The Corsair HS80 RGB USB recently landed on the market, featuring an understated design, the presence of a USB cable and compatibility with iCue software designed to help you customise the experience. But how do they perform in the field? We tell you in this review.
Corsair HS80 RGB USB Video Review
The headset for every occasion
These Corsair HS80 RGB USB headphones were born for gaming, but the aesthetics are actually quite understated. The only “tamaronic” touch is the presence of LED lights that enhance the Corsair logo, LED lights that you can customise using the iCUE software that allows you to choose both pattern and colour.
We’ve got a lightweight aluminium frame with a soft, elastic headband and fabric pads that make it extremely comfortable to use.
The weight then is 373g and is really well distributed. We used them for days on end, mainly for online meetings and listening to music, and we never thought ‘enough is enough, we need a break’.
On the left pavilion, at the back, we find a bezel and a button. The bezel, as you can imagine, is used to adjust the volume; the button, on the other hand, is associated by default with mute so you just have to press it to mute the microphone, with a small red LED located right on the microphone that will help you know its status immediately.
Important thing: as you can see, the microphone is connected to the headset, you cannot unplug it. But when you lift it up it automatically mutes, so pressing the button won’t change anything. When you put it in the horizontal position you can instead use the button. A button that – little gem – you can customise. As we said, by default it serves to mute or activate the microphone but with iCUE you can associate another function with it. For example, Play and Pause, or even a BIP to auto-censor yourself. You can even use it to activate a programme. The options available are a plethora.
Before I tell you how they work, a small remark on the high build quality of this product. There are no creaks or sagging. Corsair has really done an excellent job.
How do they perform?
The HS80 RGB USBs rely on 50 mm neodymium drivers, cover a range from 20 Hz to 40,000 Hz, support Dolby Audio 7.1 and Hi-Res audio.
The performance is really good, both in everyday use – i.e. with music, conversations, movies and the like – and during gaming sessions. When playing Apex Legends with music in the background, we could distinguish even small noises, such as enemy footsteps, without losing anything on the music front.
You also have the option to customise the experience using the iCue equaliser, which features a number of useful presets. We particularly liked Movie Theatre, but that doesn’t mean it’s suitable for all content and situations, so we encourage you to experiment with them all to see which ones might suit you.
The microphone also performs great, and even in a crowded and noisy bar we were able to converse with our intel-lovers without any problems.
Corsair HS80 RGB USB review: conclusions
But how much do these gaming headsets cost? 129,99 €.
In our opinion an adequate price for a headset that you can actually use for everything. Whether for gaming, working, listening to music, watching streaming content… This is thanks to both an understated design and good audio performance.
Film lover, TV series junkie, geek to the core and gamer at heart. Inexplicably graduated with a degree in Psychological Science and Techniques and a Master’s degree in Clinical, Developmental and Neuropsychology.
