving my chair

[@shanemiller4108]

I cant get them to connect to my cellphone

[@halfmanamazing549]

The pulse explorer are good. Play cod on the portal and it sounds amazing , expecially gun fire and explosions. They sound so much better than using the portal speakiers. I only use the headphones for gamijg on the portal and i am.not a youtuber

[@ecoustics]

That’s great! Glad you’re enjoying them.

[@shanahelms6093]

@@ecoustics where did u find these at

[@tomaszstarzZz]

Bought them for PlayStation Portal as well 😅

[@ImQueen-p6g]

Do they fall out of your ears? I have jbl earbuds and they always fall out my ears

[@ecoustics]

With 6 earbud tips included, you should be able to find the right size so they don’t fall out.

[@ImQueen-p6g]

@@ecoustics I ended up buying the pulse 3d

[@רויטליהודה-פ8ו]

you forgot to say that you can control the volume only in playstation and not with the phone and that annoyng

[@degeautd40]

I can turn it up down with my phone

[@shanahelms6093]

Where r u finding these st

[@LaymanGamin]

Sold out til dec 22 or something like that. I ordered Sony in zone wayy better honestly. Spatially audio n hella features

[@mattebosky03]

HI. I'm only interested in listening to music at a high volume, are they powerful and of good quality? If I'm on a bus, can these earphones cover all types of noise?

[@tomaszstarzZz]

They only last 5 hours on a single charge, so you would prioritize them for gaming only and literally there is no bass there. If you also want to listen to music, get InZone ones as they last 12 hours on a single charge. I have Pulse Explore and they are terrible for music 😅 if you serious about music like me get Sony WH-1000XM5 - amazing quality, good bass and best Active Noise Cancelling - I also use them for gaming via cable plugged to the controller For me the best selling point of Pulse Explore is they cancel out your noise so well, you can drink, eat, move your chair and other players can’t hear it

[@clydemoya6353]

​@@tomaszstarzZzhow about for both music and gaming what is more recommended?

[@longlostcoder6322]

​@@clydemoya6353these are for gaming. There is no eq feature. So like they are meant to plug and and game

[@OmahaGTP]

One earbud for volume and one for mute. Was it so difficult, Sony? Id get the Inzone but they only support Bluetooth LE and not standard Bluetooth. Just give me one complete set of earbuds 😑

[@tomaszstarzZz]

You have mute button on your controller man - this is faster than lifting your hand to mute yourself on earpiece

[@longlostcoder6322]

People are forgetting this is for gaming lol

[@OmahaGTP]

@@tomaszstarzZz Do people just forget about PC gaming?

[@OmahaGTP]

@@longlostcoder6322 PC gaming, bro

[@tomaszstarzZz]

Great review. As I travel a lot I need gaming earbuds instead a bulky headset. As getting them for PlayStation/gaming only my priorities are lossless sound, no latency, my noise reduction (eating crisps while raiding in Destiny) - and they nail all that. Drawbacks for me are lack of ANC and short battery life - sometimes I have 6 hours gaming sessions, so might return them and get InZone ones instead.

[@ecoustics]

Let us know what you decide?

[@MegaSharif2010]

I been also thinking about returning them for the Inzone Buds. But I heard that they suffer from white noise. I’m quite happy with these, but ANC and a lower battery life + touch control on the earbuds does make the other really more tempting.

[@tomaszstarzZz]

@@MegaSharif2010 what you usually play and how long?

[@tomaszstarzZz]

Destiny 2 (my session is 4-6 hours for raids or dungeons) - my raiding clan mates appreciate noise cancelling on my side haha.

[@tomaszstarzZz]

@@ecoustics will keep them but not fully happy with them

[@Pyropuppy1]

Will somebody put these on their ears so I can see how they fit???

[@Pyropuppy1]

Nevermind, I didn't wait long enough. They look horrible.

[@v.e.s2884]

They are dope I like them

[@ecoustics]

Cool. 😎

[@YoungShizzieGaming]

So you can use these on Mac but can’t us AirPods on ps5 lol

[@cap__83]

I just bought a pair of those PS5 earbuds last night and I'm taking them back today they are the most uncomfortable things I've ever put in my ears

[@ecoustics]

Sorry they didn’t work out.

[@cap__83]

@ecoustics it's not your fault I blame sony

[@GERARDMURPHY88]

Got mine yesterday and the right ear don't work

[@ecoustics]

Sorry to hear that. Hopefully Sony (or store you got them from) can swap for a new pair.

[@GERARDMURPHY88]

@@ecoustics hi going now to try swap them so hopefully these work

[@rawrrr100]

Yeah. My left one doesn’t work. I shipped back to Sony today so hoping they repair it.

[@GERARDMURPHY88]

@rawrrr100 I was told that 6 pairs have been giving back so far in there shop that there not great and Sony are replacing all them

[@rawrrr100]

@@GERARDMURPHY88 Good to hear. I got mine from Sony Direct, so I had to mail them in. Glad to know I’m not the only one!

[@blackwhistyle]

They are cool and all but I'm not paying 200 for them

[@DEEJAY_MONSTA]

FYI Its been said that the "standby mode" on the ps5 causes damage to your system...

[@asdf_asdf948]

It doesn't

[@DEEJAY_MONSTA]

@@asdf_asdf948 it did mine, due to using the standbye mode and the house losing power it caused tiny small breakers on the motherboard to malfunction and go out. Now from time to time my system will shut off on its own or won't turn back on without u plugging the system from all power sources and disconnecting everything and waiting about an hour for the power to completely drain out of the system.

[@asdf_asdf948]

@@DEEJAY_MONSTA that's not a problem with standby mode lol, that's cuz you got a power surge

[@DEEJAY_MONSTA]

@@asdf_asdf948 and it's more likely to happen when?

[@DEEJAY_MONSTA]

@@asdf_asdf948 when your on standby mode... Correct??

[@YoungShizzieGaming]

I won’t be paying 200$ if the mic in them isn’t better then the mic in the controller that’s so crazy Sony sucks so bad

[@hansbanus]

Again a shitty accessory to the PS5. Why no high quality ANC? Why not a WF-1000XM5 like earbud compatible with PS5? Why are inferior ANC inzone buds compatible with PS5 but lack quality and bad ANC. Everything with PS5 and ps5vr2 is crap!

[@ArtVandelay-ImporterExporter]

Sony are cheap

[@WegaBoy]

Pre ordered these as soon as they were available and still haven't received them :( also is mic monitoring something they could implement later with an update or no?

[@ecoustics]

There’s always a chance mic could be improved via software update.