I wonder how good is the performance of the newly release SteelSeries 3Hv2 and SteelSeries 5Hv3. am waiting for Roccat Kave XTD release as well to replace my aging Siberia v1

The dota 2 has arrived? holy

the XTD does features more, but lets see hows the SQ of both the 3hv2 and 5hv3

u meant headset? no news yet

i 4get to mention about 9H as well as the pricing might be closer/around the Kave XTD.
3hv2 pricing is attractive for entry/ newcomer.

news that i heard is that 9H is going to be way more

well, if according to direct conversion from SS site on USD $159.99/€159.99 MSRP, is more or less rm500 (direct conversion).
but seeing ur post should be really expansive due to currency issue as well
meantime, all these 4 headset will need to see some review 1st.
n i juz saw Elite.....4 headset from SS this 2nd half alone? i wonder what categories that Elite cater for.
Elite is the highest-end of the 4? i initially thought is 9H but i'm wrong on it..

This post has been edited by sai86: Sep 11 2013, 05:06 PM

9H and Elite is going to compare with the tiamat 7.1 if my source is correct

SteelSeries Siberia V2 Illuminated Headset Review ( Heat Orange/ Frost Blue)

Introduction
The first SteelSeries siberia V2 illuminated headset was known as Frost Blue was introduced in back in august 2012. The version that i had was the Heat Orange version which is the same as the Frost Blue but with different lighting effects.

Packaging and Accessories
SteelSeries kept the same box design as the Frost Blue

*ignore the kana dota 2

The Package includes
1x SteelSeries Siberia V2 Heat Orange
1x 1meter USB cable extension cable
1x Sticker
1x Quick Start Guide & User Manual

Design

SteelSeries kept the same design as the Siberia v2, but adding an illuminated light on both sides of the ear cups. The lights in the website are not as vibrant as the real thing. Under normal lighting condition, like in a brightly lit house, the light does look more vibrant. Under poor lighting conditions, the light will look like it is heating up and very saturated orange colour.

Comfort & Isolation
Comfort level is great, even for people who wear spectacles like me. However people with really thick spectacle frame need to stay away due to the relatively high clamping force. However i can easily go through 5 hours straight in an chill room but 2 hours in a hot day due to the leatherette ear cushions. The lights on the side of the ear cups doesnt heat up easily, i find it negligible since most of the heat came from your own body and environment rather than the lights. Isolation is same as the Siberia V2, i dont consider it as closed, i think its more towards semi close because outside noise is noticeable. However to some this might be not a bad thing, i will tell you why later in the review. The driver is angled so that your ears wont touch the driver housing. However huge heads and large ears might find it uncomfortable.

Hardware
The Siberia Illuminated Series Headset are USB connected. This might be a turn off point for some who wanted to use it with their phone, however its possible. I have no problem using it with my note 2 connected via USB OTG ( i am using the stock rom, however touchwiz based rom are possible but not AOSP). Now you must be asking, why USB connection? Well, the USB connector is to make sure it is able to power up the lights at the side of the ear cups. Thats not the main point of the USB connection, the biggest reason why the connector is so big is because it include a soundcard. The soundcard is able to produce 16bit 44.1kHz decoding rate. Although it doesnt sound promising, it is sufficient for casual listeners out there since most CD ripped tracks are 16bit 44.1kHz. Other than that, it provides a virtual surround sound. Although it doesnt list out in the website, i will tell you why i think it includes a virtual surround sound decoding later in the review. And comparing to the onboard laptop soundcard, it is definitely an upgrade, but not much.

Sound Quality
Music
Previously i mentioned how i know it includes surround sound decoding, it is because when im playing a stereo recorded music, the music doesnt sound right as sometime it sounds soft and sometimes loud. The same situation i experience is when im using the 1st generation Siberia USB with 7.1 virtualization.
Audiophiles might have to stay away, casual listeners could find it forgiving.
Do note i do say it can perform with certain handphones, especially my own note 2. I find music listening in note 2 is better because i think virtualization is off when using it on the phone. Music quality is outstanding compared when using it in the computer.
The headphone has an emphasis towards bass, however it doesnt muffle up the mids and highs. You still get a clear sound while having bass only when needed.However the bass i slightly loose, might be due to not enough burn in time(burn in for 50hours before doing this review) Treble extension is good without being ear piercing. Since i mentioned it was semi closed, it does provide an airy sound without sacrificing isolation that much. Soundstage is above average for a closed headphone in this price range. Instrument separation is also above average.

