Few weeks after the publication of the review of the headset SteelSeries Siberia V2, we propose a product belonging to the same category, always produced by the Danish SteelSeries; we speak of the headset SteelSeries 7H Pro Gaming buyable at a price of around € 105.
SteelSeries was founded in 2001 in Copenhagen, Denmark, by Jacob Wolff-Petersen. The company became in a short time a leading global manufacturer of computer peripherals for gaming experts audience.Among its products are, in fact, mice, keyboards, mouse pads, headsets and other basics accessories for an advanced player.In 2008 SteelSeries announces the acquisition of Ideazon, an U.S. company producing gaming peripherals, with the intent to improve and increase production of its products.
Currently the company works with many partners, such as Blizzard Entertainment, Electronic Arts, NCSoft, Ubisoft and GUNNAR Optkis, just to name a few.
Specifications and features
SteelSeries is synonymous with quality and performance, and so far, the Copenhagen company, has never disappointed its customers.
Like all of its products, even the SteelSeries 7H, boasts top-notch features and specifications, that can satisfy even the user who demands the best.
The product features 50 mm drivers that can give a clean sound at all frequencies, making the 7h suitable for any type of listening.
The headphones are stereo type and does not need a dedicated sound card to process the audio stream.
The "closed"-type headphone allows the isolation from the environment; in one case, the sound will be kept in the pavilion and besides, listening will not be disturbed by any noise. Another interesting feature, in addition to the retractable microphone, is the ability to replace the ear cushions; in fact, the company provides a pair of softer bearing and just as comfortable, giving the user the ability to use those it deems most appropriate.
The cable also features a volume controller that can enable or mute the microphone, depending on the use of the product.
If all this were not enough, the SteelSeries 7H is completely disassemblable into 4 pieces, facilitating the transport inside luggage.
These are the main strengths of the product on which the company is pushing and that we can find on the website of the manufacturer.
Here are the technical specifications:
Headphones:
- Frequency response: 18 to 28.000 Hz
- Impedance: 32 Ohm
- SPL at 1 kHz, 1 Vrms: 112 dB
- Cable length: 1 + 2 = 3 m (9.8 ft)
- Jack: 3.5 mm
Microphone
- Frequency response: 50 - 16,000 Hz
- Pick up pattern: Uni-directional
- Sensitivity: -38 dB
For more information, please visit the manufacturer's website:
http://steelseries.com/products/audio/steelseries-7h
Box and Bundle
BOX
The box is rich in information and with a window on the product, as in the classic SteelSeries style.
On the front we can find, besides the product name, the features that characterize it and a transparent part which allows to give a first look at the headset, allowing the user to evaluate the product.
The left side shows the name of the product and two images, while the right side remains transparent, revealing the inside of the package.
On the back of the box we find more information: technical specifications, features, a scheme that summarizes the composition of the product and the package contents.
The information is written in ten different languages, including Italian.
The bottom of the box shows the company logo with a small digression on its history.
The top, however, shows the logos of some partner companies and a transparent window on the product.
BUNDLE
We open the box from the top and extract the contents.
We are faced with another box completely transparent which allows us to look at the product in its entirety.
Once you open also this cover we see the headset, complete with connecting cables and even the extension, a pair of replacement ear pads and two user manuals.
We will describe these elements on the next page, on the physical description of the product.
SteelSeries 7H Pro Gaming Headset: description
AESTHETIC
Let's go to the real description of this headset produced from SteelSeries.
The first impression is to be faced, as expected, with a product of excellent quality; the strength of the material and construction characteristics let immediately think of a good quality headset.
As usual, the pavillion is given the letter of the ear to cover, in this case the right, marked by R letter for "right"; of course on the left side we find the letter L for "left".
In this last image we can see the microphone completely retracted into its housing; this element makes the headphones more comfortable, avoiding the clutter of the microphone in case of just listening.
The circlet of this product is built using two different materials; outside, in fact, there is a rigid plastic with engraved the company logo, while inside, we find softer rubber to make the headset more comfortable to use.
The interior of the pavillion is characterized by a soft rubber pad, very porous in the inside and more compact in the outside, ensuring excellent insulation from the outside and a nice comfort.
CABLE AND CONNECTOR
As mentioned in the "Box and Bundle" page, inside the box we find the connection cable that allows the connection of headset to the computer.
The cable end is characterized by the classic 3.5 mm jack cable to connect to the PC, on one side, while on the opposite side we find a connector to plug directly into the inlet into the left pavilion of the SteelSeries 7H.
Along the cable there is a small controller that allows the activation or deactivation of the microphone, in addition to adjusting the audio volume.
