Ozone Rage ST Gaming Headset Review

By Hank Tolman

Manufacturer: Ozone Gaming Gear
Product Name: Ozone Rage ST Gaming Headset
Model Number: OZRAGESTK
UPC: 8436532171420
Price As Tested: $39.99 (Amazon)

Full Disclosure: The product sample used in this article has been provided by Ozone.

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past few years, you have undoubtedly become aware of the huge expansion of the eSports industry. What was once dominated by small groups of friends getting together for LAN parties is now a multi-billion dollar a year international industry. I remember fondly the LAN parties of yore, where you packed up your system (CRT monitor included) and carried it over to a friend’s house or local business to battle it out in Unreal Tournament, Quake, or some other multi-player game. Those days are back, albeit without much lugging around of computers. With competitive gaming’s big return comes a renewed desire for gaming equipment that will help give you an edge in battle.

One of the most critical weapons in any gamer’s arsenal is a good gaming headset. A good headset gives you the ability to isolate outside noise while providing detailed, sharp, and clear sound from all sides. A gaming headset also lets you easily and understandably communicate with the other members of your team. In this article, Benchmark Reviews is looking at the Ozone Rage ST Gaming Headset and compares it directly with other Gaming Headsets to see what sets it apart and how well it performs.

Features

• ERGONOMIC DESIGN – Thanks to its clever ergonomics, you’re likely to forget you’re wearing headsets at all and you’ll get a reduced background noise. Even after hours of continuous use, Rage ST won’t start to feel heavy.
• PREMIUM SOUND – High quality stereo headset developed for gaming, but also with a great performance for music and movies.
• DETACHABLE MIC – Flexible and detachable mic with advanced noise canceling technologythat ensures clean chat conversations.
• INLINE CONTROLLER – Adjust the sound and mic settings on-the-fly with the RAGE inline controller. Built with an advanced ergonomic design for a comfortable grip.
• XL EAR CUSHIONS – Rage ear cups are covered with an advanced micro-texture cloth for a comfortable fit during long gaming sessions.
• MORE THAN GAMING – Use your RAGE ST with your MP3 player, iPhone or digital device.

Specifications

Model Number	OZRAGESTK
Speaker Drivers
Driver Diameter	40mm
Frequency Response	20Hz-20KHz
Impedance	32 Ohms
Connector	3.5mm headphone jack
Max SPL @1kHz	85dB
Microphone
Drive Diameter	6 x 5mm
Max SPL @1kHz	-38dB
Impedance	<2.2k Ohm
Directivity	Omni-Directional
General
Weight	300 grams
Cable Length	2.5m

*Features and Specs from OZONE website.

The OZONE Rage ST Gaming Headset comes in a black and red windowed box. The packaging was clearly designed to show off the headset, which is a smart move in my opinion. The windows covers almost the entire front of the box. The features and specifications of the OZONE Rage ST can be found on the left side and back of the case. The right side of the case is also filled with a window.

The OZONE Rage ST Advanced Gaming headset’s earcups are cushioned with a fabric mesh material. The earcups fit completely around my ears and my ears fit comfortably inside the cushions. The earcups are extremely comfortable. They sit very lightly around my ears and are hardly noticeable. They are breathable as well, so my ears don’t get hot after long sessions.

The headband padding on the Ozone Rage ST Advanced Gaming Headset is made of the same material as the ear cushions, but it is quite a bit thinner. At first as was concerned by this. My biggest headache from a lot of headsets comes from the headband. Fortunately for me, the Ozone Rage ST is so light that it doesn’t sit heavily on my head at all, meaning that the lighter padding is plenty to keep my head comfortable.

The outside of the Ozone Rage ST Advanced Gaming Headset is made from a thick plastic. The Rage ST that I got came with black plastic, but that isn’t the only option. The Rage ST comes in a few different colors. I particularly like the white ones.

The Ozone Rage ST Advanced Gaming Headset uses an inline remote to control the mic and the volume. The mic control is a simple on-off switch, but it’s big enough and flat enough that you won’t accidently hit it. On the opposite side is a wheel control for the volume.

The cord on the Ozone Rage ST is a decent length and it is covered with a thick plastic shell. It’s not super thick, and so still pliable, but it is thick enough that you shouldn’t have many issues with tangling. As for the connector, it consists of the normal two jacks, one for audio and one for the mic; nothing special there.

Each earcup on the Ozone Rage ST contains a single 40mm driver for sound. That’s pretty standard across the board. Extra drivers in the earcups are always nice, but you won’t see that in the price range of the Ozone Rage ST. The single driver means you’ll have to rely on software for surround.

The microphone on the Ozone Rage ST is omni-directional and has six 5mm drivers. That helps with noise cancellation as well as picking up the sounds you want. There isn’t an EMI isolation unit like we’ve seen on higher end headsets, though. That means your recordings might pick up a little interference. The max SPL on the mic is -38dB and the impedance is around 2.2k Ohms. Again, those numbers are all in the pretty standard range.

Let’s go over the rest of the specs of the headset, although you won’t find anything really out of the ordinary. The frequency response on the speakers are 20Hz to 20kHz. The driver impedance is a standard 32 Ohms and the max SPL at 1kHz is 85dB. That 85dB isn’t quite as high as some other gaming headsets, but it should do the trick. I’d like to see up to around 115dB, but a little distortion that loud shouldn’t be too noticeable.

The Ozone Rage ST Gaming headset weighs a svelte 300grams. That makes it one of the lightest headsets I’ve tested. That fact alone outweighs some of the downsides of the headset, no pun intended. I can’t stead headsets that feel heavy. After a short time, they start to get uncomfortable. With the Rage ST, I can wear the headset for hours at a time without discomfort.

