After a rising demand for the return of the Siberia V2, SteelSeries responded by re-releasing the V2 under the name ‘Siberia 200’. It has updated internals and is available in 7 colours inspired by gaming personalities.
Product on Review: Siberia 200
Manufacturer: SteelSeries
Street Price: UK: £59.99, US: $79.99
After the release of the Siberia V3 headset, making the V2 obsolete, many gamers were unhappy that they could no longer get their hands on the V2. Despite the Siberia V3 being a good headset, the changes were quite drastic. Many gamers started to miss the booming 50mm drivers and the heavy duty build quality, features that worked against the design of the ultra lightweight, super comfortable V3. This caused a huge surge in demand from the community for a return of the V2, considering its proven track record, it would make sense to refresh the Siberia V2, which is arguably the most popular gaming headset ever.
Rather than just updating the internals, they have released the Siberia 200 in 7 colours. Other than black and white it is also available in ‘Forged Red’, ‘Gaia Green’, ‘Proton Yellow’, ‘Sakura Purple’ and ‘Alchemy Gold’ each endorsed by an Ambassador and a background story which can be seen in this link.
Overview by SteelSeries
After discontinuing the Siberia v2, gamers worldwide have demanded its return – we’re excited to announce that those demands have been answered with the Siberia 200. Refreshing and bringing this headset back to market celebrates a headset with a proven track record of success and delivers exactly what gamers really want,” said Ehtisham Rabbani, SteelSeries CEO. “The community played such an integral roll in this headset refresh, which meant the color choices we were going to offer needed to be deeply connected to influential gaming personalities – that’s where our Ambassadors came in. We’re thrilled to be able to bring meaningful color combinations and their stories to gamers.
Technical Specifications
Speaker Drivers
50mm Neodymium
Headphone Frequency Response (Hz): 10-28000
Headphone Sensitivity (dB): 112 dB
Connection
Cable Length (m): 1.8 m
Connector Type: Dual 3.5mm, 3-pole plugs
Adapter: Single 3.5mm, 4-pole plug
Microphone
Microphone Frequency Response (Hz): 50-16000
Microphone Pickup Pattern: Unidirectional (directional)
Microphone Sensitivity (dB): -38 dB
Microphone Impedance (Ohm): 2200 Ohm
In the Box
Siberia 200 Headset
Mobile 4-pole adaptor
Quick Start Guide
50mm Neodymium
Headphone Frequency Response (Hz): 10-28000
Headphone Sensitivity (dB): 112 dB
Connection
Cable Length (m): 1.8 m
Connector Type: Dual 3.5mm, 3-pole plugs
Adapter: Single 3.5mm, 4-pole plug
Microphone
Microphone Frequency Response (Hz): 50-16000
Microphone Pickup Pattern: Unidirectional (directional)
Microphone Sensitivity (dB): -38 dB
Microphone Impedance (Ohm): 2200 Ohm
In the Box
Siberia 200 Headset
Mobile 4-pole adaptor
Quick Start Guide
Packaging & First Look
The packaging keeps in with the latest products seen from SteelSeries, with the viberant burning orange accent on a black/grey background. The large image indicates that we have the white edition.
There is a diagram with a light amount of information at the back, letting the product sell on reputation rather than over cluttering the packaging.
Included in the box is a quick start guide and a 4 pole jack adaptor which improved compatibility with with mobile devices, tablets and notebooks.
The in-line remote returns, lightweight and simple with a volume dial and mute switch.
At the end of the non-tangle cable are two 3.5mm jacks for headphone and microphone.
The Siberia 200 gaming headset.
Closer Look
Coming on top, the SteelSeries branding clearly seen on the headband.
Return of the suspension headband, the Siberia 200 has a lighter and thinner headband than seen on the V2.
From the side, the design is near identical to the V2 Siberia, including use of the same components.
One of the most notable changes is that the earcup has made concessions to make the Siberia 200 more of a ‘semi-open’ headset compared to the previous models, allowing air to breath between the drivers. This should allow a more natural open soundscape compared to closed headset designs.
The earcup size seems to be the same as the Siberia V2 (unfortunately I don’t have a set to hand to do a direct comparison) this is slightly disappointing as I found that, though the padding is soft, the Siberia V2 had earcups that weren’t quite big enough for a true ‘circumaural’ comfort.
Performance Testing
Setup, Design & Observations
The Siberia 200 is an analogue headset which has a hard-lined 1.8m cable which falls to 2x 3.5mm jacks, one for headphones and one for microphone. The cable itself is non tangle, and does away with braiding. Connecting it to your system will be as easy as plugging it into the relevant audio out jacks, or if you wish to use it with your phone or mobile device you can use the included 4 pole adaptor.
