Victrix Gambit wireless headset review

Victrix entered the game with its excellent Pro AF ANC headset a few years ago and has since continued to release console sticks, controllers and headsets. The company’s latest headphones, Gambit line, which aims to provide superior sound quality with lasting comfort. How does it stack up?

Specifications

• Price: $129 (Victrix)
• Headband Material: Durable Polypropylene
• Controls: Built-in volume, Game/Chat balance (Xbox), Microphone display and Microphone mute control
• Ear cushion material: Luxurious vegan leather slow-recovery memory foam
• Headphone weight: 301g
• Microphone type: 6.0mm . bidirectional noise canceling microphone
• Microphone frequency response: 100Hz – 10kHz
• Microphone sensitivity: -45 ± 3dB
• Signal-to-noise ratio of mic: 60dB
• Speaker size: 50mm
• Speaker frequency: 20Hz – 20kHz
• Nominal Impedance: 32 per speaker
• Connection Type: Wireless USB Dongle / 3.5mm Inline Cable for Wired
• Battery life: more than 16 hours
• Cable length: 9.8ft/3m

First thoughts

To me, Victrix has long been known for its premium, well-constructed products. What drew me to Pro AF Its metal frame and extremely comfortable design – despite being made of metal materials, it is very light and fits my ears perfectly. I was pleased to see that the Gambit Wireless headphones at least continued the lightweight section.

The sleek design evokes the luxury I feel Victrix is ​​known for, even if I’m a bit disappointed that the headset’s plastic is a bit cheap. The large, 50mm Neodymium drivers are enclosed in large, accented earcups, feature the Victrix logo, and I’m a fan of the purple trim all over the headphones. While blue is my personal favorite, maybe I should start looking into whether Victrix purple is a good match for it.

The earphones are lightweight, the plastic moves smoothly to adjust the fit, although with as much flex as there is in the headband, I wonder how long it will last until the marks start to show. wear mark. However, I am extremely grateful for the earcups. I hate fabric or felt ear cups – they always tend to make my head feel itchy. Victrix hasn’t just opted for leather earcups, they’ve gone a step further and are using sustainable vegan leather, which I greatly appreciate.

The earcups themselves are extremely comfortable around my ears and, unlike headphones like the Astros or even mine Corsair HS80 RGB Headphones lately, this can over time make my ears feel hot. The weight of each box felt evenly distributed around my head, meaning there wasn’t any point where I felt the headphones were stressing me out unevenly. While it doesn’t have the ear-cup vents like its Pro AF sibling, with long-term use, my ears never felt too hot or sweaty. Then again, it’s winter, so that could change when summer heating in Vegas starts to oppress my house again.

Built into the headset is the same design as the Victrix microphone used with the Pro AF: a league-grade microphone originally designed for use on US military Cobra attack helicopters. The idea here is to use a microphone designed to remove as much noise as possible to ensure that only the speaker’s voice comes out. The headset itself also has on-ear controls for adjusting the microphone, although if you’re using it in wired mode there’s also an in-line controller.

Wireless headphones, unlike the Pro AF, are extremely convenient for console players (there are both PlayStaion and Xbox variants of the Gambit Wireless headset), although they don’t just need to be used as a wireless headset. Gambit comes with a 3.5mm audio cable to effectively put the device in “competition mode”, allowing you to plug in a device, such as an Xbox controller, for easier use . If you decide to go wireless, the included dongle has quite a few plug-and-play features. Unlike other companies, Gambit headphones don’t come with any software to tailor your experience – it simply works as it should.

That’s pretty convenient, too, since the only real thing I needed to do when I set it up on my PC was enable Dolby Atmos, which the Victrix Gambit comes with a lifetime subscription. This works on PC and Xbox, and it completely changes the experience. It’s a great addition, although it’s not the only headset on the market to support Dolby Atmos virtual surround sound.

Victrix Gambit Wireless Headset Performance

Sound has gotten too good over the years, with game developers pushing the boundaries further with each release. Hardware companies have been equally good at providing the toolset needed to drive those experiences for players. Victrix Gambit is no exception to this rule.

