How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a complete, ready-to-use microphone-and-headphone setup for talking to an audience — podcasting, streaming, voiceover, home recording — choose Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK; if you need a PC gaming headset built around positional 3D audio, head tracking and active noise cancelling, choose JBL Quantum One. These two kits look similar on a shelf and do almost nothing alike in daily use.
• Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK — biggest strength: a handheld dynamic mic with both USB and XLR outputs, plus monitor headphones and a boom arm in the box, so you can capture voice and hear yourself without buying anything else.
• Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK — biggest trade-off: it is a voice-first kit. It has no 3D audio processing, no head tracking and no noise cancelling, and everything runs wired.
• JBL Quantum One — biggest strength: head-tracking enhanced JBL QuantumSPHERE 360 with DTS Headphone:X v2.0, Hi-Res certified 50mm drivers and active noise cancelling — all tuned for PC gaming.
• JBL Quantum One — biggest trade-off: it is a headset, not a recording kit. There is no boom arm and no separate microphone, and the signature 3D features are built for PC over USB.
• Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK is for you if you record or broadcast your voice and want one box to cover mic, monitoring and stand.
• JBL Quantum One is for you if you play on PC and want your ears to do the aiming.
This is a bundle, and the bundle is the point. You get the AT2005USB cardioid dynamic microphone, a pair of ATH-M20x monitor headphones, an adjustable studio boom arm threaded with a USB cable, a stand clamp for 5/8"-27 threaded stands, a 5/8"-27 to 3/8"-16 adapter, and a soft protective pouch. In my view that is the most useful part of the package: the boom arm rotates a full 360° with spring-stabilized joints and thumbscrews, so you can position the mic where your mouth actually is rather than leaning into a desk stand.
What it does best is voice. The microphone is a unidirectional (cardioid) dynamic design with a smooth, extended frequency response aimed at podcasting, streaming, home studio recording and voiceover. It gives you two ways out: USB digital output for a computer, and XLR analog output for conventional microphone inputs, so the same mic can move from a casual USB setup to an interface-based rig later. The built-in headphone jack lets you monitor directly from the microphone, which is a genuinely handy detail when you want to hear yourself without routing audio through a separate interface. Internally there's a high-quality A/D converter running 16-bit at 44.1/48 kHz, and the listed signal-to-noise ratio is 96 dB. It's Windows and Mac compatible.
The ATH-M20x headphones are circumaural — they contour around the ears — which the spec sheet frames as excellent isolation in loud environments. That matters if you record near a fan, a PC or a noisy room. Power is corded electric, so there's no battery to think about, and the mic enclosure is stainless steel in black.
Who should buy it: podcasters, streamers, voiceover artists, and anyone doing home studio recording or narration who wants mic, stand and monitoring headphones sorted in one purchase. Who should skip it: competitive PC gamers chasing 3D positional cues, anyone who wants wireless freedom, and anyone who needs active noise cancelling rather than passive isolation.
The JBL Quantum One is a wired USB over-ear gaming headset, and its headline trick is spatial. Head-tracking enhanced JBL QuantumSPHERE 360, powered by JBL QuantumENGINE, is described as giving professional-level 3D audio positioning on PC. Calibration of JBL's algorithm uses an integrated head-tracking sensor plus the included calibration microphone, and that combination is built exclusively for the Quantum One. The result, per the manufacturer, is a fixed, independent soundscape that stays put as you turn your head — which is meant to sharpen your natural instincts about where a sound came from. DTS Headphone:X v2.0 is on board too. Note the platform caveat: these 3D features are only available on PC with a USB connection.
Sound: Hi-Res certified JBL QuantumSOUND Signature, with 50mm neodymium dynamic drivers tuned by JBL audiologists for gaming. The spec sheet lists a 20 Hz–40 kHz frequency range, 32 ohm impedance and 95 dB sensitivity. The pitch is familiar and, on paper, reasonable — tiny footsteps and loud explosions both rendered with enough separation to give you a read on the scene.
