-Razer might be famous for their spectacularly well-lit gear and over-the-top green LED lighting everywhere. But somehow they are at their best when they take the more simplistic route.
The Blackshark V2 Pro is not equipped with the usual LED light show but its design is slick, clean, and incredibly comfortable and performance-wise it is easily the best wireless Razer headset to date.
The Good
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- Flawless wireless connection
- Great battery life
- Luxurious design
- Outstanding comfort
The Bad
- Surround sound sounds a bit artificial
Blackshark V2 Pro Overview
The Razer BlackShark V2 Pro is crammed full of the latest and best technology that Razer has on offer, including the Hyperspeed wireless technology. Hyperspeed is among the most reliable and stable wireless technologies in the gaming market. After days of testing this headset, I have had zero audio delays, no connection issues, and the battery life is pretty outstanding for a feature-heavy headset such as this. It will last for about 20-24 hours of game time, depending on how many features you activate in the Razer Synapse software – which is a lot more than previous Razer headsets with such an extensive feature list.
The THX Spatial audio is good, and the super-cardioid microphone is outstanding but the real star of the show is the design. The headset can only be explained as incredibly slick and comfortable. Despite a long list of advanced technologies it only weighs 320g and the cushioning and padding are very soft, yet also very firm. The FlowKnit memory foam cushions are not only comfortable but also feel very qualitative, like a luxurious designer chair for your ears. The BlackShark V2 Pro is a bit on the expensive end but it also feels like a luxury product that is worthy of its price tag.
And while looks are subjective. I definitely think it’s minimalistic black design is the best looking Razer headset to date.
If I had to critique one thing about the BlackShark V2 Pro it is the bass. It’s a bit on the weak side and if you turn it up then the quality goes down quite a bit. The audio quality, in general, is good but nothing to write home about. I would have liked more focus on the quality of the drivers than all of the excess features such as Spatial Audio and surround sound.
However, between the awesome microphone, great battery life, and outstanding design I would still recommend it, especially if you are a fan of Razer gear. It is one of the best wireless gaming headsets in its price range and by far the best Razer has ever produced.
Design – Cool & comfortable
The Blackshark V2 Pro might have good audio quality, an excellent microphone, and top-notch wireless technology but its design is still its biggest strength by far. The earcups and headband are equipped with Razer’s brand new FlowKnit memory foam which applies a wonderful cooling feel to your ears while still providing excellent noise cancellation.
My favorite part of the design is how it manages to sit so tight and firmly on my head while still feeling comfortable after many hours of play. An issue that many previous, overly-comfortable, headsets have had is that they sit very loosely and has to be constantly repositioned. With the Blackshark you kind of get the best of both worlds.
The new breathable FlowKnit foam is not just comfortable, it also feels very high-end, and the blend of leather, high-quality cloth, and this new foam makes the headset feel like a real piece of luxury gaming equipment.
Minimalistic, slick design
Some people might prefer the more classic Razer design with colors and LED lighting flying everywhere but to me, the design on the BlackShark is just so much better than the Kraken and other older Razer headsets.
The clean all-black design made of entirely quality materials gives it a professional look and feels like a product for serious gamers that put quality over spectacle. It is also a gaming headset that you can wear on the bus or while going for a walk without turning too many heads, which I really like.
Performance – Good audio, amazing microphone
The BlackShark V2 Pro uses the new Razer TriForce Titanium 50mm drivers that on its own provide crisp, clear sound quality. It is nothing extraordinary and it won’t make an audiophile happy but it is what you can, and should expect from a headset in this price range. It offers clear highs and clean lows and the quality is good enough to help you immerse yourself in whatever world you are playing through.
The issue with the audio comes with the additional features in the spatial audio and surround sound – and it’s an issue you see every time a wireless headset tries to stuff too many fancy features into their headset. It hurts the lifespan of the battery, and the added benefit of these features just aren’t that good.
The spatial audio works to provide you with audio feedback on where the sound came from is okay. But honestly, the 50mm drivers does it decently well on themselves, and even without this activated you will be able to tell if that shot from the enemy AWP came from the front or behind. The surround sound is what really hurts the battery life and it is not worth it. The surround audio comes off as very artificial and I almost preferred the headset with both of these features deactivated as the audio felt cleaner that way.
Luckily the headset works perfectly fine without activating these features(which is something you do with the Razer Synapse software). So if you are not specifically looking for outstanding surround sound audio, which you almost never should in a wireless headset, then the BlackShark V2 Pro will likely be more than good enough for you.
If you use the headset as is without all of the extra features it is really quite excellent and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a well-performing, comfortable wireless headset.
Microphone – studio quality
The microphone is something else entirely, and I was not expecting it to be this good. Even without adjusting any settings in Razer Synapse, the Supercardioid microphone has a crisp studio-like quality to it that provides your listeners or teammates with clear, qualitative communication. While I always recommend stand-alone microphones for serious streamers or Youtube content creators I would say that the BlackShark V2 works well enough for those that are just starting out.
Although the baseline microphone is great, it is also highly adjustable in the Razer Synapse software and if you really like to play around with that stuff then the additional settings are pretty spectacular for a headset microphone.
Battery & connectivity
This is another area where the BlackShark V2 Pro really excels. Its battery can last as long as 24 hours, provided you don’t use surround sound and spatial audio(which I recommend that you don’t). That is a long time for such an advanced headset with high-end audio drivers.
It is also very easy to recharge with the SpeedFlex cable and can be done without taking a break from your gaming session. Being able to charge the headset while still actively playing is something I expected and I was happy to see that Razer did not disappoint.
Lastly, the Hyperspeed connection is superb and only really matched by Logitech’s Lightspeed tech in my opinion. Even at low battery, you don’t experience any issues with the sound or performance and the report rate is instantaneous.
In other words, you get the performance and security of a wired headset with all of the freedom a wireless option provides.
Final thoughts – Worth it?
BlackShark V2 Pro gets a perfect score in terms of comfort and design. The microphone is outstanding and the audio is pretty good. All and all this headset is quite excellent and if you are someone who values comfort and design over all the other stuff, then this headset is second-to-none in its price range.
I love that Razer is starting to produce more gaming equipment that has a more minimalistic design and the BlackShark is my favorite Razer headset to date.
