Razer Kraken Ultimate review: This headset is next-level comfortable

As someone who has played games since childhood, I've worn countless gaming headsets over the years. All of them have been comfortable, but after picking up the Turtle Beach Elite Atlas, I didn't think I would ever try something better. But I was wrong.

Enter the Razer Kraken Ultimate, one of Razer's premium headsets that are targeted at PC gamers. The second I put it on for the first time, I was floored by how insanely comfy it is. And when you consider that the crazy comfort comes alongside stellar audio quality, an excellent microphone, and built-in support for THX spatial audio, it's easy to understand why the Razer Kraken Ultimate is one of the best headsets available in 2020. And with Amazon Prime Day just around the corner, there's a good chance you'll be able to get it for a fantastic price.

What you'll love about the Razer Kraken Ultimate

More than anything else, I can't get over how incredibly comfortable the Razer Kraken Ultimate is. Thanks to the headset's spacious earcups, the cooling gel-infused earcup cushions, and the light 390g weight of the device, the Razer Kraken Ultimate is a dream to wear. The headband can be extended by five centimeters on both sides of the headset as well, allowing folks with larger heads to get the perfect fit. Thanks to the headset's aluminum, steel, and plastic construction, it's quite sturdy as well.

On top of how comfortable it is, the Razer Kraken Ultimate has some killer audio quality as well. Sounds in-game are loud, crisp, and clear, and with the headset's built-in THX spatial audio turned on, you can also enjoy the gameplay benefits of a 3D soundscape. There's a volume control wheel on the earcup for easy adjustment, and there's also a button there that allows you to turn spatial audio off if you're listening to something outside of your games, such as music. In general, the Razer Kraken Ultimate is on the bassy side, but it's also fully capable of delivering strong mids and clear highs as well. Additionally, the microphone on the Razer Kraken Ultimate is excellent by gaming headset standards. You won't want to use it for recording videos or anything like that, but for in-game chat, it will transmit your voice loudly and clearly. Out of the box it will also likely pick up your keystrokes and mouse clicks, but you can easily fix this by tweaking the mic sensitivity in Razer Synapse 3. You can also press down on the tip of the mic to mute (and unmute) it — you'll know it works when the red light on the mic lights up.

Thirdly, the Razer Kraken Ultimate comes with some pretty sweet bonus features. Within the Razer Synapse 3 software, you can activate active noise cancellation if you're using the headset in a noisy location, and the standard mic sensitivity adjustments aren't cutting it. Additionally, you can also turn on mic monitoring if you want to be able to hear how loud you're speaking while in-game. Lastly, the earcups sport Razer Chroma RGB lighting. This, too, can be configured in Razer Synapse 3.

Finally, the Razer Kraken Ultimate is quite affordable considering what you get. This is a premium PC gaming headset for just $100, making it an absolute steal. Plus, when Amazon Prime Day rolls around, you'll likely be able to get it for even less.

What you'll love less about Razer Kraken Ultimate

My only issue with the Razer Kraken Ultimate is that it only works with a USB-A connection. This means that you'll need to sacrifice a port you could otherwise use for another peripheral on PC. If you want to use this headset on console, you'll be forced to connect the headset directly to the machine (Also, be aware that spatial audio won't work on Xbox One or PlayStation 4). It's not a huge deal, but it would have been nice to see Razer allow people to use either USB-A or 3.5mm audio.

Should you buy the Razer Kraken Ultimate?

Even though the USB-A restriction isn't ideal, the Razer Kraken Ultimate's superb overall quality makes up for it tenfold (and then some). It's unbelievable how comfortable it is to wear, and that, along with the headset's stellar audio and mic quality, makes it a phenomenal choice for PC gamers. The extra adjustments and RGB lighting don't hurt, either.

If you're a player who uses both PC and console, it may be worth it to opt for the Turtle Beach Elite Atlas instead since it uses a 3.5mm audio jack cable. This allows it to be used with Xbox One or PlayStation 4 controllers. However, if you sit close to your console or you're strictly a PC gamer, the Razer Kraken Ultimate is what I recommend. If you feel it isn't for you, though, make sure you check out our roundup of the top headsets competing for the title of best PC gaming headset.