HyperX are at it again, releasing another affordable set of gaming earbuds designed for everyone after all, according to their tagline, 

“We’re all gamers”

Last year we were impressed with the HyperX Cloud Mix earbuds when we reviewed them, especially with the wireless 2.4GHz low latency adapter so we were looking forward to testing the new Cirro Buds Pro from HyperX.  

This year the affordable gaming earbuds from HyperX have a much more basic package with the case coming without the rubber bumper but, more importantly, the package coming without an ultra-low latency 2.4GHz adapter. 

In the box and the setup

This year inside the box of the gaming earbuds from HyperX you get the earbuds, a charging case, a charging cable (USB-C), three sets of silicon tips for a better fit in your ears and one of the hardest to read quick start guides I’ve ever seen.

There is no app for the Cirro Buds Pro (at this stage but it is still pre-release here in Australia) so what you get is what you get.  Connection is fairly simple, when you take the earbuds out of the case for the first time they will automatically go into pairing mode.  

There does not seem to be a way to put the earbuds into pairing mode manually yourself.  If the earbuds do not find a paired device once taken out of the case they will enter pairing mode.  Be careful if you pair them with quite a few devices as you may have to hunt down which device they are connected to and turn off Bluetooth on that device before they will enter pairing mode for a new device.

Pairing was simple – they do not have the Android Fast Pair though but a simple find device in Bluetooth settings brought them up and they paired quickly.  As mentioned above there is no app to change the equaliser or any of the button press actions.  As my mum used to say, you get what you get and you don’t get upset.

Features

Being gaming earbuds you would expect some form of low latency mode and HyperX has included one in the form of a usual Bluetooth 5.2 connection.  HyperX never stated what the true latency of the 2.4GHz adapter last year actually was so it is difficult to compare to the Cirro Buds Pro which have a 90ms low latency gaming mode.

Now, not having a 2.4GHz connection offers some issues in that they can only be used for consoles and gaming devices that support Bluetooth.  That rules out the PS4 and PS5 direct connection.  You can circumvent this restriction by Sony by pairing the earbuds with your TV instead of the PlayStation so that the sound from the TV/PlayStation is diverted to the Cirro Buds Pro instead.

Connecting them to my PC, Switch and Android phones was easy to do and the results were decent – just like other Bluetooth earbuds.  

Gaming with them was decent enough – triple tap the left earbud places them in the low latency gaming mode.  All frequencies of sound were covered well such that even footsteps behind me were heard clearly and quickly – well, as quick as my aged brain allows.

Voice within games was good — the voice was not as clear as with most boom mics but was good enough for gaming on the go. If you are wanting crystal clear, perfect voice in a gaming headset you are more likely to buy a dedicated over the ear headset with boom mic instead I dare say. The voice chat was easily good enough for my purposes though.

Longer gaming sessions may see you struggle a bit for comfort though.  Although the Cirro Buds Pro are relatively comfortable, do not expect to be able to wear them for too long.  I tapped out at around a couple of hours.  If your gaming sessions are going to last longer than that I’d recommend getting an over ear headset instead – not many true wireless earbuds still feel comfortable at two hours into a session.

Battery life

The battery life is advertised as seven hours in the ear buds and another 28 in the case.  In my testing I found this to be close to spot on.  I’m not sure how I could ever wear them for seven hours before placing them back in the charging case but if you ever want to you can.  Most people will use them for a couple of hours of gaming or media consumption and then stick them back in the charging/travel case where they will be topped back up to 100% (assuming the case has enough charge left in it).

The case itself charges extremely quickly with the case capable of charging to full in just 40 minutes.

Sound Quality

The sound quality was good but not great. By great I’d say something from a dedicated true wireless set of earbuds from an audio company for audio and not gaming, For example, the JBL Live Pro 2. The sound quality was actually better than the affordable Jabra 4 Elite with a much clearer sound and bass but fared worse than the JBL Live Pro 2 which punch well above their price when it comes to bass, mids and highs and overall sound quality.

The bass of the HyperX Cirro Buds Pro was a bit lacking as well, which it is in so many true wireless earbuds but the mids were rich and exceptional with the highs decent too. The mids are where most of the game sounds occur so this sound profile fits well with their purpose, gaming.

The ANC of the Cirro Buds Pro was really good too with much of the background noise filtered out allowing you to hear what is coming from the earbuds almost exclusively.

Switching the earbuds into gaming mode did not change the sound profile but drops the latency of the audio thereby making them better for gaming. Keep in mind though that gaming mode does eat a lot more battery life than normal mode.

Aa mentioned above, at this stage there is no dedicated software to adjust the sound profile or the button activation targets for the Cirro Buds Pro but given that the HyperX Cloud Mix earbuds from last year are supported by the HyperX app I wouldn’t be surprised to see their support be added to the app in the future. You do not need it for these earbuds but it would be nice to have anyway.

Should you buy them?

The HyperX Cirro Buds Pro are decent true wireless earbuds with good sound in the middle of the register but lack a bit of bass as so many more affordable true wireless earbuds do. What sets these earbuds apart from the other affordable true wireless earbuds is their low latency mode, making them good for gaming.

There are gaming earbuds that you will use if you are on the go somewhere but if you are sitting down for a long session at home or work them I would suggest a more comfortable and better sounding over the ear headset. For gaming earbuds on the go though they are ideal.

The HyperXCirro Buds Pro are available in black, blue and tan colourways, and will be available on July 27 (today) for AU$159.