Gaming
SteelSeries is the leading manufacturer in professional gaming gears, this is why the Siberia v2 Illuminated was made for, gaming.

DotA 2
DotA 2 is able to support virtualization. Playing DotA 2 with this headphone is awesome, you feel like as you are in the game. The headset gave a good amount of details in sound effects, you will hear sound that you'll never heard before.

Counter Strike 1.6
As a old fashioned gamer, i still love CS1.6. However due to the age of the game, virtualization arent as good as the new games like the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Footsteps are however still well positioned here, you are able to hear people who were running towards or away, left or right, front or behind or even below you. Some people might think the bass in the v2 might muffle up the footstep, it wont but it doesnt provide that same sharp sounding same as the ones in 5Hv2 which was known as a ''king'' for FPS footsteps clarity. However, it doesnt fall very far behind, it might just be a step backwards when it comes to clarity.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Call of Duty is a bliss to play with this headsets. You will get a very realistic game play due to the bass. Grenade are boomy and flashbangs are quite ear piercing. You will still able to tell where enemies are but when it comes to gunshots, you can distinguish one or two shots, but when you are inside a crossfire, they are going to sound like they are muffled together.

Mic Quality
Mic quality is good with noise cancelling feature, i find it good enough for gamers who wants a clear chat in game or skype.

Setting
Setting for this headset is relatively simple and easy to use. There is only equalization setting to tweak the sound and im not the equalizer kind of guy. Im going to leave it flat. The setting for the lighting has 2. Pulsation and intensity. For intensity there are off,low,medium and high. For pulsation there is steady,slow,medium,high and trigger. The only special setting is the trigger where the pulsation follows the music.

V2 Illuminated vs V2 USB
The difference here is the soundcard. The newer generation soundcard sounds better here. It also had an extra noise cancelling function. However the old USB has the setting to either to have virtualization or stereo. And you are able to fine tune the virtualization software.

Conclusion
So how would it fight against the previous generation Siberia V2? To be honest the Siberia V2 Illuminated sounds better than the old generation V2 USB and it has a better virtualization sound. But you are not able to tweak it into your own personal liking. For the retail price of RM519, you can get any lighter or better sounding gaming headset than these. However i do hope steelseries is able to update the firmware of the Illuminated Siberia V2 USB and enable us to either turn on the virtualization or off. Music from the note 2 sounds really good. Driver or driveless doesnt matter as the sound is still same. So people who wanted same sound in every pc is definitely a yes for them.

Pros:
-Better virtualization quality
-Better mic noise cancelling feature
-Bling bling lighting
-Nice treble extension and tight bass

Cons:
-Not much setting
-Virtualization on all the way

This post has been edited by H3LLKEEPER: Sep 12 2013, 02:38 PM

why there is nothing about kanav2 at official steelseries website ?

I have no idea
but SteelSeries China seems to have it
Could it be asia exclusive?

want to buy ady, but dont want end up first batch got problem type.

tested two units in IT fair seems good to me
But have to agree with you 1st batch are usually have problems

sighs, gotta wait again, but is better to wait then getting problem units.

No one using Merc Stealth? Just grab one from Amazon while they are clearing stock. I think it is going to be EOL soon.




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EOL long time ago
those are damn old leftover stocks

haha.. but still selling at US. My Zboard just spoilt recently, so only get it now. Hopefully the EOL means they will come out with a mechanical version.

Still waiting for them to make a backlighted mech keyboard

zzz my sib v2 cushion has officially fallen apart...now cannot be used at all unless i find some replacement cushion somewhere.

torn apart my heat orange for measurement
it was 9.5 cm compared to carcharias with 9 cm
its ok to use but cosmetic wise it looks kinda ugly

with the carcharias pad, i place it middle of the headphone and thats the gap

then what glue you use to stick it back on?
cos the glue ori use is like not as strong as superglue.