Gaming chairs have a bad rep – and that's just from me. There are too many god-awful $50 options out there that literally breakdown underneath you over time, sporting horrid, garish colour ways. And that's before you get to the optional LED light show.
OK, so the majority of gaming chairs aren't aimed at me, and if you like them, that's your business. But I definitely take note when I see a gaming chair that looks like it could fit in a grown up's home office, whilst still retaining those aesthetic flourishes that make it a gaming chair. The DXRacer Master chair is one such example, and after using it for several weeks, it's definitely one that I would recommend.
Although it's not perfect, and there's fierce competition in this price range, I could definitely see it barging into my list of the best ergonomic chairs – but at $550, it's probably not going to make the best budget office chairs out there.
Design and comfort
The design of the Master chair couldn't shout 'gaming chair' vibes more. And for good reason. DXRacer are the ones that brought us the original gaming chair – they originally produced racing car seating, and moved into the gaming chair market, flared seat sides and all.
I've reviewed the entry level DXRacer Drifting chair, and I wasn't overly taken by it. Warm seating, moving head cushion... I just wasn't feeling that one. But the Master series is a different animal. It's clearly better designed, with an integrated head rest, perforated faux leather to keep things cooler, and an altogether more thought-through aesthetic.
And even thought that aesthetic isn't for me, I can still tell good design when I see it. The white stitching over black leatherette; the chevron patterned panelling on the front and back of the body, and on the seat. Even the integrated head cushion, which I have some issues with (more below), looks great. The two white stripes of fake leather down the side of the body are the final flourish... my god, am I starting to like gaming chairs?!
The seat cushion is fairly firm and absolutely comfortable – that’s exactly how I like my office chair. Too cushioned and squidgy and I overheat, and too hard and it’s not comfy. I think this chair manages this perfectly.
The head cushion is mixed. It is comfortable, but you can’t really move it up and down very well – it’s a little stiff, and I felt like I was going to wrench it off the chair every time I used it. There are five notches to move it up and down, so there is adjustability to get it in the right spot for you, but as soon as I set it, I basically didn’t adjust it again, as I didn’t want to break it.
Assembly
This one was refreshingly simple. Not many parts to fit together, and all the tools needed to do so were provided. As always, I put it together by myself – just to make sure that if you don't happen to be able to get a friend/partner/pal to construct this chair, as suggested by the brand, you'll still be alright.
It is heavy, so be careful where you put it together in relation to where it's going to live in your house/office. It still doesn't reach the heights of assembly perfection that Secretlabs Titan Evo does, but for stress free simplicity, the DXRacer Master scores high.
Features & ergonomics
Let's talk first about the highlight of the Master – the tilt function. It's excellently balanced, so that when I want to use the lever to recline a touch, I can then push further myself and tilt back more. And more importantly, when I do this, I don't feel that I'm either being pushed forward by the chair, nor do I feel like I'm going to just fall fully back in a full recline. The tilt function is a balancing act (!) and DXRacer have nailed it: you feel like you’re in control and not acting against the wishes of your chair, which is more common that you’d think!
The arm rests are decent. They adjust plenty, and you can angle them in either at the top of bottom of the rests – something that I constantly did depending on when I was typing or gaming with console in hands. Typing, I have my elbows more flared out, and gaming I tuck them in, and I found I could do both really easily with the DX Racer. The material is pretty firm, but I din’t get any aches on my elbows – which I have felt on many good chairs before
Price
At $550, this is one of the higher mid-tier priced chair (the best budget chair I've reviewed is $170 at time of writing, and the most expensive chair I've had in is a cool $2,000 (Humanscale's Freedom chair, to be reviewed).
Honestly, I think some of the pricing of chairs is insane. And the quality of chairs doesn't always scale with that price. I think the Master offers a lot of comfort, style, and durability which justifies a fair amount of money. The fact that you will almost certainly find this on discount over Black Friday, makes it a worthwhile contender.
Should you buy?
If you like the look of the chair (see more photos of it here), and you want all the comfort and style that a top gaming chair has to offer, then I would say yes – as long as you have reason not the buy the Secretlab Titan Evo first. I still think that is the best gaming chair out there right now. But honestly, the Master is close.
