Razer Barracuda HP-1

Examination:

For the Barracuda HP-1 being Razer's first attempt at designing gaming headphones, we were quite impressed by the quality of the design. Not only was the design good, but the manufacturing felt and appeared to be top-notch. The headphone cups are very well padded, and even after wearing them for extended periods of time, they continued to feel comfortable. On the exterior of the headphones cups is Razer's logo, which when powered up glows blue for a very nice accent. Attached to the left headphone cup is the detachable microphone. The microphone interfaces with the bottom of the headphone cup, and when not in use it can be easily detached. The microphone is relatively small though had surprisingly good audio quality. While we do prefer an attached microphone compared to a lapel design, due to the size of the microphone on the Barracuda HP-1 we are a bit concerned about the possibility of it being lost.

Like the headphone cups, the band that conforms to the size of the head is also well padded. The structure of this part of the headphone was relatively reminisces of the Icemat Siberia headphones. The headphones are completely black, except for the few areas that glow when powered up. The frequency response is 1.50Hz to 20,000Hz and the total RMS power rating is 330 mWatts.

The cable length for the HP-1 is two meters. Looking at the cable interface, the connection almost looks like a DVI interface. However, this is actually Razer's HD-DAI. The HD-DAI is for High Definition-Dedicated Audio Interface, which is found on Razer's sound cards. As of writing their Barracuda AC-1 has yet to be released and permitting the success of that audio module, we will likely see additional audio adapters come out in the future. We will comment more on the Razer Barracuda AC-1 later on in this article. For those not having a Razer sound card with an HD-DAI connection, an adapter is included for traditional audio needs. This adapter offers a USB port as well as three standard audio input jacks and one output for the microphone. The USB port is used for powering the subwoofers as well as the glowing effect on the headphones. We very much like this design as opposed to the models that rely upon batteries for operation. Also on the audio cable is the control area for the Barracuda HP-1. This control area features individual volume adjustments for each of the channels, and like the headphone cups, has a glowing Razer logo. The channels include front, rear, center, and bass (as well as a master volume control). The control box also has a clip for attaching to clothing.