HyperX Cloud Revolver - misfire headset

Hi GT! How often do you come across the fact that marketers are trying to impose people with an opinion of what they need, a good idea and an interesting product? .. Fortunately for us, there are still companies on the market that are important for users to create a product. , and to drive love to what happened, and even by any means.



Today I want to tell you about the gaming headset HyperX Cloud Revolver, the flagship product of the gaming unit of Kingston, one of the few headsets that is made for people, not for annual financial reports.

But when creating many, many products (generally any), designers constantly have to deal with the fact that the product needs to be given properties that simultaneously affect each other negatively. And well, if we are talking about some kind of "strength" vs "lightness." In products for professional or extreme use, such contradictions are much more complicated. In computer technology, “make faster” competes with “reduce heat from load, reducing speed”. The gaming peripherals also have enough problems.
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Gaming Headset Requirements

So, players need a comfortable headset. You can do as Apple, first come up with some garbage, and then push it. And you can ask the players what they would like to receive from the headset. Actually, I collected their Wishlist from familiar gamers, added my thoughts on this matter and that's what happened. If you leave behind the scenes any showdown like surround sound and 100,500 speakers, the requirements for playing sounds will be as follows:

• Pleasant sound - sound effects should sound natural, in the end, we want to enjoy immersion in the gameplay;
  
• The clarity of sound positioning - in the online battles, the opponent heard behind the back in time or the sound of a shot from the “grenade launcher” can decide the outcome of the match;
  
• Normal sound insulation - you should not disturb others with your sounds, and you would not like to hear surrounding sounds;
  
• Excellent audibility interlocutors - communication during multiplayer can save someone from party members and change the course of the battle.
  

The sound is more or less clear. In addition, users have Wishlist regarding the headset itself:

• Easy and comfortable - a gaming session can last long, sweating ears or a neck tired of the weight of the headset - not comme il faut;
  
• Robust - a trip in the subway backpack, falling off the table or someone's playful pens should not turn the headset into high-tech garbage, google in pictures "Logitech G35";
  
• Universal is good when there is a separate money for headphones for music, for the metro, for games, for movies ... but still, let's be realistic. Buying a headset for a few thousand rubles, I would like to be able to connect it not only to the computer and use it not only for “counter” or “pillboxes”.
  

Well, on the microphone:

• Removable or telescopic design - the microphone is not always needed, and detachable, in which case, you can repair / replace, anything can happen;
  
• The presence of noise reduction function - here without comments;
  
• Normal frequency response and voice transmission - the same.
  

That is, the typical common ones gathered here “so that it is firmly and easily” along with specific set-up contradictions - so that it was “beautiful” by the sound along with “the interlocutor is well audible”. We can assume that I got a kind of collective image of the perfect headset: light, strong, comfortable with good sound. Is everything simple in words? Let's see what is realized in HyperX Cloud Revolver and how good it is.

Equipment

The headset comes in a large and beautiful box. Inside there is another box, and in it the headphones themselves, securely protected by a large amount of foamed polyethylene, are already hidden. In order to wrinkle such packaging so as to damage the content in it - you need to try.



In addition to the headset, there is a removable microphone in the box, a two-meter cable-braided extension cable that turns the universal 4-pin mini-jack (which is suitable for connecting to mobile devices, laptops and PS4 gamepads) into two ordinary ones - for connecting to a PC sound card. The extension cable has a volume control and microphone mute with a clip. The “analog” volume control wheel has final positions: the solution may not be as reliable as the optical encoder, but within the service life of the headset you are unlikely to encounter the problem of contact bounce. But the volume control is more accurate and instant, and not stepped, and after the controller figure out which way the wheel is turning.



There are no “bonuses” in the form of interchangeable ear cushions, colored covers or bags of peeling pseudo-suede for carrying and storing the headset - it is assumed that the headset is “combat” and will be used every day for its intended purpose: even for games, even for music on the road.

