Creative SB Inferno Headset Review

To support my ongoing search for a good, affordable gaming headset, I was recently sent the SB Inferno from Creative Tech. Being sold for around the £40 mark, these are reasonably priced and decent value.

The Inferno headset is lightweight all over, including the remote attached to the plastic-coated wires. The remote has a mic on/off switch, volume control and a molded clip to keep it out of the way. It’s a thoughtful gesture, though given that you, the average gamer, are wearing probably wearing a t-shirt, your options are to clip it your collar and tolerate the length of cable at your neck, scrunch up a bit of t-shirt and jam it into the clip or simply leave it hanging. That lightness means that it’s pretty unobtrusive if you do just let it hang.

The entire headset is made of plastic, with very flexible headband that will yield when twisted, or packed in a bag with other stuff, without breaking. The plastic finish may feel fragile but it’s this flexibility that should help them last a long time. This also means they fit comfortably on a good range of heads without putting on too much pressure during long gaming sessions. The lightness also lets you tilt your head back and forth without worrying that the headset will slip off forwards or backwards.

Soft foam and slightly fluffy cloth padding keeps everything in place at the top of your head, while tougher foam and cloth padding on the slightly snug over-ear cups stays comfortable. You can rotate the cups to rest them flat on your chest when not in use. The fabric covers aren’t easily replaceable though, so if you get a bit sweaty or spill anything on the fabric, you’re stuck with trying to surface clean things. That light fit though, means that sound will leak like crazy. I wouldn’t recommend them in a shared office.

The Infernos have a 4-pole connector that you can use in smartphones, PS4 controller or Xbox One adapter (not included). There’s also a short splitter cable in the box, for use in standard PC headset and mic connections.

The boom microphone’s metallic arm can be bent into whatever position you find best or removed entirely when you don’t want to speak. It’ll pick up a bit of echo in a quiet room but your voice will still be clear and easily heard. The mic doesn’t come with a foam filter but is so well-designed that it doesn’t need one. I exhaled directly into it with no annoying breath sounds recorded and it didn’t pop once in all my tests. (My tests are mostly me going “Pop, pop, does this thing pick up popping noises?”)

The 40mm drivers provide pretty good sound but a slightly heavy bass can make the details a little muddy. Still, for £40, they’ll be a great lightweight headset for the privacy of your own room. Just don’t get them for the open-plan office or on the train.

Technical specs:

Headset
Headset Connector Type: 3.5mm Stereo Input
Frequency Response: 20Hz ~ 20kHz
Sensitivity: 115±3dB/mW
Impedence: 32 ohms
Audio Drivers: 40mm FullSpectrum
Interface: 3.5mm Stereo Input
Weight: 200grams

Microphone
Microphone: Noise Cancelling Condenser
Detachable: Yes
Frequency Response: 100Hz ~ 15kHz
Impedance: <2.2k ohms
Sensitivity: -40±3dBV/Pa