Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 Championship Gaming Headset Review

1. Introduction2. Packaging and Bundle3. The Headset4. Comfort and Performance5. Closing Thoughts6. View All Pages

There seem to be an ever increasing number of brands trying to take a slice of the gaming headset pie, especially at the value end of the market where consumers are less ‘brand' conscious.  We hadn't actually heard of Cyber Snipa before they sent us a headset for review but they appear to have quite a large range of gaming-orientated products.

Today we are going to look at the Sonar 5.1 Championship gaming headset from Cyber Snipa which offers full surround sound at a very reasonable price of around £40.  The only other gaming headset that immediately comes to mind as a competitor to this is the Arctic Sound P531 that we reviewed a few months back.

Features

• Exclusive memory foam velour cushions & padding or extended gaming comfort
• In-line independent channel control for custom surround sound + mic mute
• Noise canceling, flexible mic for crystal clear chat
• 8 independent speaker drivers for true surround sound
• Included 3D audio software for customized sound
• Convenient padded carrying case

Specification

Speakers	Centre	Front Speaker	Surrounding	Subwoofer	Microphone
Frequency response	20Hz – 20kHz	18Hz – 20kHz	20Hz – 20kHz	10Hz – 400kHz	–
Sensitivity	108dB	100dB	108 dB	–	39dB +/- 3dB
Impendance	32 Ohm	32 Ohm	32 Ohm	8 Ohm	2.2K Ohm
Driver unit	Ø30mm	Ø40mm	Ø30mm	Ø27mm	Ø9.7 x 5mm
Output power	200mW	400mW	200mW	600mW	–
Plug	USB
Cable	3m
Warranty	2 Year

Cyber Snipa supply the Sonar inside a sizable cardboard box that is decorated in a black and red livery.  This reflects the colour scheme used for the headset itself.  The reverse side of the box details the headset's features and specifications in various different languages.

The box itself is quite robust in construction and should stand up to most of the knocks and bumps caused by careless couriers.  To provide extra protection, Cyber Snipa package the headset inside the supplied carrying case which is quite thickly padded.

Aside from the carrying case we already mentioned, there are only two other items included in the box.  These are the driver and software CD and the instruction manual.

We mentioned in the introduction that the Sonar's feature list reminded us of the Arctic P531 headset.  On closer inspection, we would go as far to say that they are made by the same OEM as the specifications of the two units are absolutely identical and there are a number of similarities in the design of the two units.

The Sonar is finished in black and grey rubberised paint with the odd red accent here and there.  This, combined with the rather exotic design, gives the headset a very distinctive design.  We imagine that this will be a bit of a ‘marmit'e deal for people; we don't really like it but we can imagine that some people will love it.

As the Sonar sports full surround sound, it has four driver units in each earpiece.  Unfortunately this adds significantly to the weight of the headset which is quite substantial compared to most other gaming headsets.  The overall build quality of the headset is reasonable but not the best we've seen.

About an arm's length down the cable we find the inline control which provides separate rollers switches for each of the four audio channels as well as an overall volume control and a microphone mute switch.  We feel that this is a little too far down the cable as it makes easy access impossible.

The uni-directional boom microphone folds up when not in use so it doesn't get in the way.  The boom itself is actually flexible so you can position the microphone as you like.  Unfortunately the microphone is always in your field of view when it is deployed which can be distracting.

At the end of the 3m plastic shielded cable there is a single USB connector which provides both the sound and power to the headset.  It actually features an inbuilt soundcard which feeds the drivers with the 5.1 surround sound output.

The Sonar certainly isn't the most comfortable headset we've ever tested.  The main problem is the sheer weight which could be painful for some people, long term.  As long as you adjust the headband correctly, though, they are fine for an hour or so.

Cyber Snipa have chosen to use cloth padded earpads which surround your ears and press against your head.  These make this headset a little more comfortable to wear than the Arctic Sound P531 which has earpads that press on your ears.

The headband also has a cloth pad on the inside which helps to improve comfort.  It also features hinges at the ends which lets you fold up the earpads so that the traveling size is smaller and so the headset is less likely to get damaged if you put it in a bag (or in it's carry case).

For a £40 headset we were pleasantly surprised by the sound quality.  When playing music the headphones performed very well, producing a very clear sound.  They do have a slight bias to the lower registers though which suits bass heavy music more than other genres.

When watching movies, the headset's surround sound really enhances the experience and brings an extra level of immersion.  When gaming the sound panning is very effective, letting you hear where every shot is coming from.  The sound balance also seems to have been set up for gaming which further enhances the experience.

Overall, we have mixed feelings about the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 Championship gaming headset.  The appearance really doesn't appeal to us and the build quality isn't exactly top notch either.  Sure the headset will probably last quite a while if you treat it well, but we have some concerns as to whether it would be the best long term investment.

There are some positive aspects in a potential purchase however.  The sound quality is very good and the headset is well suited to pretty much all uses.  The dedicated surround sound really enhances the overall experience when gaming and when watching movies.

The best feature of the product however is the cost.  It can be yours for a price of £42 at Amazon which makes it truly amazing value.  Although the Arctic Sound P531 can be yours for £2 less, the Sonar also comes with a large carrying case which will be worth it for those who frequent LAN events.  Overall we prefer the more understated design of the Arctic Sound P531 which we think will appeal to more people.

Pros

• Surround Sound
• Good Value
• Versatile

Cons

• Aesthetics are an acquired taste
• Questionable build quality

KitGuru says: A good value headset with an impressive feature set.

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