
Welcome to the Hecate GX05 Ultra Low Latency Wireless Gaming Earbuds review.
For those that haven’t heard of Hecate. They are the professional gaming brand of audio company Edifier. So, some pretty high pedigree. Choosing a new set of earbuds can be an absolute nightmare. It really is a minefield out there. But there aren’t many that are specifically labelled as gaming earbuds. So how does the GX05 stack up in this category? Do they warrant the pretty high price tag? Read on to find out what we think.
Gamers RGB Delight
If you love all things tech and audio, feel free to check out some of our previous hardware reviews here.

Design
First things first, the design. Edifier isn’t afraid of some bold design choices and the Hecate GX05 is no difference. In fact, it’s quite possibly the boldest yet!
When lifting the lid on rather sturdy black with red accent box, you’re greeted with an absolutely incredible zinc alloy, spaceship looking housing. Resembling something out of your favourite sci-fi movie or game. You rotate the top triangular bezel to turn them on with a satisfying click, revealing the 2 earbuds underneath, along with the USB-C wireless dongle. All whilst enjoying the quite unreal RGB lightshow going on around the device.
Also included in the box are a rather lovely magnetic closure carrying case, a USB-C charging cable, USB-C dust protectors, a handy USB-A to USB-C adapter, a couple of Hecate stickers and a manual. The design of the GX05 is absolutely incredible and I have nothing but good things to say. It’s refreshingly fun and applaudable that Edifier/Hecate have tried to be so different here.
With a selection of 3 different ear tips to choose from as well and a sleek curved titanium coated no stem design. The GX05 really are a design worth every penny here.
Once in your ear they are extremely comfortable. However, it is worth noting finding a perfect fit was little tricky for me. More on that a bit later.
The GX05 have an IP 54 rating, so they’re not really waterproof, but will withstand the occasional splash and offer some protection against dust.

Control
The touch controls are pretty responsive but do require a fairly heavy touch to activate. I actually prefer this as a fair few of my other earbuds are overly sensitive and susceptible to far too many inadvertent touches.
Double, triple, quadruple tap along with single press and hold of the earbuds control the GX05.
Holding the left earbud will skip back a track whilst holding the right will skip forward. Double tapping either earbud will Play/Pause the current track. Triple tapping the right earbud will switch modes, between Game mode and Music mode. Tapping 4 times on either earbud will turn on and off their respective lighting. This lighting syncs with the cases RGB lighting and can be changed between Solid, Flashing or Breathing. On the Zinc alloy case, there is a button that can cycle these modes. You can also choose between, Cyan, Green, Red, Blue or Purple. Or if you really want to go nuts you can leave it on a strobing rainbow of colours!
All in all, it’s a very cool touch and would stand out on any gaming desk.
There is unfortunately no way to control the volume on the earbuds at all. So, to make those adjustments you’ll have to resort to using whatever device you’re connected to.

