Razer Blackshark review

[bramturismo]

 

 

 

I've now owned this headset for a week so I thought I'd give everyone some feedback on it and how it's been living with it so far.

 

 

First impression and build quality

 

Nothing is as pleasant to unbox as Razer products are in my mind. I really love how Razer seems to spend a lot of time on packaging their products, and not only on the product itself. My dad and uncle are pilots, so it would not be a surprise when I say I felt in love with the pilot headphone inspired look when I first saw this headset.

 

The build quality is top notch as is to be expected from Razer. The earcups are made from plastic on the outside, but even then the earcups do not feel nearly as a bit of plastic as the AKG headphones I have laying around. Aside from the earcups, the rest of the headset is made out of metal or leather, bar some small plastic pieces to hold the microphone cable attached to the microphone beam. Although the earcups seem rather small at first glance, they fit my ears perfectly with some wiggling about. As for comfort this headset pleasantly surprised me how comfortable it fits even though it is rather heavy. 

 

What draws the most attention to this headset, though, are the small details. The green stitching in the headband's black leather, the green cable on the metal and black headset, the small Razer logos on the headband adjustment knobs. It's apparent Razer have spent a lot of time not only on the global appearance of the headset, but also on the small details that make people like me very happy when closely inspecting a newly purchased product.

 

 

Sound quality, microphone quality and general comfort

 

The best headset I've ever owned was a large KOSS UR29. When that one died I opted for small and portable headphones or earplugs. To make a return to large over-ear headphones, I knew the sound would be something totally different from all those earplugs from KOSS or AKG. I was not sure what to expect, but the first time I used this headset I had to adapt to the amount of bass for a while. I'm a guitar player, and when I plug the headset into my amplifier I have to turn down the bass and increase the treble because this headset produces so much bass. When listening to music I was rather very pleasantly surprised. There's a lot of bass, but it's not overpowering. It does produce very powerful sound depending on what music you listen to though. I listen to Deftones quite often, and this headset rather swiftly gave an indication on what I had been missing out of for so long. This headset also cancels noise, but not to a degree that you can't hear anything around you. As for gaming sound, I have absolutely nothing to complain about. It's a pure joy to use in Battlefield 3.

 

For the microphone quality everything seems to be in check. I've not had any feedback yet that the microphone is unclear, or too loud or silent, or that it produces a lot of background noise. "It's completely fine" to directly quote the people I talk with on Skype. I definitely like how you can simply click out the microphone out of the headset if you want to get it out of the way.

 

As for prolonged comfort there is a slight issue with this headset. Your ears will get REALLY hot after a long period of listening to music or gaming. Hot in the sense that it becomes a bit of a discomfort so that you really just want to take them off and take a little break. Maybe this is a positive thing, since it possibly hints at taking breaks during gaming once in a while! Overall comfort is really good in my opinion, it's the fact that your ears will get really hot with the leather covers on the earcups. 

 

 

Price-wise?

 

I paid 119.99 euros for this headset. The Tiamat was a whopping 189 euros, so that was an instant no for me. The Blackshark feels like a really heavy duty, strong and durable headset. I like that, you simply get gear for your money. Buyers should definitely consider the much cheaper Razer Carcharias. Very nice design as well with Razer build quality.

 

I love the design, I love the build and sound quality. But after using this for a very long time without any pause it does show signs of discomfort, and as a guitar player it definitely isn't ideal to use with my amplifier when people are around.

 

But then again, this is a gaming headset. It is not a pair of headphones.

[obsidian1200]

I've been considering a pair of these for a while simply because the build quality looks really good. I know you said they're naturally bassy, but how do you feel they compare to other headphones you've tried in terms of sound quality? Also, how do they handle other ranges aside from the lows?

 

Also, nice review.

[GamerDude]

I tried Sennheisers that were at least double the price of the Blackshark, and I didn't like those at all because I wasn't very overwhelmed by the sound quality.

Serious? Are you saying you find the sound quality on the Blackshark to be better than Sennie? I have a pair of Senn HD555 and no gaming headset can match it in terms of sound quality......even the Tiamat. I have this pair of cans for years now, listen to music and game with it, better than any gaming headsets I've tried. And since getting it, I've not really bothered with 'gaming' headsets....though I've tried a number at a gaming peripheral shop I'm a regular of since the boss knows me.I've tried listening to music from 'gaming' headsets, invariably, they tend to sound loose, soundstage is muddled, bass tend to be a tad high to overwhelming (though strangely enough, bass is rather lacking on my Razer HP-1 and it's godawful to listen to music with it). 

 

Nice review nonetheless, just don't like sound, especially music, from any 'gaming' headset....

[bramturismo]

I've been considering a pair of these for a while simply because the build quality looks really good. I know you said they're naturally bassy, but how do you feel they compare to other headphones you've tried in terms of sound quality? Also, how do they handle other ranges aside from the lows?

 

Also, nice review.

 

I never got to compare these to any other gaming headsets unfortunately. I asked the shop owner because I wanted to compare the Blackshark to the Carcharias and the Tiamat. But I received a prompted, and rather very unfriendly, no as an aswer. 

 

I'd say this headset is a nice headset for the casual gamer that has a nitpicky side. Someone who expects a top-notch finish on a headset. If you are looking for a headset for non-stop gaming for hours on end, then you might want to look for a headset that weighs less or has bigger earcups.

 

At the price of this headset it may have been nice with a channel regulator, though. Like you get with the Tiamat.

