CM Storm Sirus 5.1 Headset Review

1. Introduction2. CM Storm Sirus 5.1 Headset (Accessories)3. CM Storm Sirus 5.1 Headset (The Headset)4. CM Storm Sirus 5.1 Headset (Super High Res Gallery)5. Performance and Configuration6. Closing Thoughts7. View All Pages

Cooler Master have released many quality products this year, from CPU coolers and power supplies to computer chassis. Today we are looking at the latest headphones from their Storm series – the CM Storm Sirus 5.1 Headphones.

The Sirus is a product which hopes to target both the gaming and audiophile sector. In their own words the headphones are “Built for gaming enthusiasts and audiophiles alike, the CM Storm Sirus 5.1 Surround Sound Headset creates an immersive gaming experience with hi-fidelity sounds capes and intensified bass.”

The Sirus has an 8 discrete speaker channel via pairs of front, rear, center and sub. They also ship with a uni directional microphone with background noise cancellation to ensure good quality conversations online with team mates and opposing gamers.

Main features:

• 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 cancellation.
• Dual gold-plated USB Connectors for improved signal quality.
• Microphone with LED mute indicator.

Specifications:

Headphones

• Channel: True 5.1 surround sound
• Driver: F/R/C: 30mm Sub: 40mm
• Impedance: 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%

Microphone

• Pick-up pattern: uni-directional
• Frequency Response: 100Hz – 10,000 Hz
• Impedance: 2.2k Ohms
• Sensitivity: -46 dB ±3dB

The CM Storm Sirus box is stylish black and red with a large plastic window at the front to highlight the product in a store environment. For some reason we immediately thought of Battlestar Galactica when seeing the phones for the first time.

The packaging is very strong and should withstand some serious abuse during transport.

The bundle includes some leather earpieces, which I prefer, due to the enhanced bass. CM Storm allow for two ways to connect the headphones, via the USB ‘Tactical Console' or by running cables directly into a sound card.

The headphones are connected via a 10 pin din connector.

All the connectors are gold plated and braided for durability. The braided cables are the highest quality we have seen.

The main Tactical Mixing console is surprisingly heavy and well made. Underneath is an anti slip surface to hold it steadily in place, regardless of the surface.

On top there are a variety of buttons and lights indicating settings. The headphone button is there as a quick way to mute the sound in case you need to interact with people closeby. The microphone button works in a similar way, except it mutes the microphone. If you need to use both, then there are two USB headers to connect. The large silver dial in the middle is used to control the volume. It is beautifully weighted and much better quality than I initially expected.

There are controls for rear, front, center and bass control and a ‘master' setting to reduce and lower overall volume, when it is balanced to your specific tastes.

The 10 pin headset connector from the console device is only a couple of inches long, which seems rather short. I would assume that they expect the console to be resting on a desk close by.

These headphones will not work with an Xbox 360 or Playstation 3, although there is a ‘gadget' planned which will convert the Sirus into a universal console headset.

The headset itself is a chunky design and had a somewhat retro appearance. We wouldn't say it was the most beautiful design we have seen in recent years, but it is functional.

Along the top of the inner section is a thick, soft pad which is there to offer some comfort to the top of the head. They are reasonably comfortable to use, however after a few hours I found my head was becoming a little strained.

The microphone can't be retracted, only rotated on the vertical axis. They have included a small LED to show activity of the microphone, seen by a quick glance.

Each of the earpieces can be adjusted to cater to various head sizes. The mechanism is reassuringly strong and it is certainly going to be able to withstand some abuse.

Attention to detail throughout is very good, with the CM Storm logo embossed into the top part of the headband. The braided cable is reinforced into the outer shell for extra durability.

As we mentioned on the previous page, the Sirus headset includes an extra pair of leatherette earpieces, which we prefer.

Exchanging these only takes a few minutes, as you gently pull them from a plastic inner mounting shell and then replace and reattach.

Above, with the leather earpads fitted. Very nice indeed. Both sets of earpads and headband cushion are washable.

On this page we present some super high resolution images of the product taken with the 24.5MP Nikon D3X camera and 24-70mm ED lens. These will take much longer to open due to the dimensions, especially on slower connections. If you use these pictures on another site or publication, please credit Kitguru.net as the owner/source. You can right click and ‘save as’ to your computer to view later.

The Sirius driver is available from the CMStorm website, here. V1.1 is 47.8MB and was released in July this year. The install allows for direct control over the headset as shown above. The External control pad allows for control over the rear, front, center and bass. Finally an overall ‘master' setting is available, once you get the balance perfected.

