How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a desk-mounted microphone that cleans up your voice for Discord, streaming and co-op chat, choose MAONO DGM20S; if you need a wired gamepad with back buttons, Hall-effect triggers and a headphone jack for PS5 and PC, choose IWGAME Controller. They are two completely different tools that happen to meet in the same shopping cart — one captures your voice, the other controls your game. Picking between them really means deciding which gap in your setup is bugging you more right now.
• MAONO DGM20S — biggest strength: one-click noise cancellation, a cardioid capsule, gain knob, tap-to-mute and zero-latency monitoring give you broadcast-style control over your voice without any software.
• MAONO DGM20S — biggest trade-off: it is a corded USB mic on a metal boom arm. It needs desk space, a USB port and a place to clamp or rest it, and it does nothing for the game itself.
• IWGAME Controller — biggest strength: a wired gamepad with 2 remappable back buttons, Turbo, Hall-effect triggers, dual vibration, RGB lighting, touchpad, motion sensing and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
• IWGAME Controller — biggest trade-off: it is strictly wired, and on PS5 you have to switch the console's communication method to "Use USB Cable" before it behaves the way you expect.
• Who each pick is for: MAONO DGM20S for anyone whose teammates keep asking them to repeat themselves; IWGAME Controller for anyone who wants extra inputs and faster combos while playing on PS5, PS4 or PC/Steam.
The DGM20S is built around voice capture, and the spec sheet reads like a checklist for that job. It uses a unidirectional cardioid polar pattern, so it concentrates on sound arriving at the front of the mic and pushes everything behind it into the background. On top of that sits one-click noise cancellation, which the design pairs with the cardioid pickup to keep keyboard clatter and fan hum from dominating your channel. The frequency range runs 50Hz to 20kHz with a 73dB signal-to-noise ratio — a sensible spread for spoken voice, which is exactly what this mic is aimed at.
The physical design tells you a lot about the intended setup. It is a gooseneck-style microphone in a metal-and-plastic enclosure, mounted on a metal boom arm with a shock mount, a removable pop filter and a bundled USB and USB-C cable. The boom arm is the important part: you can pull the mic close to your mouth during a session and fold it out of the way afterward, which is the single biggest upgrade most people make when they move off a headset mic. The shock mount reduces vibration and machine noise travelling up the arm, and the removable pop filter softens plosives without sitting between you and your monitor.
Day-to-day use is deliberately knob-and-button simple. The mute button on top is a one-touch affair, so you can kill your audio mid-sentence instead of hunting through software. The gain knob lets you trim your level up or down on the fly — useful if your voice is coming through thin during a quiet call or clipping during a loud one. Zero-latency monitoring means you can hear yourself as you speak rather than a beat behind. Nine RGB lighting modes let you match your stream's look, and a long press of the RGB button turns the lighting off entirely when you want a plain desk. Connection is plug-and-play over USB or USB-C into Windows PC, laptop, Mac, desktop, PS4 or PS5 — no drivers, no setup ritual.
Who should buy it: streamers, Discord regulars, podcasters, content creators and anyone on PC or PlayStation who wants their voice to sound intentional. Who should skip it: people who only ever use a headset mic and never want a boom arm on their desk, and anyone shopping for a controller — this product has nothing to do with game input.
The IWGAME controller is the opposite kind of purchase: it changes how you play, not how you sound. Its headline feature is the pair of back buttons, which you can program or remap so that complex actions — combos, for instance — happen without lifting your thumbs off the sticks. That is the classic argument for back paddles, and it holds here: your thumbs stay planted on the sticks while the extra fingers do the work, which is where the speed and control gains come from.
Under the shell it uses Hall-effect triggers, which are the magnetic, contact-free style of trigger rather than a mechanical sweep. The controller also offers Turbo burst for repeated inputs and button customization for players who want to rework the layout. Dual vibration adds feedback, RGB lighting is part of the package, and a touchpad and motion sensing are both listed among its features. There is a 3.5mm headphone jack as well, so you can run your headset audio straight through the gamepad — handy if your display has no headphone output or your desk setup is minimal.
Compatibility is broad: PS5 Pro, PS5 Slim, PS4 and PC/Steam. One practical note worth knowing before it arrives — on PS5 you go into System Settings, then Accessories, then Controller (General), then Communication Method, and switch it to "Use USB Cable." Do that and the wired connection behaves as intended.
Who should buy it: PS5 and PS4 players who want back buttons and Turbo, PC/Steam players who prefer a wired gamepad with zero pairing fuss, and anyone who wants their headset plugged into the controller. Who should skip it: people who insist on wireless, and anyone whose actual problem is that their microphone sounds bad — this controller will not fix that.
• Best for voice quality and noise control → MAONO DGM20S. One-click noise cancellation, cardioid pickup and a 73dB signal-to-noise ratio are all pointed at clean speech.
• Best for extra inputs and faster combos → IWGAME Controller. The 2 back buttons and Turbo exist to keep your thumbs on the sticks.
• Best for a tidy, adjustable desk setup → MAONO DGM20S. The metal boom arm folds away, and the shock mount and removable pop filter are included rather than sold separately.
• Best for plug-and-play across PS5, PS4 and PC/Steam → IWGAME Controller. One wired connection covers all four platforms, with a one-time PS5 setting change.
• Best for streaming presentation → MAONO DGM20S. Nine RGB lighting modes and a gain knob let you dial the look and the level together.
• Best for headset audio routing → IWGAME Controller. The 3.5mm jack lets your headphones run through the gamepad.
• Best for people who hate drivers and installs → MAONO DGM20S. It is USB and USB-C, no drivers required.
• Best for players who want a wired-only, no-battery approach → either one, since both are corded — the mic runs on corded electric power and the controller is explicitly wired.
If I had to buy one, I would buy the MAONO DGM20S. In my opinion, voice is the thing most PC gamers under-invest in, and the DGM20S attacks that problem directly: cardioid capture, one-click noise cancellation, a gain knob, one-tap mute, zero-latency monitoring and a boom arm that gets the mic off your desk and near your mouth. If your actual frustration is that you feel slow on the sticks or you want a wired gamepad with back buttons for PS5 or Steam, the IWGAME Controller is the better call — but it solves a different problem. Buy the mic to sound better; buy the controller to play better.
how to connect gaming headphones to pc
It depends on the headphones and the port you have free. If they use a 3.5mm plug and your PC has no matching jack, a wired gamepad with a headphone jack — like the IWGAME Controller — can act as the middleman. USB headsets go straight into a USB port instead.
how to use gaming headphones on pc
Plug in, then tell Windows which device to use for output and input. USB headsets and USB microphones like the MAONO DGM20S are plug-and-play with no drivers, so Windows should recognise them as soon as they are connected, and you just select them in your sound settings.
what is the best gaming headphones for pc
There is no single answer, because "best" depends on whether you care more about audio, microphone quality or comfort. The practical approach is to decide whether you want your mic separate from your headphones. If you do, a dedicated USB mic such as the MAONO DGM20S handles voice while any headphone you like handles audio.
what is the best pc gaming headphones
Same logic, different angle: match the product to the job. A boom-arm USB mic is the stronger choice when your teammates' main complaint is how you sound, while a controller with remappable back buttons, Turbo and Hall-effect triggers is the stronger choice when your complaint is how you play. Check the current price on Amazon for whichever gap matters more to you.
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