Roccat Kave
Outside the box:
Took off the Kave's plastic wrapping, you see it has the Roccat and its logo printed on it.
The back of the box, features briefly stated in 10 languages. Tech specs are also stated.
The left of the box, features explained with introduction.
The right of the box.
The top of the box. As you can see, the box is sealed with 2 stickers
Outside the box:
Took off the Kave's plastic wrapping, you see it has the Roccat and its logo printed on it.
The back of the box, features briefly stated in 10 languages. Tech specs are also stated.
The left of the box, features explained with introduction.
The right of the box.
The top of the box. As you can see, the box is sealed with 2 stickers
Out of the box:
Kave smilling at you
Proper paddings within the box to prevent the Kave from getting scratched even before you use it.
The connectors. Green/Orange/Black/Pink. Green for front left/right, orange for center/sub, black for rear left/right while the pink's for the mic. The jacks are protected with rubber covers.
The overall items found within the box.
The miscellaneous, a Roccat member card included behind the booklet. A manual and a disc containing a demo and wallpapers of various resolutions.
The included EQ/volume unit.
Kave's power'd up
Official tech specs from Roccat
Why Roccat? Why Kave?
No real reason why I bought it but if you want one then its the real 5.1 it offers. Attracted me by 1st sight. So I asked 3 dealers(moderno, Cex and lingloong) for their price and simultaneously placed an order for 2 units, one for me another for a friend(raxeus). That's about 24 hours ago. So Cex informed me that stock's ready for my collection yesterday night but due to lack of transport, I collected them this evening. Unboxed it nice and slowly. Finally got them on my head and ears, the feeling was great as opposed to Piranha, it really causes pain. But after prolonged usage, you'll feel the headset pressing down onto your head(too heavy). I compared these 3 headsets side by side and found the Kave best amongst them, the bass and clarity is not as good as the Piranha but much better compared to Siberia. The Siberia somehow lacked the crisp supposingly present in some audio. For audio clarity, I guess the Piranha would take champion but its really hard to distinguish which is better comparing with the Kave unless you're looping the same audio again and again to catch every note. The Kave's rear speakers are not as distinct as the front so I suggest have the rear's volume higher than the front. However, the Kave weights quite a lot. Apparently, the Siberia is found to be the lightest amongst the three while the Kave's heaviest. For build quality, all 3 of them are very good. The texture, the paint, the box, everything in good order. There's a problem with my set though, my Roccat member ID is not working but bah... Doesn't matter much as long as the Kave works perfectly. A point to note, I really like that EQ/Volume control unit, much more handy when it comes to adjusting volume, more convenient than the shortcut keys on my keyboard which are unresponsive at times. As for the adjustable Game/Movie mode, I can't tell the difference between these 2. I can hear very slight difference but I can't tell what it is. Am I the first to own Kave in Malaysia?
No real reason why I bought it but if you want one then its the real 5.1 it offers. Attracted me by 1st sight. So I asked 3 dealers(moderno, Cex and lingloong) for their price and simultaneously placed an order for 2 units, one for me another for a friend(raxeus). That's about 24 hours ago. So Cex informed me that stock's ready for my collection yesterday night but due to lack of transport, I collected them this evening. Unboxed it nice and slowly. Finally got them on my head and ears, the feeling was great as opposed to Piranha, it really causes pain. But after prolonged usage, you'll feel the headset pressing down onto your head(too heavy). I compared these 3 headsets side by side and found the Kave best amongst them, the bass and clarity is not as good as the Piranha but much better compared to Siberia. The Siberia somehow lacked the crisp supposingly present in some audio. For audio clarity, I guess the Piranha would take champion but its really hard to distinguish which is better comparing with the Kave unless you're looping the same audio again and again to catch every note. The Kave's rear speakers are not as distinct as the front so I suggest have the rear's volume higher than the front. However, the Kave weights quite a lot. Apparently, the Siberia is found to be the lightest amongst the three while the Kave's heaviest. For build quality, all 3 of them are very good. The texture, the paint, the box, everything in good order. There's a problem with my set though, my Roccat member ID is not working but bah... Doesn't matter much as long as the Kave works perfectly. A point to note, I really like that EQ/Volume control unit, much more handy when it comes to adjusting volume, more convenient than the shortcut keys on my keyboard which are unresponsive at times. As for the adjustable Game/Movie mode, I can't tell the difference between these 2. I can hear very slight difference but I can't tell what it is. Am I the first to own Kave in Malaysia?
