How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want to add a working headphone and microphone port to a laptop or desktop that has none — or whose onboard jack has died — choose SABRENT USB External; if you need to plug a single-cable gaming headset into a PC that has separate green and pink jacks, choose HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm.
• SABRENT USB External — biggest strength: it's a full USB stereo sound card, so it creates both a headphone output and a mic input on any machine that sees class-compliant USB audio, with no drivers to install.
• SABRENT USB External — biggest trade-off: it's stereo 2-channel only, won't drive passive speakers, adds no surround sound, and won't accept a 4-pole headset on one combo plug.
• HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm — biggest strength: it turns one TRRS headset plug into separate green (audio) and red (mic) plugs, so a single-cable headset works on a PC with dedicated jacks — and the braided cable and gold-plated connectors are built for daily plugging.
• HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm — biggest trade-off: it's a passive adapter with no electronics inside, so it can't create ports that don't exist, and its mic leg may not work with some OMTP or Apple/Beats original earphones.
• Pick SABRENT USB External if you're missing a jack entirely, or you want one adapter that handles both headphones and a standalone mic over USB.
• Pick HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm if your PC already has separate headphone and mic ports and you just need to bridge a single-plug headset to them.
The SABRENT USB External is the answer to a very specific kind of frustration: the audio jack on your computer doesn't work, or was never there to begin with. It plugs into a USB Type-A port and presents itself as a standard USB audio device — one green 3.5mm jack for stereo headphones or powered speakers, and one pink 3.5mm jack for a mono microphone. No drivers, no software, no external power, because it runs off the USB bus. Plug it in, pick it as your output and input device in your operating system's sound settings, and you're done. That driverless behavior covers Windows from 98SE through 8, plus Linux and Mac OSX, and it follows the USB Audio Device Class 1.0 spec, so anything that supports class-compliant USB audio should recognize it.
Skip it if you're expecting surround sound, if you want to drive passive speakers (it won't — it powers headphones or amplified speakers only), or if you plan to use a 4-pole headset with a single combo plug, which this adapter does not support. One more caveat worth knowing before you order: managed and work-issued computers can block new USB audio devices by policy, so if this is going on a company machine, check with IT first. In the box you get just the adapter, backed by a 1-year limited warranty that stretches to 2 years if you register within 90 days on the manufacturer's site.
HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm: Who It's For
The HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm solves the opposite problem. Your PC already has separate headphone and microphone ports — the classic green-and-pink pair on a desktop, laptop, or sound card — but your headset ends in a single TRRS plug. This little Y cable takes that one plug and fans it out into two: green for headphone/audio output, red for microphone input. That's it. That's the whole job, and it does it without drivers or software.
The build is the part that stands out on paper. A nylon braided jacket, aluminum alloy shell, and gold-plated connectors are the combination you want on a cable that gets plugged and unplugged constantly, and the glossy black metallic finish keeps it looking tidy on a desk. At 25 cm / 9.8 in it's short enough to disappear behind a laptop without turning into a tangle, and small enough to live in a bag pocket if you move between machines. HAOQUOOU lists compatibility with most 3.5mm CTIA headsets, gaming headsets, earphones, laptops, desktops, Windows PCs and sound cards — the everyday use cases being online meetings, video calls, voice chat, gaming and music.
Buy it if your headset is single-plug and your computer has separate jacks. Skip it if your computer has no audio jacks at all — this adapter can't invent ports — or if you're using Apple/Beats original earphones or an OMTP-wired headset, because the microphone leg may not work with those. It's also not a way to share one phone jack between two pairs of headphones; it's a headset-to-PC bridge, nothing more. A 1-year manufacturer warranty covers it.
• Best for a missing or broken audio jack → SABRENT USB External. It creates both a headphone and mic port over USB, which no passive adapter can do.
• Best for a single-plug headset on a PC with separate jacks → HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm. That's precisely the conversion it's built for.
• Best for driver-free setup → a tie. Both are plug-and-play with no software; SABRENT is class-compliant USB audio, HAOQUOOU is pure wiring.
• Best for cable durability → HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm. Braided nylon, aluminum shell and gold-plated connectors are aimed squarely at daily wear.
• Best for laptops, mini PCs and desktops with no port → SABRENT USB External. It works on Windows, Mac and Linux and needs no external power.
• Best for gaming headsets with a combo plug → HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm, provided the headset is CTIA-wired and your PC has the two jacks.
• Best for a standalone 3.5mm mic plus headphones → SABRENT USB External. Two jacks, two jobs, one USB connection.
• Best for keeping a setup neat and portable → HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm at 25 cm / 9.8 in, versus the SABRENT adapter's compact 1.5" x 0.4" x 0.9" body that stays put on the desk.
In my opinion, the right buy comes down to what your computer already has. If there's no working jack — or no jack at all — I'd take the SABRENT USB External, because it's the only one of the two that actually adds audio ports, and it does it driver-free on Windows, Mac and Linux with both a headphone out and a mic in. If your PC already has separate green and pink ports and your headset is a single-plug design, I'd take the HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm instead; it's cheaper in concept, tougher in build, and solves that one problem exactly. Don't buy the splitter hoping it fixes a dead jack, and don't buy the USB adapter hoping to use a 4-pole combo headset — each one has a clear lane. Check the current price on Amazon before you commit, since both are inexpensive enough that the decision should really be about ports, not money.
how to connect headphones to windows pc
If your PC has a 3.5mm jack, plug the headphones straight in. If it doesn't, or the jack is dead, use the SABRENT USB External: plug it into a USB Type-A port, connect your headphones to the green jack and your mic to the pink one, then select it as the output and input device in Windows sound settings. Either way, no drivers are needed for these two products.
how to connect headphones to pc windows 10
On Windows 10, the process is the same as any modern version: connect your headset, then pick the device under Sound settings. A single-plug headset on a PC with separate jacks needs the HAOQUOOU Headphone Splitter 3.5mm — green plug to audio, red plug to mic. The SABRENT USB External shows up as a standard class-compliant USB audio device and is selectable the moment you plug it in.
how can i connect my headphones to my pc
First check what your computer offers. Separate green and pink jacks plus a single-plug headset means you want the HAOQUOOU splitter. No jacks, a broken jack, or a standalone 3.5mm microphone means you want the SABRENT USB adapter, which handles headphones and mic over one USB connection. Both are plug-and-play with no software installation.
how to use headphones on pc
Plug in, then tell the system where to send sound. With the SABRENT USB External, choose it as your playback and recording device after connecting. With the HAOQUOOU splitter, the PC's existing ports do the work and Windows routes audio to them as usual. If the mic leg of the splitter doesn't register, the likely cause is an OMTP or Apple/Beats original earphone, which HAOQUOOU notes may not work.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
When you buy through links on this page, we may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon or its affiliates. This site is an independent third-party review and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Amazon or the product brands mentioned.
See also: Weleecty Dual USB-C Headphone vs Candy Bila Kids, Feipool USB C Splitter vs Bawanfa Plus USB C Audio, SYNCWIRE Headphone Splitter vs Guguearth iPhone Headphones Earphones