Today I am really excited that I get to take a look at the brand new Cooler Master Storm Sirus 5.1 Headset this was the latest edition to the “Storm” line, the Storm line is geared towards the professional gaming market and has been defined by its bold, innovative and above all else great designs. The Sirus isn’t your typical “5.1” headset that creates a virtual 5.1 audio space using stereo speakers and some audio trickery. Rather, it has multiple speakers in each ear cup which are positioned to create a true directional experience.
Provided By: Cooler Master
Price: $124.99
Closer Look:
Cooler Master’s CM Storm Sirus Gaming Headset is packaged in the Storm gaming line’s red and black color scheme. The front of the box features a large window which allows you to see the headset itself; in the left you can see a large graphic of the headset and the CM Storm logo in the upper left. Also this product won the Reddot Design Award.
The back of the box is full of features and Specifications as well as the left side.
Once you get the packing open you are going to find a molded plastic casing inside that houses the headset, along with all of the cables that are nice and neatly arranged to ensure that they are going to stay in place during the shipping process.
What comes with the Cooler Master Storm Sirius 5.1 Gaming Headset is the manual, 5.1 3.5mm audio cables to use with your sound card , the replacement leather ear pads, and the control module.
Here is the headset itself, I really like the flat matte grey and black rubber that is surrounded by a thick and durable plastic shell it helps to create a very streamlined look. One concern I had when I first looked at this headset was that it might be on the heavy side, and would be like strapping a 25 pound weight to your head. Happily, this was not the case. The headset is very comfortable, and is actually fairly light compared to other heavy-duty headsets I have tried in the past. The comfort is aided by the cushioning in the arch of the headset, and the adjustability of either side of the headset. Unless you have an extremely small or extremely large head, you should be comfortable wearing it.
The microphone, like the headset, is sturdy, but flexible. It can bend to conform to your need of having the microphone closer or further away from your mouth.
Here, you can see the multiple speakers found within the headset to provide the 5.1 surround sound.
Features & Specification:
| Model | SGH-6000-KKSR1 |
| Channels | True 5.1 |
| Driver | F/R/C: 30mm Sub: 40mm |
| Imedance | F/R/C: 32 Ohms Sub: 16 Ohms |
| Transducer Principle | Dynamic Closed |
| Ear Coupling | Circumaural |
| Ear Cushions | Detachable micro fiber |
| Sensitivity | > 105dB |
| Frequency Response | 10Hz – 20,000Hz |
| Distortion | Less than 1% |
| Mic Pick-up Pattern | Uni-directional |
| Mic Frequency Response | 100Hz – 10,000Hz |
| Mic Impedance | 2.2k Ohms |
| Mic Sensitivity | -46 dB (±3dB) |
- True 5.1 Surround Sound
- On-The-Fly Rear, Center, & Front speaker control for maximum sound customization
- Interchangeable ear-cups for breathable audio and noise cancelation
- Microphone with LED mute indicator
- Drivers on each side:
- Center channel: 30 mm
- Front channel: 30mm
- Rear channel: 30mm
- Subwoofer: 40mm
- Retractable microphone with LED mute indicator
- Circumaural design for a comfortable fit
- Microfiber ear pads for breathable audio & added comfort
- Leatherette ear pads for noise cancellation
- Tactical mixing console for on-the-fly adjustments
- Dual gold-plated USB for more power
Software:
The interface is broken up into two sections; the Speakers and the Mic. Setting either as the default device can be done from within the software and once the speaker is set as such the volume controls for the different channels can be accessed. If the user so desires, the left and right channel of each driver can be unlocked and set independently. Otherwise, they will remain locked in proportion to each other.
Navigating through the various Speakers and Mic settings is as easy as right-clicking on the large icons and selecting an option. The Speaker Settings screen allows users to choose whether the sound output is in stereo, quadraphonic with four channels, or 5.1 surround. There is also an option called Surround Max.
Next is the sample rate with either 44.1 KHz or 48 KHz available this choice will likely come down to what sounds better on a situation-by-situation basis.
Moving on, we find the equalizer, Cooler Master has gone for an excellent 10 channel equalizer setup which is sure to fit most users’ needs. It is also nice to see 12 presets included which should help novice users tweak the sound profile to better suit their personal tastes and after tweaking has been done manually, users will also have the option of saving the changes as a preset by selecting the disk icon in the lower right corner and selecting that preset from the drop-down above to load it. A user-created preset can also be deleted by selecting the trash can icon.
Moving right along, we have environmental effects, the output can be changed to sound as if it were being played in various venues such as an auditorium or concert hall and off-the-wall locales like a padded room or a sewer pipe. Another environmental effect is the room size option that allows users to change the way the sound is perceived as coming from a small, medium or large room.
Next stop is the 7.1 virtual speaker shifter where users can modify the “location” of each speaker. Through some software modification the sound is modified to give the impression that the speaker location has been changed. The entire setup can be rotated either clockwise or counter-clockwise, or the speakers can be moved manually one at a time.
Flex Bass II is the last of the speaker options and could be considered a bass boost feature with a twist. As the name suggests it is all about increasing the amount of bass with the bass level slider, but also at what point the bass is filtered out if it reaches the limit set with the cut off frequency slider.
Switching to the mic settings finds much less in the way of options but still enough for most users. The Volume Control is just that and allows for both the mic and monitor to have the left and right channels adjusted at the same time or separately when unlocked.
The sampling rate can also be selected for the mic just as it could be for the headphones.
The final mic option is called Xear SingFX where the vocal output can be modified to sound like a monster, a duck, a male or a female.
Conclusion:
Cooler Master Storm Sirus 5.1 Gaming Headset is a quite a impressive headset not only does the headset look really nice but the accessories that come with the headset does give it a nice added value. The Tactical Mixing Console is an excellent accessory to the multimedia experience, providing convenient access to mute functions and controlling volume on the fly. The construction of the headphones is very good they do not feel flimsy, they have a good heft to them, and they are comfortable to wear for hours on end.
Cooler Master has succeeded in creating another great CM Storm product. Sirus has a lot to offer to gamers.
The CM Storm Sirus receives the Xtreme Tech Junkie’s Xtreme award.
