Building on its already-established roster of sports, PC, and TV headphones, Philips has now introduced a new TAG5106 gaming headset to its line-up as part of the 5000 Series with an impressive range of specs.
With 50mm drivers, X 2.0 surround sound, a detachable noise-cancelling mic, and both wired and wireless connectivity, there's certainly a lot to unpack and review here.
This begs the question though, how exactly does it compare to some of the best headsets for PS5 and Xbox around today, for instance?
Table of Contents
Well, I've rounded up everything you need to know right here based on my own personal experience with the device whilst gaming and working from home.
So, without further delay, let's get into it and start with the unboxing...
Set-up
Upon receiving delivery of the Philips headset and subsequent unboxing, I noticed it came with pretty much everything you need from a set of over-ear headphones.
Along with a simple quick start guide complete with images came a unidirectional, detachable mic, a 2.4 G wireless USB dongle, a 3.5mm audio cable, a 0.6m USB charger, plus, of course, the headset itself.
I initially set up the headset via the audio cable to my PS5 controller and encountered no issues. However, establishing a Bluetooth connection with my laptop proved slightly more problematic as I was getting no sound despite the headphones saying they were paired.
That said, this turned out to be an issue on my end with my drivers, so was quickly resolved. It's worth mentioning the headphones seamlessly connected to my phone via Bluetooth without issue.
To complete the installation, I also downloaded Philips' Precision Center software which allowed me to control the DTS surround sound settings via my laptop.
The software was actually not as straightforward to find as the quick start guide made out as I had to follow multiple different links on the Philips Support page to find the right download. However, once installed, I found pairing the headset straightforward.
My only comment here is the lack of instruction or explanation as to what each setting meant in the Precision Center. It would have also been nice to be able to save certain settings as a preset to avoid manually adjusting them myself each and every time.
Performance
Moving on to perhaps the most important aspect of a headset - the sound.
Straight off the bat, the headset's 50mm drivers combined with its closed-back design were pretty impressive at delivering clear, accurate sound in isolation.
On multiple occasions, I struggled to hear anything going on in the background, resulting in what was, overall, an impressive audio experience, comparable to some of the best noise-cancelling headphones around.
All the controls were easily accessible too, with everything from the volume, track selection, RGB lighting, and even the DTS audio adjustable on the back of the device.
On the topic of the DTS surround sound, I wasn't overly sold on how much it improved my listening experience. Although I did notice a difference when cycling through the different modes and settings, I wouldn't really say the quality was a huge step up compared to when I kept the DTS off.
With that being said, even when left as standard, I found the headset was particularly helpful when trying to pinpoint the location of my enemies on both Fortnite and Warzone which, for a gaming headset, is definitely a bonus.
One area I did find particularly impressive was the microphone. Its noise-cancellation technology meant I was able to communicate clearly and effectively with my teammates. Not only that, but it comes with a handy mute button under the volume wheel for when you don't want to be heard.
Comfort
Finding a comfortable headset is something I've found difficult over the years; however, this Philips set proved itself to be different.
I'd usually opt for a pair of earbuds, or something of that ilk, to avoid my ears being completely covered and overheating. With this headset though, this was rarely the case.
Moreover, the memory foam and leatherette padding proved effective, particularly across the head beam, because at no point was I uncomfortable or did I feel anything 'digging in' whilst in use.
What I found even more impressive though was the headset's ability to auto-adjust to fit securely. Rather than the usual manually-adjustable sliders, this headset features what appear to be wires hidden beneath the foam padding to adapt to any head shape.
I also found the earcups had some flexibility in them to further improve my levels of comfort. While the driver housing behind them is quite bulky (although it needs to be to house 50mm drivers), the earcups themselves helped to keep me comfortable.
On the whole, these Philips headphones were particularly pleasant to wear whilst home working and gaming, even when pushing the two and three-hour mark of continuous wear.
You can find the TAG5106 gaming headset on the Philips website right here if you're interested in giving this device a go yourself.