Gaming hardware legend Cooler Master makes some fantastic peripherals, from PC components and keyboards to chairs, but alas, the Cooler Master CH351 headset falls short.
Don’t get me wrong: the CH351 gets a lot of things right. It’s fitted with 50mm drivers that deliver powerful sound and its spatial audio creates immersive soundscapes.
But all of this works best when using the headset with the included aux cable, which is disappointing for a wireless gaming headset. It’s also not very comfortable, and there’s no app for customization.
If you’re okay with using it plugged in, the CH351 could be the best wireless gaming headset for you. If not, it’s worth considering alternatives. For the complete breakdown, read my full Cooler Master CH351 review.
Cooler Master CH351 review: Cheat sheet
- What is it? A wireless gaming headset from gaming giant Cooler Master
- Who is it for? For console and PC gamers on a budget
- How much does it cost? The Cooler Master CH351 is available for $89
- What do we like? The fantastic spatial audio, performance over a wired connection, clear mic and fun colorways
- What don’t we like? The static over a wireless connection, the uncomfortable design, cluttered control scheme and lack of an app for customization
Cooler Master CH351 review: Specs
|
Specs |
Cooler Master CH351 |
|---|---|
|
Price |
$89 |
|
Colors |
Black, Macaron (pink and teal) |
|
Platforms |
PS5, PS4, Nintendo Switch, Windows, macOS, iOS and Android smartphones |
|
Connectivity |
Bluetooth 5.4, 2.4GHz USB-C dongle |
|
Battery |
Rechargeable |
|
Battery life (rated) |
Up to 30 hours |
|
Frequency response |
20-20,000Hz |
|
Drivers |
50mm |
|
Paired devices max |
3 |
|
Multipoint connectivity |
Yes |
|
Microphone |
Unidirectional, detachable |
|
Weight |
14.24oz |
Cooler Master CH351 review: The ups
When used over a wired connection, the Cooler Master CH351 creates immersive soundscapes with its 50mm drivers and spatial audio, and its detachable mic transmits clear audio.
Pass me the aux
The Cooler Master CH351 is a wireless gaming headset — it’s described as such on the product page. You get a 2.4GHz dongle and Bluetooth for wireless connectivity, but you also get a 3.5mm aux cable for wired connectivity. And let me tell you: this headset would have gone down better with me had the “wireless” moniker not existed.
Wireless connectivity doesn’t work as intended, which I’ll discuss in the cons section later. Over a wired connection, though, the CH351 works really well. I used it with my PS5 Slim, so I had to plug it into my DualSense controller, but the connection was seamless.
The CH351 is fitted with 50mm drivers with a frequency response range of 20Hz-20KHz, so you’ll be able to hear idle chatter in the distance and loud explosions and bangs just as clearly. The headset also features spatial audio, and priced at just $89, you’re getting big sound for less money.
Games sound great even without spatial audio enabled, but where’s the fun in that? Let’s talk about it.
Like you’re in the game
Pushing a button located on the Cooler Master CH351’s left earcup lets you enable or disable spatial audio, and it’s best to leave it on because of how much it enhances the gaming experience. To test the CH351’s capabilities, I played Assassin’s Creed Shadows (AC Shadows), Baldur’s Gate 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 on my PS5 Slim.
I noticed the difference between having spatial audio enabled and disabled the most in AC Shadows. With it off, the game sounds good (albeit flat and one-dimensional) but having it on makes the game sound fantastic. I loved hearing the wind blowing as though I, myself, was standing in its way. I could also hear the wind running through blades of grass, and crickets and birds chirping in the distance.
It’s a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment and I only really noticed it when playing AC Shadows with the CH351. When riding my horse, I could clearly hear the reins slapping against my horse’s neck — now that’s neat. Credit to the game’s sound design, of course, but also to the CH351’s ability to reproduce these sounds that you can’t normally hear over your TV’s speakers.
When I play Cyberpunk 2077 and infiltrate a gang’s hideout by going full-stealth mode, I like to listen to footsteps to determine enemy positions. The CH351 made this a walk in the park, as I could gauge which footsteps were the closest to and farthest from me.
Credit to the game’s sound design, of course, but also to the CH351’s ability to reproduce these sounds that you can’t normally hear over your TV’s speakers.
This works really well in the likes of Counter-Strike 2 as well, which I played a couple of rounds of on a Windows 11 laptop to test a keyboard, so anyone who plays FPS titles competitively will highly appreciate this feature.
I also really like that unlike the pricier Sony PlayStation Pulse Elite ($149), the CH351 doesn’t make dialogues sound like they’re echoing or hollow. The wide soundstage and the big drivers help the headset produce nearly every sound accurately.
Loud and clear
The Cooler Master CH351 comes with a detachable mic that can be plugged into the headset when you’re playing online or streaming. The mic works really well. It’s unidirectional, which, as opposed to omnidirectional mics, picks audio up from a single direction only.
