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We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a comfortable everyday wireless over-ear that also accepts a 3.5 mm cable when the battery runs low, choose JBL Tune 720BT; if you need a dedicated gaming headset built around spatial audio, a boom mic and marathon battery life, choose Edifier G5.
• JBL Tune 720BT — biggest strength: JBL Pure Bass tuning, a 3.5 mm jack for wired listening, and a flat-folding plastic build that slips into a backpack. Up to 76 hours per charge with a 5-minute top-up giving 3 extra hours.
• JBL Tune 720BT — biggest trade-off: It's a music-first headphone. No boom mic, no spatial audio, no low-latency gaming mode — just passive noise isolation and a touch-based media control panel.
• Edifier G5 — biggest strength: THX 7.1.4 spatial audio, 53 mm PEN titanium-plated drivers, Hi-Res Audio certification and a detachable AI noise-canceling boom mic. Up to 305 hours in Bluetooth, 227 hours in 2.4G with lights off.
• Edifier G5 — biggest trade-off: Its only physical jack is USB-C, so "wired" means USB-C or dongle, not the 3.5 mm plug most controllers and older phones still use. It's also the heavier, bulkier of the two at 305 g.
• Who each pick is for: JBL Tune 720BT for commuters, students and casual listeners who want one flexible headphone for music and calls. Edifier G5 for gamers, streamers and anyone who lives in voice chat.
The Tune 720BT is a wireless over-ear first and a wired headphone second. Bluetooth 5.3 handles the streaming, and the 3.5 mm jack is there as a fallback — plug the included detachable audio cable into a laptop, a controller or an in-flight entertainment system and you keep listening without touching the battery. That single port is why it belongs in a conversation about wired gaming headphones at all: it covers the "my battery died mid-session" and "this device has no Bluetooth" cases without a dongle.
Where it earns its keep is endurance and portability. JBL rates it at up to 76 hours of playback and a 2-hour charge over USB-C, plus a 5-minute quick charge that buys 3 more hours. The flat-folding design and 7.8-ounce weight make it the kind of headphone you leave in a bag. Passive noise cancellation and a 32-ohm, 101 dB dynamic driver covering 20 Hz – 20 kHz are modest, honest numbers — this is tuned for JBL Pure Bass, not for pinpoint directional cues.
The app side is genuinely useful: the free JBL Headphones App lets you shape the sound with an EQ and get voice prompts in your preferred language. Voice Aware lets you hear your own voice during calls, and the ear-cup buttons handle media and calls without reaching for your phone.
Edifier G5: Who It's For
The Edifier G5 is the opposite kind of product: it's a gaming headset that happens to do music well. The headline feature is HECATE x THX customized spatial audio with a 360° sound field, designed to make footsteps and gunfire stand out so you can place enemies before you see them. That's a processing feature, not a marketing flourish — it changes how a game's stereo mix reaches your ears.
The hardware backs it up. 53 mm PEN titanium-plated diaphragm drivers are large, and the set carries Hi-Res Audio and Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification with LHDC 5.0 lossless decoding support. Edifier describes the tuning as balanced — crisp treble, full midrange, deep bass — which is a reasonable compromise for someone who games and then leaves the headset on for music and movies.
Battery is the other standout. A 2000 mAh cell rated at up to 305 hours in Bluetooth and 227 hours in 2.4G mode with lighting off, charged over USB-C, with a low-power Bluetooth 6.0 chip. In practice that means charging it roughly monthly rather than weekly, which matters if you're the type to forget.
Comfort gets real engineering: a 3D rotating hinge, a 305 g body, memory-protein ear cushions and an adjustable metal headband to spread pressure. The detachable boom mic uses a pop filter and 360° omnidirectional pickup, and dual built-in mics with ENC AI noise reduction clean up your voice in noisy rooms.
Buy it if you game seriously, stream, or spend hours in voice chat and want spatial audio plus a proper mic. Skip it if you need a 3.5 mm plug for older consoles or a wired connection to a controller — USB-C is your only physical option, and it's the heavier headset of the two.
• Best for spatial gaming audio → Edifier G5. THX 7.1.4 processing and positional cues are the whole point of this headset.
• Best for battery life → Edifier G5. Up to 305 hours Bluetooth / 227 hours 2.4G (lights off) versus up to 76 hours on the JBL.
• Best for a true 3.5 mm wired connection → JBL Tune 720BT. Its 3.5 mm jack works with controllers, laptops and seat-back screens; the G5 is USB-C only.
• Best for voice chat and streaming → Edifier G5. Detachable boom mic, pop filter, 360° pickup and ENC AI noise reduction versus the JBL's built-in call handling with Voice Aware.
• Best for commuting and travel → JBL Tune 720BT. Flat-folding, 7.8 oz, and a 5-minute charge that adds 3 hours.
• Best for sound customization → JBL Tune 720BT. The JBL Headphones App EQ and voice prompts give you direct control over tone.
• Best for big-driver music and movies → Edifier G5. 53 mm PEN titanium-plated drivers with Hi-Res Audio certification and LHDC 5.0 support.
• Best for long-session comfort on a large head → Edifier G5, with a caveat. The 3D rotating hinge and metal headband help, but the JBL is the lighter, simpler fit at 7.8 oz.
If I had to pick one, I'd take the Edifier G5 — but only if gaming is actually your main use. THX spatial audio, the 53 mm drivers, the detachable boom mic and that battery rating are a lot of capability aimed squarely at the wired-gaming-plus-wireless-life mix this comparison is about. In my opinion, the JBL Tune 720BT is the smarter buy for everyone else: music first, calls second, with a 3.5 mm cable for the moments Bluetooth can't help. Wired-only gamers should double-check that USB-C works with their setup before committing to the G5.
what is the best wired gaming headphones
There's no single answer, because "wired" means different things here. If wired means a 3.5 mm jack, the JBL Tune 720BT is the flexible pick. If wired means USB-C with spatial audio and a boom mic, the Edifier G5 is the stronger gaming tool. Match the connector to your devices first.
what are good wired gaming headphones
Look for a detachable mic, low-latency connectivity, comfortable ear cushions for long sessions and drivers big enough to separate game audio from background noise. The Edifier G5 covers all four with THX spatial audio, a 53 mm driver, memory-protein cushions and a 3D rotating hinge. The JBL Tune 720BT trades those gaming extras for a lighter, foldable, app-tunable design.
is wired gaming headphones better than wireless
Not automatically. Wired connections avoid battery limits and charging downtime, which is why the JBL's 3.5 mm jack still matters. But modern wireless has closed much of the gap: the Edifier G5 is rated up to 305 hours in Bluetooth and 227 hours in 2.4G mode with lights off, so battery anxiety is a small factor there.
what is better wired or wireless gaming headphones
It comes down to your setup. Choose wired if your device lacks Bluetooth, if you want zero charging, or if you need the lowest possible latency. Choose wireless if you value freedom of movement and long battery life — the JBL's up to 76 hours and the Edifier's up to 305 hours both make wireless practical. Many players, sensibly, use both.
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See also: Sony MDREX155AP vs JBL Tune 520C: Wired Headphones, Sennheiser ACCENTUM vs Edifier G5: Wired Gaming Headphones, SIMOLIO Manyshare Series vs JBL Tune 520C: Wired Headphones