Beyerdynamic MMX 200 wireless review: A swing and a miss

The Beyerdynamic MMX 200 wireless headset is the company’s first attempt at wireless gaming audio, but how does it stand up against the competition?

When it comes to high-quality audio, Beyerdynamic is one of the first companies you might think of. Their DT770 Pro headphones may just be the most popular pair of cans used by Twitch streamers worldwide.

Clearly taking some notes from the number of streamers using the product, the company has officially revealed its first pair of wireless gaming headphones. Named the MMX 200 Wireless gaming headset.

But, do they stand out among the many companies looking to capitalize on gaming audio? We’ve previously looked at efforts such as the Audeze Maxwell, which managed to wow us with its incredible fidelity. But, other companies like EPOS struggled to make a dent in the market and were shut down.

Having tested the Beyerdynamic MMX 200 for several weeks, we’re finally ready to give you the verdict, and the company’s first wireless gaming effort left us a little cold.

Key Specs

• Connectivity: 2.4ghz wireless, Bluetooth 5.3, USB-C, 3.5mm w/ optional cable
• Driver diameter: 40mm dynamic
• Frequency response: 20 Hz – 20.000 Hz
• Weight: 358g without cable
• Compatibility: PC, Bluetooth
• Features: Bluetooth, Closed back earcups, detachable microphone, digital signal processor, transparency mode
• Price: $249.99

Design

We received the grey version of the Beyerdynamic MMX 200 Wireless for review, and absolutely love the color. Once we began to actually look more closely at the product we found several elements we weren’t a fan of.

The MMX 200 Wireless features two small, round earcups that are connected by a frame, similar to the Audeze Maxwell, and a solid headband that features a decent amount of padding on the bottom side.

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It’d be hard to figure out who created the MMX 200 Wireless just by the design alone, so Beyerdynamic plastered their name and the headset model number on the outside of the earcups, taking up about a quarter of the available area in the process.

They also added the iconic Beyerdynamic name onto the outside of the headband on both sides and engraved it on the top of the headband. We were not huge fans of the way the headset is presented, as the current way the headset is branded doesn’t do awhile lot to make it stick out amongst competitors, aside from the name being plastered around in various different places.

The padding across the earcups and headband is leather, which might be comfortable for some, but we found that things got sweaty very quickly throughout the testing period.

The MMX 200 Wireless is a closed-back headset, which offers noise isolation and a tight sound stage, but the leather material means that you might find it getting uncomfortable in high heat, or while playing intense games.

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Beyerdynamic made the MMX 200 Wireless quite adjustable, and although our head is on the bigger side, we had zero issues getting it to fit comfortably.

Audio controls can be found around the outside of the headset, with the right earcup housing the power button, while the left earcup houses a removable microphone, USB-C port, volume rocker, and mode selector.

Beyerdynamic claims that the MMX 200 Wireless will hit 35 hours of battery life, and our testing proves that to be pretty accurate. It’s not the highest battery life we’ve seen from a headset, but it is definitely nothing to scoff at.

Comfort takes a back seat

We found the Beyerdynamic MMX 200 wireless headset to not be comfortable at all.

The small, round, earcups with thick leather padding paired with the extremely strong clamping force of the headset immediately begin pressing against our jawbone while wearing them.

This made it nearly impossible to enjoy the product for more than 20 or so minutes at each time, and the slight pain in our jaw lingered after taking the MMX 200 wireless off.

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The overall build quality of the headset is phenomenal and should last quite some time, but we can’t get over how uncomfortable it is to actually wear. It might be better suited for those with smaller heads, but for us, something just didn’t click.

Features

The Beyerdynamic MMX 200 headset does have a handful of pretty nice features, including low latency Bluetooth mode and even the ability to do analog and Bluetooth connections at the same time.

There is an integrated digital signal processor, which adds an additional layer of processing, and Beyerdynamic says it creates an “even more powerful sound” for the headset.

It also features a transparency mode, which might be useful for those living in busy households or who want to hear the world around them. But it will not emulate an open-backed headset, which will allow for a slightly wider soundstage overall.

The addition of Bluetooth and a Transparency mode is definitely welcome, but its digital signal processing makes the headset sound a bit awkward.

Audio Performance

We tested the Beyerdynamic MMX 200 wireless in a several different games, listened to music, and even answered a few phone calls with it.

In each one, the headset fell short when compared to what we expected. It is perfect for those who enjoy extremely bass-heavy audio, but throughout our testing, it just muddied the rest of the sound.

On a phone call, the MMX 200 made it nearly impossible to hear the other person if there was any amount of background noise on their end. In music, the bass completely muddied out the mids and highs throughout almost every Rock and Hip-Hop song we tried them with.

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We also tested the headset in Valorant and CS:GO as well, where we found much of the same. Many of the higher notes produced by titles get thrown out for a bass-heavy mix, and there’s no way to EQ the headset yourself to tweak its sound profile, which is potentially its most grave sin.

Hopefully, one day in the future Beyerdynamic will offer a way to EQ the headset or manage to lower the amount of bass in a firmware update.

The microphone on the headset isn’t anything to write home about, although there’s not much to complain about either. It’s suitable for uses like in-game chat and phone calls, but don’t come in expecting the same level of quality as what a Razer Blackshark V2 (2023) can offer.

Should you buy it?

Unfortunately, we can’t recommend the Beyerdynamic MMX 200 headset for most gamers. While it achieves all of the features listed on its box, it did not live up to the expectations that we had for the brand, nor does it offer the same level of features, comfort, or sound reproduction that we’d usually expect from a gaming headset in this price range.

Instead, we’d recommend the Audeze Maxwell or even the SteelSeries Nova 7 headset.

The Verdict – 3/5

We really wanted to be able to recommend the Beyerdynamic MMX 200 wireless. But, while it manages to function as a gaming headset, we don’t recommend spending your cash on them over better alternatives in the market, which achieve everything that Beyerdynamic was seeking to do, and more.