Test Corsair HS80 RGB Wireless gaming headset: an excellent quality microphone

The HS80 RGB Wireless inaugurates a new direction of design for Corsair, which tries out a system of double hoop composed of an adjustable elastic strap, while opting for cleaner and more modern lines. Despite this desire for change, the manufacturer still took the opportunity to give a little nod to its old series of Void headphones by placing a pair of trapezoidal earpieces, equipped with RGB lighting (customizable, and deactivatable) .

In addition to these aesthetic considerations, the HS80 RGB Wireless mainly consists of plastic elements of excellent craftsmanship, complemented by aluminum hinges which reinforce the robust appearance of the whole. The ear cushions, covered with a fluffy fabric, and the strap that makes up part of the headband can be very easily removed from the headset for maintenance or replacement. The quality of the assembly is therefore there and no structural weakness is to be deplored … or almost. Indeed, the two small connecting cables passing between the headband and the ear cups can be a point of weakness, especially during transport of the helmet – and no protective cover is provided elsewhere. In addition, the gooseneck microphone is not detachable.

Thanks to its double headband and the design of its ear cups, the HS80 RGB Wireless offers a generally good feeling of comfort. The strap contributes to the good distribution of the contact points and the weight of the helmet, while the ear cups offer a particularly soft contact, while offering a good sound insulation / ventilation ratio. Contrary to what the trapezoidal earpads of Void headsets could offer, the earpads of the HS80 RGB Wireless provide enough space to accommodate their ears, whether in width, height or depth, and we welcome that.

Some points would still have deserved to be improved. Firstly, the weight of the helmet remains quite high (367 g) and can be felt during long sessions of use; especially at the nape of the neck. In addition, the helmet is not very suitable for larger heads, since in the absence of adjustment of the main arch and a limited space between the two arches, the top of the head is very quickly tackled. against the main arch, effectively annihilating the interest of the strap. Finally, to a lesser extent, we would also have appreciated that the atria pivot a little more generously on the vertical axis to rest in a perfectly uniform manner around the ear; these are supported a little more frankly at the temple.

As a logical consequence of the change in acoustic design, the HS80 RGB Wireless takes very little of the sonic characteristics of its predecessor, the HS70 Wireless. However, its performance is hardly more impressive: the rendering certainly gains a little in precision, but unfortunately loses in balance.

The biggest flaw of this HS80 RGB Wireless indeed concerns the treatment reserved for the high mids: the very wide and clear withdrawal in the presence zone (between 2 and 5 kHz approximately) – and to a lesser extent the shyness of the treble – gives overall rendering a sound that is certainly extremely soft, but also very muffled and blunt. This behavior also has a consequence on the perception of the sources in the foreground which always seem a little too far away: difficult to instinctively evaluate the distance and the path of a source which approaches us in play, for example. Some may also blame the headphones for a small lack of depth and impact in the bass. As often, the equalizer of the companion application comes to the rescue and allows the user to compensate for some of these various weaknesses to obtain a more acceptable result, but still far from bringing real satisfaction.

Although the overall precision is a bit higher than that of the previous model, it is still nothing short of exemplary. The reproduction of the mids is cleaner and more chiseled, however, the bass is still quite messy and sibilance phenomena are sometimes heard on the vocals.

On the surround virtualization side, the HS80 RGB Wireless fortunately spares us the unconvincing solutions chosen on previous models from Corsair by being delivered with a Dolby Atmos for Headphones license, one of the most convincing virtualization algorithms currently. The intrinsic performance of the headset does not really honor the rendering of the soundstage that said, but in the month this virtualization has the merit of remaining natural, unlike others.