Comfort and noise: a lightweight headband with ventilating, premium leather-wrapped memory foam ear cushions, positioned for long sessions. Active Noise Cancelling is tuned for gaming and controlled through the JBL app. The headset weighs 369 g, which is the number I'd weigh most carefully — that's a real mass to have on your head for a multi-hour raid, even with good cushions.
In the box: the headset, a 3.5mm audio cable, the calibration microphone, a detachable boom microphone, windshield foam for the mic, a Type-C to A cable with a Game Chat Balance Dial, quick start guide, warranty card and safety sheet. Connectivity is USB plus a 3.5mm jack. A two-year warranty is listed.
Who should buy it: PC gamers who want head-tracked 3D positioning, active noise cancelling and a boom mic in one wired headset. Who should skip it: anyone who mainly records voice, works on Mac-first or mobile-first, or wants a wireless headset — despite the "True Wireless" field in the connectivity listing, this is a USB wired headset, and the spec sheet's own feature text says the 3D audio requires a PC USB connection.
Side-by-Side: Which Should You Choose?
• Best for PC gaming positional audio → JBL Quantum One. Head-tracking QuantumSPHERE 360 with DTS Headphone:X v2.0 has no equivalent in the Audio-Technica kit.
• Best for monitoring your own voice → Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK. The built-in headphone jack lets you monitor straight from the microphone.
• Best for blocking outside noise → depends on the kind. The Quantum One has Active Noise Cancelling via app control; the ATH-M20x headphones rely on passive circumaural isolation. For steady room hum, I'd lean active; for recording your own voice, passive isolation plus a closed-back headphone is the cleaner choice.
• Best for a tidy desk out of the box → Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK. The 360° boom arm, stand clamp and threaded adapter mean no extra stand shopping.
• Best for long-session comfort → JBL Quantum One, with a caveat. Ventilating memory foam cushions are designed for marathon sessions, but 369 g is a lot of headset.
• Best for flexibility across gear → Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK. USB for a computer, XLR for conventional inputs, and Windows/Mac support.
• Best for a single self-contained gaming audio device → JBL Quantum One. Mic, head tracking, ANC and game/chat balance dial in one wired headset.
I'd buy the Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK. Not because it's better hardware in the abstract — it isn't, in the gaming sense — but because it solves a whole job at once: a USB/XLR dynamic mic, a boom arm to hold it, and circumaural headphones to monitor with, all working together on day one. If your goal is to be heard clearly, that's the shortest path. If your goal is to hear where things are while gaming on PC, I'd take the JBL Quantum One instead, and accept the wired connection and the 369 g on my head as the cost of head-tracked 3D audio. Pick the job first, then the box.
It can carry your voice in a stream or a party chat, and the mic's cardioid dynamic design rejects a fair amount of room noise. But it offers no positional 3D audio, no head tracking and no active noise cancelling, so it won't give you the in-game advantage the Quantum One is built around.
The headset connects over USB and a 3.5mm jack, so basic audio is broadly usable, but the spec sheet is explicit that the head-tracking QuantumSPHERE 360 features are only available on PC with a USB connection. Treat the 3D audio as a PC feature.
They use different approaches. The JBL Quantum One has Active Noise Cancelling tuned for gaming and controlled through the JBL app. The Audio-Technica kit relies on the circumaural, around-the-ear design of the ATH-M20x headphones for passive isolation. Active cancelling handles constant low-frequency noise better; passive isolation simply blocks what reaches your ears.
No. The microphone has a USB digital output for computers, so you can plug straight in. The XLR analog output is there for when you later want to run it into conventional microphone inputs or an interface.
If that one thing is recording or broadcasting your voice, the Audio-Technica AT2005USBPK covers it end to end. If it's competitive PC gaming, the JBL Quantum One is the one designed for it. Check the current price on Amazon for whichever fits your job before you commit.
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