Razer Nari Ultimate Wireless Headphones Review

The Razer Nari Ultimate have a very sleek look that's similar in design to the Razer Man O’ War Wireless but are more premium overall. They have large, circular ear cups with noticeably thick padding and an all-black color scheme with gunmetal accents. The mic is also retractable for a slightly more casual look. Like the Logitech G733 LIGHTSPEED Wireless, they have customizable RGB lighting on the ear cups.

The Razer Nari Ultimate are comfortable headphones for most people. They have large, soft ear cups with lots of thick padding that fit well around the ears. The headband is coated in a more breathable mesh material and has less padding than the ear cups, but it's still comfortable. Although they clamp down quite a bit and start to feel tight and heavy after a while, they should be comfortable enough for long gaming sessions. These headphones feature Razer's HyperSense haptic feedback system, which creates vibrations to immerse you in your games. This may get tiring and uncomfortable during long sessions, though it can be easily turned off.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have disappointing controls, with physical buttons and scroll wheels on each ear cup. The control scheme is easy enough to use once you get the hang of it, but the power and mic muting buttons are very small and a bit challenging to locate at first. The volume and channel mixing dials are easy-to-use and fairly responsive, especially since the channel mixing dial has a notch in the middle to signal when the game and chat audio are at 50/50. There's also a dedicated mic mute button as well as a power on and off button.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have sub-par breathability. They're less breathable than typical closed-back over-ear headphones as they have a tight fit and their thick padding blocks out airflow. As a result, they trap in heat, which can make your ears warm while wearing them for long gaming sessions. Your ears could also sweat more if you're wearing them during physical activity, as they're not designed for this purpose.

The Razer Nari Ultimate aren’t very portable headphones and are designed to leave at home with your gaming setup. They're among the largest headphones we have measured so far, and while their ear cups swivel, they don't come with a carrying case. They also don't support Bluetooth and require their transmitter to be used wirelessly. Luckily, they can be used wired with the included audio cable.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have a good build quality. They feel much better built than the Razer Man O’ War Wireless. They’re mostly made of dense and good quality plastic, with a metal headband frame that feels solid. However, they’re not very flexible, and the joint where the ear cups rotate feels like a potential weak point. They’re also quite heavy and might break if you drop them. The exposed audio cable shouldn’t be a problem but could see some damage over time. Although we don't currently test for it, they lack an IP rating for water resistance, too, which is to be expected from gaming headphones.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have poor stability. They have an auto-adjusting headband that's quite comfortable but doesn’t provide enough stability for the headphones to rest securely on your head as it can readjust itself while you move. The headphones move around a lot when turning or tilting your head, and you may need to stop what you’re doing to readjust them. Consider the Razer Kaira Pro Wireless for Xbox if you're looking for gaming headphones with a more stable fit.

• Razer Nari Ultimate headphones
• Micro-USB to USB-A charging cable
• 1/8" TRRS cable
• USB dongle (inside headset)
• Manuals

The Razer Nari Ultimate Wireless have a sound profile that depends on their fit, seal, and positioning on your head. These variables can all affect the headphones' audio delivery and result in inconsistent bass and treble. Our results are an average of various reseats, so your experience may vary. That said, they have a bass-heavy sound profile that delivers extra punch and boom to your audio, which can help bring out sound effects in your gameplay. If you prefer a different sound, their companion software offers a graphic EQ and presets to help customize their sound to your liking.

The frequency response consistency of the Razer Nari Ultimate is disappointing. They're prone to both inconsistent bass and treble delivery, and their overall frequency response depends on the headphones' fit, seal, and positioning on your head. If you have thick hair or glasses, you may especially notice a drop in bass, as these features can break the ear cups' seal on your head. Once you achieve a good overall fit, you should get a more consistent frequency response each time you use them.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have sub-par bass accuracy. Most of the range is quite over-emphasized, which adds extra thump, punch, and boom to your mixes. It can help emphasize sound effects in your gameplay, but some may find it sounds muddy.

It's worth noting that their bass delivery varies noticeably across users and is sensitive to the quality of the fit, seal, and whether you wear glasses. The response here represents the average bass response, and your experience may vary.

The mid-range accuracy of these headphones is very good. There's some overemphasis extending from the high-bass into the low-mids, which can make the fundamentals of vocals and lead instruments sound muddy. That said, the rest of the range is fairly flat and neutral, so vocals and lead instruments are present, detailed, and clear.

The treble accuracy of the Razer Nari Ultimate is very good. The low-treble is flat and neutral, which results in clear and detailed vocals and lead instruments. However, a dip in the mid-treble dulls sibilants like S and T sounds.

