Cooler Master CM Storm Pulse-R Review

Final Thoughts

To say I’m blown away by the Pulse-R would be a slight overstatement, because I have heard better sounding headsets, the only downside is that anything that sounds better will cost more than the Pulse-R and the sound quality here is more than great enough to go toe to toe with similar priced rivals. That being said, it has some of the best response on the market, especially so for this price range and if you like your sound to have a little extra kick you will find it here.

However, since sound quality is on par with the competition, you need something unique that makes you stand out from the crowd, because why spend £70 on this headset when I can get one from Steelseries, Razer, MadCatz or any other number of brands that for the most part sound just as good? Build quality, that’s why. The actual headset on the Pulse-R is incredibly well made, every joint, seam, panel, material and inch of design has been carefully thought out and the whole thing feels robust, with a premium look and finish all over.

Then we have the design, which obviously looks awesome and while that maybe a subjective quality, I doubt many will disagree with me in saying that it looks superb. The little extra touch of aluminium really sets it apart also and I think it is great that you can remove the panels and customise them to your desire. Personally I already like the current design, but I’m sure a few eTeknix logos would look pretty cool printed on those panels.

The only thing that lets it down in my opinion is the in line controller. I feels cheaper than the rest of the headset and this is a fairly common problem in the sub £100 price range. While it doesn’t feel badly made, it doesn’t have the same premium feel as the headset, but on the plus side CM Storm have gone to the effort of including a high quality braided cable and a cool looking detachable microphone.

The next bit of fun comes with the Aluminium keyboard and mouse that CM Storm have just released, think of them as three separate products that are also a matching set. We will have reviews of those shortly and I can’t wait to see the trilogy all lined up, so stay tuned for more of the CM Storm Aluminium range in the coming days and weeks.

Pros

• Premium build quality
• Impressive bass response
• Flawless headset design
• Customisable panels
• Braided cable
• Competitive price
• Comfortable after extensive use

Cons

• In line controller lacks same premium finish as headset

“I would personally buy this headset on style alone, I would also buy it just based on its performance and even just on the overall build quality, but since it delivers all three together, I’m sold. More than worthy of our prestigious Gamers Choice Award”

Thank you to CM Storm for supplying this review sample.