RIG 800 Pro is part of the new “Pro Series” of gaming headsets from RIG Gaming. The wonderful people at RIG Gaming sent us the RIG 800 Pro HD (PC version) for review. RIG Pro has been designed to offer gamers unrivalled audio performance when they play. This headset is constructed from flexible, lightweight materials to bring the best comfort to gamers while they play for hours on end. This specific model sells at the price of €199.99, with its other models ranging from €29.99 – €199.99.
The packaging for this headset is very professional. It is a very bulky box as the contents inside are relatively big. The box of this headset comes with a great; overview of the headset in the front. It shows the main features of the headset, this being wireless, the 24-hour battery/charging stand as well as Dolby Atmos compatibility. All the other specifications of the headset are written on the back of the box in 8 different languages. The back clearly labels the different features and parts of the headset this; breakdown acts like a map of the headset. The box includes the following items: the RIG 800 Pro headset, charging stand, USB wireless adapter, USB-A to USB C cable, RIG/Nacon stickers, safety instructions guide, Dolby Atmos guide, a quick start guide and a warranty.
As for the design of the RIG 800 Pro, we find the design to be very clean yet simple, to an extent. The headset does not have much of a colour palette; it’s mainly black and grey with slight hints of orange. Though the colour combo goes well with the build of this headset, the look of the headset is like a gear or mechanical type part. This headset is extremely comfortable, and even though it looks like; it may be heavy on the head, it’s especially light and flexible. As this is a wireless headset, rather than having padding under the top; headband, there is a slightly padded stretchable band that cups the head nicely. A nice addition to this headset is that you can also adjust the height of the headset (there are three levels the headset can be adjusted to). In addition, the ear padding on this headset has a nice feel to the ear. It feels smooth and soft with some cushion press to it; the padding cups the ears really well and keeps the sound all in. The specifications for this headset are the following: the frequency response is 20 Hz – 20 kHz, the drivers are 2 x Dynamic 40 mm with Matched Bass Tubes for 3D audio, its lag-free is 2.4 GHZ Digital RF, there is an 1800 mAh Battery, the sensitivity is -45 dBV/Pa and the signal to noise ratio is >42 dB, impedance 32ohms, sensitivity 111 dBSPL/V and weigh 308 grams.
This headset has amazing sound quality to it. A range of games was played to see how well this headset sounds with various atmospheric noises and tunes. We played games like Stardew Valley, Slime Rancher, Valorant, Fortnite, Minecraft, Roblox and a couple of others. Now for the more heavy games, very FPS heavy-focused games like Valorant, Overwatch 2, and Fortnite, there is really good clarity, and then there is this ‘submersivness’ (as if you are being submerged into the sound) feeling that’s is created when you are playing heavy action games. The sound coming through the headset creates an overall chaotic atmosphere, from the loud gunshots to the quiet footsteps of the enemy team. For very casual gaming, the sound is so pleasant and welcoming. Everything can be heard with stunning detail and turns out, into a wonderful; gaming experience just because of the sound.
This headset also comes with a volume scroll on the left ear which can be used to; adjust how loud you want to hear the game. The volume scroll is extremely convenient when playing. What’s good about this headset is that even at a low volume, the sound from the outside is muffled out well. This adds that noise cancellation effect to the headset, and with the great comfort of the padded ears, it creates this amazing; gaming experience. The headset has compatibility with Dolby Atmos but also is compatible with Nahimic on the Legion Lenovo laptop, which optimises the headset to give its best sound.
