INTRODUCTION

   Regardless of what consumers are out in the market looking to get their hands on price has always been the decisive factor for the majority and so it's really no surprise that manufacturers always cater to that percentage a bit more than the others. Unfortunately we've seen many times in past reviews that low prices don't go hand to hand with good performance (in some rare cases we've even seen high priced products that don't perform as they should) and in a market literally filled with such products it really comes down to people such as ourselves to test them and see whether or not they are really worth spending your hard earned money on. Last month CORSAIR updated their popular headset line to include the brand new HS35 Stereo Headset model and after testing it for two full weeks our review is finally here.

   Founded in 1994, CORSAIR has grown from pioneering the high-performance DRAM market into one of the world’s leading providers of high-performance PC peripherals and components. CORSAIR offers a complete range of products to equip gamers, enthusiasts and e-sports athletes, including mechanical keyboards, precision gaming mice, wireless headsets, high-performance components that gamers use to build gaming PCs, and the CORSAIR ONE fully-integrated gaming PC. With a company-wide commitment to quality, innovative design, advanced features and high performance, CORSAIR products have won thousands of media and industry awards, earning their place in gamers’ hands and PCs following years of development and engineering by a team dedicated to building great products they themselves would want to use.

   Made clear by CORSAIR right from the get go even though the brand new HS35 Stereo Headset (currently available in carbon/black, red, blue and green colors) is based on two 50mm neodymium dynamic drivers (20Hz-20KHz frequency response with 113dB sensitivity and 32Ohm impedance) just like several other virtual surround gaming headsets the lack of a USB sound card (either built-in or in-line) deprives it of that gamer specific feature (and yes it also lacks RGB lighting). Still consumers interested in it will be glad to know that it does feature a detachable uni-directional noise cancelling microphone (100Hz-10KHz frequency response with -40dB sensitivity and 2.2KOhm impedance - Discord certified), large and comfortable earpads, on ear controls (volume/mute microphone) and thanks to an gold plated 3.5mm plug located at the end of its 1.8 meter long cable it can be used with PC's, compatible consoles and of course mobile devices. So, is the brand new HS35 Stereo Headset by CORSAIR the all-around model for people on a tight budget?

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

Much like every other peripheral by CORSAIR lately the HS35 arrived inside a yellow and black box that has a large product picture at the front.

A tagline is placed on the left side of the box while on the right side we find yet another product picture.

The product features and specifications are printed at the rear of the box in 8 languages.

Along with the HS35 Stereo Headset and its detachable microphone you're also getting a 3.5mm y-splitter (headphones/microphone), two safety papers and a warranty guide.

THE HS35

The HS35 is almost entirely made out of hard plastic (mat and glossy - minus the pads and internal frame) and weighs roughly 231g.

In terms of size the HS35 belongs in the medium category.

CORSAIR has placed their logo on the exterior of both earcups.

The microphone port is located on the lower front end of the left earcup and is covered by a rubber cap.

It may not be the best looking microphone we've seen to date but the one bundled with the HS35 it's very flexible.

At the rear of the left earcup we find the volume control roller and the microphone mute button.

The earcups have a good range of motion which is one of the reasons the HS35 is a very comfortable headset.

CORSAIR also used large earcups/earpads to accommodate most consumers (if not probably all).

One more reason as to why this is a very comfortable headset is the somewhat thick and soft headpad.

As with most headsets the company name is placed on the exterior of the headband.

The headband extends up to 33mm on each side (66mm total) via 9 increments (not visible ones).

A gold plated 3.5mm plug is placed on the 1.8 meter long rubber cable.

CONCLUSION

   We tested the HS35 for a total of 2 weeks not only with several games on the PC (like Devil May Cry 5, Kingdom Come Deliverance, Star Wars Battlefront 2, Rebel Galaxy Outlaw and Age Of Wonders Planetfall) but also while listening to several lossless FLAC audio tracks with the FiiO M11 Music Player and the results well they were pretty much what we were expecting from an affordable gaming headset. However, although the HS35 offers relatively crisp mids and highs with a good amount of bass (alas nothing to be excited over – also do keep in mind that since this is not a USB powered headset volume levels depend a lot on the type of device you use them with) where it excels is comfort and so we were able to use it for 2-3 hours at a time without any issue. Build quality may also be far from perfect (that’s something we’ve come to expect from cost-effective models) but it’s certainly a tad higher compared to what you will come across by some of the not so popular manufacturers. As for the Discord certified microphone nothing really new here, good performance on par with what we’ve tested from CORSAIR to date (although the microphone of the Void Pro model did slightly better in our tests). 

   The HS35 Stereo Headset by CORSAIR may only count almost 2 months in the market but its price tag has already taken a rather significant hit and so currently you can find it for just USD29.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for just 33.70Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de). Of course, even its launch price was already quite aggressive so this is great news. Long story short even though the brand new HS35 Stereo Headset by CORSAIR may not impress with its performance and number of features it does hit a seriously impressive price/performance ratio and for that it certainly deserves our Golden Award.

PROS

- Comfortable (Large Earpads / Memory Foam Padding)
- Good Mids & Highs
- Bass Levels
- Detachable Microphone (Easier To Replace)
- Available In 4 Colors (Carbon/Red/Blue/Green)
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- Design (Too “Plain”)
- Overall Build Quality