Razer BlackShark V2 Pro review

Stylish, comfortable and with great audio quality, Razer's top-end gaming headset is a delight to use and is a reasonable price too.

Razer BlackShark V2 Pro gaming headset black

Our Verdict

80%

A classy gaming headset with a premium price, there’s plenty of reason to snap up the BlackShark V2 Pro if you can afford it.

The BlackShark V2 Pro is one of Razer’s most premium headsets, boasting just the sort of high-end feature set you’d expect for its £180 asking price. There’s a wireless connection, surround sound and top-of-the-line headphones – there’s plenty going on.

As well as lots of features, this is also a great looking headset. All black and almost completely devoid of any flashy design extras – even the Razer logos on each earcup are shiny black on matt black – it’s both a stylish yet modest-looking headset, which has more of a ‘form following function’ feel than many other gaming designs.

The design is in many ways quite simple too. The headband is a single-piece affair, with an adjustment system that just involves the two metal wires of the earcup holder sliding smoothly in and out of the headband. The lack of detent adjustment does mean the headset tends to slide loose over time, but seldom enough to be a problem – a quick tweak once every few hours is sufficient.

Razer BlackShark V2 Pro gaming headset black

Comfort is decent too. That headband is deeply and softly cushioned, while the earcups have reasonably deep, squishy padding. They also provide just enough grip to help to take the middling 329g weight of the headset.

For physical features, you get a fairly modest selection, with the left earcup being home to the lot. Here you’ll find the volume dial that sticks straight out the side of the headset, along with a 3.5mm analogue jack input, the micro-USB charging port (shame it’s not USB Type-C), the microphone mute button and the power button. Sitting forward of all this lot is the socket for the bendable microphone.

It’s a simple selection but it’s very easy to use, with all the controls falling easily to hand and the volume control in particular providing just the right balance of accessibility without being too easy to knock. We also like that it has a detent half way through its travel, making it easy to quickly dial in a mid-range volume level.

Razer BlackShark V2 Pro gaming headset black

Meanwhile, the microphone beam has a decent length and comes with a slip-on foam wind sock. It’s fairly easy to bend into position, though it springs back to being straight a little more than some designs. It offers unexceptional recording quality, though it’s adequate for voice comms.

The audio quality from the headphones is more exceptional. The 50mm drivers offer well balanced sound, with strong but not overwhelming bass presence, and plenty of top-end detail without any shrillness. It lends itself well to the vast majority of music genres and game types. For sheer sonic quality, they’re the sort of step up you’d expect from a headset at this price.

Install Razer’s software (with an annoying signup and login required), and you can also switch between the default stereo configuration and THX Spatial Audio. It’s a shame the headset doesn’t have this built into the hardware with a button for switching modes, but the Spatial Audio does sound great, noticeably improving spatial awareness and directionality in games.

Razer BlackShark V2 Pro gaming headset black

Conclusion

The BlackShark V2 Pro doesn’t come cheap, but it delivers the sort of premium experience you’d expect in just about every area. It looks great, it’s comfortable, it offers high-end sound quality, excellent virtual surround performance and has a simple but well thought out selection of features. The microphone quality is nothing special and the headband does loosen over time, but we didn’t find either of these issues to be major drawbacks in games.

Price
$180 USD / £180 GBP

Scores
Comfort:
 17/20 | Features: 16/20 | Sound quality: 33/40 | Value: 14/20

Pros

  • Stylish, practical design
  • Great sound quality
  • Comfortable

Cons

  • Expensive
  • Headband loosens over time

Razer BlackShark V2 Pro Specs

Connections: 2.4GHz wireless, microUSB charging and audio, 3.5mm analogue jack
Audio config: Stereo and THX Spatial Audio
Frequency range: 12-28,000Hz
Sensitivity/Sound pressure level: 100dB
Microphone frequency response: 100-10,000Hz
Microphone sensitivity: -42dB
Weight: 329g with mic
Battery Life: Up to 24hrs
Extras: Detachable microphone, 1.3m analogue cable, wireless dongle, micro-USB charging cable