Fostex T50RP MK4g review: The minimalist headset for radical gamers

Best Prices Today: Fostex T50RP MK4g+

Fostex is a traditional Japanese manufacturer of high-end audio equipment that is probably only known to enthusiasts. The most expensive headphones, for example, cost well over $2,000. In 2024, the company launched a new edition of one of its most popular studio headphones: the Fostex T50RP MK4.

What the manufacturer probably didn’t expect was that these headphones would become an insider tip among Japanese gamers. In order to better appeal to this target group, Fostex printed a second package for the device and simply added a “g” to the product name—for “Gaming”. A few months later, the manufacturer added a “Pro”, enclosed a microphone and then released the third version, the “T50RP MK4g Pro”.

So why do Japanese gamers go for a wired headset that costs around $250? Two reasons: Firstly, it’s ideal for shooters and secondly, it does away with extraneous bells and whistles—in fact, it has none at all.

So how do the headphones sound? Really quite balanced. Somewhat emphasized in the middle, incredibly detailed, but overall very balanced.

Fostex T50RP MK4g: Design

It starts with the packaging: The Fostex T50RP MK4g comes in a simple printed cardboard box and lies there wrapped in bubble wrap. The scope of delivery includes a microphone into which the 2-meter-long cable with 3.5mm combo jack plug are integrated. If you want to separate the signal into output (headphones) and input (microphone) because your PC has separate sockets, you will need an appropriate splitter. Most consoles and laptops, however, have a suitable socket.

The technical data, including a small connection diagram, is simply printed on the box. A compact instruction manual is included, but the function is actually self-explanatory. It’s a wired headset. Plug goes in, sound comes out and goes in through the microphone. No witchcraft. The simplicity is also reflected in the weight: without the microphone, the model weighs just 330 grams.

The headphones themselves are just as simple as the packaging and scope of delivery: They’re completely black, the earpiece shells are made of admittedly somewhat cheap-looking plastic, and the headband and ear pads are covered in artificial leather. The two metal rails for adjusting the length of the headband are probably the most striking feature.

Cables protrude between them, connecting the two earpieces and giving the headphones a touch of non-utilitarian industrial design. Probably the most interesting feature of the Fostex T50RP MK4g is that you can connect the microphone to the left or right shell, as both sides have a socket.

The headset also has a small remote control on the cable, which you can use to mute the microphone and adjust the headphone volume. Fostex has opted for a slider rather than a wheel which is rather unusual, but works well enough.

In terms of construction, the Fostex T50RP MK4g are semi-open headphones, which means that they let through more ambient noise than closed headphones, but less than open headphones. This compromise allows for a reasonably natural sound without letting too much outside noise through. The fit is also more comfortable than with most closed headphones, which is certainly helped by the thick, soft ear pads.

Inside, Fostex uses magnetostatic drivers, sometimes also called planar-magnetic drivers. In terms of both price and quality, the technology lies somewhere between the most widely used (electro)dynamic drivers and the more expensive and rarer electrostatic drivers.

Fostex T50RP MK4g: Sound

So how do the headphones sound? Really quite balanced. Somewhat emphasized in the middle, incredibly detailed, but overall very balanced. While balance is often desirable in many other areas, it is rarely the case with audio products. This is because in the most common use case—music in the consumer segment—balanced sound often goes hand in hand with a certain flatness, which is certainly also dependent on current trends.

For example, if you look at the current music landscape, you’ll realize that it has, by and large, had a bias towards bass for over 10 years. Balanced headphones like the Fostex T50RP MK4g can’t reproduce this particularly well because they simply don’t have enough oomph in the bass. But that’s hardly surprising, because the Fostex is primarily a studio headphone. People use them for mixing in recording studios, where this characteristic is explicitly desired.

It just so happens that this sound profile is also ideal for competitive shooters, where the focus is less on how much power a weapon has and more on where the opponents are located. The emphasized mids are particularly helpful here, while the bass and treble play a subordinate role. What’s more, the headphones offer incredibly good spatial audio, i.e. they can show very well where something is located in the game – without any virtual surround sound or similar technologies that simulate spatiality. It’s really fascinating and the main reason why these headphones have become an insider tip.

Fostex T50RP MK4g: Microphone

Basically, there is not much to criticize about the microphone of the Fostex T50RP MK4g. It’s largely an ordinary condenser microphone on a flexible arm and with a small foam pop guard. It sounds good—no more, no less. It’s more than adequate for communication via Discord and the like.

My only real criticism is its omnidirectional characteristic: this means that the microphone picks up sounds from any direction (more or less) equally loudly, including ambient noise that doesn’t come from the direction of your mouth, such as street noise through an open window. Fostex would probably have done better with a cardioid pattern.

Is the Fostex T50RP MK4g worth it?

With the upgrade to the headset, Fostex has finally nailed it with the T50RP MK4g, at least for all those who don’t want any unnecessary bells and whistles. The company remedies most of the criticisms in my original conclusion with the microphone alone.

What remains is that the Fostex T50RP MK4g is still a rather expensive product for a relatively limited target group. This is because the vast majority of gamers will prefer a wireless headset for its flexibility alone, allowing them to do little things around the house while they wait for the next match without missing it or having to pull the cable out of the socket.

The biggest problem for American consumers is availability. Being a bit of a niche Japanese band, Fostex products aren’t sold everywhere and lack of availability is even more pronounced with the T50RP MK4g than with the basic model, as it’s currently only available from a very limited number of suppliers in the U.S.