Construction and materials

The overall concept of the gaming headset is brought to perfection. At the heart of everything is an ultra-light steel frame, which is also a spring that presses the speaker cups to the head. The shape and thickness are chosen perfectly: the headphones sit well even on a small head, do not put pressure on a large skull, bend easily and return to their original state. For the sake of interest, I left the headphones in this form for a day, for reliability, tying them with a thread:



After 24 hours - as new, not the slightest distortion of the structure. A self-adjusting headband is fastened to the frame (soft tape on stretching elements): less “sliding” structures - higher overall strength of the model. The loudspeaker cups are hinged with two degrees of freedom (they are attached to the steel frame), and are made of impact-resistant plastic. A removable microphone and an integral (short) part of the wire are attached to the left.



The ear cushions and the movable part of the headband are made of a special material that is as close as possible to the characteristics of genuine leather. The maximum trouble that can happen to this coating is cracking with time. But it does not peel off and will not crumble, like leatherette on a cheap textile basis. (note: By the way, in previous models of HyperX Cloud, Cloud II and Cloud Core, similar leatherette was used as a material, but a class is simpler. A competent selection of the thickness of the base, bonding layer and high-quality stitching with allowances for deformation effectively solved the problem of wear of the working surface) .

Inside the cushions Revolver is a special material with a memory effect: it remembers everything you said or heard takes the shape of your head and keeps it under the influence of heat and pressure. After you remove the headset and it “cools”, the cells with an open structure will refill with air and restore the original shape. With this material, the headset ideally sits on the head, does not burden it with excessive pressure and does not “remember” the only correct position on you forever, ensuring a comfortable fit and tight contact every time you put on headphones.



And, finally, the most interesting thing is sound emitters. Past HyeprX Cloud were quite good in all respects, but some users complained about the imbalance of the sound panorama. New 50-mm speakers with optimized frequency response and a new resonator sound better and much more neutral.



A nice bonus: the headset is completely devoid of all sorts of LEDs, meaningless decorators, embedded sound cards with surround sound emulation and controllable backlights. That is, you only pay for reliable construction and high-quality sound. Speaking of sound ...

Audio playback

So the most important thing. Some reviewers and users complained about past bass to the past HyperX Cloud: they say, there are too many of them and they are “booming”, they clog up the whole scene and frankly interfere with everything except movies. In HyperX Cloud Revolver, engineers have taken into account this feature and completely redesigned the design of sound emitters. First, the dynamics themselves have changed: they reduced the resistance from 60 ohms to 30 - now notebook audio cards, a PS4 gamepad or a regular smartphone can cope with them (you can read more about the headphone resistance in the soundpal guys in their blog). Yes, theoretically, the “purity” of the sound may slightly decrease, but here the question is in Central Asia and usage scenarios. In this case, we are not studying studio headphones for several tens (or even hundreds) of thousands of rubles for connoisseurs of oxygen-free copper. Secondly, they corrected the frequency response: the number and pumping of the low frequencies decreased, and the middle and high frequency ranges received improved detail. So even those users who are satisfied with everything in previous models will be able to appreciate how much sharper and more balanced the sound has become.

Games and movies

Perhaps the explosions now sound not so convincing and do not shake the spine. But now the headset is suitable not only for listening to explosions and second-rate rap. ;) From the point of view of gaming audio, special effects are still pleasing to the ear and are not felt dull "sound confirmation" of what is happening on the screen. In this case, HyperX Cloud Revolver is much better than its predecessor, conveys the direction of sound and more delicately handles the details.



The voices of party members are no longer drowning in the roar of artillery shots or tank engines, so now there is no need to conjure with the equalizer and volume mixer settings at the system level.

Music

Music ... oh, everything is always difficult with it. Let's just say: there are headphones of the lower price range. Sometimes there are surprisingly good playing models in it, but there are no miracles there. There is an average price range - it “plays well” - this is the norm, but there are also deviations both for the better and for the worse. Well, there is the upper price range, beyond which the confrontation of lifeless transistors and warm lamps already begins, a marvelous habitat for network cables for $ 100,500 and other perversions.

