Introduction

The SteelSound 5H V2 is, as the name might suggest, the second version of the SteelSound 5H headset. For those of you who haven’t read the original 5H review we posted some months ago, I’ll summarize. Being an avid multiplayer gamer and having spent a lot of time in flight sims in particular, where rudder pedals can snag on cords, the number of headsets that have passed their brief lives through this desk is almost staggering. Finally being fed up with the constant replacements, a purchase of the more expensive SteelSound 5H seemed like a worthy risk and the headset endured constant abuse for months before the review went live.

And then, out of nowhere, appears the SteelSound 5H V2. Functionally identical to the SteelSound 5H for all intents and purposes, it only really differs in one area. Gone is the rubber-coated cord and in is a nylon sheath. Is that important? Probably not if you don’t have rudder pedals or a hard floor and a rolling chair. For those that do, such as this reviewer, it is the one final piece of armor that covers the durability concerns you may have. Several weeks after reviewing the original 5H, the cord was tangled in the rudder pedals and in that time the rubber cover of the cord was cut open. Now this didn’t affect functionality of the headset, but it did necessitate regular placement of electrical tape to minimize further damage. A nylon cord is much harder to cut open and is naturally more durable.

In every other measure, including sound quality, it’s impossible to tell the difference between the two items. Sound – both output from the headphones and input into the retractable microphone – is good but not excellent. Compared to any other headset, it is stellar. Relative to a dedicated quality microphone and a pair of HD580 Sennheisers, naturally there is going to be some loss. For the most part, however, the SteelSound 5H V2 sees gaming use rather than any sort of dedicated music listening, and in this respect it more than satisfies. Official numbers state a frequency response of 16Hz-28KHz @40 Ohms for the headphones, and 75Hz-16KHz for the microphone with a 2,000 Ohm impedance. Numbers generally don’t tell the story with sound, however, and we stand by our subjective statements.

Like the regular 5H, it can easily separate into three pieces for storage or movement. The headset has a wide range of adjustment and is comfortable, with a thick padding on top and full-sized ear muffs for minimal discomfort over long gaming sessions. Given that the World of WarCraft expansion has been released recently, we’ve experienced quite a few of those late-night marathons.

Finally, being so closely tied to its predecessor, it necessarily shares the same flaw: cost. There’s no denying that the SteelSound 5H V2 is a quality headset and the best we’ve ever used, with remarkable durability and good sound, but it does come at a steeper price that you might expect. The $99USD MSRP is for the standard non-USB model and we found little deviation from it, at least in local markets.