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HyperX Cloud Mix Buds Wireless Gaming Earbuds Review
I’m not normally a huge fan of sealed ear buds. I don’t always like the closed-off isolation they provide, and my ear canals sometimes reward me with too much extra wax when I use them.
The HyperX Cloud Mix Buds broke through my “earbud wall” and piqued my curiosity because they remind me of what I thought was a forgotten time. Years ago, it seemed like HyperX was poised to take on the Bluetooth headphone market in a big way. They launched the original Cloud Mix headset to some amount of fanfare, then later updated it with a highly coveted Rose Gold colorway.
I got more questions about that Rose Gold headset than any other gaming audio product I’ve ever reviewed. HyperX could still sell tons of those if they hadn’t discontinued that particular variant.
The Cloud Mix Buds came out last year after eons of “nothing” from the company in the Bluetooth realm. They started out at a retail price of $149…but checking out their page before this review I see they’ve now gone up in price to $164.99. That’s ridiculous. You can often find them on sale for around $100-$120, and I think that’s a better deal…though they’re missing some functions you might expect from this midrange price.
I bought these a few months ago with my own money and tested them through several battery cycles with the current firmware. I wasn’t asked by or paid by HyperX to write this.
Negatives
This $100+ pair of ear buds doesn’t have any sort of built-in volume control. That’s wild! I have checked a half dozen times for some type of update to this, because I honestly can’t believe that they shipped without it, especially at this non-budget price point.
In order to turn the volume up or down here, whether you’re connected over Bluetooth or the included low latency 2.4Ghz receiver, you have to use the volume controls on your device. I have a pair of $25 Bluetooth ear buds from JVC that have built- in volume controls, and most other Bluetooth-equipped…
