Introduction

Corsair freshly introduced two new gaming headsets, both of them wireless and both aiming high in terms of features, performance and, subsequently, price. The less expensive one is the excellent $180/€180 Virtuoso RGB Wireless (reviewed here). Then there's the "Special Edition" of that headset dubbed the Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE, which we'll focus on in this review. It costs $30/€30 more and improves upon the "regular" Virtuoso RGB Wireless in a couple of areas, but, surprisingly, not all of them. If you're only interested in what's worse, jump to the Microphone Performance section of this review, which is where you'll find out why I think the less expensive Virtuoso is a better choice for pretty much everyone.



The Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE is an extremely versatile gaming headset. It supports wireless connectivity, which utilizes Corsair's Slipstream technology for lag-free playback and communication, but also offers not one, but two ways of wired operation: digital (USB) and analog (3.5-mm). In other words, you can connect it to any PC and/or gaming console on the market. It's mostly made out of aluminium, According to the specifications, it comes with a pair of factory-matched 50-millimeter dynamic speaker drivers, a detachable, broadcast-grade omnidirectional microphone, and an obligatory RGB lighting system, as its name implies. To top it all off, it boasts about 20 hours of battery life. As far as what you'd want from a wireless gaming headset goes, the Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE ticks all the boxes—at least on paper.

Two main differences compared to the "regular" Virtuoso RGB Wireless are the ear cups, which are now completely encased in aluminium, and the microphone capsule. The size of the capsule went from 4 to 9.5 millimeters, but its quality didn't improve in the process, as you'll see in the Microphone Performance part of this review. That's quite a shame as it makes hard to explain why anyone should spend additional $30/€30 to get a worse (although still very good) microphone. One final addition to the Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE is a cloth carrying pouch.

Specifications

• 50-mm factory-matched dynamic drivers (neodymium magnet)
• 20–40,000 Hz frequency response (specified by the manufacturer)
• Closed-back, over-ear design
• Detachable omnidirectional microphone with 9.5-mm capsule
• 2.4 GHz radio connectivity with Slipstream wireless technology
• 20 hour battery life
• USB and 3.5-mm wired connectivity
• Built-in volume dial and microphone mute button
• Weight: 390 g