 

 

Serious? Are you saying you find the sound quality on the Blackshark to be better than Sennie? I have a pair of Senn HD555 and no gaming headset can match it in terms of sound quality......even the Tiamat. I have this pair of cans for years now, listen to music and game with it, better than any gaming headsets I've tried. And since getting it, I've not really bothered with 'gaming' headsets....though I've tried a number at a gaming peripheral shop I'm a regular of since the boss knows me.I've tried listening to music from 'gaming' headsets, invariably, they tend to sound loose, soundstage is muddled, bass tend to be a tad high to overwhelming (though strangely enough, bass is rather lacking on my Razer HP-1 and it's godawful to listen to music with it). 

 

Nice review nonetheless, just don't like sound, especially music, from any 'gaming' headset....

 

That's not what I'm saying, no. What I was saying is that I picked up the most expensive Sennheiser in the store, put them on and then didn't realise what all the Sennheiser hype was about in the headphone world. For that pricetag I'm expecting something that instantly makes me want to have a pair when I put them on, but the Sennheisers didn't. Maybe it was the music genre they had on that didn't really contribute to giving any insight or judgement on the sound quality. But for the price tag the thing was wearing, I struggled to find a reason to prefer them over the other headphones that were hanging in the store. 

 

I never tried the Blackshark before buying them. Like I said in my quote above, I was not allowed to try out any of the headsets. So I went off of other reviews, and now I'm pretty satisfied with this headset after a week. Well, except for how warm the earcups get after a long gaming session.

[GamerDude]

Edit - See post below....will reserve comments till I've tried out the Blackshark as well.....

[boggle4321]

i am currently wearing the blackshark! o got it as a gift and it really surprised me!, the build and sound quality is excellent, they are very comfortable but a little on the heavy side. it is the reason i stopped hatting razer! they are very good quality for the price 

[GamerDude]

i am currently wearing the blackshark! o got it as a gift and it really surprised me!, the build and sound quality is excellent, they are very comfortable but a little on the heavy side. it is the reason i stopped hatting razer! they are very good quality for the price 

Hmmmm, OK, when I have the time, I'd go try it out.....see if it can change my opinion of Razer products.

[NewAndreas]

Very nice review!

[bramturismo]

Edit - See post below....will reserve comments till I've tried out the Blackshark as well.....

 

Oh no, I wasn't trying to compare this headset to headphones at all. Don't get me wrong here, headphones and gaming headsets are something completely different. I get that people will like the light weight, but personally I'm the other way round. I like my products to be sturdy and heavy duty so that I can actually feel what I paid for. I just wanted to share my first impressions when I picked up a pair of Sennheisers, and that I was personally a bit let down by the cheap and flimsy feel. I guess it's a personal taste for how much people like their headsets to weigh.

 

I'll edit my first post as to avoid any kind of confusion that I'm trying to compare this to headphones or not.

[GamerDude]

Allrighty, I have arranged to get a BlackShark this evening, will give it a go and see if I like it....seems to favor bass, so I'll focus mainly on games and movies.

[GamerDude]

OK, haven't broken in the headset, obviously, but the first I'd unavoidably noticed about this headset is the bass. It's not at all subtle and is quite overpowering. This headset exaggerates bass, it not only enhances bass, it throws it right at you.....now, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's great for gaming, and movies.....where the 'boom' gets to be 'BOOM'. It does get a little hot due to the cups clasping down on and enclosing my ears. I'll be back with a little more, got to get to know this pair of cans a little better. Oh yeah, a pic of it, just to prove I actually have it....

 

I tried my usual UT3 with this headset, the announcer's voice sounded somewhat....muffled, definitely too much bass. When you're in the midst of gaming, the bass helps....but this pair of cans is definitely NOT for music listening. Tried a few songs I usually listen to and they were tiring, stress on my ears.I'd like to make a slight correction, this pair of cans is OK for games, and action movies. Definitely gonna use it when I get Pacific RIM BR next month, the bass would be great for movies like that. I do wish the sound would be more balanced, perhaps tilting towards bass a little, but balanced nonetheless. For music, this pair of cans is a mess, forget clarity of vocals, forget soundstage, forget everything that makes music enjoyable....but, for basshead, this one would be a kicker.

 

Now, do I regret getting it? Nope, I'd gotten it from a guy who had been using it for a few months, and had paid less than half its retail price. Though somewhat overpowering basswise, and voice sounded a little muffled (being kind here), it does what it was designed to do.....gaming. If you'd thought that explosions and gunfire were somewhat underwhelming (on the bass front) on your headset, this one would leave you smiling simply because it packs a punch, but you must be willing to sacrifice clarity to some extend because the bass overwhelms everything else. It's not a terrible pair of cans, this coming from a guy who had totally dismissed it, and can be rather tiring on my ears to use for extended periods....I'm willing to put up with its shortcomings because games sound punchier with it and I do enjoy my FPS with some bass to go with it. Its forte, the bass, can be a double edged sword, while games do take on an aspect of realism due to the bass, it can be quite fatiguing on one's ears.

[Senzorei]

My classmate got one of these on his birthday, quite honestly, I don't know if they're just not properly configured or that's what they sound like, but it feels like the bass/ treble is not set properly, or there's an equalizer (for the whole OS) that makes it sound so, it just feels like everything is so pitched to the high tones. I'm currently wearing ~14 euro stereo headset and it sounds better than his Blackshark.