The Xbox 360 headset is a solid improvement over the original
Xbox headset. It is really hard to top feature wise. Not only does it have a volume
control and mute toggle, but also it "locks" into the controller, preventing it
from coming unattached easily. It also has a short cord. For $5 less, the Mad Catz HeadCOM Pro gives you more comfort for those long hours on Xbox Live, but you lose the volume and mute controls. This means you have to enter the Xbox Guide to change volume levels. On paper that sounds bad. In practice I did not mind it at all; not until I ran into a drunken guy while playing Dead or Alive 4 one evening. He would not shut up. Heading to the Xbox Guide is not as nice as just dialing down the volume on the first party headset.
The lack of volume control on the device is not a deal-breaker, but it would have been nice to have it. The HeadCOM Pro is, however, much sturdier then the flimsy headset from Microsoft. It seems like it will last a lot longer.
The HeadCOM Pro will also work on your original Xbox. It performed as well in Forza Motorsport on the Xbox as it did in Dead or Alive 4 on the Xbox 360. There really is no difference in audio quality between the Microsoft and Mad Catz headsets, so there is nothing to worry about there. Both sounded crisp; no one could tell I was using one or the other.
It is easy to recommend the HeadCOM Pro because of its thicker plastic build, its comfortable earpiece, and its price tag. Just keep the cord wound up and tied off. For whatever reason it is six feet long.
