Steelseries has constantly put out a solid product over the years that appeals to gamers. One of the great things about Steelseries is that they work with gamers and game-makers to tweak products that would be better suited for different game types and different gaming styles.
Recently they released the Siberia V2 Counterstrike: Global Offensive edition headset. This headset is decked out in CS:GO branding and theme, it is also a perfect example of Steelseries working with game makers to help improve their products in games.
For more information on Steelseries and their other products … here’s a little something taken from their website.
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“From day one, SteelSeries has been focused on making professional gaming gear that provide meaningful benefits to gamers of all skill-level, with the most demanding being those gamers whose lively hood depends on the performance of our products. We believe, as most gamers do, in winning, not trying! What originally began as a small two-person operation in Copenhagen back in 2001 has become a global leader in professional gaming products. SteelSeries recognized the need for superior, high-quality professional gaming gear that would give players a competitive edge. Fast-forward to today, and we’ve come a long way since our first glass mousepad. We have global offices in North America, Europe, and Asia, providing an integrated portfolio of products designed specifically for gaming. Fueling our growth is you, the gamer! “ |
The Box and Packaging
Lets take a look at the Steelseries CS:GO edition headset to see if it really performs as good as it looks.
Features and Specifications
For more information please visit the Steelseries website
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Listen. Speak. Execute. The Siberia v2 CS:GO Edition features a beautiful design combined with functionality and performance, all in one headset. The crisp, clear audio allows you to hear every movement of the enemy so you can move in for the kill with precision. A pull out microphone allows you to clearly communicate with your team so you can operate perfectly as a unit. SteelSeries was founded in eSports and CounterStrike helped build eSports to what it is today. We understand CounterStrike and have built this product to help you win.
Noise reduction The earcups feature a noise reducing foam, which helps you to focus on the important audio or voice communication, and not being disturbed or interrupted by outside noise
Quality driver units It’s one thing to have a beautiful exterior, but it’s what’s inside that makes these one of the best quality headsets on the market. A 50mm driver unit with crystal clear sound in high, low, and mid-range ensures quality output for multiple uses.
Retractable microphone The Siberia v2 CS:GO Edition features a retractable microphone that can be hidden in the left earcup, which means you can use it when you need it, but don’t have to flash it in public if you don’t want to.
Volume control The integrated volume controller on the cord offers an option to handle sound volume manually. This feature is especially useful when you are using your Siberia v2 CS:GO Edition with other devices and don’t have swift access to setting volume levels in your software.
And the numbers Headphones
Microphone
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A Closer Look
Just like the recently reviewed Steelseries Kana CS:GO edition, this headset is decked out in CS:GO branding. The box is your standard Siberia V2, but with Counterstrike branding. Basic product information covers the back of the box along with information about Steelseries products being designed by the top gaming teams. Pretty cool if you ask me.
Opening up the box, you don’t exactly get a ton of accessories. A basic manual, 3.5mm extension cable and a Steelseries sticker are about all you get aside from the headset itself. I really wish Steelseries included alternate headphone pads that are cloth, or at least offered them on the website but as it stands it appears that the pads cannot be changed which is quite a letdown.
When it comes to the headset itself, it is built well. One of the coolest features is the fact that it self-adjusts to the size of your head using wires that will either tighten or loosen up depending on your head. No need to slide anything and try and figure out what fits and what doesn’t.
The cable of the CS:GO edition headset has gone back to the standard rubber cable. Unfortunately it is not the braided cable that was used on other Steelseries headsets. I really would have like it had Steelseries gone with a braided cable or at least a much thicker plastic cable. This one has the feeling that one quick unexpected tug could rip the cable from the headset.
Comfort of this headset is not bad. Wearing it up to around three hours is not bad at all, but going over that amount of time it starts to become uncomfortable. The fake leather earpads can also pose a problem if you find yourself with sweaty ears or it happens to be a hot day.
After many hours of testing the microphone I have to say it is one of the better microphones found on a headset. VOIP micophone quality was very good, people on the other end found it came in very well no matter the program being used.
Testing Methodology
For testing we will be testing only on the PC platform since I feel that it gives better overall sound quality. We will be examining the headsets performance in Music, Movies,and PC games.
Before running these tests, the headphones were properly burned-in, in order to bring out the full characteristics of the sound. This is done in order to allow the speakers in the headphones to burn-in since they often sound different out of the box, than when you burn them in for 20-50hrs. After the burn-in period, all tests were conducted.
Music
Music testing is done with the Siberia V2 CS:GO headset being driven by an Asus Xonar DX sound card, all music is formatted in FLAC at 256kbs bitrate. Different music albums were used in order to get a feel for how the set would perform on different music genres. All music was tested at a neutral preset on the sound card in order to show what out of the box performance is like, without catering to a individual music type since very few people only listen to a single type of music.
The first album I used was Aly & Fila – Rising sun which is a Trance/ Techno album. Bass comes in very pronounced, yet is not overwhelming. On the other hand it can become muddy if lots of highs and mids are occuring at the same time. The experience on a whole is good, but it could be a little better with some fine tuning on the equalizer if you mostly listen to trance/techno.
