A headset is synonymous with gaming, for the simple reason you can blast away into the small hours without disturbing other people. It’s also immersive and also one of the more popular ways to communicate with gamer friends online. Gaming headsets come in the full spectrum of price points and Corsair has usually kept things below $100, even with decent wireless models such as the HS70. With the Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE, though, the company is stepping things up a gear.
The headset features 7.1 surround sound, 50mm drivers, a broadcast-grade 9.5mm high-bandwidth microphone, premium construction and a battery life in wireless mode of up to 20 hours, or so Corsair claims. Let’s start with the build quality. It’s not wanting and in fact, it’s one most solid, premium-feeling headsets I’ve used. The all-aluminum construction offers a weighty, comfortable design that’s thankfully well-padded around the ears and headband too.
The pressure on both is maybe a little more than I, personally, would like, but it does help to seal in sound and stop the unit wobbling on your head. However, there was a hint – and just a hint – of ache on my head after a few hours of use, which I don’t get with one of the headset’s predecessors and my current daily driver, the Void Pro RGB Wireless. Everything else, though, is spot-on in terms of comfort, especially as the circumaural ear cups can rotate in both directions. The quality is evident throughout the package too and even the USB dongle for wireless mode features a knurled metal end cap. Connection in wireless mode is near-instantaneous too.
There are several models available and the flagship which I’m looking at here sports a premium broadcast-grade 9.5mm high-bandwidth microphone, compared with a standard unit on the cheaper Virtuoso, which costs $179.99. This is detachable, which I’m not personally keen on – just personal preference – as I like to be able to flip up or down a microphone to get it out the way when I’m just consuming the latest Netflix box set. Here, you need to physically detach it and that’s asking for it to drop off my desk and get lost forever under a nearby piece of furniture. The quality, again, is epic with precisely-machined metal end cap and fully adjustable boom.
The ear cups also differ between models with the pricier one offering micro-perforated RGB LED lighting that’s a little more subtle looking from the press photos Corsair sent me than the standard RGB lighting in the cheaper unit. The ear cups themselves are also nicer-looking with aluminum end plates and you also get a storage bag. All worth $50? Well, certainly if audio broadcast quality is important although I don’t have both headsets to hand to compare, although the quality on the flagship is exceptional.
Volume can be controlled using a wheel on one ear cup, which also has a small switch for using wireless or wired modes. Ideally, I’d have liked these to be bigger as they’re a little too flush to be found easily when wearing the headset, but you do get used to them. Corsair includes both a 3.5mm cable for the audio jack port, but a second wired mode using a USB cable is here and also offers higher sound quality than wireless mode. It’s also what you’ll need to hook up to charge the headset. The Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE is compatible with PCs and laptops, Xbox One, PS4, Nintendo Switch and with the 3.5mm cable, with any device that has a 3.5mm audio jack too.
Audio quality was superb and I was especially impressed with the clarity of the mid and high-range in music with vocals and instruments sounding especially crisp. The bass was lively and clear too with enough punch for my liking, but out of the box it was maybe a bit lacking for bass-heavy music fans. However, it sounded excellent in games and a quick trip into Corsair’s iCUE software, which sports an equalizer as well as 7.1 to stereo sound toggle as well as lighting controls, saw the bass boosted a little. It’s an impressive unit in terms of audio quality and the 7.1 surround sound was definitely audible in games and handy with identifying where gunfire or voices are coming from.
There are clearly a lot of good headsets out there for the same or similar cash, but Corsair has struck a good balance between audio quality, build quality and features. If you’re just after a decent quality premium gaming headset and not after broadcast-grade microphones or carry pouches, the cheaper Virtuoso RGB Wireless is definitely worth dipping down to and saving $50, but the extras are maybe worth it for the more hard-core gamer that’s often on the move. You can see more information on Corsair’s new headset here.
