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We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-10-09 · 7 min read · Independent comparison
• HUYUN Barracuda X Mic — biggest strength: a bendable, unidirectional boom mic with a 3.5 mm TRS gold-plated plug and a position lock, built specifically as a replacement for the Razer Barracuda X wireless headset.
• HUYUN Barracuda X Mic — biggest trade-off: it is only a microphone. No drivers, no cable for audio playback, no earcups. If your headset still works, this fixes your voice; it does nothing else.
• Piluyaa Gaming Headphones IEM — biggest strength: a complete wired in-ear headset — 11 mm dynamic driver, 4-core OFC detachable cable, three sizes of ear tips, wrap-around ear hooks and an inline mic with push-button controls.
• Piluyaa Gaming Headphones IEM — biggest trade-off: it's wired, its inline controls don't do volume, and its mic sits on the cable rather than on a boom you can aim.
• Pick HUYUN if you already own a Razer Barracuda X and your mic is lost, broken or muffled.
• Pick Piluyaa if you want one lightweight wired set for gaming, music and calls — and you're shopping for comfortable wireless headphones for hiking alternatives because you'd rather not deal with batteries at all.
This is a repair part, and it's honest about that. The HUYUN Barracuda X Mic is a 3.5 mm detachable boom microphone made for the Razer Barracuda X wireless gaming headset, and it's listed as compatible with PC, Xbox One, PS5, PS4 and PS3 setups. It's a single unidirectional capsule, white, built from ABS plastic, and it weighs about 9 grams — light enough that it won't drag your headset down or pull the boom out of position.
Who should buy it: anyone who owns a Barracuda X and has lost the original mic, snapped the boom, or gets complaints that their voice sounds thin. It's plug-and-play, so there's no software to install and no pairing to redo. Who should skip it: anyone who doesn't own a compatible Barracuda X headset, and anyone hoping this is a complete audio solution. It isn't. There's also a 60-day warranty noted on the listing, which is worth knowing before you commit.
Piluyaa Gaming Headphones IEM: Who It's For
The Piluyaa Gaming Headphones IEM is the opposite kind of product: a full wired in-ear monitor set built around an 11 mm dynamic driver. Impedance is 16Ω and the frequency range runs 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz, so it's a low-impedance design that's easy to drive from a phone, a handheld or a controller jack. The 3.5 mm plug is listed as working with Android smartphones, Windows phones, MP3/MP4 players and music speakers.
Comfort is clearly the design brief here. A single earpiece weighs 2.3 g, the ear tips are TPE, and there's a soft TPE fin behind the cavity plus a memory ear hook that holds its shape around your ear. You get three sets of tips for different ear sizes, and the wrap-around design is meant to stop the buds slipping out while you move. For anyone hunting for comfortable wireless headphones for hiking — or best wireless earbuds for hiking — the honest answer this product gives is different: go wired and skip the battery problem entirely. At 2.3 g per side with hooks that grip, it's a genuinely plausible trail companion, and there's no charging case to babysit. If what you actually want is a best transparency mode ear clip headphones for hiking setup so you can hear traffic and trail noise, that's a different category of product — these IEMs are wired and don't offer that feature, so don't expect it here.
Side-by-Side: Which Should You Choose?
• You already own a Razer Barracuda X and your mic is dead → HUYUN Barracuda X Mic. That's its entire job, and it does it without touching the rest of your setup.
• You want a complete headset for gaming, music and calls → Piluyaa Gaming Headphones IEM. One purchase, everything included.
• You need an aimable boom mic for clearer voice pickup → HUYUN. Unidirectional, bendable, position-locked, 100 Hz–10 kHz speech band.
• You want the lightest thing on your head for long sessions → Piluyaa. 2.3 g per earpiece versus a headset frame.
• You want a detachable cable you can replace instead of the whole product → Piluyaa. 4-core 4N OFC, detachable by design.
• You want to keep your existing headset and spend as little as possible → HUYUN. It's a part, not a platform.
• You're hiking or moving around and hate charging gear → Piluyaa. Wired, no battery, ear hooks holding the fit.
• You need volume buttons on the cable → neither. The Piluyaa listing states volume control isn't supported; the HUYUN has no controls at all.
In my opinion, most people searching "detachable mic gaming headphones" fall into one of two camps, and the split is clean. If you own a Razer Barracuda X and the mic is the only broken thing, buy the HUYUN Barracuda X Mic — replacing a part beats replacing a headset, and the spec sheet backs up its voice-chat focus. If you want a whole wired solution you can take from desk to trail, I'd buy the Piluyaa Gaming Headphones IEM. It's the one I'd hand to a friend heading out for hiking: 2.3 g per side, hooks that hold, a replaceable cable and an inline mic for calls. Check the current price on Amazon before you decide — both are budget-tier parts, but only one of them is a complete product.
FAQ
are studio headphones better than gaming headsets
They serve different jobs. Studio headphones are typically tuned flat for monitoring and often ship without a mic at all. Neither product here is a studio headphone — the HUYUN is a standalone boom mic, and the Piluyaa is a gaming-tuned IEM with a 20 Hz–20,000 Hz range and an inline mic. If you need voice chat built in, a gaming-oriented set is the more practical pick.
That varies by player, game and sponsor, and there's no single answer worth trusting. What the data does show is that competitive players care about clear voice pickup and a stable fit. The HUYUN mic's unidirectional pattern and 100 Hz–10 kHz speech band are built around exactly that priority, while the Piluyaa's wrap-around hooks and memory ear hook address fit stability.
do all headphones have mics
No. Many wired headphones and IEMs have no microphone at all, and some — like the HUYUN Barracuda X Mic — are sold as a microphone only, with no drivers or earcups. The Piluyaa IEM does include an inline mic on the cable, positioned just below the jaw for calls.
can studio headphones be used for gaming
Yes, technically — anything with a 3.5 mm jack can output game audio, and the Piluyaa's 3.5 mm plug is listed as working with a wide range of devices. The catch is communication: without a mic you can't talk to your squad, which is why the HUYUN boom mic exists as a separate part for Barracuda X owners.
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