As said earlier, this headset is compatible with Dolby Atmos. To be able to enhance the performance of this headset, you need to download the app called Dolby Access; on the Microsoft store. Then connect your device to activate Dolby Atmos for the headphones. The Dolby Access menu is very easy to work around, so there is not much confusion when trying it out for the first time; this makes it more accessible to people. First off, we tested the audio with the Dolby demo content to see if there is any significant difference we notice in the sound. We started by watching Nature’s Fury, and as the video started, it felt like we were sitting in the cinema. The audio compatibility with Dolby transcends sound to another level. It travels the sound from ear to ear and even goes around you. The headset creates a surround sound system in your ear and has stunning, mesmerising sound. Not just this, but afterwards, we tested out; the settings for the headset, which is the equaliser. The headset comes with four pre-set settings: game, movie, music, and voice, and comes with; three custom slots. We ran through using each one of these pre-set settings to see how well Dolby adds to the experience, and it made a huge difference.
For the music pre-set, there is more emphasis; added to the instruments, which create a rich and alluring sound that bounces from one ear to another. The movie pre-set is probably my favourite setting, as it creates an at-home movie theatre feel where it feels like; you are hearing the sound in 4DX. For the music pre-set, there is more emphasis; added to the instruments, which create a rich and alluring sound that bounces from one ear to another. The voice pre-set did not seem to have much change to it, yet it still; had good sound coming. Truly every single sound that travels through this headset is so well-detailed.
This headset comes with an attached bendable mic that can; be lifted up and down. A very convenient feature that the mic has; is automatically muting yourself when the mic is lifted and then unmuting your mic when the mic is brought down to the mouth. The flip-to-mute mic boom works extremely well with this headset as it adds more consistency and is convenient for players as they would not need to mess with too many keybinds to mute/unmute themselves when in a game. Using the flip-to-mute mic boom, there also is; a sound indication to help let you know if you are muted/unmuted as well. Another great thing the headset comes with is a mic control scroll on the left ear of the headset. This; allows for the headset to either pick up everything, every audio coming through the mic or to keep it so only your voice; is picked up. We find the mic control to be very useful, especially when someone on the other call hears your background noise which you do not want to be picked up; the mic control can help adjust that level. The overall quality of the mic is amazing, the voice is picked up clearly, and there is no noticeable delay. The mic also has great adjustability itself, as you can move it closer to the mouth or farther. Your voice picked up from this mic is crisp and clean. The only issue that the mic has is that when the mic control is near the max volume when breathing close to the mic, there is a bit of feedback, but besides that, the mic is just what you would want. Truly acts like a mic on its own.
This headset is mainly designed; for gaming, but we also used this headset to listen to music, watch Netflix or youtube, or even be on call with friends. Due to the design of this headset and the outstanding comforts, the sound encloses and is amazing for when watching movies/shows or videos. The headset has a great sound; to it and really can be used for whatever you want to do, that too over an extensive period without feeling any discomfort. This headset can be used for hours of gaming or watching without any discomfort; you can go about playing with these headsets on without hardly; knowing they are there.
Now there are a couple of ways you can charge the headset. You can charge the headset while it sits on the base station or charges them directly through the headset. Both the headset and the base station have ports that can be used to charge. The headset takes about 7 hours and 30 minutes; to completely charge. There is a light indicator on the base station itself, which, when turned off, means the headset is completely charged. After the headset; is completely charged, you can plug the USB wireless adapter straight into your PC, Mac, PS5, or PS4, and the headset will connect automatically. Because of the direct USB wireless adapter, there is no need for Bluetooth connectivity and allows for great connectivity. There is also a little light on the USB to indicate if the headset is connected if it is, it changes from red to purple. We ran a test to see how long the headset’s battery life lasts, and the headset lasts 29 hours and 46 minutes in total without any charging in between. The headset is to last up to about 24 hours, as said, but an additional 6 hours makes such a difference. The battery life on this headset is exceptional, but also the charging is so readily available as you can just place your headset onto the base station to charge. The headset also has little sound effects, where you are warned when the battery is low, high, or medium through a woman’s voice.
The wireless connectivity distance for the headset is not as great. This means; that you cannot, for instance, walk more than 12.5 feet away from your laptop without the woman’s voice on the headset repeatedly saying ‘not connected’. What this means is; it’s not best to walk around the house with this headset while listening to music or calling your friends. The headset is mainly just for you to sit in front of your laptop or console and play with it.