The 50mm neodymium drivers don’t fail to send explosive sound when needed, though also allow for restriction when the sound requires it. When listening to music on my PC while working, the Gambit provides clear sound, although the bass can cause some songs to sound muffled. This could be due to the Dolby Atmos implementation, although it’s been fairly consistent, whether I’m listening to “Requiem in D Minor” by Mozart, Coheed, and Cambria in “Keep Secrets of Silent Earth: 3” or being disturbed by noise. a game soundtrack like 10th Anniversary Lord of the Rings Online.

That said, when in game, the sound pops up on its own and works as advertised. Directional surround sound powered by Dolby Atmos makes it fairly easy to identify enemies near me in games like Halo Infinite’s multiplayer, while the atmosphere in games like Pillars of Eternity and Baldur Gate 2 crystal clear, easily set the tone for those games.

The clear audio delivered by the headphones kept me immersed in each title sound work, especially as someone who really needs sound to set the stage for everything in the game. The sound of Master Chief’s pistol popping and cracking as I’d expect to hear in real life every time I fire the weapon (desperately, I’m still not sure who I’ve hit). Audio signal in Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers and The Lord of the Rings Online: Fate of Gundabad don’t seem to be as lost as they might be in some of my other headsets, allowing me to quickly react to a new skill rotation (or giving my Loremaster-familiar pet into an orc no doubt in LotRO).

This shouldn’t be surprising either, as Victrix has had a knack for driving great sound in their headphones from the start. For those looking to compete competitively, whether it’s the noisy arena of League of Legends or the buzzing crowd at an FGC event, you might want to find something with a little better noise cancellation, but the Gambit isn’t a bad choice if budget is an issue.

That said, while the Cobra microphone allows Victrix to cancel out as much noise as it was designed to do, it comes at the expense of quality. It will not replace a USB Condenser quality microphones or even XLR microphones are relatively priced like Rode PodMic.

Final thoughts and conclusions

At the end of the day, the Victrix Gambit Wireless headphones are right for the short: it provides an stellar audio experience while remaining comfortable throughout the day. This is a headset that can be used just sitting on the bed playing a laptop or console for hours or during a tournament when you need something to promote a clear audio signal at any time. .

When I reviewed Victrix’s Xbox Gambit controller, I was a bit disappointed in the build quality, thinking that Victrix had escaped its high-end roots, and to some extent I felt the Gambit headset continued. continue this trend. This is mainly due to the all-plastic construction of the headset chassis. I really question how well this will hold up with continued use, especially with players whose heads are wider and can put a bit more stress on the headband than the average player. has a smaller dome (for reference, I fell into the old camp). Every time I take the headphones off, I can hear the plastic creaking, which reminds me of my LucidSound LS40s, which eventually cracked their frames after about two or three years of continued use.

For $129, many gamers will use the Victrix Gambit headset as their primary device. Although the costs are lower for the materials used, it is still a pity that the product, despite its admirable performance, comes at a low cost. Others may be a bit disappointed by the lack of RGB, although I think Victrix’s design aesthetic allows them to rule out not including this, as the sharp purple is really the only color they need.

That said, if you’re someone looking for a great audio experience, the Victrix Gambit headphones definitely deliver that with ease. The addition of a lifetime subscription to Dolby Atmos is also a great move, delivering higher quality sound to the headphones in almost any application. While I think the bass can be a bit too high for my liking (and without the software to adjust the EQ, you’re pretty much stuck with it unless you have your own solution), I usually didn’t turn the bass boost up in any of the apps, much to my friends’ surprise.

As it counts, the performance is right there with my regular headset, the Victrix Pro AF, as well as several sets of headphones I’ve revisited this over the past year. You can clearly hear what’s going on around you during the battle that is the Great Team Battle in Halo Infiniteor to easily discern the direction of the crack of a pickaxe in rock New world, warning me about a possible PvP flagged player never let me down. Being able to wear the headphones all day thanks to their lightweight design and extremely comfortable ear cups is also a plus, meaning I can use them all day at work or during long raid sessions.

All told, the Victrix Gambit Headphones are a good headset with some great features. My hope is that the next version is built with more premium materials, leaning towards the premium aura of purple Victrix has been known for since its inception. But if performance is your only metric, Gambit certainly does it to a high degree, making it a worthy last-minute addition to any holiday gift list.