The Siberia 200 from memory does feel lighter than what I remember the V2 to feel, though considering some of the changes, its to no surprise. Comfort wise, the Siberia 200 feels good and has a light grip strength that is just enough so it can stay on your head. The soft earpads keeps things nice and cosy, though as suspected the earcup doesn’t quite offer a large enough opening for my ears, causing a slight ear crush (on either the tip or the lobe) no matter what I do. This doesn’t cause a major comfort issue for myself but it may for others. This is one of the most surprising things about the Siberia 200, having removing the listing for the standard V3 model, now only available in the PRISM/USB, it’s safe to assume that the Siberia 200 is likely to be the stable analogue solution from SteelSeries for some time.
The direct refresh seems to have missed an opportunity in regards to actually ‘improving’ upon the V2. The V3 is easily the most comfortable headsets I have experienced, ever. Moving back directly to the V2 model due to demand may make business sense but the regression means we may lose some of the more innovative forward thinking seen in the V3. Not only is the opening offered by the padding a little too small to make the headset truly circum-aural, the padding itself doesn’t appear to be the same plush memory foam as seen in the V3, we could then move on to note lack of a non native 4 pole jack. The in-line remote returns, something that I personally didn’t miss, while the leather headband feels like it is cardboard wrapped in PU leather and some fuzzy material. Though the comfort is good, it raises some longevity questions… (what happened to the solid leather strap?).
The most notable changes, being the additional opening for the headset drivers, which may be a subjective measure at most, as well as including an improved microphone.
Multimedia
Music playback sounds great, featuring that deep creamy bass we have found on the Siberia siblings, the mids are sharp and present while the highs, though a little dipped, are well accounted for. The deep bass and relatively wide soundstage make for some exciting game play, signature of the Siberia series. The wider soundstage may be aided by the redesigned semi-open earcup, though this is a subjective observation as the audio quality, is resoundingly similar to the V2. In CS:GO the audio separation is proved to be excellent, each sound is distinctive and clear, as one would come to expect from a Siberia headset.
Microphone
The microphone quality sounded quite natural though a little quiet, though this could be due to our soundcard, others in conversation said it was great, there was a little static, though the quality of the microphone can be altered by the quality of your audio processor/sound card.
Conclusion
Our experience with the Siberia 200 was highly positive, and is a separate headset from the V2 in its own right. Available in 7 colours and can be had for just £59/$79 will tick the comfort, quality and price boxes. The audio is fantastic offering deep, warm bass and excellent clarity making games an exciting experience while music playback is a pleasure.
There is a lot to discuss and compare between the 200, V2 and V3 which may spark a lot of debate. People like to think that when they purchase something of good quality that it will last a reasonably long time. Considering how dedicated some gamers can be, they may find that if their product is of low quality, it may age rather quickly. This is something that can be observed when using protein or PU leather which can flake away and leave your earcups and/or headband looking tatty and unattractive. The V2 being a tried and tested model was often described by some as a ‘tank’ in regards to how robust it is and was likely one of the primary reasons many wanted the V2 to return. Yet SteelSeries in their quest to improve the comfort of their Siberia headsets seemed to have missed that point. The Siberia 200 is lighter than the V2 but its comfort is about the same as the V2 which renders the weight loss/robustness compromise negligible. This introduces a question about the longevity of the Siberia 200 similar to that faced by the V3.
To really put a perspective on these criticisms you must first realise that the headsets we are comparing, the V2, V3 and 200 are all part of a highly renowned series. This primary similarities are in the impressive audio and comfort, but where things change is in the build quality. The 200 on paper sets out to mash the V2 and V3 together but in principle appears to fall short of what it set out to do. This may lead fans of the V2 to have an attitude that ‘The Siberia 200 is the V2, but ****’, while the attempt to make a V2 headset as comfortable as the V3 simply did not work.
Rounding up the Siberia 200 on its own merits, you get a comfortable, great sounding gaming headset at a very competitive price. There are many good gaming headsets around at this price point but simply by default of being a ‘Siberia’ the 200 is a strong contender for that top spot.
The SteelSeries Siberia 200 is a fantastic gaming headset infused with the Siberia Legacy.
Pros.
+ Lighter than the V2
+ Great gaming audio
+ Comfortable
+ Well Priced
Cons.
– No real improvement
– Not as robust as the V2?
– Not as comfortable as the V3
+ Lighter than the V2
+ Great gaming audio
+ Comfortable
+ Well Priced
Cons.
– No real improvement
– Not as robust as the V2?
– Not as comfortable as the V3
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