Next up is the Folk album Bring Me your Love by City & Colour. This album is used in order to give a good sense of the mids and highs, as well as some input on the finer details in guitar chords and other sounds. Small fine details come in extremely well throughout this album. However, large heavy sounds tend to mix with small sounds when there is a combination of ranges occuring at the same time. Those instances are few and far between over the course of this album so it does not detract much from the overall listening experience for this type of music.
Next up we pick up the pace of the music and feature the A.F.I. Album, Art of Drowning.If I had to pick something that really stands out throughout this album it is the fact that it can overwhelm these headphones at times. Due to the extremely fast nature, lows , mids and highs can mix and become very messy throughout listening. If you are after a set of headphones to listen to punk/ fast paced rock music these need a ton of tuning with the equalizer in order to have a pleasurable experience.
Finally we took a look at the Rap album K.O.D. by Tech N9ne.Just like the other albums, the problem of sounds mixing was present. Bass came in deep, yet defined but if alot of other sounds occured at the same time the bass would suffer in terms of quality. Other than that, other sounds came in crisp and clear. Mids and highs when individually paired with lows were fine, but when music reached across the whole spectrum things could have been a bit more tidy.
Movies/ Video
Lots of people use their headphones when they watch movies or their favorite TV shows. Testing is done by watching Blue-Ray rips of the following series at 720p or 1080p on the VLC media player.
Life-
This BBC/ Discovery channel is simply stunning visually and audio-wise. When it comes to small details, these headphones sure do excel. Small details such as a fish flicking its tail underwater or a moose chewing on bark are crisp and very lifelike. Large sounds are likewise produced beautifully. While these headphones might not be the best at music they sure do produce stunning sounds while watching Life.
Band of Brothers –
This HBO mini-series gives a breattaking look at a group from the 101st airbourne during world war II. Positional audio is simply fantastic with these cans. Large heavy sounds such as the noise of a propeller are deafening, yet vibrant. It is very easy to tell where gunfire or explosions are coming from. Footsteps on pine needles comes through very well even though things in the background might be happening as well. Overall, the experience was very good. Movies and Television shows work beautifully with the Siberia V2 headphones.
Being quite an amazing series, Band of Brothers was a perfect fit for a war experience.
But lets move onto what these cans are marketed for, gaming. Since these headphones are made for gamers lets see how good this unit actually performs in a few games.
PC Gaming
This time we mixed things up once again and threw in Counterstrike:GO since it is afterall a CS:GO branded headset.
Counterstrike: Global Offensive
Over the years the Counter Strike series has been notorious for needing perfect sound if you want to excel. Sound quality in CS:GO is simply great. I have to say it is almost too good. There are no issues at all of hearing someone around the corner in another room picking up a weapon or reloading. Footsteps come in very well, as do things like gunshots and other crucial sounds that can mean the difference between life and death.
Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
A big huge immersive world is a great way to describe skyrim, the sound in the game is quite immersive as well. Playing through skyrim was a treat with the CS:GO edition headphones. Music came in great as did pretty much every sound in the game. There were times though when a dragon would fly by and the screech of the dragon would somewhat overload the headphones. The sound would then become a bit distorted, but overall the experience was good. No sound was too small to be heard as long as you pay attention to it. These headphones will deliver great gaming performance.
Verdict and Conclusion
I find myself a bit torn with these headphones. Much like other Steelseries headphones they are good at gaming and movies. But if you listen to lots of music they really lag behind other sets of headphones in the same price range.
I can’t help but feel like they need tweaking every time you listen to a different type of music. With different sound profiles many of the issues go away, but to be honest putting a bandaid over the issue is not a good way to go about doing things.
Comfort-wise these headphones are pretty comfortable, but if you are thinking about wearing them for extended amounts of time (over 3-hours) look elsewhere. They start to become uncomfortable around that mark so either take breaks, which you should be doing anyway or look elsewhere.
I would have also really liked it had Steelseries included a set of plush headphone pads instead of this faux leather. If it is hot out or you have a tendency to sweat they can become extremely hot after around an hour of use.
When it comes to price, shopping around the interwebs it is possible to find these headphones for right about $100. If you are strictly going for a set of gaming headphones , they are great and a decent value. But if you want more out of your headphones and listen to music frequently, I really can’t recommend them since there are many other options out there that will blow them out of the water when it comes to music performance (to be fair, those do not come with a microphone). But since they are marketed toward gamers, they do a fine job at what they are designed to do.
Final words.
Overall the Steelseries Siberia V2 CS:GO edition headphones are a gamers dream. Performance in gaming and movies is great, music performance needs work but they are still enjoyable.
Good:
- Great gaming performance
- Mic quality is very good
- Looks great
- Included extension cable
- Built-in volume and microphone switch
Bad:
- Ear pads aren’t removable
- Lacking in certain types of music
- Price
- No cool glowing lights
SCORE
7.8/10
