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Malla
19
May 30, 2019
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This... Is a different sort of review. So I'll start by jumping the gun and saying: The GMR-54X? As far from perfect as it may be, I see it exactly as the kind of product we need more of in the gaming world. Let me explain... - Price: because budget More often than not, gamers will budget like 5x what they should for RGB lights and bling for their setups - even when an upgrade to a mouse, keyboard or headphone would be far more beneficial... And that's just the nature of a process of which I'm guilty too:
  • You pretty up your setup to make your gaming environment be as gorgeous as the awesome looking games you play.
But there are pitfalls still... If your setup looks awesome, your games play at 300fps in 4k at 244hz, but your mouse doesn't work properly or your audio is lackluster, your whole gaming experience is compromised, and this definitely breaks the immersion. But it doesn't matter if you've already spent thousands of dollars on your setup, or that you and I know very well that gaming gear is usually priced pretty unreasonably... We just end up putting in those extra couple of hundred, just to get a decent Headset anyway... After all, we need it. THIS is why, when I see a company that I've known to make great stuff in the past, attempting to launch something in the gaming market with a price tag of $50 (well, $40 until the Pre-Orders end), you just don't let it pass!
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Anyway, I'm not about to just leave you guys wondering "what makes a great headset, GREAT" and where in that spectrum does the 54X stack up.... So let's clear the basics: - Open x Close back Like most gaming headsets, this is a closed pair, which isn't my usual choice, but plays in it's favor in terms of sound signature, after all... Gaming! And it also lends itself to the more Flexible proposal of the 54X.  Turns out, this is easily something you could take with you on the go, and it even comes with cable options for that. And also, no fear of being "that person"... You know, the one who's music everybody else around also has to listen to?!... Yeah. - Impedance / Power And obviously, to help with that mobility, being easy to drive is sort of paramount, so it comes with 35ohms of impedance, and 103dB of sensitivity, which puts this headset amongst the easiest to drive I've had on my table in quite a long time... Pretty good for mobile use, even if not exactly the smallest or easiest of packages to take with you, since it doesn't fold nor is it wireless... - Build and Comfort But some could argue then, that other things like Comfort would get in the way of you even wanting to go out with these on your head, before you ever think of portability...  Thankfully tho, not the biggest of concerns here. The plastic construction, fabric self-adjusting head-strap, cushiony fake leather/synthetic ear pads, forgiving clamping force, lightweight build - both of headphone and any of the cables and adapters it comes with... You almost need to nit-pick in order to complain about how the 54X was built. And truth be told, the only issue I have with it, comes from me having a big head, which makes the earcups press against the lower lobe of my ears, even when the head-strap is fully extended, but even that doesn't make using it uncomfortable... Ok, maybe a little, but only when I've been gaming for like 6 hours straight, and at that point, hard to tell if it's the Headset or just too much fun. But the very fact I can game for 6 hours with them, and not just once or twice, says a lot about how much I enjoy using the 54X, after all, I was testing them, sure, but I could have hit pause and gone back to any of the other headphones I got in the studio when I was "tired" of testing, but that scenario never happened. It doesn't mean I think the 54X is better than all the other headphones I got, but it means it's both comfortable enough, and that it SOUNDS good enough, that I wouldn't even bother to stop having fun in order to go switch them up for something else. - Sound and Mic Quality But let's stop top beating around the bushes... The 54X sounds GREAT! Taking price aside even, it sounds really good, in a way that even with my KOSS level expectations, I was still surprised! Bass response is adequate, albeit a bit punchier than what I usually go for, but in this case it fits, since... Gaming... The Low-end doesn't quite perform on the Sub-Base territory, but almost... Brushing up against the door, just shy of actually getting there, and it doesn't muddy up the mids and highs either.  Low to no distortion, no hissing noise, no sibilance that I could hear even after hours and hours of music, games and movies... And I pushed it:  I threw in my smartphone, plugged it directly to my system (actually 2 systems), then to my Scarlett 2i2, and then to a couple of AMPs, and whenever you throw more power at them, they just take it and keep on rolling... Like a sponge! I had to go well above what I would consider a COMFORTABLY LOUD threshold before they started distorting from the sheer volume being pushed against the drivers, and by then, you'd be inflicting permanent damage to your ears anyway. And Sound Stage and Imaging were also decisively better than my own expectations. It's not the widest of headphones out there, but there is "enough" sound stage that you WILL notice it, and imaging is surprisingly detailed. You'll get follow sound from center to left and right, even a bit of up and down, but since this is a GOOD gaming headset and not the Holy Grail, no forwards or backwards projections, unfortunately. ;)
