Asus ROG Delta S Review
The Asus ROG Delta S has the complete package. Creates a
nuanced and clear sound. Its triangular RGB-lit cans have a unique look that
makes a strong impression. It is light on the head so it is easy to wear. The
new premium headset from Asus even has a few extra features such as rendering
support that allows you to take full advantage of special MQA music files.
Despite a few clunky little details, the Delta S packs in all the essential
aspects of an advanced PC gaming headset.
Asus ROG Delta S - design and features
The Asus ROG Delta S takes some significant technical
improvements, but the headphone design is largely a holdover from the original
ROG Delta headset released in 2019. With vaguely triangular
"D"-shaped earcups lined with RGB stripes and logos. , its bright and
eye-catching appearance has great power. Even with the lights off, the design
of the Delta S looks like a statement piece that needs to stand out.
The Delta S is mainly equipped with black plastic hardware
with a plastic and steel frame. The top band is covered in black faux leather
with the full "Republic of Gamers" name printed on the top and padded
with memory foam. The forks connect to the swivel bases on the top band,
allowing the jars to lie flat on the chest (or on the table). At 294 grams, it
feels light on your head and the padding keeps you from feeling the weight on
top of your head. Similarly, the top band grips smoothly, so you rarely feel
the cup padding press against you. Despite this, the headphones create a good
seal, providing solid passive noise isolation while minimizing but not
completely eliminating ambient noise.
In banks, the Delta S keeps onboard controls to a minimum.
On the left bank, you have a switch to turn the RGB lighting on, off, or switch
to "sound wave" lighting mode, which theoretically glows brighter
when you speak into the microphone. There's also a switch that you can turn the
volume up and down, or press to mute the microphone. At the bottom of the
triangle is an audio port for connecting a detachable boom microphone.
In cans, the Delta S features 50mm neodymium drivers and an
upgraded version of Delta's quad-channel DAC. The ESS 9281 transducer uses four
separate chips to independently process four different tonal ranges: low, mid,
high, and ultra high. Theoretically, this allows certified Hi-Res headphones to
reproduce clearer and more distinctive sound throughout the entire frequency
range.
The Delta S is also the first gaming headset in a small set
of audio hardware that supports the rendering of high-quality MQA-encoded audio
files. "Master Quality Authenticated" or MQA files are an audio file
format that can transfer "studio quality" music. Pairing the
headphones with MQA files, like Tidal's "Master" streaming tracks,
which you can access with a $19.99 HiFi tier subscription, offers another level
of audio. Smoother, crisper and more balanced MQA-enabled versions of songs
sound noticeably different than their standard broadcast counterparts.
The question is, how willing are you to reconfigure your
listening mode for better music?
If you rely primarily
on music streaming services, you will need to use the Delta S with a PC or
Android phone, and possibly switch to Tidal and/or a few more dedicated music
streaming services for MQA tracks. Considering everything audiophiles do to
ensure the best sound (spending thousands of dollars on special equipment,
downloading lossless files, etc.), this is a fairly easy way to test the
difference between good and bad audio equipment. . However, for many users,
this is still a big question, and therefore a relatively specific update for
curious PC gamers.
The detachable unidirectional boom mic looks and feels
generic, but it will fool you. It has several great and improved features that
deliver loud and clear voice quality, including a larger driver (6mm vs. 4mm
for the Delta) and active noise cancellation to keep ambient noise from
disturbing your chat. However, the physical design of the microphone leaves
much to be desired. Its short, flexible shaft is covered in thick plastic that
flexes easily, but is hard to flex exactly at the perfect grip point. The
microphone also came out of jack d