HyperX has unveiled the new HyperX Cloud Revolver S, an upgrade to the original HyperX Cloud Revolver with quite a few awesome new features. In fact, we recently had a chance to review the HyperX Cloud Revolver S — and we absolutely loved them.
Of course, as mentioned, these headsets serve as an upgrade to the original HyperX Cloud Revolver headphones, which we also had a chance to review. But just how much better are they? And are they worth paying the extra $30? We put the two head to head to find out.
Before reading on, feel free to check out our full reviews of the two headsets:
Design
The Cloud Revolver S and the original Cloud Revolver feature a very similar design, and it’s a good one. The headset offer quite a futuristic look, doing away with the more basic design that you’ll find on plenty of other headphones.
Both of the headsets feature a solid metal frame that connects the two earcups, along with a leather band that sits atop your head — and elastically adjusts based on your head size. This design is pretty nice, as it means you don’t have to manually adjust anything before putting them on — simply put the headphones on, and they’ll elastically adjust to your head size.
That metal frame is sturdy, but it’s not perfect in every way. The headsets both have a problem with vibrations, and if you tap the frame you’ll hear a metallic tone ring out through the headphones. Thankfully, the HyperX Cloud Revolver S does away with some of the issues by including two rubber gaskets that fit in the frame and do away with some of those ringing frequencies. It’s not really a huge issue — but it can get annoying at times.
One of the main differences between the two headsets is that the HyperX Cloud Revolver feature red highlights, while the Cloud Revolver S features white highlights. One isn’t necessarily better than the other, and the red looks a little more fun, while the white a little more sleek.
Both of the headsets also feature a detachable microphone, and either a surround sound (Cloud Revolver S) or an extension cord (Cloud Revolver).
We can’t say that one pair is better than the other in the design section — as they both offer a similar design and it pretty much comes down to whether you prefer red or white.
Comfort
The headsets are also equal in the comfort department. They both offer plenty of padding in the ear cups, white there’s also a good amount of padding in the elastically adjusted headband.
Even after a few hours of use, we never found ourselves feeling like we needed to take the headphones off. Sometimes it’s nice to take a break from wearing headphones — but that’s true of all headphones, and these less so than some others.
Perhaps the only issue here is that both the headphones can get a little warm after a while of use — but not overly so.
Sound
Here’s the big differentiator between these two headsets. The reality is this — the HyperX Cloud Revolver S is basically a Cloud Revolver with surround sound capabilities. The Cloud Revolver S includes a USB-powered cable that includes a microphone mute button and a button to engage the Dolby 7.1 surround sound.
The surround sound on the HyperX Cloud Revolver S actually sounds quite nice. Often times, surround sound on headphones can be a bit hit and miss, but in our experience the surround sound on the Cloud Revolver S sounded great.
In general, both headphones sound good. They offer a nice amount of low-end that helps make those big explosions sound nice and rumbly, while there’s plenty of mid-range too — with a slight boost in the higher mids to help voices stand out well, which is perfect for talking to your teammates. The high-end is well-tuned and defined, but we could have used a little more of it. That’s true on both sets of headsets. All this to say, both the HyperX Cloud Revolver S and the HyperX Cloud Revolver sound great during gaming, but they also sound pretty darn good for listening to music.
Neither of the two headphones really block out much outside noise — which is something to keep in mind if you generally listen in a loud environment.
Microphones
The microphone on both of these headphones sounds pretty good and is decently well-built. It works fine for talking to your teammates, and will probably be fine for basic Let’s Play videos and podcasts — though if you’re serious about either of those things, you may want to buy a higher-quality dedicated microphone.
The microphones are also relatively good at blocking out most outside noise — which is helpful for those on the other end of the line in trying to hear you.
Conclusions
So which headset is best? Well, the HyperX Cloud Revolver S — as is expected. The truth, however, is this. If you need or want surround sound, the HyperX Cloud Revolver S is the right pair for you. If not, the standard HyperX Cloud Revolver sounds great, offers an awesome build, and a nice design.
You can buy both of the two headsets using the links below.
