Conclusion
The Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma suits the needs of gamers who enjoy a bass-heavy sound signature, customisable RGB lighting and virtual surround sound.
The Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma retails for £90 ($100) which makes it a much cheaper alternative to true 7.1 surround sound gaming headsets such as the ASUS STRIX 7.1 or Razer Tiamat 7.1, both cost upwards of £150. That said the Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma is still an expensive gaming headset and gamers should expect a lot from it given the fierce competition in this price range. Notably, the Kingston HyperX Cloud can be had for around £60 while non-gaming headsets that deliver an excellent gaming experience, like the Superlux HD668B and Takstar HI2050, are under half the price of the Kraken 7.1 Chroma.
Given the premium price of the Kraken 7.1 Chroma it needs to deliver more in the key areas of comfort, sound quality and functionality. With respect to comfort the Kraken 7.1 Chroma would benefit from less clamping pressure, thicker headband padding and slightly larger ear-cups. In the department of sound quality Razer should consider tuning down the bass to allow gamers to pick out those key audio cues in the mid-range frequencies.
Finishing off with functionality the Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma shames most of the competition with the Synapse software that allows for extensive audio and microphone customisation all the way down to choosing stereo or virtual surround at an application-specific level. Yet some of the functionality decisions of the headset itself, such as the decision to not provide an inline control, hinder the overall experience.
As a gaming headset the Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma suits the needs of gamers who enjoy a bass-heavy sound signature, customisable RGB lighting and virtual surround sound. The overall quality of the Kraken 7.1 Chroma isn't up to the same standard as Razer's mice and keyboards but this headset is still a popular choice among many gamers.
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The Good
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The Bad
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Innovative microphone storage |
Overpowering bass
Lack of headband padding Flawed cable design |
HEXUS where2buy
The Razer Kraken Chroma is available to purchase from Scan Computers*.
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*UK-based HEXUS community members are eligible for free delivery and priority customer service through theSCAN.care@HEXUS forum.
