Cougar Immersa Gaming Headset Review
Peter Donnell / 8 years ago
A Closer Look
First impressions of the IMMERSA are very good, this is a great looking headset with a unique and stylish design. I did notice one minor flaw, however, where the soft leather is scuffed on the edge of one of the drivers, it’s only minor, but not a great start when opening up a brand new headset. I’m confident this is a one-off thing, and would be easily exchanged for a new one anyway; I blame the courier for kicking the boxes around.
Those huge drivers certainly make a visual impact, with 40mm drivers housed inside massive 100mm ear pads, there’s no doubt that it’ll give you a nice and comfortable around-the-ear fit. The backs of the drivers have mock ventilation, as these are closed back, which will help lock in the noise and tighten up the bass, while also blocking out ambient noise.
There a slick cougar logo on the back of each ear cup, with a little bit of silver trim on the edge of the logo, giving it a nice premium quality look.
The headband is auto adjusting, so it’s easy to get that perfect fit and there’s a good amount of range for all head sizes here too, so younger gamers shouldn’t feel left out. The headband is very flexible but has a good amount of spring to help keep those large drivers firmly over your ears. Don’t worry though, that massive padding helps distribute the weight on the side of your head, so they’re super comfortable even after extended gaming sessions.
The drivers don’t disappoint, offering a big and open sound that works great for gaming. The bass is punchy, and the treble is bright and clear. There’s definitely a lot of the mid-range cut out though, which can leave music and movies feeling a little cold, but when it comes to gaming, they’re well-tailored to the often over-saturated sounds and EQ ranges that games use; this is especially true of modern FPS titles.
This is a gaming headset, though, so the fact that it’s not as nimble for music and movies isn’t a deal breaker, if you want that, then there are plenty of dedicated headphones that would be better suited. However, when it comes to gaming, this headset does a great job of giving the action a “wow” factor, while bringing out the details in enemy footsteps, clear voice chat and anything else that matters when gaming competitively. The thick padding does a wonderful job of keeping the ambient noise you hear to a minimum too, meaning you can focus on your digital battlefield of choice.
The microphone is easy to deploy quickly, just pull it out and bend it to your optimal position. The noise canceling tech works well too, nothing too crazy, but we turned up the TV in the office and the microphone filtered it out nicely, leaving our team chat channel nice and clear for our voice to cut through. Of course, if you do need silence, the quick mute switch on the in-line controller is within easy reach.
The fit of the headset is exceptional, especially for a headset in this price range. It’s pretty secure too, so even wearing it while walking around and listening to music on a mobile device meant that it didn’t want to slip and slide off your head. This is also good if you happen to jump around at your desk while gaming, rage quitters won’t fear this thing falling off when they hang their head in shame.
Durability is excellent, with the headband capable of taking a lot of punishment with confidence. The soft padding of the ear cups, combined with their cloth backing are very comfortable, although if you’re in a warm environment, the soft leather-like material can leave your ears a bit sweaty.
Overall, this is a well-rounded gaming headset, but for those looking for an all-in-one audio solution for movies, gaming, and music, may want to look for more balanced drivers. Of course, the multi-format support is also a perk; handy if you only wanted to buy one headset.