SteelSound 5Hv2 Headset
www.SteelSeries.com
Price: $99.00 (Direct from SteelSeries Online Shop)

In the world today gaming is becoming one of the most popular past times and hobbies for millions of people around the world. Competing for faster computers, better graphics, and more intense sound, gamers always would love to have the best of the best. The problem is that many times the best of the best is extremely expensive and out of the budget of the average gamer.

SteelSeries has always had awesome products with the gamer in mind, at prices that do not break the bank. Most will know SteelSeries for their premier mouse pads and gaming surfaces, but they also have a full line of other gaming supplies. The SteelSound 5H was a legendary headset that was loved by the people, but had a few flaws that always came up as large negatives on an other wise great headset. Now SteelSeries has taken the 5H and made some major improvements on it to fix the flaws of the earlier model. This new version is simply referred to as the 5H v2 (version 2).

At a 100 dollar price point (USD) the SteelSound 5H v2 is not one of the cheaper headsets out there, but it also is not in the multiple hundreds of dollars as some of the premier headset brands are (Sennheiser for example). I will be very interested to find out how the sound and build quality are compared to more expensive headsets that I have used.

Coming in a beautiful retail package, the 5H v2 has some great first impressions. The package is clear plastic with the headset displayed prominently in the middle of the package around the 5H v2 logo.

(remember to click on the pictures to enlarge them!)

On the back you will find all the technical specifications and features:

Other notable features are:

• Retractable Microphone System
• Separates into three pieces for travel/storage
• Braided cord

Taking a closer look at the headset out of the package the 5H v2 is very solidly made and the new improved headband seems very strong even compared to other premium headsets I have used. Across the bottom of the headband there is a soft cushion that sits on your head. The ear muffs also have quite a bit of padding around them that lets them cup your ears. Instead of the normal cheap plastic cord, the 5H v2 has a very nicely braided black cord that gives it a more professional and quality look. Being braided, the cord also seems to not tangle and knot as easily.

For flexibility and comfort the headset can adjust on either side with two extendable portions.

The ear muffs can also pivot up and down quite a bit. There is not a lot of horizontal swivel, but this should not be an issue as the swivel motion usually just leads to a loose feel on a headset.

Coming from the left ear muff, the cord is relatively short (around 3ft (SteelSeries says 1m)) with a control for the volume and microphone about 2ft down the cord. This control allows you to change the microphone level (hi/low/off) and control the volume with a dial. There also is a clip on the back of the control for ease of positioning.

At the end of the 3ft cord the single cord splits into two separate 3.5mm, one for the microphone (salmon color) and one for the headset (green color).

If you think 3ft (1m) is too short for you (it was for me), SteelSeries is also kind enough to include a matching braided 6ft (2m) extender cable. Each end of the extender breaks into the separate microphone and headset connectors that are color coded. The end of the extender that connects to your audio device splits about 1ft up the cord so if need be, you can plug in the microphone and headset into plugs that are not right next to each other (very nice feature for some of us!).

Before going into testing of the sound and microphone, I thought we should look at how the 5H v2 disassembles for travel. The headband separates from the two ear muffs with two tabs that are very easy to get undone with just your fingers. They are inset and strong enough that they should not come undone accidentally though. You can also see the two connectors that send the audio from the main (left) ear muff to the other (right) ear muff when you separate the headset into its three pieces.

Now that we have gone over the features/build of the headset you are probably curious about how it actually sounds! In using the headset on a range of different audio components I found that the headset sounded very good throughout the audio range, but seemed to be lacking in bass. For me this was not much of a problem as I am not big into bass anyways, but for some this would be a major let down. While gaming the 5H v2 was amazing, it seems to boost the higher sounds so that you can hear minuet details much easier. It still is no winner for bass in games, but in many FPS games (which the headset is designed for), hearing the minuet details is more important than bass any day. If you are looking for a headset to listen to music, this is probably not it (although it is still good for music every now and then). If you want a headset for gaming, the 5H v2 is amazing.

The microphone is one of the very unique features on the 5H. When you do not need it, you will never even know its there, but when you do need it all you have to do is pull it out of the left ear muff and you are ready to go. The microphone cord is flexible yet remembers its position so you can position it however you like. Now on the v2 the cord is also covered in flexible clear plastic to make it more durable. I have not done testing with many different microphones, but I can say that the microphone on the 5H v2 seems very clear and precise. It sounds just as good, if not better than the Logitech headset with microphone that I have and there is a very clear difference between cheaper stand microphones that I have and the 5H v2. The microphone should work great for gaming and and any type of VoIP.

Overall I feel that the SteelSound 5H v2 is a great gaming headset that has awesome features at a decent price. It is not the greatest headset at its price point for music listeners (which is why I have to give it a 4/5), but the 5H v2 offers a great gaming experience by boosting normally hard to hear sounds and having an integrated microphone.

Thanks to SteelSeries for the review sample!