SteelSeries 7H Review

My internet is broken in my house again. I am not shocked. It seems to let only a number of ports to be used which has resulted in me being able to use Skype but no internet browser and msn. I thought I could play some FIFA but instead I decided to use the time wisely and write up a review on an awesome piece of equipment, the Steelseries 7H.

I got the headset through the mail last week and instead of simply just playing with them for a day or two, I chose to do a thorough test and as a result used them for just over a week. I didn't need to rush to review on the headphones because there is plenty of websites who have already done a 7H review, with 99% singing it praises. I can see why.

I opened the mail package and found a familiar SteelSeries box looking at me. The design always gives away a proffesional look, showing off the headset inside ready for you to open. I didn't notice anything different about the box to normal and continued to open it carefully, after a past incident where I cut into a box and severed the main lead of some headphones I wasn't going to make that mistake again.


After opening many SteelSeries boxes it wasn't a suprise to literally just find the headset, a lead and a tiny instruction manual because they know full well that you're definitely not going to read it. Needless to say I didn't read it, it's still wrapped in plastic.

On taking the headset out you get to appreciate the look of its robust design and feel. I personally believe this is by far the best looking headset the guys over at SteelSeries have made so far, mixing a blend of modern clean cut design with a proffesional black coat. After seeing pictures of various teams like Fnatic and EG wearing the headsets I assumed that it would be massive, but it's quite pleasing to see how small it looks when not on someones head.

The design follows the previous H line from SteelSeries but this time they seem to have made it look even better, it's almost quite menacing when looking at the headphones because of the thick headband and smooth curved cups. This time they haven't stuck to the usual SS logo on the side and even on the top the name and logo are in faded black, and therefore barely recognisable. Instead on the side they have two little silver plates with SteelSeries engraved onto it, giving it a very sleek look. When designing this I think they purposly went out of their way to make it wearable in public because I don't think annyone would give you a second look and think you're wearing gaming headphones.


The pullout mic is there as always and for anyone who has read my previous reviews on the 5XB and Siberia V2's you will know I am not a huge fan. So it may come as some surprise that actually I am not too bothered about this one, it actually works with the design! Saying that I am still not totally convinced it's an 'invisible' mic like they claim because even when it's fully pulled inside the headset the mic still pertrudes a bit, and I am not sure it would have taken them that long to make it fully invisible but perhaps that'll come in the 8H?

The headset is once again able to easily break into 3 different pieces by clicking the buttons on the inside of the band. It's a feature that more headsets should definitely have because it's so damn easy to pack away and you really don't have to worry about it snapping inside your bag. They seem to have brought over a few more of the 5XB features also, with the ability to bend the headset to some degree without it snapping and the super braided cable is back meaning that you're not going to be cutting it anytime soon, unless you go at it with something really sharp. The headset cable can also be removed really easily via the mini-usb connection that goes straight into it, this actually saved me the other day when I pulled the wire by accident, now normally if that happened the headset would have flung off my head however the wire just popped out and all I had to do was put it back in. Great addition and not seen before in the SS line.



Probably one of the best things about the 7H design is the removable covers for the ear pads allowing you to have either leather or just the soft cushion cups. Now this may not be such a big deal but it actually allows you to have so much flexibility in a headset. The leather cups come pre-installed but I found for home use that they weren't quite neccesary because they are really good at noise isolation. but as I like to hear if anyone is trying to talk to me I put on soft cushion. Now my needs are completely different to proffesional gamers, who would require in a tournament enviroment for noise isolation to concentrate, which means they would simply have to put in the leather ear cups when at an event.

The braided cable is a funny one, I know I mentioned it earlier as a positive and the fact that it's really safe because it's hard to break, but it really bugs me. Maybe it's just me being picky but it happened on the 5XB also and that is basically the cable rubs against some fabrics and makes an annoying vibration noise, especially when you have low sound. I would like to see some of kind of smooth surface in future editions but it's a really small issue so it's unlikely they will change it.


Ok let's move onto sound quality.

The headset itself will work with anything with a 3.5mm headphone and microphone jack and thankfully it doesn't require any power so being near a power source is not an issue. For example I am writing this while plugged directly into my laptop, however it would just as easily plug straight into an iPod, mobile or any other device that could play sound and has the right jacks.


Each test I put the 7H through it came out with great results. First test was on the laptop where I decided to see how high I could push the sound with songs and it came out with a distinctively clear sound that you don't normally get when using gaming headphones at a high level. I tried every genre from dance to classical and each played perfectly through, almost as good as my Sennhesier 595's for music and that is a bar that I don't think many headphones could compete with in this price range.

I decided I should really use the headset for some PC gaming also, so I played a fair few games of Counter Strike Source. I found myself easily locating footsteps and gun shots from the opposing players whilst communication from the other players easily flowed in. SteelSeries have said that they have optimised this for 3D positional alerts and you can really feel that when using it.

So is the headset all about PC or does this badboy work well for the Xbox also? Well I was very surprised with how it handled with both Astro Mix-amp and the SteelSeries AudioMix. Plugging in was easy using the normal 3.5mm jacks and changing between game voice and game sound was naturally easy and flawless. There was no buzz or white noise unlike when some headsets are plugged in and generally I found it to flow perfect sound in.


I tried it on various games from Halo Reach, FIFA 11 and MW2 and all performed brilliantly with the headphones, as I changed the soft cushion to the leather I found myself immersed into the game more than normal and really enjoyed using the headphones because nothing else but me and the screen mattered. Footsteps, gun noises and that horrible sound of a grenade landing at your feet were all crystal clear. Obviously using something with a digital encoder is going to give you a better sound, but direct from the TV gave a great stereo sound also. My mic according to other gamers was as clear as Xbox Live currently lets you have it.

So overall what do I think of this headset? Easily the best headset in terms of sound for both games and music I have ever used. Check out my scores below;



Scores

Design – 9/10 – A brilliantly designed headset that has a sleek and clean look that you can tell by just looking at it that it's top quality. There is no doubt this headset will last for sometime to come, but with added flexibility of the headset and its interchangable cushions it ticks all the boxes. Its only let down design wise is the mic isn't fully invisible and the braided cable causes unneccsary noise.

Functionality – 9/10 – The headset comes apart in 4 different places and can be used with both PC and Xbox without power so LAN and home use is covered. It loses a mark because it doesn't come bundled ready for Xbox use and requires either a Mixamp or AudioMix in order to be fully operational.

Sound – 10/10 – Crystal clear sound for both games and music. Nothing else to say on that matter.

Value – 9/10 – It's around £90-£100 but these are going to last you a while. They provide sound isolation, changeable covers, plenty of cable and a headset you can use for both music and games. If your serious about gaming, you won't find a better alternative for the price.

Overall – 9/10 – It's not designed for Xbox but it performs flawlessly when plugged into a mixamp or AudioMix. They provide amazing sound and quality for under a £100 while providing great looks and extreme comfort. Combined with the flexibility of the headset they are easily the best SteelSeries headset availible and I think you'd be hard pushed to find anything better on the market for the price.

Fonte: Decerto