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Airpods Max + Playstation 5 - My experience

Franksan

Franksan

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 1, 2015
30
35
Hi all,

I've been looking for a best way to use my APM with the PS5 for a while.

I have tried several things, my findings below.

Lightning to 3.5mm official Apple cable:

Works perfectly fine with the PS5. Connect to the PS5 controller via cable. Here you set on the PS5 to use the microphone of the controller itself -> no way to use the microphones of the APM for now. In terms of volume, it gets loud enough. No noticeable latency. However, doesn’t feel ‘next-gen’ with the cable attached to your $600 headphones :D



Creative BT-W3 dongle:

Pleasantly surprised with this dongle! This allows you to wirelessly connect the APM to your PS5. The price is 35 € / $. Volume is louder than via cable.

In terms of latency, I honestly didn't notice any difference compared to the cable! I have done several hours of tests on the basis of audio latency videos found on Youtube. I don't know what magic Apple or Creative has brought here, but audio lag is virtually non-existent. Also tested on ‘fast’ games such as Call of Duty.

Moreover, I also compared this setup with my Razer Blackshark V2 Pro (wireless via 2.4Ghz) and in terms of audio latency I also notice no difference!

I also tested the dongle with the Airpods Pro, they also work perfectly with this. However, the standard volume is fairly low and since there is no way on the Airpods Pro itself to increase the volume, you are left with a low ceiling of volume. The Airpods Max solves this problem because you can boost the volume with the digital crown!

Again, no way to use the microphone on the APM via this way. You’ll have to use the microphone on the PS5 controller itself.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I know from experience that there are many uncertainties about this - so I am happy to help!
 
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hi
is automatic device connection still working with other ios / macos devices while connected via BT to the PS5 dongle?
 
suisse said:
hi
is automatic device connection still working with other ios / macos devices while connected via BT to the PS5 dongle?
Click to expand...
Works fine. However, the Creative BT-W3 dongle is quite aggressive and tries to ‘force connect’ to the Airpods Max frequently - but this is a non-issue when your PS5 is turned off (-> need to adjust your PS5 power save settings in order to turn off the USB ports when it enters the rest mode)
 
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did you put the adapter in the front usb-c or in the back via usb-a?

what kind of headset did you use on your ps5 prior using APM?
 
I had a Beoplay H95 and bought that because it has 3,5mm (and because Max was not out yet) but find that great headphones very underwhelming on my PS5, was missing al the details.

how is that with the max? It’s hard for me to believe that it sounds good with the poor DAC in the DualSense controller.
 
Donstil-nl said:
I had a Beoplay H95 and bought that because it has 3,5mm (and because Max was not out yet) but find that great headphones very underwhelming on my PS5, was missing al the details.

how is that with the max? It’s hard for me to believe that it sounds good with the poor DAC in the DualSense controller.
Click to expand...

I’ve tested this by playing the same song on Spotify on the PS5 and then on the iPhone, and to be honest I don’t hear a difference.

But as I said, the volume with the Creative dongle is higher than with the 3.5mm. But both are still loud enough. :)
 
Franksan said:
I’ve tested this by playing the same song on Spotify on the PS5 and then on the iPhone, and to be honest I don’t hear a difference.

But as I said, the volume with the Creative dongle is higher than with the 3.5mm. But both are still loud enough. :)
Click to expand...
Ah that I did not test. My experience was with gaming.

I will buy the cable and try for myself then :)
 
musicpenguy said:
Does the 3D Audio aspect of PS5 work over the dongle or just wired?
Click to expand...
3D Audio works with every headphone. But to be honest, I’ve turned that feature off.

It sounds very gimmicky to me. It feels as if they’re trying to achieve a ‘surround’ effect on a soundbar :p
 
The 3D Audio is more than just a gimmick. It gives you a real advantage in games like COD Warzone. I am really hoping for a third party cable along the way to actually use the AP Max mic as well.
 
Franksan said:
3D Audio works with every headphone. But to be honest, I’ve turned that feature off.

