Razer Megalodon Gaming Headset Review

Lightweight Design
After getting over my giddy anxiety from opening a felt-lined box that smells like a new pair of sneakers, the first thing that struck me about the Razer Megalodon is just how incredibly lightweight it is for a gaming headset. The lightweight design can be attributed to the use of lightweight plastic and foam materials, along with the substitution of typical solid-core headband slides for a set of wireframe rails. To anyone who follows Razer products closely this should come as no surprise; the Megalodon is practically the same as Razer's other headset to be named after a shark, the Carcharias, which was met with near universal acclaim for it's quality and comfort.

What the Razer Megalodon lacks in its disdain for heavier, more durable materials is easily made up for in it's simplicity; there's very little that can go wrong with this headset structurally. Because there aren't any hinges or ball joints that could easily be broken, the conformity of the cans is instead derived solely from the flexibility of the wireframe rails, and these prove to be quite flexible indeed. The exposed wires between the earcups and headband are sheathed in a slick braided fabric for protection, and have plenty of slack to prevent shorts from occurring. Also, the circumaural earcups are easily serviced for cleaning with a twist on/off design, and aren't prone to having the padding slip off. Best of all, a hard shell carrying case is enclosed in the box for LAN party gamers and tournament players, thus ensuring the headset won't be crushed in a stuff sack during the 10 hour drive to Quakecon.

Aesthetically speaking, the Megalodon follows Razer's usual mantra of keeping everything as black as black can be, augmented only by glossy black and an electrifying blue. Though there's little eye-catching about the design apart from the dimly lighted Razer logos on each earcup, the headset maintains a professional appearance that speaks nothing but serious business.

Hard shell case included The Razer Megalodon's comfort is paramount. I have yet to review any headset that's been more comfortable than this one, and that includes Logitech's premium G35 gaming headset. The circumaural pads are covered in breathable fabric so my ears don't overheat as quickly as they would with leatherette, while the lightweight and well balanced design ensures my neck won't develop a cramp after hours of gaming. Topping things off is the ultra-wide headband with thick foam padding, helping to alleviate the vice-like pressure exerted on my ears with other headsets. On the day that video games are regulated for their addictive properties, the Megalodon will most certainly be classified as gaming paraphernalia and regulated by the DEA.

Sound Controls
The headset's controls lie in a desk-mounted unit approximately 50 inches down the Megalodon's 130" braided cord, again keeping with the classic black and blue attire but this time more easily smudged by fingerprints. This is in stark contrast to most other headsets that keep the controls mounted in a smaller pod to be clipped to a shirt. Though the unconventional control arrangement effectively restricts my movement to a 50" radius surrounding the desk, it offers two key benefits: my daily caffeine intake has dropped now that I'm no longer able to reach the minifridge, and it ensures constant visibility of the controls for quick adjustments to various levels while in game.

The top of the control pod features a toggle button to switch between 2.0 and 7.1 audio modes, while the center button and wheel offer adjustment for the master volume level in addition to fine-grained control over all 5 groups of channels - Center, Front, Side, Rear, and Bass/LFE. This is great for adding additional emphasis to the rear channels in games that don't already have clear distinction between front and back. Treble adjustment is notably missing from the Megalodon, but the headset honestly doesn't require it; it seems to already have its equalization in check. And though the volume is capped at a moderately safe level by default, this can be pushed past 11 by raising the levels of the individual channel groups before cranking the master volume.

As best as I'm able to tell, the Razer Megalodon is the first virtual surround sound headset that works without the need to install any driver software on the host operating system. Instead, all the HRTF effects processing is handled by the headset's Maelstrom audio engine embedded in the headset's firmware. As far as Windows is concerned, the headset is simply a standard 8-channel USB audio device that uses the stock USB audio driver. This holds true for Mac OS X and presumably Linux as well. Though application compatibility is at the whim of the operating system as a result, the benefits are twofold: no additional CPU or memory resources are consumed by the headset, plus the Megalodon can be used in an eSports environment where software installation is normally prohibited.

It's also interesting to note that the Razer Megalodon is the first USB audio device we've encountered that prevents adjusting the volume through the operating system's controls, rather the volume may only be controlled by the headset itself. In Windows XP and Mac OS X the volume controls are completely disabled, and as a result the volume icon is also removed from the Windows taskbar whenever the Megalodon is set as the default audio device. Windows Vista manages to keep the volume controls intact, but only allows for limiting the volume levels outputted to the headset, much like how iTunes is able to limit its own volume.

Recording Controls and Quality
Other controls on the Razer Megalodon's control pod include microphone mute, microphone sensitivity (noise filtering), and microphone level (volume). When activated, the latter two controls will mute the computer's output then enable microphone loopback so that you may hear yourself as hear you, a rather nifty feature in my opinion. Sadly, microphone loopback can't be enabled during normal operation.

Sitting next to two computers with fans at a moderate speed and an AC unit in the background blowing air, the Mic sensitivity control seemingly did nothing to reduce background noise; recording back-to-back samples at 0, 70% and 100% sensitivity had no audible difference. Still, the recording quality was still above average compared to onboard audio. Friends reported that my was voice was loud and clear throughout Skype calling sessions, plus my teammates had no problems understanding me during the heat of a Team Fortress 2 match using the game's built-in VoIP.