Razer Banshee
Starcraft II Gaming Headset
Overview
In this edition of Gang Gamer Grean: Razer Review, Thailand, we are going to be reviewing the Razer Banshee The Razer Banshee is specifically designed for Blizzard's RTS game Starcraft II.
Pros
- Lighting
Cons
- Heavy
- Sound Quality is poor
- Not as comfortable as it look
Marauder Review
The Banshee is large and heavy, and made more cumbersome by a 2.1m braided cable. Thankfully, the headset's firm grip on your head means that the cable doesn't pull on the ear cup to which it's attached. The Banshee connects to your PC via USB, and has its own sound processor. A detachable microphone boom is included too, and there are independent controls for the headset and microphone volume - as well as mute buttons for each - on the ear cups.
Comfort was one of the strong points of the Carcharias, but we're not convinced by the Banshee. The circumaural ear cushions and headband cushion are large and soft, yet our heads still started to ache after prolonged use. This stemmed from the fact that more pressure was applied above our ears than below them; even the ample adjustment provided by the headband couldn't solve the problem.
Our biggest disappointment was the sound quality, though. Everything we threw at the Banshee sounded muffled and exhibited a very harsh high end. The StarCraft II Configurator software includes an equaliser, but even after significant tweaking we found that games, music and films sounded poor.
Another complaint was the brightness of the lights on the Banshee's ear cups, which we could see glowing in our peripheral vision. Thankfully, you can turn them off using the StarCraft II Configurator.
As with the Spectre mouse, Razer seems to have gone to great lengths to make the Banshee both look and feel like a StarCraft II peripheral. The Banshee is more than just a spray painted version of one of Razer's current products.
Unfortunately for Razer, though the Banshee would had been find if it was just a repainted version of its own Carcharias headset, which is better than the Banshee in almost every way. Give your ears the care they deserve and leave the Banshee on the shelf.
Unfortunately for Razer, though the Banshee would had been find if it was just a repainted version of its own Carcharias headset, which is better than the Banshee in almost every way. Give your ears the care they deserve and leave the Banshee on the shelf.
Technical Specifications
- Circumaural Design with 50mm Driver Units
- Volume & Mic Control Buttons on the Headset
- APM-Lighting System
- 10 preset EQ
- Detachable Microphone Boom
- Braided 7 Foot USB Cable
- Dimensions: 183mm(L) * 90mm(W) * 200mm(H)
Headphones- Frequency Response: 20 - 20,000 Hz
- Impedance: 32Ω at 1kHz
- Sensitivity (@1kHz, 1V/Pa): >102dB at 1 kHz
- Drivers: 50 mm, with neodymium magnets
Microphone
Microphone
- Frequency Response: 100 - 10,000 Hz
- Sensitivity (-42 dB ± 2dB @1kHz, 1V/Pa)
- Signal-to-Noise Ratio: >58 dB
- Pick-up pattern: Uni-directional
Ratings (out of 10)
Build Quality - goes great with the Spectre and Marauder, but this is surprisingly heavy
8.0
Ease of Use - it is fairly comfortable for a limited amount of time, but this is like punishing your ears for most of the other time
7.0
Features - does have software that acts as an equalizer but that does not in anyway can buffed up the poor sound quality of this ill-designed headset
Features - does have software that acts as an equalizer but that does not in anyway can buffed up the poor sound quality of this ill-designed headset
7.0
Performance - the lighting features does not provide any significantly improvement, the sound quality is poor for its price
6.5
Value - a little on the high side, but die-hard fans should have no problem splashing cash on this one
6.0
Overall - Good
6.9
