HyperX Cloud Revolver – Hardware Review
HyperX is becoming a bigger and bigger name in the games industry and is slowly penetrating the eSports scene. While their internal hardware was already top notch, it’s their headsets that are slowly gaining a lot of popularity. When we tested the Cloud II we were quite impressed with the device, which proved to look good, sound great and offer a superb experience, all within an affordable price range. Now HyperX released their third model, and while it may also bear the ‘Cloud’ name, it’s nothing like the previous models. With the headset focusing on first-person shooters, we were wondering if this product would hit its mark, or make us run for cover.
Design
Compared to the Cloud II’s simplistic design the Revolver amps things up and simply looks stunning. The simplistic headband/frame of its predecessor is replaced by a solid steel frame, while the headband is suspended in between this contraption. The solid black design with a few hints of HyperX’s iconic red color tones make the design keep its class, even with the fun details embedded on the ear cups.
Both ear cups will have a protrusion right in the middle, that might resemble the end of a jet motor, especially with the red accentuated lines that are spread next to one another on the inside of said round shape. The middle of the circular design piece also has the HyperX logo in red, which makes it stand out a bit more.
The inner headband also has a bit of red stitching to break the otherwise full black design on this piece of the device. The HyperX brand name has also been added to the top of the headband, and while it has been done in a very subtle way, it still looks surprisingly good.
Perhaps one of the best improvements is the appearance of the microphone. Where the original Cloud models had a foam covered microphone, that was not only a throwback to the nineties, but also simply made the microphone look extremely cheap, the Revolver has a thin and long microphone with indentations along the surface, until you reach the actual piece that picks up the sound of your voice, which is only slightly thicker than the rest.
Comfort
Even though we weren’t convinced of the floating headband in Plantronics’ RIG 500HS, which perhaps made us rather biased towards such design choices, we were pleasantly surprised with the Revolver’s overall comfort. There is enough padding to go around and the inner headband provided ample support, which doesn’t make it feel like a flimsy add-on.
The steel frame is rather flexible and doesn’t grip your head too tightly. In combination with the rather light weight, the device will not become a bother, even when playing games for longer periods of time. In combination with the ear cups that enclose your ears entirely, without squashing them beneath the padding, things turn into a very comfortable experience.
Only one thing is rather peculiar. Seeing HyperX states this headset focuses more on first-person shooters, it’s quite odd that you can still hear a lot of environment noise around you. You will not be thoroughly isolated and thus, if you’re not in a quiet room, you might miss some of the items that are rather important in FPS games. Sometimes hearing another player’s position is done by hearing very subtle footsteps, which you might miss now. Of course, we might make it seem a bit worse than it actually is, but we simply expected a slightly more soundproof environment when putting the headset on.
Specs
- Durable steel frame
- 50mm directional drivers
- Audio control box with 3.5mm stereo and mic plugs
- Detachable microphone
Overview
As is common nowadays, connecting the Revolver is a matter of plug and play. You can use the hardware on every device with a standard 3.5mm port, if you solely use the short cable that is attached to the headset itself. This means you can also use the headset for your tablet, smartphone and so on. Of course, this is probably not the reason you’ve bought this fun peripheral, thus you’ll want to attach the second part of the cable, which has two 3.5mm jacks, one for stereo and one for your microphone. Even then, things remain simple, as you’ll simply have to plug in the device, and you’re pretty much ready to go after that.
The control box that is situated on the second part of the cable is a very simple one, but it does what it’s supposed to do. You’ll simply be able to regulate the volume and mute or activate your microphone. Other than that, there’s nothing extra added to this operating mechanism.
If you’re only planning to listen to some music, you can detach the microphone to get it out of your hair. Attaching and detaching is done quite easily, as it also works with a standard 3.5mm jack. Overall a simple feature, but a useful one when the situation calls for it.
The sound quality of this device is crystal clear, even though the bass might be a tad on the light side, but this probably has to do with the fact that footsteps and other in-game environment noises can’t be drowned out by music and so on.
Conclusion
HyperX brings a new great product on the market, and while it bears the name of the previous Cloud models, the Revolver does its own thing. You’ll be treated to comfort and a great design, all while the device maintains a crisp sound quality. Even though the headset doesn’t block out all of the outside environment noises, this device is well worth looking into.
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