This means that even if there are any sounds around you, the mic won’t pick them up. That’s great if you live in a busy household. And it sounds loud and clear, as you can hear in the clip above. I was standing next to a boiling kettle when I recorded the clip and you can’t hear it at all.
So girly pop, so emo
The Cooler Master CH351 comes in two colorways: all-black or macaron. So regardless of whether you consider yourself an emo kid (like I do) or you love popping colors, Cooler Master has you covered.
The macaron colorway is a combination of teal and pink that — and I rarely say this as someone who usually dresses in black — looks really lovely. It would pair exceptionally well with the Cooler Master MK770 ($119) keyboard. The headset is also made of high-quality plastic, which feels soft to the touch and has a premium finish, too.
Cooler Master CH351 review: The downs
The Cooler Master CH351 is massively let down by its wireless connectivity issues, uncomfortable design, no app for customization and cluttered control scheme.
Buzzin’ about
What does a wireless gaming headset need to be considered as a fantastic peripheral? Yes, outstanding sound quality, but also seamless wireless connectivity — and the Cooler Master CH351 unfortunately lacks the latter.
Regardless of whether there was any media playing, I kept hearing a static buzzing noise. At first, I thought it was similar to the Turtle Beach Stealth 500 ($79), which would emit the same noise when there wasn’t any media playing — but it’s worse. I found this annoying noise overbearing and I could hear it even over in-game music, which completely ruined my experience.
Luckily, I had another test unit in the office so I switched to that one to check whether it was an isolated issue with my first unit, but I was sorely disappointed. This issue happened on our second headset, too, leading me to believe this is a design flaw. The problem doesn’t persist over a wired connection though, which is good, but that defeats the whole purpose of the CH351 being a wireless headset.
We haven’t seen this with other budget headsets we’ve tested. I’d recommend the Turtle Beach Stealth 600 ($99) if you want a headset for Windows, macOS, Nintendo Switch, Xbox or PlayStation. If you want one just for your family of Sony consoles, you won’t go wrong with the Sony PlayStation Pulse 3D ($99).
No presets for you
If, like me, you enjoy tinkering with a headset’s equalizer, I’ve got bad news for you: the Cooler Master CH351 doesn’t have a companion app that allows you to do this. While the Cherry XTRFY H3 ($129) doesn’t come with an app either, and I did criticize it for that, it has a button that lets you swap between Music, Movie and Game modes. Alas, the CH351 doesn’t have this either.
All Turtle Beach headsets are accompanied by an Android and iOS app for customization, so it might be worth considering other options if you like tailoring the sound to your personal preference.
Too many buttons
You know what they say: too many buttons spoil the headset. Or something along those lines. The Cooler Master CH351 has a lot of physical controls and all of them are pooled together on the left earcup. The right earcup is barren — barring the USB-C port — while the left earcup houses four buttons.
The power button is basically a rocker switch with a protruding bit, so it doubles as a mode switch button. Pressing and pushing it down lets you swap between three devices connected over Bluetooth and 2.4GHz. Next to this is the microphone button which can be used to toggle between mute, unmute and sidetone.
Then there’s a spatial audio button, which, when depressed, toggles 3D sound. And of course, you’ve also got the volume control wheel here.
On top of all of that, the left earcup also has a 3.5mm audio jack to plug in the included aux cable for wired connectivity, and a port for the detachable mic. There’s a lot going on here, as you can see, and it took me a long time to get used to the controls.
I kept hitting the power button when I wanted to enable spatial audio — and I’m a quick learner so imagine my frustration. The buttons didn’t always register my commands either so I had to keep referring back to the manual to figure out what I was doing wrong.
Uncomfortable
To add insult to injury, the Cooler Master CH351 isn’t the most comfortable headset. It’s heavier than most other headsets I’ve tested, weighing 14.24oz. For context, the Cherry XTRFY H3 weighs 11.46oz, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5 ($129) weighs 9.3oz, and the Turtle Beach Stealth Gen 6 weighs 11.28oz.
Now, all of these numbers might not look like they’re vastly different but they make a big difference during use. After having worn the CH351 for an hour, I could feel it pressing down on the top of my head which wasn’t a nice sensation. While its protein leather earcups are comfy, there isn’t enough padding around the headband for it to not put pressure on your head.
Cooler Master CH351 review: Verdict
If the Cooler Master CH351 dropped the “wireless” moniker and functionality, I’d have loved it. After all, its 50mm drivers and spatial audio combined make you feel like you’re actually in the game, and you can hear footsteps loud and clear. Speaking of, its unidirectional mic works really well, and it’s detachable for easy transport.
But all of this is undermined by the headset’s poor wireless performance. I could hear a buzzing noise in both earcups which proved very frustrating. The CH351 is a little on the heavy side too so it isn’t the most comfortable, and it sports a cluttered and confusing control scheme.
Overall, the CH351 is a decent headset that could have been great, but its flaws are so jarring that, even at the low price of $89, I find it difficult to recommend over rivals.