Many people may know of the company Skullcandy, and recently they released a gaming headset series of their own. So, let’s compare the SLYR Pro (Multi-Platform wired gaming headset) that sells for the price of €99.99 to the RIG 800 Pro gaming headset that sells for €199.99. There is a PLYR wireless gaming headset by Skullcandy, which sells for €139.99, and this headset is mainly like the SLYR Pro but is wireless.
When comparing the mic, both mics are pretty good. For the SLYR Pro, the mic quality is really and is very similar to the mic quality of the RIG 800 Pro. The RIG 800 Pro has more options to be able to control the level of your mic than the SLYR Pro headset. Personally, a bendable mic boom (which the RIG 800 Pro has) is more beneficial to us than a removable mic boom (which the SLYR Pro has) as it gives more leniency to how someone wants to adjust their mic.
The SLYR Pro are not wireless, but they require a charge to use the equaliser feature to better optimise the sound when gaming. The battery life on the SLYR Pro is 26 hours, except you can still use the headset through the wire. Whereas for the RIG 800 Pro headset, the battery life lasts up to about 30 hours though charging the RIG 800 Pro can be more consistent with its base station.
When comparing the sound quality between the SLYR Pro and the RIG 800 Pro, there is a price difference, but the sound is fair; good on both headsets. Through some comparison tests, I would say that the RIG 800 Pro is better at isolating outside sound and has more clarity. Also, with the compatibility of Dolby Atmos, the sound quality enhances a bit more than its normal sound, which can be heard through more detailed noise that creates an immersive gaming experience that the SLYR Pro does not entirely do. Both of the headsets pick up bass better, and neither has any distortion in the sound. The RIG 800 Pro has a more melodic sound to them. Both of the headsets are tuneful, which gives out good clarity on both.
As for the overall comfort of both headsets, the RIG 800 Pro is more comfortable than the SLYR Pro. The padding on the SLYR Pro and RIG 800 Pro are very similar in feeling and seem; to be made of the same material. The SLYR Pro headset is also made with a different type of material compared to the RIG 800 Pro. There is a bit more weight to the SLYR Pro than the RIG 800 Pro. RIG 800 Pro is more comfortable with its bulky look as it rests lightweight on the head. We would say that the SLYR Pro has better height adjustability than the RIG 800 Pro, as you can stretch the headset out, whereas you have to lock the RIG 800 Pro into ‘sockets’.
Even with the major; price difference, the RIG 800 Pro, in the end, turned out to be very worth it. The reason there is a jump of €100 is that the RIG 800 Pro is wireless, comes with a charging station, and has compatibility with Dolby. These additions and slight differences from the SLYR Pro do make the RIG 800 Pro worth it. The RIG 800 Pro enhances audio performance more than you would expect it; to.
With the headset, we believe everything that was added and made was perfect and that there would not be any suggestions; that we could make. We would only say that design-wise, it would have been nice to have some customization options. Maybe some colour or design choice would have been nice, but other than that, the headset is; very good for what you are paying. We wish that the; headset was compatible with Bluetooth as it would allow better compatibility with other devices such as a phone or iPad/tablet.
The RIG 800 Pro gaming headset is a bulky yet light build with simplicity but enticing sound to create an experience from the comfort of your gaming. With its compatibility with Dolby Atmos, the more stunning and customizable sound is presented to you with great ease. This gaming headset has an amazing flip-to-mute mic boom and easy-access controls built onto the headset; itself. For the price of €199.99, these headsets are truly, worth it and will create immersive gaming; and watching experience like no other. The addition of the; charging base also acts like a stand for your headset, which you can use for display on your gaming setup. If you want an effective, comfortable wireless headset with an appreciable; the sense of surround sound, then definitely go check out the RIG 800 Pro Gaming Headset!
Overall: 9.5/10
This is S & S. We are world game explorers. We play games. We have played over 10,000+ games! We travel, we write reviews AND we play more games!!!!
