Bluetooth, a short-range wireless communication system, has been around for so long that we expect every PC and accompanying peripheral to support it without fuss or bother. However, for transmitting multiple audio channels simultaneously, it's not been so great, making it a poor choice for gamers wanting to chat mid-battle. Well, Microsoft has finally done something about that, and Windows 11 now properly supports super wideband audio in stereo, even when using a mic at the same time.
If you're wondering what on Earth any of that means, Microsoft explains it rather nicely in a blog about the Bluetooth LE Audio update. Before we dig into that, let's start with a quick scenario where you have a wireless gaming headset paired with a gaming laptop, via Bluetooth.
You're playing a round of Battlefield 6, using spatial sound effects to keep track of your opponents around you. Suddenly, you spot a problem and yell an instruction to your friends. All of a sudden, you lose the spatial effect, and the sounds go really muddy.
It's not the game or your hardware that's the problem: it's Windows. Up until now, Microsoft's operating system couldn't handle so-called super wideband audio (32 kHz sampling rate) in stereo, while simultaneously transmitting the microphone channel. The best it could do is drop the audio stream into mono mode, which instantly removes any spatial/surround sound effects.
You can see why Microsoft is rather pleased with its Windows update, because all that mono madness is now a thing of the past. Yes, we are in the year 2025, and yes, stereo has been a thing for…well…longer than PCs have been around. However, Bluetooth LE Audio is only five years old, so Microsoft can perhaps be forgiven for only being a little bit late to the party.
Personally, I never use Bluetooth on my gaming PC, as my Audeze Maxwell headset comes with a little 2.4 GHz dongle that has no problems dealing with stereo audio streams with spatial effects when using the microphone at the same time. But I'm sure there are plenty of gamers out there who do use Bluetooth, so this Windows update will be music to their ears.
Of course, there are a couple of caveats. First of all, you only get the super-duper wideband stereo audio in Windows 11 24H2, so if you're still on Windows 10 or haven't updated your Windows 11 installation, you'll probably want to avoid using Bluetooth (or just don't talk in games).
Secondly, your PC and headset will need to support the latest Bluetooth LE Audio specification. Thirdly, even if the hardware does, the drivers for it all might not, so you'll need to check with the manufacturer for a relevant software or firmware update. Microsoft has a short guide on how to check if your headset supports LE Audio when connected via BT.
Windows is planned to get even better Bluetooth audio support, with future updates bringing higher sampling rates ('CD-quality') and as long as it all works smoothly, I'm all for better quality sound in games. Ray-traced photorealistic graphics grab all the headlines, but they're all for nought if the game sounds like a lone dry pea rattling around a tin can.
1. Best overall:
HyperX Cloud Alpha
2. Best budget:
Corsair HS55 Stereo
3. Best wireless:
Razer BlackShark V3
4. Best mid-range wireless:
Turtle Beach Stealth 600 Gen 3
5. Best audiophile:
Beyerdynamic MMX 330 Pro
6. Best wireless audiophile:
Audeze Maxwell
7. Best for streaming:
Audio-Technica ATH-M50xSTS StreamSet
8. Best noise-cancelling:
AceZone A-Spire
9. Best earbuds:
Steelseries Arctis GameBuds
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