Wicked Cushions FreeZe PS5 Earpads GBAtemp review
Hardware
Product Information:
- Official Store: https://wickedcushions.com/products/ps5-pulse-3d-headset-earpads
When it comes to headphones and headsets, I've reviewed quite a few. From in-ear bangers to over-the-head clangers, there are such a range of peripherals these days that when you find a pair that you truly mesh with, you want to keep them forever. Sadly, materials that they're typically made from deteriorate over time, and your beloved headset can start looking like an absolute-flogged out mess.
My Sony Pulse 3D's are nearing four years of age, and these things have been with me across vast prehistoric adventures, helped me communicate through futuristic battlefields, tuned my engines across miles of asphalt and helped me defend planets surrounded by intergalactic threats. That is to say that I've used them a heck of a lot, 600+ hours alone in Arc Raider since it released in October 2025, let alone all the PS+ games, PSVR gaming and review games I've smashed through over the past 4 years.
As a result of this, my headset has seen some action. Though in comparison to some people, who shall remain unnamed, mine look like they're day one box-fresh and perfectly intact. Other people have seen their cups perish. The faux leather, or pleather, becoming worn and detached through absorbing buckets of sweat, dwindling away into an unsightly powdery mess.
The Pulse 3D is my daily driver. It delivers sound so well, that I have had a difficult time reckoning which other brands even come close. I have to attest that the recent Nacon RIG series headsets do perform outstandingly well, though I simply cannot play anything without reaching for my Pulse 3D. But what if I want to give them some maintenance, or even upgrade them beyond anything they ever were?
A Cinch to Install
With a selection of cushions at my fingertips, I assumed that the first port of call would be to pry off the old ones. As obvious as this seems, I had never taken apart my trusty Pulse 3D headset cushions before, so I had no idea how destructive or easy the process could potentially be. My fears were allayed the moment I opened the first packet, because they include a QR code that takes you a huge list of video tutorials that cover every make and model Wicked cushions supply for.
For Sony's Pulse 3D headset, its as simple as grabbing the cushion from its base and pulling it directly away. It was surprisingly quick process. It took me all of 20 seconds to get both cups off, and I was amazed at just how easy it was to unlatch all four hooks.
The process of replacing the cups is the exact inverse. Hold up the cup in the correct orientation, and push the four clips back down into position. Having both snapped in in under 2 minutes was phenomenal, it was an absolute breeze to install.
There are five varieties to choose from for the Pulse 3D including 90s white, 90s black, red camo, black camo, and plain black. Each one has its visual pros and cons, and for me,
The plain black earpads are a tasty upgrade, making the headset feel more premium and adding nice-feeling fabric as well as cooling. These are a no-brainer to upgrade my headset while maintaining the original look. The flatter profile of the cups maintain the same level of sound isolation, no notable increase to noise reduction internally or externally, but overall this is easily a great swap from pleather to gel cooled fabric.
The red camo looks damned nice against a white Pulse 3D headset, as you can see in the instructional videos, but against the already extraverted grey camouflage or even the stealthy midnight black Pulse 3D's accents, I'm not quite sold. They look angry.
The white 90s and black 90s almost have THAT pattern on them that you recognise from those iconic pop culture cups and carpets of the late 80s, early 90s. I felt like they were pretty nice aesthetically, but a little too jazzy for me.
The combination of black camo with my grey camo edition Pulse 3Ds (and the matching grey camo Dual Sense controller) was another no-brainer and looks seriously good in my set up.
Comfortable and Cooling
While I couldn't say that the OG cushions were particularly sweaty, the Wicked Cushions FreeZe Gel pads, regardless of the colour-way, certainly remain cool for a long while when in use. I could absolutely see how anyone could benefit from this cooling effect around your Auricles, because it's simply feels far more exuberant and luxurious.
Comfort is also exceptional. The deep cushioning which is composed of the dual Layer cooling gel, and a breathable hybrid of sports fabric and leather really does give your ears room to breathe. The depth of the cushioning is enough to prevent your ears touching the speakers innards, and the shape envelop even the heartiest set of lugs easily.
Overall I can fully recommend the Wicked Cushions Pulse 3D FreeZe earpads, because they are easy to swap out and do exactly what they say on the tin. I can easily see me getting another 4 years out of this headset, all things willing, so that I can enjoy my favourite games with my favourite headset forever.
If I had one quibble, it would be that there wasn't some kind of pry tool included with them to help you take the cups off, because even in their instructional videos, they use a butter knife to help ease off any that aren't so easy to remove. Though I didn't have that issue, I still think it would be handy to have something that isn't a metal instrument that wouldn't mark or dent your headphone hardware during the process.
Verdict
- Comfortable.
- Easy to install.
- Cooling gel is fantastic.
- No pry tool supplied.