Pavillion pad replacement
Another comfort factor is the presence of two pad replacements inside the box created with a softer and more porous material.
In the image below there are two types of pads in comparison; you can clearly see the difference in porosity of the material that makes up the pad.
Replacement is very simple and within the product packaging, among manuals, there is an explanatory sheet with the instructions to make the replacement.
This maneuver can also be very useful to clean the pad itself or the part immediately adjacent to the headset's speaker.
Firmly pulling the pad to your position you can release it from its home position giving you access to headset's speaker.
In the above image we can see that two of the six holes are marked with red; this to avoid to insert the ear pad in reverse.
Unmounting the Headset
Element extremely useful is the ability to completely disassemble the product for easy cleaning and transportation.
As with all headphones and headsets on the market, this product allows you to adjust the amplitude of the headband to fit heads of various sizes.
Next to the set point and the upper end of the circlet we can find two clips, one on each side, designed to remove the pavillions by applying a little force on the clip itself.
By performing the operation on both sides, we completely dismantle the headset into three parts, easy to clean and easily transportable in a suitcase without fear of damaging the product.
Test
As usual we tested the headset with games, movies and music, to evaluate performance in all areas of use.
GAMES
We begin the evaluations from video games; the choice fell on Need For Speed Shift 2, Brink and Mythos, a free MMORPG downloadable from the Internet.
We chose these three games because, in addition to afford an excellent surround sound effects, are among the genres where the headset is used more; run, FPS and MMORPGs.
As expected, the audio quality is excellent; well-balanced volumes, offer play sessions enjoyable and even raising the volume, the quality is not affected at all.
In the game by Electronic Arts, the presence of strong, but balanced, bass, gives body to the engine of the car that echoes in the ears pad.
In the other two games, respectively an FPS and an MMORPG, there is the feeling of being dropped directly into the battle, and although the headphones are stereo and not 5.1 or 7.1, you have a clear perception of the location of the opponents and hence the origin of the attacks, fundamental aspect in this kind of games.
The microphone appears to be clear and noise-free, making us understand immediately in chaos situations that are often encountered in this kind of games.
Same goes of course to use a microphone outside the scope of gaming, in fact testing the product with a common chat software such as MSN and Skype, the result remains the same.
MOVIES
Even in this situation the headset SteelSeries 7H deserves all the praise of the case.
The tests were carried out by viewing and, above all, listening to two excellent films with special effects mixed with a large series of dialogues; Avatar and The Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan.
Very positive aspect is the clarity of dialogue with volumes that are very balanced; a lot of headsets, headphones or audio equipment, have a "lower" volume of the dialogues with the surroundings or the action scenes; this is not the case with this product that ensures a crystal clear listening even in dialogue scenes.
Listening becomes even more pleasant during the action scenes, where there are, for example, explosions or special effects; these sounds resonate very strongly and balanced within the ear pavillions catapulting ourself directly in the movie.
These aspects makes therefore the SteelSeries 7H a perfect product for watching a movie with headphones despite the lack of multi positional 5.1 or 7.1 solutions.
MUSIC
Last test, but not least, is obviously one for music listening.
As with other SteelSeries products and as mentioned in the previous pages, also the 7H headset allows the retractability of the microphone, turning the product into a comfortable and an excellent pair of headphones.
Excellent, that's the adjective suitable for this headset, because the listening turned out nice and of very high quality.
We tested the headset covering the broader musical genres from rock to disco, passing through the metal, hip-hop, pop, jazz, rap and classical operas.
Powerful bass and very bright medium-high tones allows the emphasis of guitar solos or "ambient" effects.
In essence, the SteelSeries 7H proved to be a perfect tool for high quality listening of music.
Conclusions
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The SteelSerie 7H Pro Gaming resulted a great product.
Excellent build quality characterized by excellent finishing features and world-class performance with powerful and balanced sound, make this product a suitable choice for users who want the most out of a headset.
The SteelSeries 7H Headset costs €104.99 and is purchasable from the manufacturer's website, but you can easily find in the online store at prices that touch 85€.
This price makes this product an excellent choice based on price/quality ratio.
As expected the SteelSeries 7H Headset did not disappoint the expectations, but rather has revealed been a truly excellent product, as in the SteelSeries' tradition.
PROs
- Excellent manufacturing quality
- Nice finishing
- Very comfortable
- Very long cable and removable extension cord
- Excellent performance
- Very balanced sound
- High quality microphone
- Interchangeable inner pad
- Completely dismountable
CONs
- None
Thanks to SteelSeries for the sample supplied to us.
Angelo Ciardiello
Translated by Marco Comerci