Page 2 - A Closer Look - Hardware and Software
The GAMDIAS Hephaestus Almighty only comes in one color scheme, which is grey and white. The logo on the side lights up yellow, and there is an elongated half circle red LED on each side. If you like to have everything in your setup to have a specific color scheme, it would be a bit more challenging doing so with this color combination. The headset is really big and bulky, and the exterior is a little different than the usual circular or oval design. On each side is what I like to call vents, pointing forward, which gives the headset a more directional look, like it wants to move forward. However, the earcups are oval shaped, which I prefer, because our ears are not circular, and so an oval design is more comfortable while giving a better seal. The outside is made out of plastic, and it makes quite a bit of noise when moving the headset around, or when the headband bends. The cable is braided and is 2.5m long. I really appreciate longer cables on my headphones, since it does make it easier to use with my computer with how my setup is organized. There is a rather bulky volume controller on the cable, which is also where you can turn the microphone on or off. There is another feature specific to these headphones, which is the vibration unit that you can turn on or off as well. I will go into more detail later about this later on in this review. At the end of the cable is a gold plated USB connector. I usually prefer analog 3.5mm audio jacks just for the ease of use with other devices, but since this is a gaming headset, there really is not any other specific use.
From the above picture, it is easier to see the "vents" at the front end of the earcups, and how they are pointing forward. Looking into the vents, you can actually see there is an aluminum heatsink inside to provide better cooling for your ears during prolonged periods of use. Unfortunately, adding a heatsink to headphones increases its weight, making it very important for the headset to be comfortable. The earcups have quite a bit of padding, and thanks to the oval shape, it provides a good seal, even though the fit will vary from user to user depending on the size of their ears. The padding is also covered with leather, as well as most of the headband. At first, putting on the headset is a very good experience, and I think GAMDIAS did a good job ensuring comfort. However, due to the added weight and the size of these headphones, they start to feel uncomfortable after prolonged use. Within the earcups sits the 40mm driver, with a frequency range of 20Hz to 25 kHz and a rated impedance of 32 ohms.
There is quite a bit of flex to the headband arms. All of the grey areas do have plenty of foam to ensure that the headset sits comfortably on your head. On each side are notches to adjust the span, and it can get quite a bit wider to fit bigger heads. It was actually pretty hard to adjust the span of the headset; I could not properly adjust the Hephaestus while it was on my head. I had to remove the headset from my head and use a bit more force than I expected. This is good for the headset to not just easily shift between sizes, but it makes it really hard to adjust it to a specific setting, because I would frequently pull too hard and overshoot the notch I preferred. On the sides is a thin thread for the leather, while on top of the headband is the GAMDIAS branding.
The microphone sits on a boom on the left side, which just moves into place. It does offer some flexibility, because the gray area can be bent either further away or closer, but for myself, it sat in the perfect position at the corner of my mouth a short distance away. According to GAMDIAS, this is a noise canceling microphone, and there are some voice changing options if you use the software. On the controller attached to the cable is a button to turn the microphone on or off. I found this to be very useful, but there is an LED on the controller that cannot be switched off. When the microphone is turned off, the LED is red, and when it is on, the LED is flashing blue. This is distracting during gaming, and I would prefer a small LED with just a solid color to indicate whether the microphone is either on or off. The microphone frequency range is 10Hz to 100 KHz.
The software was kind of hard to find. I took more time than I would have wanted to find and install it. It was hard due to the installation booklet instructions do not correspond with the actual software you have to download. The booklet refers you to a broken link, but after discovering the Hera software is for all GAMDIAS products, it made everything a lot simpler. There should be more clarity in the instruction booklet as to where to go for the download. However, after it was installed, it was relatively simple to use. At times, it was hard to use the software and figure out all the features, such as the voice changing options. As far as voice changing options are concerned, there are only four different ones, but they all sound very similar with few small alterations. Overall, there could be changes made to make the software more straightforward, and make the entire installation smoother.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. A Closer Look - Hardware and Software
3. Subjective Audio Analysis
4. Conclusion
