Honey, I shrank the Razer Kraken. We jest, but that’s exactly what Razer has done with the new Razer Kraken X wired gaming headset. Inheriting everything that made its big brother great, the new Kraken X sheds a whole lot of weight, shaves the price and still manages to include 7.1 surround sound capability.
In designing the Kraken X, Razer’s goal was to create a light and comfortable wired headset that can be worn all day long. It weighs 250grams or 0.55 lbs which is laughably light for a gaming headset. Razer has still managed to outfit the Kraken X with soft memory foam ear cushions with glasses friendly channels and an adjustable headband.
A good microphone is necessary for any gaming headset and the Kraken X comes with a bendable cardioid microphone. It’s designed to suppress noise from the back and sides so your voice always comes out clear on game chat. Another nice addition is the on-ear cup controls for microphone mute and volume levels.
Surprisingly, Razer is offering 7.1 surround sound in the Kraken X which is ordinarily a feature reserved for more premium headsets which have some form of DAC. The caveat here is that this is a software-enabled solution that only works on a compatible Windows 10 64-bit system.
“The Kraken X is great for any gamer,” says Alvin Cheung, Senior Vice President of Peripherals at Razer. “It’s ultra-light and incredibly comfortable, so you can game for hours with it. It is the companion of choice for domination and immersion in your game with 7.1 surround sound.”
The Kraken X uses the universal 3.5mm connection making it compatible with PC, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch as well as smartphones and tablets. The Kraken ships in classic black color with a special console variant sporting black and blue highlights.
The Razer Kraken X and Kraken X for Console will retail for $49.99 USD and will be available on Razer.com starting June 6.
And it’s not only the Kraken X that will have surround sound. Razer also announced that all its 2019 headsets priced under $99 will now offer 7.1 surround. Buyers of this year’s 2019 Kraken headset can redeem their 7.1 surround sound software by registering their headset on RazerID using their serial number.
The more premium headsets priced above $99 — such as the Razer Nari family — will also have THX Spatial audio and its suite of audio customizations and microphone enhancements.