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All these home runs are not easy to pull off, let alone find in one product... It's rare! But for a gaming headset, the Microphone being the point I saw the most contention about, with talks of too much compression, or noisy signals... That's usually not a good sign, and there's merit to some of what's being said. And yet... Even with the missed opportunity of the convenient 3.5mm connection not being designed at an angle, I was captivated by what I heard. Yes, this microphone has some slight compression that sometimes makes me sound like I have a cold, but at the same time it's "open and airy"... Enough that it feels more natural to me. It doesn't have the same body to the voice as something like a PC37X does, but more often than not, it sounds less processed. Unfortunately, that means your noisy mechanical keyboard will be part of every voice chat in game so... More power to silent switches, I guess! But, design quirks aside, and maybe BECAUSE I don't use a "traditional" noisy keyboard when gaming, I actually like more the open and natural sound coming from the 54X... Even if sometimes I sound like I have a cold! And it almost pains me to say it, since this is me taking the crown away from my previous microphone champ (PC37X), but it's true! - CONCLUSION And from all that, the biggest conclusion I came to after testing these cans, is that the experience, and perspectives it provoked were, in one word: Refreshing! It's gotten me to think again about how audio can be approached in the gaming market, and to hope all the more for new gaming-centric versions of headphones from companies that aren't in this gig yet. But most of all, I feel like this is another great opportunity to shed light to our somewhat misguided allegiances, because truth be told, in the end it's all a game of supply and demand, and as long as we keep valuing RGB lighting and other less than important shenanigans over raw quality and packages that deliver all you need to just pick up and play, we really can't complain that much about prices being high. So in this spirit, let's - all of us gamers - keep giving companies like KOSS and DROP all the reasons we possibly can for them to keep pushing the envelope... To keep them bringing us MORE... Since we're the ones to gain, kind of win-win, right? And so, be this your first gaming headset, or maybe a second or third to add to your collection, I'd still highly recommend paying the attention the 54X deserves, before going back to thinking "whats to gain?" from that 15th extra RGB strip.... In short? 5 out of 5 ;)
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Disclaimer: The headset was provided in advance of release for the purposes reviewing. Drop did not attempt to influence the review in any way, they didn’t have any advance access to the final review copy, and all the opinions discussed here are 100% legit (a.k.a.: my own).
(Edited)
A community member
Jun 13, 2019
MallaCan I just ask something please? What camera are you using in this photos? I'm sorry I bother to ask I'm still not sure what camera to buy for photography stuff yet.
happygimp
3
Jun 26, 2019
MallaHello sir! I'm somewhat confusesd, because I purchased the KOS headset about two weeks ago. Has this product shipped? I can see that it's no longer available in the drop! But had it shipped? Please help if you can! Thanks!!
OCBob
526
Jun 29, 2019
happygimpThese reviews are from gaming headset reviewers who received these early for review. The ship date for these is August 16 2019. Sometimes the production units will ship early, or it could be a little later. If you click on your photo (in the upper right corner of the page) and then click "transactions" you should see a list of all your Drop purchases and the expected shipping date.
Malla
19
Jul 1, 2019
Sorry bro, didn't see this before... S10+, actually ;)
Malla
19
Jul 1, 2019
happygimpAs OCBob said, the shipping dates vary depending on how DROP's been able to move production and all that. Since I just received the unit in advance to test and review, I don't really know how shipping is being handled, but if you bought it, it's gonna get to ya... The shipping estimates should be on your account tho, with the rest of the purchase info. cheers!
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