The final note I’d like to make about the Ozone Rage ST is about the cable length. It is 2.5m long, which is typically plenty, and pretty average, but not quite enough for me. Even headsets with a 3m cable seem a little too short for me. I like long cables on my headset. I don’t typically just sit in one spot when I use them, I’m often moving around and I want to have that freedom. With the Ozone Rage ST, I have to use an extension cable.

Testing a Gaming Headset like the Ozone Rage ST is always difficult because the results are extremely subjective. Just because the headset is comfortable and sounds good to me, doesn’t mean the same is true of everyone else. With that in mind, I assembled a group of friends and a group of headsets. We used a scale of 1 to 5 and rated the headsets in the categories of comfort, noise isolation, overall sound quality, and surround sound quality.

• CM Storm Pulse-R Aluminum Gaming Headset – $89.99
• ASTRO Gaming A40 Audio System – $199.99
• Logitech G930 Wireless Gaming Headset with 7.1 Surround – $99.99
• OZONE Gaming Rage ST Advanced On-Line Gaming Headset – $39.99
• JVC Black Series HA-S650 On-Ear Headphones – $69.99
• Roccat Kave XTD 5.1 Analog Gaming Headset – $119.99

The first area we rated the headsets in was comfort. This is a much more critical area than you might think at first. The comfort of a gaming headset is critical, and not just the immediate comfort level. I put on a lot of headsets that seem comfortable at first. After an hour or so of constant wear, however, heavier headsets, or ones that don’t fit perfectly, start to hurt. The very light Rage ST score pretty highly in the comfort category.

When I’m focused on a game, or even a movie or music, that’s what I want to hear. If I put on a headset, it’s because I don’t want to listen to everything that’s going on around me. Some gaming headsets come with active noise cancellation. That’s great, but they also tend to be a little more pricey. A lot of gaming headsets are relying now on materials and other technology to create noise isolation. That helps keep the game in and the room out. Check out the chart to see how the Ozone Rage ST held up in the noise isolation category.

In the games we play, stuff is happening all around us. This is especially true in first person shooter games, but certainly present in many genres. The problem is, a lot of headsets rely on only two speakers to give us that surround sound experience. With simulated surround technology, many two-driver headsets do a great job providing an immersive experience. I, however, definitely prefer headsets with multiple drivers in each earcup. The Ozone Rage ST doesn’t provide hardware surround, so the surround sound is all simulated. Because of that, the Rage ST scores the lowest, tied with the Pulse R.

Finally, a good gaming headset has to be versatile. Believe it or not, there are some occasions when I am not gaming. While I am writing this review, for example. At such times, I am often listening to music or other audio. I’m not going to change out my headset for that, so my gaming headset needs to have a good overall sound quality in addition to its surround quality. Some single-driver headsets might fare better in this category because the emphasis is on producing high quality sound. The chart shows how we rated the Ozone Rage ST in overall sound quality.

That does it for the tests. While most of us generally agreed on which headsets were better in each category, the numbers were anything but identical. What you see in the charts is an average of our ratings, which occasionally varied widely. That just goes to show you how subjective rating a headset can be. Your best bet is to find someplace that will let you try on the headset and listen to it so you can decide for yourself.

IMPORTANT: Although the rating and final score mentioned in this conclusion are made to be as objective as possible, please be advised that every author perceives these factors differently at various points in time. While we each do our best to ensure that all aspects of the product are considered, there are often times unforeseen market conditions and manufacturer changes which occur after publication that could render our rating obsolete. Please do not base any purchase solely on our conclusion as it represents our product rating specifically for the product tested, which may differ from future versions of the same product. Benchmark Reviews begins our conclusion with a short summary for each of the areas that we rate.

Compared to the other headsets in our test set, the Ozone Rage ST performed rather poorly. The sound and surround quality scores were the lowest of the bunch. The noise isolation scores were second to last. In the other categories, the Ozone Rage ST performed well enough, but didn’t top the charts. Of course, the Ozone Rage ST is also the least expensive of all the headsets tested, but we’ll cover that later.

The Ozone Rage ST is a very good looking headset. From simply looking at the devices, you probably couldn’t tell which ones were the most expensive. That deserves good marks in my book. The only thing that detracts somewhat from the appearance of the Ozone Rage ST is actually the same thing that makes them so comfortable; the cloth earcups and headband.

The construction quality of the Ozone Rage ST is very high. I’ve worn this headset exclusively for the last few weeks and it has held up well to the abuse I’ve put it through. The band is sturdy and stable. The earcups are comfortable, yet strong. The plastic around the ears is durable as well. Overall, the Ozone Rage ST is well built.

As for performing its function as a gaming headset, the Ozone Rage ST does very well. As I said, I’ve used the headset exclusively for the past few weeks. I mostly like the comfort. They are supremely comfortable. That being said, the abysmal noise cancellation and low end, synthetic surround do make me occasionally yearn for a better headset.

The comfort of the Ozone Rage ST alone justifies the $39.99 (Amazon) price tag. While many things are lacking on the Ozone Rage ST, one thing is clear; it is definitely worth the price. If you can’t afford a headset with multiple drivers in each ear, the Ozone Rage ST is an excellent choice for something less expensive.

Pros:
+ Supremely Comfortable
+ Good Sound Quality
+ Great Price

– Horrible Noise Isolation
– No Hardware Surround
– Cord is too short for my liking

• Performance: 7.50
• Appearance: 9.00
• Construction: 8.50
• Functionality: 7.00
• Value: 9.50

COMMENT QUESTION: What do you look for in a gaming headset?