It sounds very gimmicky to me. It feels as if they’re trying to achieve a ‘surround’ effect on a soundbar :p
Click to expand...
Gotcha just wasn’t sure if wired was needed for that versus the dongle
 
Franksan said:
Hi all,

I've been looking for a best way to use my APM with the PS5 for a while.

I have tried several things, my findings below.

Lightning to 3.5mm official Apple cable:

Works perfectly fine with the PS5. Connect to the PS5 controller via cable. Here you set on the PS5 to use the microphone of the controller itself -> no way to use the microphones of the APM for now. In terms of volume, it gets loud enough. No noticeable latency. However, doesn’t feel ‘next-gen’ with the cable attached to your $600 headphones :D



Creative BT-W3 dongle:

Pleasantly surprised with this dongle! This allows you to wirelessly connect the APM to your PS5. The price is 35 € / $. Volume is louder than via cable.

In terms of latency, I honestly didn't notice any difference compared to the cable! I have done several hours of tests on the basis of audio latency videos found on Youtube. I don't know what magic Apple or Creative has brought here, but audio lag is virtually non-existent. Also tested on ‘fast’ games such as Call of Duty.

Moreover, I also compared this setup with my Razer Blackshark V2 Pro (wireless via 2.4Ghz) and in terms of audio latency I also notice no difference!

I also tested the dongle with the Airpods Pro, they also work perfectly with this. However, the standard volume is fairly low and since there is no way on the Airpods Pro itself to increase the volume, you are left with a low ceiling of volume. The Airpods Max solves this problem because you can boost the volume with the digital crown!

Again, no way to use the microphone on the APM via this way. You’ll have to use the microphone on the PS5 controller itself.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I know from experience that there are many uncertainties about this - so I am happy to help!
Click to expand...
So with the dongle I should be able to connect my AirPod Max to my ps4?
 
pugxiwawa said:
I just tried APM with TwelveSouth’s Airfly connecting to PS4 controller and 3D audio works fine. I would imagine it will also work with PS5.
Click to expand...
Did mic on the APM work fine? I just inherited a Ps4 and if a dongle will work for my APM I may just do that.
 
Regarding latency, there is certainly Bluetooth audio latency. It may be less than 100ms but it’s there.
And for your razor headset over 2.4ghz, the latency is much lower than Bluetooth. So those would hardly have noticeable latency, while the APM over Bluetooth definitely will.
 
kevcube said:
Regarding latency, there is certainly Bluetooth audio latency. It may be less than 100ms but it’s there.
And for your razor headset over 2.4ghz, the latency is much lower than Bluetooth. So those would hardly have noticeable latency, while the APM over Bluetooth definitely will.
Click to expand...
In theory, definitely yes. But I was amazed that I literally couldn’t hear any audio latency difference between the Razer 2.4ghz and the APM Bluetooth with the BT-W3.

There is some magic happening in the APM I guess. For example, I notice a severe latency lag with the Sony XM4’s when connected to my LG OLED over BT.
With the APM zero noticeable lag.
 
Just got the creative dongle. I tried using the twelvesouth one but wouldn’t stay on, and the Avantree one wouldn’t connect to my AirPods.
 
Xerx said:
Which one do you prefer? The Creative dongle or the Apple 3,5mm cable?
Click to expand...
The Creative dongle is a much better experience overall.
  • Much louder than the 3.5mm cable
  • Can be used with other Bluetooth devices
  • Wireless
 
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I bought the 40 Euro cable and I am not convinced using the APM with the PlayStation. Spatial audio is great with iOS but the surround effect in games somehow is better with the ps pulse headset. Audio sources from behind don’t sound like they are behind me. Is there a trick to tweak the settings or something?
 
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You should also try the Creative dongle. Maybe this works better for you. Im using it and I played Demons Souls with the APM on. 3D Audio works and the sound was really good.
 
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After using it for almost a month, I can confirm that the Creative dongle works best when in use with the PS5 for the APM.

Ofcourse, you still have to use the controller’s mic.
 
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