Razer Carcharias Gaming Headset
- Compatibility: Computers Gaming (PC)
- Design: Over the Head
- Connectivity: Cable
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Pleasantly Surprised
Pros
Comfortable, light, good sound quality
Cons
In-line remote distance, no foam on mic, thin cable
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
I would recommend this headset to anyone looking for a decent game/music headset. I was skeptical but I like it.
As of now, I've only owned this headset for a day, but I would still like to do an initial review and add in any later findings at another time.
Also in a hope for you to relate to this review, I would like to say the following:
I am actually pretty picky when it comes to headsets, comfort and sound quality are of course very important, along with a decent microphone while keeping within a budget range. Before my previous set of headphones, I had literally bought and returned at least 3-5 headsets due mostly to sound quality.
Unboxing:
The package is pretty well boxed and filled with the headphones of course, and all the razer packaging crap (and yes it mostly is crap) All of the 'shiny' plastic parts are protected with the standard anti scratch plastic.
The headphones have a very long nylon braided cord, probably long enough for most people to plug into the back of their computer and still have a little breathing room up front. Although the nylon adds an extra touch of protection, the cable is pretty thin and I would be very careful with the cord not to pinch it or run it over with your computer chair.
The headphones also have an in-line remote with volume adjustment, mic mute, and lapel clip. The volume control is somewhat recessed preventing accidental brush ups changing your volume. One thing I have noticed also is that the volume wheel does not mute your headphones on the lowest setting, and your game/music will still be audible (not by much though) One thing that I really do not like about the in line controller is that you have around 2.5 feet of cord from the earphones to the controller putting it below your waist if dangling, and in the palm of my hand with my arm fully extended. If you do not use the lapel clip, then you are either going to feel around for the controller, or have a small jumble of cable in front of you. Even if you do use the lapel clip, you will still have a mess of cables in front of you.
The microphone swivels from the top of the headset on the left ear and is not flexible, some may say this is a bad thing, but I personally don't mind, it just means that people aren't going to be 'eating' the mic causing horrid quality. One of the first things that I noticed about the mic is that the tip does not have any kind of foam that is normally used as a type of filter preventing excess air from blowing through and picking up while you use the mic. Personally i'd prefer there was foam on the end if I am playing with a fan near me for example so the wind isn't picked up.
First Use:
Wow, these are comfortable! The very soft foam ear cups surround your entire ear versus clamping down on them and partially covering your ears. They are also very light feeling on your head. The adjusters rely on friction to hold 2 wire sections on each side in place to keep it's spot, the adjusters also go very far down to encompass a wide variety of head sizes (mine included). The only thing that worries me is how long this will actually stand up and grip after time takes it's toll.
After plugging in the 3.5mm plugs to my computer, I put on my first Test song (Take me away (into the night remix) by 4 strings) and I was impressed at the sound, it was better than my old plantronics .350 (Read my review here) From techno, I went to classic rock and again, the sound was pretty decent for a 'gaming' headset. My next step was to check the mic which initially did not sound very good, After some tinkering with settings, it sounded a bit better. I went into a voice activated game that had a friend or two, and they said that they could hear me clearly, but there was a faint 'echo' type effect to my voice. Other than that, I was given the green flag.
One major factor in my headset purchase was 'all around' quality. Some of the "gamer" headsets actually change the sound stage to a point where they sound terrible for music, but great for games, others are the complete opposite, but this headset actually covers both pretty well.
The Slightly Longer Run:
A few hours into wearing, they are still comfortable and light feeling, and at this current time, I have no regrets about purchasing this headset. The sound does travel out of the headset due to the open ear type, and they gasket to your head making outside sounds harder to hear, so just keep that in mind.
Also in a hope for you to relate to this review, I would like to say the following:
I am actually pretty picky when it comes to headsets, comfort and sound quality are of course very important, along with a decent microphone while keeping within a budget range. Before my previous set of headphones, I had literally bought and returned at least 3-5 headsets due mostly to sound quality.
Unboxing:
The package is pretty well boxed and filled with the headphones of course, and all the razer packaging crap (and yes it mostly is crap) All of the 'shiny' plastic parts are protected with the standard anti scratch plastic.
The headphones have a very long nylon braided cord, probably long enough for most people to plug into the back of their computer and still have a little breathing room up front. Although the nylon adds an extra touch of protection, the cable is pretty thin and I would be very careful with the cord not to pinch it or run it over with your computer chair.
The headphones also have an in-line remote with volume adjustment, mic mute, and lapel clip. The volume control is somewhat recessed preventing accidental brush ups changing your volume. One thing I have noticed also is that the volume wheel does not mute your headphones on the lowest setting, and your game/music will still be audible (not by much though) One thing that I really do not like about the in line controller is that you have around 2.5 feet of cord from the earphones to the controller putting it below your waist if dangling, and in the palm of my hand with my arm fully extended. If you do not use the lapel clip, then you are either going to feel around for the controller, or have a small jumble of cable in front of you. Even if you do use the lapel clip, you will still have a mess of cables in front of you.
The microphone swivels from the top of the headset on the left ear and is not flexible, some may say this is a bad thing, but I personally don't mind, it just means that people aren't going to be 'eating' the mic causing horrid quality. One of the first things that I noticed about the mic is that the tip does not have any kind of foam that is normally used as a type of filter preventing excess air from blowing through and picking up while you use the mic. Personally i'd prefer there was foam on the end if I am playing with a fan near me for example so the wind isn't picked up.
First Use:
Wow, these are comfortable! The very soft foam ear cups surround your entire ear versus clamping down on them and partially covering your ears. They are also very light feeling on your head. The adjusters rely on friction to hold 2 wire sections on each side in place to keep it's spot, the adjusters also go very far down to encompass a wide variety of head sizes (mine included). The only thing that worries me is how long this will actually stand up and grip after time takes it's toll.
After plugging in the 3.5mm plugs to my computer, I put on my first Test song (Take me away (into the night remix) by 4 strings) and I was impressed at the sound, it was better than my old plantronics .350 (Read my review here) From techno, I went to classic rock and again, the sound was pretty decent for a 'gaming' headset. My next step was to check the mic which initially did not sound very good, After some tinkering with settings, it sounded a bit better. I went into a voice activated game that had a friend or two, and they said that they could hear me clearly, but there was a faint 'echo' type effect to my voice. Other than that, I was given the green flag.
One major factor in my headset purchase was 'all around' quality. Some of the "gamer" headsets actually change the sound stage to a point where they sound terrible for music, but great for games, others are the complete opposite, but this headset actually covers both pretty well.
The Slightly Longer Run:
A few hours into wearing, they are still comfortable and light feeling, and at this current time, I have no regrets about purchasing this headset. The sound does travel out of the headset due to the open ear type, and they gasket to your head making outside sounds harder to hear, so just keep that in mind.
