Corsair Virtuoso Wireless SE Review: Looks good and feels good, High Quality

 

The virtuoso wireless se is the most expensive gaming headset corsair has ever released it boasts a high quality build broadcast grade microphone and unparalleled sound quality whatever that means now in this video we are going to find out whether or not those claims are true at first glance the virtuoso wireless se looks like a piece of high-end studio gear rather than just a gaming headset it features an aluminum construction with a gunmetal finish as opposed to the typical jet black that you see on most gaming headsets on the left ear cup you will find a micro USB port for the detachable Microphone and there is also a 3.5 millimeter jack and a USB port for charging and wired Connections and on the right ear cup you will find a volume wheel and a switch to toggle between wired and wireless connections the included accessories are also very well designed with the USB dongle cables and the detachable  microphone featuring metal accents that really round out the premium feel of this product now this headset also features RGB and the lighting is embedded into the corsair logo on both ear cups now this isn't the flashiest gaming headset in terms of RGB but I quite like the subtle approach to lighting on this headset because I can add a splash of color without turning my head into some laser light show and the low key design of this headset makes it appropriate for use outside of Gaming such as in a conference call or when I'm out and about at a cafe or just doing work outdoors in terms of comfort this headset's pretty good the ear cups are made of a soft memory foam wrapped in leather red which is nice and soft in the ears and creates a decent seal that is essential for good isolation now if you wear glasses like I do off-camera you might find that there's a bit of added pressure on the arms of the Glasses this isn't a deal breaker but you'll definitely want to take a few breaks in between rounds when you're on a long gaming session overall the design of this headset is pretty spot on now sure it has a bit of heft to it and glasses wearers will need to be wary but with its plush earcup material ability to create a decent seal and it's rather attractive metal accents  this headsets kind of appeal to pretty much any gamer so we know the headset looks good but how does it perform during gameplay well here at Sangez we have just the man for the job our resident gaming expert SAM Moore has been reviewing gaming headsets for several years now and he was able to take the virtuoso wireless se for a spin so he could share his thoughts from his experience gaming with the virtuoso wireless se was great using both the wired and wireless connection options now he spent a lot of his time playing persona 5 royal on play station 4 and found that the sound effects dialogue and the musical score sounded very pleasant on this headset and on the pc side of Things gaming was just as enjoyable with the headset easily handling enemy noises and gunfire in risk of rain Too speaking of which gaming on a pc gives you access to corsair's IQ software allowing you control over eq microphone Gain and of course RGB lighting effects now the software also allows you to access virtual 7.1 surround sound which gave SAM spatial cues for games like overwatch for wireless gamers the headset uses a 2.4 gigahertz USB dongle for a stable connection and in terms of battery life our tests clock the headset at around 23 Hours which should be more than enough for even an all-nighter gaming session  now you're probably wondering how's the sound quality to that we say now don't get me wrong it sounds good trust me but there's just nothing special about the sound signature of this headset in fact it reproduces audio basically like every other gaming headset on the Market there's a notable emphasis in the low end between 100 and 300 hertz which is great for people who really like to feel the oomph in their kick drums and bass lines and a slight bump at around 1000 hertz helps retain presence in mid-range sounds like synths and guitars  however there is a significant de-emphasis in the highs after around 2000 hertz which reduces details and sounds like vocals strings and high-pitched synth leads while I don't necessarily recommend this headset for casual content consumption I think that most gamers are going to appreciate the sound of this headset especially if they're fans of electronic or hip-hop music the virtuoso wireless se also features great isolation thanks to its thick ear cups that create a proper seal now it doesn't feature any active noise cancelling but our tests showed that the headset easily blocked out mid to high frequency noises Like pc cooling fans and even chatter around you if you're using the headset in let's say a coffee shop one of the biggest selling points with the virtuoso wireless se is its microphone which is touted to be broadcast grade now this is quite a bold statement and one we definitely have to put at the Test so you're currently listening to my voice through the corsair virtuoso wireless se which is connected to my computer through the wireless USB dongle while it doesn't sound like a broadcast quality microphone it definitely performs better than most gaming Headsets outputting a neutral frequency response that doesn't have any significant low end roll-off this means that people with deeper voices will come through clearly with this mic which gaming headsets typically struggle with my only criticism with this microphone is that I wish there was a little bit more detail in the high end and to me it sounds like I'm speaking with a high cut filter on although most people aren't probably going to notice despite that this is still one of the best microphones we've tested on a gaming Headset and this is going to be more than enough for your in-game communication or for a zoom meeting now you're still listening to my voice through the Headset except this time I'm connected to my computer using the included USB type a to type c cable with a wired connection I found that there was a slight improvement in audio quality with greater clarity in the higher frequencies so if you want the best audio quality out of this microphone then definitely go with a wired connection otherwise if you didn't hear a difference or just don't want to deal with pesky cabling then yeah the USB wireless dongle is definitely a viable option for gameplay or for conference calls for comparison here's my voice coming through a standalone microphone which in this case is the elgato wave 3. as you can hear this microphone does a great job retaining clarity in the mid to high Frequencies while rejecting background noise such as the refrigerator and my computer's fans which are both off to my right side then again if you want this level of audio Quality you will have to shell out some serious cash for instance the elgato wave 3 currently retails for about 150 dollars  now for the 200 question should you buy the corsair virtuoso wireless se honestly if you have the Money sure why not it has great isolation good sound and one of the best microphones we've ever tested on a gaming headset while this is definitely a premium product it is not perfect by any means and yeah sure it looks great has a nice build and has an above average microphone but I think you could get a better sounding headset for a lower price like look at the razer black shark v2 which only comes in at around 100 half the price of the virtual OSO wireless se but still if you're looking for a headset that strikes a great balance between form and a function and don't care about the price tag corsair's offering is definitely worth considering and surely will not disappoint you