So here. Regarding the reproduction of “ordinary” music that most fully utilizes the whole range of frequencies: rock, jazz, their modern derivatives - everything is wonderful. The sound is close to hi-end headphones, which is not what you expect from this kind of product. Especially if we make allowance for the fact that this is a game series of headsets with a corresponding imprint on the sound panorama.

Guitars play cleanly, the vocals (which is high, which is not very) sounds pleasant, the drums are separated and do not merge into one rattling mess, the wind instruments are very juicy and rich in overtone, and you will have enough low frequencies if anywhere in the Bronx or Harlem.

You just do not think that the frequency response is now failed and there is no woofer in the headphones. It’s just that in the previous model they were just a bit too much - now the balance is almost perfect, and hard rock sounds volumetric, and jazz compositions don’t look flat, and the opera vocals are not bad.



In general, a good music and a good signal source produces a picture that is more typical for headphones for 15-20 thousand rubles, and not for a universal headset. Perhaps the sound is not so “pure”, but in terms of sound characteristics and balance - definitely better than many, many options.

Microphone

Do not be confused by the thick bar of the microphone, it is flexible and keeps its shape well, besides it will not break and will not be crushed from frequent use, as sometimes happens with thin “corrugated” microphone legs. The pickup is far from a studio level and it is unlikely to record a hit on it at home, but no one demands it. Voice is recorded clearly and cleanly, “spitting” and breathing are reliably filtered with a special insert, external noises are cut off by a well-thought-out construction.



For Skype and all sorts of RaidCalls, TeamSpeaks and other gaming voice communication systems is almost perfect. The voice is recognizable, garbage is not created on the air, what else is needed for happiness? It’s right that this whole system doesn’t catch aiming. It's probably funny to you now, but I have one headset in which, with the microphone turned off, you can hear some kind of radio with a lot of interferences, or a TV channel. It’s very difficult to understand what exactly is starting to play with the interlocutor, but the fact of such ... presents on the air does not please. The situation is even worse with “internal” shielding: let's say your microphone is turned off (with the button / switch / just cut off from the headphones) and you are listening to music. But your interlocutor hears it. Quiet, noisy, but hears. Here's how you can sell these headphones for 5-10 thousand rubles? And this problem is not uncommon.

Of course, HyperX Cloud Revolver does not suffer from this. When you turn off the microphone on the air, deathly silence. Yes, even if you just keep quiet - no sound or interference is transmitted. Credit!

Summing up

The engineers had a task to create a high-quality and reliable headset: to ensure good sound, “versatility” of application, develop a convenient microphone and take care that the store rating was not replete with one-star comments with the signature “broke after 2-3-5-N months of home use ".



A one-to-one hit. The headset was very light. In it, you can spend the whole day without any fatigue of the ears, neck or feeling the effects of pressure on the skull. The skin under the ear cups does not sweat, the air circulation is sufficient, and the finishing material absorbs and removes excess moisture. Headphones fit perfectly on completely different heads (thanks to the successful mounting of the speaker cups to the headband), they sound good, and the microphone knows its business.

Pleasant sound, minimalist design, in which no money was spent on useless things such as highlights, competent design and the almost complete absence of competitors. Models with a similar set of characteristics are either more expensive or inferior in sound quality / assembly / materials / convenience.




If anyone is interested in the numbers and exact performance characteristics, here they are:


Well, now about the sad. The average price of Yandex.Market - 12 000 rubles . Psychologically…. Comfortable to call it difficult. But if you look at those models that are generally sold in this market segment, read the reviews or listen to them personally - you will have no doubts. With the greatest desire to find the same high-quality sound and design in this price range is difficult. So if you have long wanted to please yourself with good headphones, but everything was postponed by the languid moments of studying the market and tremendous agony of choice - I'm sorry I broke the buzz to you. Now you know what to take. ;)



Thank you for your attention and stay with Kingston on Hiktatimes!

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