Most will probably forget by now that Corsair’s first gaming peripheral were actually speakers. This was soon followed by the Vengeance line of peripherals which introduced us to their first headsets. That was 7 years ago. Fast-forward to today and Corsair has scrapped the Vengeance Gaming line altogether and has streamlined their audio peripheral line to just two series: the Void series and the HS series.
In this review we’re gonna be taking a look at the flagship model for the HS series of audio peripherals from Corsair with the HS70 SE. Available in White, Carbon (Black) and the SE version which we have for review today. The Corsair HS70 is a wireless, 2.4ghz headset compatible with both PC and Playstation 4 and offers 7.1 virtual surround on PC for more immersion. Other than that, the headset features a more traditional look and lighter build than the Void series.
We’ll check all of these in detail as we take a closer look at the Corsair HS70 SE. Read on!
Corsair HS 70 Specifications
Corsair HS70 SE Official Produce Page
Closer Look
Corsair packages the HS70 in its signature style design with a predominantly black box with yellow trims. A shot of the Corsair HS70 SE can be seen on the front with big bold prints to indicate the model name of the product. At the back we have some details and specs of the HS70.
Inside the package we have a straightforward bundle of the Corsair HS70 SE headset, the detachable mic boom, a microUSB cable, the USB transceiver and some documentation.
The Cosair HS series of headsets comes in a uniform design which spans from the HS50, the HS60 and the flagship HS70. All the HS series headset feature a traditional oval earcup with a cushioned headband. Each model in the series varies in specification. The Corsair HS70 models feature pretty much the same specs as the rest of the series with the difference of featuring 7.1 surround as well as strictly wireless functionality.
The earcups house a 50mm driver with a 32ohm impedance making them relatively easy to drive but for the HS70, most of the work is done via the internal audio device since you’re not wiring this thing anyway. The cups are lined with soft foam pads covered with faux leather. The back of the earcups have a honeycomb mesh cover which gives the illusion of an open back headset but the HS70 are closed back just to be clear.
The HS70 features a cushioned headband with the HS70 SE having the unique distinction of having a beige leather treatment to convey its distinction. The band features metal brackets that hold the earcups in place. The earcups swivel in place but do not have rotation.
The earcups feature all the controls for the HS70 with the volume wheel, mic mute near the back of the left earcup. The microphone port and microUSB port are on the left cup as well. An on/off button is on the right cup. Sound prompts on the headset are used as well as LED light to indicate status.
The detachable boom mic is highly flexible. Corsair does not include a foam tip on the microphone
Software
Corsair has pledged a unified software system for its products earlier this year with their iCUE system replacing all of their software drivers. The iCUE software features support for all modern Corsair products and provides a seamless interface in managing all your Corsair gear.
The Corsair HS70’s software control allows customization of equalizer presets as well as mic volume level. You can also toggle 7.1 and stereo mode via iCUE.
The interface is pretty much straightforward with nothing really complex to fiddle with. If you so desire, just EQ choice and add it in the preset bar. You can access the presets via the dashboard in iCUE to set which you want.
User Experience & Conclusion
Talking about sound performance, the Corsair HS70 SE is surprisingly decent given its price point and “gaming” tag. While I’ve yet to see a gaming headset with a near flat audio signature, the Corsair HS70 has something close to what I like and its bass bias is just right. The option to tweak this via the iCUE software is a nice plus for those that want a more neutral experience. iCUE itself lacks fine EQ tuning but there’s enough frequency bands to work with but again, more is better in this case. Going back to audio, the HS70 is a bit sibilant in some instances especially with snares and hats clash. There’s a trailing “sss” that on higher gain causes the audio to pop. In gaming, this is a bit tamed but high-pitched audio like some guns do have that characteristic which could be annoying. We did test purely on the Direct setting via iCUE, as mentioned, tuning the EQ could remove these characteristics.
The audio isn’t as detailed as I’d like but given the price point and wireless nature of the HS70, the result is enough. Footsteps and gunfire are rendered good enough and directionality and distance are well-presented as well
Do note that on Playstation 4, you’ll need to dive in the audio settings to change what mode you want to run with on your HS70. Also worth mentioning is that EQ settings are not available on the PS4.
The microphone is surprisingly decent and having the option of removing it gives some flexibility on how you use your HS70. You can pop off the mic and just jam to music or listen to an online course or you could go pop it back on for voice chat needs.
The Corsair HS70 features the best features of the HS60 Surround and makes it wireless. This makes it a niche solution as it does not have the option of being wireless. What makes it a good option is its price point and versatility.
At $99, the Corsair HS70 SE is a decent gaming headset which allows full freedom of movement thanks to its wireless feature and multi-platform gamers will love the versatility of moving from your PC to PS4 by just plugging in the receiver.
Corsair rates the battery life of the HS70 at 16 hours and we can confirm it does run around that time frame. Putting the HS70 on blast at maximum volume would probably drain it faster but we don’t recommend that for daily usage.
Overall, the Corsair HS70 SE is a great gaming headset if you’re looking for a wireless option that gives you great audio as well as great comfort and versatility on usage, whether it be PC or PS4. Its price is simply unbeatable in the wireless headset space and this makes it a top option to get if you’re looking specifically a wireless one.
Corsair backs the HS70 SE with a 2-year warranty. We give it our B2G Recommended Seal!