Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE Review

Certainly, Corsair has unmatched performance in developing gaming keyboards and mice. Rarely a few of the gaming headsets by Corsair have proved to be the best gaming headsets and the Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE is one of them. Though it comes at a higher price than the regular headsets, the features it offers such as comfortable fit, wireless connectivity, and impressive sound make it worth the money.

The good thing about the Virtuoso RGB SE is that it is equally compatible with PS4 (including PS4 Pro) Xbox One S, One X, and PC, and the bad thing is that you have to use a headphone jack to connect it with a mobile phone or Nintendo Switch’s dock. But you will really get amazing sound with some extra bass, whether you like it or not, that means, besides gaming, it is equally perfect to listen to music or watch music.

Besides its versatility in usage and rich sound experience, you will get so much comfort as you can wear it for many hours without any problem. However, the headset is much expensive as compared to other gaming headsets, and that’s why you may see the list of best gaming headsets for alternatives.

Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE review

Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE Headset

Mathew Bradford

Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE Gaming Headset
Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE gaming headset offers excellent sound, comfortable fit and dynamic connectivity options for gamers who like Corsair devices.
Design
Features
Performance

Summary

Only a few gaming headsets have proved to be the ones with impressive sound, comfortable fit, and amazing wireless connectivity features; and the Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE gaming headset is one of those gaming headsets.

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Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE Specs

ManufacturerCorsair
ModelVirtuoso RGB Wireless SE
Design StyleClosed-Back
Wireless Range 60ft
Driver Type50mm Neodymium
Impedance32 Ohms
Frequency Response20Hz-40KHz
Battery Life20 hours
LightingRGB
Microphone TypeOmnidirectional
Weight 0.8 pounds (360g)

Design

Measuring at 6.7 x 3.9 x 7.7 inches, the Virtuoso RGB SE is actually a large gaming headset that means it is not for persons with small heads. The headset’s ear cups are equipped with silver and aluminum material including a soft cushioned black headband. The headset also features a flexible and detachable microphone, foam around-ear cups.

Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE Gaming Headset

There was also a headset carrying case made of cloth and it was made just like a handbag. The ear cups can be folded flat to manage the space in the carrying bag. The headset is much better and improved than its previous version Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless which has a plastic ear cup and looks cheap.

As this is a wireless gaming headset, the left ear cup has a charging port, as well as a detachable mic with a mute button and a 3.5mm audio port. The mic has a beautiful blue colored LED that turns into green or red when the mic is in use or muted respectively.

The right ear cup comes with a button for wired/wireless connectivity and volume control. I think the wireless button is actually a power button that turns on/off the wireless feature if the audio jack is not in use. You can turn it off to use the wired mode by plugging in the audio wire to its 3.5mm audio jack. This operation doesn’t completely turn on/off the headset; for this purpose, you have to turn it off from your gaming setup.

Though the ear cups come with the RGB-enabled Corsair logo, sadly, you won’t be able to see them running while wearing the headset which, I think is a junk feature that needs to be replaced with some more important features. You can, however, disable the RGB feature yourself.

Comfort

This is one of the most comfortable gaming headsets we’ve ever come across. As already discussed, the Virtuoso RGB SE comes with a plush headband covered with small yet linear stripes around it. This unique arrangement around the headband makes it easy to wear, even for long gaming sessions.

Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE ear pads

Besides that, the large ear cups, cushioned with very soft foam increase the comfort and don’t push hard when they are worn around the ears. The foam not only prevents sweating but also absorbs sweat, if, produced in an intensive gaming session. Owing to the large size of the headset, the headband might not fit well for people with a small head.

Features

The good thing about Virtuoso RGB Wireless is that PC and Xbox One users can control most of its features using the iCUE software. The software interface is highly user-friendly and lets you customize options. I was also able to adjust equalization options and mic levels. The major downside I experienced with this headset was vocal emphasized sound and harsh upper frequencies in sound profiles, which was a bit disappointing.

Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE mic

On the good side, the mic of the headset gave an excellent performance in every aspect. I continuously used the mic for about four hours, for video calling on Skype, and Whatsapp, streaming on Twitch and talking with other players on Dungeons & Dragons group on Discord. Meanwhile, I took the feedback from my fellow players and coworkers about how better I sound at that time. Everyone commented that my voice was clear noise-free.

In terms of battery, the headset offered the same performance as offered by Corsair. The headset took three hours to fully charge the battery. The battery, in the test session, lasted nearly 20 hours with a single charge. We, however, turned the headset off sometimes when it was not in use.

Gaming performance

Before you go for the Virtuoso RGB SE, bear in mind that this is the headset designed primarily for PS4 and PCs. For both of these devices, you just plug the dongle into the system and the headset will work like a charm with rich sound, nice bass, and perfect echo. Besides, On PC, I was able to tweak the sound according to my taste by using Corsair Utility Engine (iCUE) software.

Corsair Virtuoso RGB Wireless SE gaming headset image

When we compared its performance on PC, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch (by plugging in the audio jack), the sound quality was comparatively better on default devices as compared to Switch. For the performance test, the titles that I played were Assassin’s Creed Origins and BioShock, Final Fantasy XIV.

The headset, by default, produced balanced bass with a greater focus on treble and vocals. The problem with default vocal was that was emphasized more in Final Fantasy XIV than it was in BioShock. This resulted in a loud voice and less focus on game music which sometimes distorted sound. I was, however, able to tune the sound’s treble, stereo, and bass by Corsair’s software that helped me remove the problem to a large extent.

Overall, the sound was much better as compared to its previous version, even better than Astro A50, that distorted sound due to its plastic ear cups. In every game, we observed treble-heavy sound with heavy vocals balanced bass which is normally required in most of the games.

Music performance

As already discussed the headset works well, provided that you know how to make custom sound profiles using iCUE software. The software lets you customize bass, treble, and echo. We played some mixed tracks to compare its performance for slow, fast, and bass-heavy music. The overall performance was satisfactory and not extraordinary.

Reasons to Buy

  • Comfortable fit
  • Excellent sound performance
  • Best mic

Reasons to Avoid

  • Compatibility issues
  • Expensive

Corsair Virtuoso RGB SE Video Review

Hardware Canucks

Testing Results

All in all, the Corsair Virtuoso RGB SE delivers what it offers. The headset offers perfect gaming sound for PS4 and PC, but for other devices, you have to compromise a bit of the sound experience as it is not solely for all devices. This is an excellent wireless gaming headset that you can go for, though it extracts a bit more money from your pocket than an average headset takes. If you are a Corsair lover, this headset must be on your radar.