There is no in ear detection on the GX05. So, when popping them in your ears, or taking them out they don’t automatically pause or play. There is also no ANC at all, so they do pickup outside noises very easily. Even if you do find a good seal, as the noise isolation also isn’t the best.
The build quality however, is mightily impressive. The all-metal construction means the case weighs in just shy of 100g. Whilst the earbuds individually weigh 4.9g. The whole package is fantastic. Feeling like it would last years and years. It really is one of the most unique experiences I’ve ever had with any earbud unboxing and handling.
Battery
The Hecate GX05 has a fairly respectable 16 hours of battery life from the case. However, managing just over 4 hours of playtime from the earbuds, this is potentially a deal breaker for those of us that like to participate in longer gaming sessions. There is fast-charging via the supplied USB-C cable. A quick 10-minute charge will give you just over an hour of runtime. With a full charge only taking just under an hour, so you won’t be out of action for too long.
Connection
The GX05 have dual connection. Bluetooth 5.3 and 2.4ghz wireless via the supplied dongle. Meaning you can be gaming on 2.4ghz wireless connection and still take a call via Bluetooth, without the need to disconnect.
Because of the inherent delay over Bluetooth, you simply have to game using the 2.4ghz wireless dongle. However, this is where the GX05 excels. They are after all, gaming earbuds. Using this 2.4ghz connection you are able to have an ultra-low latency of 15ms. This is immediately noticeable with little to no delay even whilst playing competitive shooters. Normally to get this type of ultra-low latency you’d have to be using headphones hard wired. Making its inclusion very impressive.
Equipped with LHDC 5.0 HD, the GX05 features a decoding performance of up to 96kHz/24bit. Also boasting a Hi-Res Wireless certification.
I did happen to use the LHDC 5.0 codec via my wife’s Oppo phone and the quality is noticeably better. However, I have to say as there are so few devices that actually support LHDC, more than 90% of users will likely be stuck with the standard SBC codec.
The biggest problem though is the complete lack of any sort of app support. Every other Edifier/Hecate device I’ve had in the past and currently own are supported on the Edifier Connect App. There is zero support or love for the GX05. Meaning there is no EQ settings, no option to edit what the touch controls do. Absolutely nada. This is a weird oversight from Hecate and one that quite simply needs rectifying. Especially seeing as the GX07 is supported.
There is also no ANC at all, again something that I think would be beneficial. Especially at this price point and given the sometimes poor noise isolation.
Sound and Performance
Music
The Hecate GX05 feature a single 10mm dynamic driver in each earbud. With a frequency response of 20Hz-40Khz.
For music and at the RRP of £149.99 the sound as a whole disappoints a little. Bass is there but lacks any sort of depth and often has to be turned up loud in order to feel it. Mids are extremely recessed and set back from everything else. Vocals are fairly clear but are outperformed by the highs which in true Edifier fashion are there in abundance. The treble is in truth the best part of the GX05. Which shouldn’t come as a surprise being a gaming product where treble is king in hearing things such as footsteps.
It is however not without its flaws. Modern genres are handled a little more efficiently. Bass is a bit more accurate and blends pretty well with the highs and vocals. Classical genres, film scores and Acoustics however, are not dealt with particularly well at all in my opinion. The highs can get a bit too dominating. Overpowering the mids and lows, not blending well together. That being said overall, the sound signature is never harsh or fatiguing. It’s just a little on the muddy side and definitely mid recessed.
As mentioned earlier the fit of the earbuds for me was a contributing factor to the slightly poor music performance. I appreciate this is subjective but any sort of movement and the tips, although extremely comfortable, lost their seal in my ear. Detrimentally changing the sound profile, whilst also causing poor noise isolation. When sat perfectly still they did stay in fine but it is something to be noted as it wasn’t just myself that found this an issue. Again, for gaming you are sat pretty stationary so I think this shouldn’t be too much of a problem. I just don’t think these are aimed at music lovers on the go.
Gaming
All this does somewhat pale into insignificance when you do turn them onto game mode and start using them for what they’re clearly engineered to do. Game.
When trying across PC, PS5 and Switch they do perform pretty well indeed. Directional audio is good and there is a much better sense of immersion and depth across all game genres. I was particularly impressed when using the 15ms ultra-low latency mode on FPS games such as Call of Duty and Battlefield. Footsteps were easily distinguishable and bullet tracking and timing were surprisingly good. Explosions felt impactful and at no stage did I feel at a real disadvantage compared to when using my headphones, which is a massive compliment when it comes to using earbuds for gaming!
Essentially then, if you’re buying these for gaming alone you won’t be disappointed. They deliver on their promise. It’s just a shame they’re not as accomplished for music and day to day use.
Call and microphone quality on the GX05 is nothing to write home about. They do the job but that’s about it. Voices are often harsh and hard to pick up. It is not the nicest of experiences for those on the receiving end. Which, considering it has dual mic ENC is a little surprising.

Final Thoughts
In summary then, is the Hecate GX05 a worthy entry into the gaming earbud market?
Well, yes and no. They may be a bit more style over substance. But the gaming performance is good and the ultra-low latency is extremely impressive. But at an RRP of £149.99. It needs to do more. Music performance is sub-par when compared to gaming, there’s no ANC and it has zero app support, therefore no EQ. Plus the battery life is nowhere near its competition.
That being said, these are on offer regularly now for under £90. At that price point the inner RGB gamer may want to take a punt and try them. After all, the design is an experience in itself.
The Hecate GX05 earn the Thumb Culture Silver Award!
Disclaimer: A sample was received in order to write this review.
YouTube | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Discord | Podcast