Comfortness:
Razer Piranha || ★★★☆☆ || my head feels squashed
Roccat Kave || ★★★☆☆ || feels bit heavy eventhough there's cushion on top
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★☆ || cushion padding is not as thick as the other 2 but most comfy amongst these 3
Audio quality:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★☆ || clear, crisp with strong bass, least static when highest volume
Roccat Kave || ★★★★☆ || clear, crisp with moderate bass, lots of static when volume is high(I only need 30% so no static) but is much much louder than Piranha and Siberia
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★☆☆ || clear, less crisp with weak bass, moderate static
Bass quality:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★★ || very good bass but I think its too heavy
Roccat Kave || ★★★★☆ || moderate bass but I think its just the right amount of bass
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★☆☆ || weak bass
Design:
Razer Piranha || ★★★☆☆ || the mic's a bit too far out in my opinion, some might find it difficult to record properly and limitted mic rotation
Roccat Kave || ★★★★★ || the mic's 360° full adjustable, detachable mic and foldable
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★☆ || didn't really liked the sides but overall great looking with detachable mic
Mic quality:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★☆
Roccat Kave || ★★★★☆
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★☆
Noise cancelling:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★★
Roccat Kave || ★★★★★
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★☆
Cable length:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★★
Roccat Kave || ★★★★☆
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★★
Finishing quality:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★☆
Roccat Kave || ★★★★☆
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★☆
Packaging quality:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★☆
Roccat Kave || ★★★★★
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★☆
Portability:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★☆ || 2 3.5mm jack(Green/Pink), 1 USB for blings
Roccat Kave || ★★★☆☆ || 4 3.5mm jack(Green/Black/Orange/Pink), 1 USB for power(does not work without USB power)
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★☆ || 2 3.5mm jack(Green/Pink), 1 USB for equalizer/simulator
Speaker configuration:
Razer Piranha || Stereo 2.1
Roccat Kave || Real 5.1
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || Simulated 7.1
Price tags:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★☆ || RM249
Roccat Kave || ★★★☆☆ || RM339 || above average users' budget
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★☆☆ || RM359 || above average users' budget
Competitors' overall in terms of everything compared above:
Razer Piranha || ★★★★★★★☆☆☆ || Quick discomfort, best audio amongst the 3
Roccat Kave || ★★★★★★★☆☆☆ || Can't work without USB power and discomfort after moderate duration of use
SteelSeries Siberia Full-size Headset USB || ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆ || Best comfort but worst audio amongst the 3
Tested on:
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Napoleon: Total War
Mirror's Edge
DiRT 2
H.A.W.X.
Bad Romance by Lady Gaga || 261kbps
Crazy Dog by Big Bang || 192kbps
Assassin's Creed Cello Trailer Theme by Jesper Kyd || 320kbps
Spice and Wolf Opening Theme by Yoshino Yuuji || 320kbps
Hope's Theme by Masashi Hamauzu || 320kbps
Serah's Theme by Masashi Hamauzu || 320kbps
Snow's Theme by Masashi Hamauzu || 320kbps
Lightning's Theme by Masashi Hamauzu || 320kbps
New Divide by Linkin Park || 320kbps
P.S.
1st time doing a review, any advice will be most welcomed. Correct me if I'm wrong in anyway, methods, data and so on. Thanks!