Their treble delivery can vary depending on fit and positioning. The response here represents the average treble response, so your experience may vary.

The peaks and dips performance of the Razer Nari Ultimate are decent. The large peak in high-bass adds extra boom to your mixes, though some may find it sounds muddy. The dip throughout the mid-range weakens and nudges vocals and lead instruments to the back of the mix. A peak in the low-treble sharpens the upper harmonics of vocals and lead instruments while another peak in the mid-treble makes sibilants like cymbals piercing.

The imaging performance of the Razer Nari Ultimate is great. The GD graph shows that the entire group delay response is below the audibility threshold, ensuring a tight bass and a transparent treble. Additionally, the left and right drivers of our unit are well-matched in amplitude, frequency, and phase response. This is important for the accurate localization and placement of objects (voices, instruments, video game effects) in the stereo field. However, it's worth noting that these results are only valid for our unit, and yours may perform differently.

The passive soundstage of the Razer Nari Ultimate is mediocre. It's perceived as large, natural-sounding, and as if coming from speakers placed around you, rather than as if sound is coming from inside your head. However, their closed-back design results in a soundstage that doesn't feel as open or spacious as that created by open-back headphones.

These headphones have a virtual surround feature, though we don't currently test its performance. If you're looking for a pair of Razer headphones with a little more customization in this department, the Razer Kraken Ultimate also have a virtual surround feature, but you can adjust its speaker modeling.

The weighted harmonic distortion of the Razer Nari Ultimate is very good. Although there are some peaks in the treble range when listening at a normal listening volume, it shouldn't be audible to all listeners. All frequencies otherwise fall within good limits, which should result in clear and pure audio reproduction.

These are the settings used to test the Razer Nari Ultimate. Our results are only valid when using the headphones with these settings.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have poor noise isolation performance. They don’t have active noise cancellation (ANC) and don't produce a tight enough seal to isolate at all in the bass range. As a result, they let in all the rumble of airplane and bus engines. They're only passable at reducing background chatter, so they may not be the best option to keep you concentrated in the office, either. On the upside, they do a much better job at reducing high-pitched noise like the hum of an A/C system.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have mediocre leakage performance. The leakage is relatively full-sounding compared to that of in-ears and earbuds. The overall level of the leakage is just above the noise level of most offices, so those right next to you may hear some of your music at louder volumes.

The recording quality of the microphone is alright. When using the mic, your voice is detailed and understandable, though it sounds relatively thin and lacks a bit of airiness and brilliance.

The Razer Nari Ultimate’s boom microphone has great noise handling. Even in noisy environments, your teammates should be able to hear you fairly clearly.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have disappointing battery performance. With haptic feedback set at 50% and RGB lighting on, the headphones last slightly over 5 hours, which is far less than the 8 hours of battery life advertised by Razer. While we expect better performance with the haptic feedback and RGB lighting disabled, battery performance can vary depending on usage, so your real-world experience may be different. That said, they take nearly three hours to charge, which is sub-par, but fortunately, the Nari provide audio while charging. If you're looking for gaming headphones with a better battery performance, you may prefer the ROCCAT Syn Pro Air Wireless.

The Razer Nari Ultimate are compatible with Razer's excellent Synapse software, which offers many customization features. You can adjust the level of haptic feedback, customize the sound of the headphones using the graphic EQ or presets, set the Chroma lighting, and more. The only downside is you need to create an account and register with Razer to use their software.

The Razer Nari Ultimate aren't Bluetooth compatible. If you want a gaming headset with Bluetooth support, check out the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless or the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Wireless.

The Razer Nari Ultimate have excellent non-Bluetooth wireless connectivity. They have very low latency when used with their USB receiver, which makes them a suitable option for gaming and watching movies. You shouldn't notice any issue with audio syncing.

The Razer Nari Ultimate can be used wired with the included 1/8" TRRS audio cable. However, they need to be powered on to work. These headphones also come with a micro-USB to USB-A cable that can be used to charge the headphones.

The Razer Nari Ultimate can be used with Xbox One and Xbox Series X consoles by plugging them directly into your controller with the included 1/8" TRRS cable, which gives you full audio and microphone compatibility.

The Razer Nari Ultimate come with a small USB dongle. It doesn't have any additional inputs and it doesn't charge the headphones. The dongle is compatible with PCs as well as PS4 and PS5 consoles but not the Xbox One or Xbox Series X consoles. If you’re looking for a gaming headset with a charging dock that’s compatible with the Xbox One, check out the Astro A50 Gen 3 Wireless 2017.