Nacon RIG 800 Pro HX assessment: A headset primed for marathon gaming

Price When Reviewed

149.99

Best Prices Today: Nacon RIG 800 Pro HX

The Nacon Rig 800 Pro HX is a gaming headset with a outstanding bass profile and Dolby Atmos help for immersive 3D audio that sounds particularly nice in FPS video games. It’s additionally light-weight, snug, and comes with fast 2.4GHz wi-fi connectivity and a handy base station for charging.

Despite having an all-plastic body, it feels very sturdy and sports activities a contemporary look you’re by no means going to tire of. With its solely two major drawbacks being fiddly ear cups and no devoted software program app, it’s a strong choice for critical or causal avid gamers.

Note: See our roundup of one of the best wi-fi gaming headsets to study competing merchandise, what to look for in a wi-fi gaming headset, and shopping for suggestions.

Nacon RIG 800 Pro HX design and construct

The Nacon Rig 800 Pro HX is produced from a number of supplies that appear fairly contradictory. On the one hand it sports activities a plastic body as a substitute of a metallic one and an unassuming mesh materials for its outer ear cups, but the edges are surrounded by a luxurious, premium leatherette that’s remarkably tactile.

Was this an arbitrary choice by Nacon? A cost-cutting enterprise, maybe? Admittedly, these ideas did cross my thoughts, however any reservations fully melted away as quickly as I put it on—it was simply so snug and sensible for gaming.

The greatest promoting level for me was its mild weight—the plastic retains it all the way down to a lowly 290 grams, which implies it’s nearly imperceptible in your head, even throughout marathon gaming periods—which is exactly what Nacon supposed it for.

The mesh material too was a pleasant addition that you simply simply don’t see in headsets with leatherette ear cups. It felt cool towards my ears and prevented my cups getting all sweaty and greasy by way of a couple of stinking-hot 86-degree days.

The different varied elements deserve reward too; options just like the self-adjustable headband that distributes weight horizontally throughout the entire width of your scalp slightly than centering it uncomfortably at one level—and the controls on the left ear cup, which have simply the correct quantity of rigidity for exact tuning.  

My assessment unit had a quantity wheel, a recreation/occasion wheel for use with Xbox, an on/off button, and a mute mic button, so there was loads of on-ear management at my fingertips after I wanted it.

The ear cups are just a little totally different from the slide-down sort you see in some headsets. They don’t swivel and are available absolutely removable. To alter them, you must take them out then slot them into one among three holes within the headset’s outer body.

Nacon RIG 800 Pro HX connectivity and microphone

My 800 Pro HX assessment unit’s packaging got here with the long-lasting inexperienced and white Xbox logos denoting its compatibility with Xbox One and Xbox X/S, in addition to PC, all with Dolby Atmos help. But you may as well buy a model that’s appropriate with PC and PlayStation, or one with PC, Mac, and PlayStation compatibility.

Wireless connectivity is by way of a low-latency 2.4GHz USB-A Wi-Fi adapter you can both join on to your system or insert into the headset’s multifunction base station. Both choices gave me a sign that was fast and responsive and labored as much as 10 meters away.

Dominic Bayley / IDG

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The base station additionally prices the headset’s 1,800mAH battery, or alternatively you’ll be able to plug the USB cable instantly into the headset itself. Charging takes roughly seven hours to achieve full capability, which supplies you roughly 24 hours of playtime.

A uni-directional noise-cancelling microphone is situated on the left ear cup and has flip-to-mute performance, which I discovered actually helpful for switching between my workforce chats and chatting with household. I used to be happy to see the mic has a extremely clear signature, preserving distortion to an absolute minimal. The finish is produced from a versatile materials so you’ll be able to place it precisely the place you need it.

Nacon RIG 800 Pro HX software program

Regrettably, the Rig 800 Pro HX doesn’t have its personal devoted app, however you’ll be able to obtain the Dolby Atmos software program app, which supplies you some management over how the headset sounds. For instance, you can also make footsteps extra outstanding by switching the Performance Mode setting from off to on, or optimize sounds within the high-, mid-, or low-frequency vary by selecting one of many Intelligent Equalizer settings within the app’s major web page. It’s comparatively simple to make use of and positively well worth the effort.

Nacon RIG 800 Pro HX efficiency

While some headsets do 3D audio as a sort of side-act, the 800 Pro HX makes it a major occasion. Nacon says the 40mm drivers have been exactly tuned for Dolby Atmos 3D audio, so as to react sooner and extra precisely to what’s happening round you. The headset’s bass has additionally been enhanced, and these two issues had been actually noticeable in my playtesting.

For instance, in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, a lot of the audio sounded clear and refined, however deeper seems like explosions and the thudding of weapons firing actually stood out, resonating with a heaviness that basically acquired my consideration. The audio additionally circled round my ears in a full 360 arc, giving me a exact positional consciousness that made it simpler to find foes and preserve my character alive for longer.

That mentioned, avid gamers who play FPS titles like Halo Infinite, Metro Exodus, and newer titles within the Battlefield and Call of Duty franchises, are actually in for a deal with, since they’ll reap the complete good thing about this headset’s Dolby Atmos help. Getting it working is a chunk of cake, too—you simply plug it in and it mechanically engages with the software program to optimize your sound.

Dominic Bayley / IDG

Switching to a recreation of Shadow of the Tomb Raider, I listened for any distortion, however I didn’t hear any. In this recreation too, the 3D audio was chic, bringing to life the sounds of the forest with an eerie realism that I’ve seldom heard with different headsets.

As to the controls, I actually just like the vertical orientation that made discovering my quantity wheel tremendous fast. The base station, too, is a superb addition—it’s so compact that it didn’t take up a lot house on my desk and helped preserve my headset secure after I wasn’t utilizing it.

The solely thorn on this headset’s aspect, if I’ve to say one, is that the ear cups are sort of fiddly to regulate—I want that they had been the easy pull-down form like within the Logitech Astro A30 Wireless, which might have prevented me having to detach and reattach them on a regular basis. That mentioned, the holes within the body look superior, giving the 800 Pro HX its trademark fighter pilot look that I by no means acquired bored with seeing.

Should you purchase the Nacon RIG 800 Pro HX?

Gamers of all sorts will likely be impressed by the Rig 800 Pro HX’s clear and refined sound, however we’d particularly advocate it for FPS avid gamers due to its outstanding bass and stylish 3D Dolby Atmos help. Plus, the Rig 800 Pro HX’s mild weight will preserve you tremendous snug these occasions when a couple of minutes gaming turns into many, many hours.