The Sirus headset is being promoted as an ‘audiophile' headset, which is a heck of a claim from a PC oriented manufacturer.

Above, our Audeze LCD2 headphones, which we use in balanced mode with a valve RaySonic CD player and valve headphone amplifier (pair of ECC85 Mullard driver tubes and four Tung Sol 7236 power tubes from the 50/60's). These are probably one of the best sets of headphones on the market and were imported from America for around £750. Obviously we wouldn't expect the Sirus headphones to equal these headphones, but when we see the word ‘audiophile' being used then we need to look a little deeper into the claims.

We tested the Sirus headphones with the supplied console and found that they really did excel with modern titles, such as Modern Warfare 2 and Battlefield 3. The sound staging was very good and with the console controls, we found that adjustments could be easily made, even while playing the game. It is a great system and one I really warmed to, very quickly.

The headset is very rigid and rather heavy and many gamers may find them uncomfortable after a while. I am used to audiophile headphones myself, such as the Audeze LCD2 and Grado PS1000. Neither of these are comfortable and both are very heavy, so the Sirus felt quite comfortable and light. Negatively, I found the earpads could be larger, feeling rather tight to the diameter of the lobes.

Sound staging with the headset was excellent and when playing games such as RAGE, I could hear ambient noises very clearly, positioning them well in the soundstage.

MP3 playback is also noteworthy as the bass response features well in the sound stage, never overpowering the other frequencies, even when configured high in the mix. I was actually quite shocked to hear how responsive these headphones were when pushed high. Certainly when compared with the Audeze LCD2 the bass seemed rather flabby and lackluster, but it isn't a fair comparison considering the price differences.

I was surprised by the high level of distortion free volume available from the Sirus. Many PC oriented headphones start smearing and crackling frequencies, long before maximum volume is reached.

I lent the headphones to several clan gamers, and they returned them a few days later singing their praises. When I asked if they would spend over £100 the reply was yes, and no. One of them summed it up – ‘Yes for the sound quality alone they are worth the money, but they are just too heavy, my neck hurt after a few hours gaming'.

This verified my initial feelings that the headphones might prove too rigid, heavy and uncompromising for a wide audience of gamer who are used to lighter, softer and more flexible headphones. Positive comments were also made for the microphone system, as the noise cancelling works exceptionally well.

I used them myself for a four hour period and never experienced a problem, although as I said earlier, the earpieces would benefit by being about 1 centimeter bigger in circumference to enhance the comfort level.

I ripped a raw high definition audio file of St Martins In The Field (Mozart recording) to play through the Sirius and was very happy with the overall dynamic and separation. Sound staging was also very impressive, although I noticed the mid range frequencies were a little flat when compared against the Audeze LCD2 headphones. A minor criticism, but remarkable, considering the target audience. It seems a shame to use compressed MP3's with these headphones!

The CM Storm Sirus 5.1 are easily rated in the top 5% of computer oriented headphones and are actually a product I would use daily for playing games.

I have never found a ‘gaming' headset that I felt comfortable with long term, which is why I use the AKG K702 open back dynamic reference headphones with my computer. I don't mind compromising in a few areas, but gaming headsets have just too many gimmicks for my tastes while the overall sound quality tends to suffer, especially with soundstaging, siblance and defined bass response.

The Sirus 5.1 have been designed from the ground up with a complete focus on sound quality, and it shines through. Sadly, many gamers may find them heavy, uncomfortable and uncompromising in design. Being used to headphones 8 to 15 times more expensive than the Sirius means I have already had to adapt to weightier designs so they didn't prove a problem for me. Clan gamers who I got involved in this review admired the sound quality but said that they would find it hard to live with the weight and rigidity.

Rating these headphones is difficult, because on sound quality alone they score 9.5 out of 10. In other areas they may prove difficult for people to live with, so we need to score them a little lower. They are certainly a headset I would recommend you get a hands on with first, because at £114 inc vat they are not an impulse purchase.

If it is the highest sound quality you are after then I have no hesitation recommending these. Just be sure you can live with the weight and uncompromising design. In my opinion the benefits far outweigh the cons.

Pros:

• Class leading sound quality.
• great build quality.
• control pod is built to last.
• bass is very focused and powerful.
• control pod offers fine control.

Cons:

• Heavy.
• Rigid.
• not cheap.
• earpads could be a little bigger.

Kitguru says: If sound quality is the primary concern, then be sure to shortlist these.

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