RUNMUS RGB K1 Gaming Headset Headphones Review

The RUNMUS K1 have a bulky, gamer-centric design. They look cheap, even more so than other headsets in the same price range like the Corsair HS35. Many of the style choices, from the fake vents on the ear cups and the spoilers on the headband, to the inconsistent RGB lighting, are questionable at best. On the upside, the plastic has a semi-matte finish which is nice since it doesn't collect fingerprints.

While the RUNMUS Gaming Headset aren't necessarily uncomfortable headphones, they're not comfortable either. They're quite lightweight and distribute pressure reasonably well, so they shouldn't cause much pain or fatigue even during longer gaming sessions. However, they have a very loose fit that tends to create large gaps around the ear cups, which is rather noticeable once they're on your head. Their awkward fit combined with the very cheap padding used along the headband and ear cups makes them less than ideal if you're looking for a comfortable gaming headset.

The RUNMUS RGB K1 Gaming Headset are headphones with disappointing controls. There's only a mic-mute slider and volume wheel, which makes them pretty easy to use, but the volume wheel sits flush against the in-line remote which makes it easy to miss. There's also no channel mixing, which is disappointing for multiplayer gaming.

The RUNMUS RGB K1 are fairly breathable headphones, likely due to the gap left around the ear cups when wearing them. You won't want to wear these while working out since they'll still make you sweat a fair bit, but they shouldn't get unbearably warm while gaming.

Note that we had to modify our testing procedure a bit to get adequate measurements - they wouldn't fit our breathability rig properly so we had to strap them down with bungee cords to get them to fit more like they do in real life.

Like most gaming headphones, the RUNMUS K1 RGB aren't very portable. They're very bulky and will take up quite a bit of space on your desk. Their microphone isn't detachable, but it can swivel upwards to be less in the way. The frame doesn't fold up, though - this shouldn't be an issue if you're just gaming at home, but can be frustrating if you need to carry them to an event.

These headphones don't come with a case.

The RUNMUS Gaming Headset are headphones with a sub-par build quality. They're made almost entirely of very cheap-feeling plastic, the stitching around the ear cups is noticeably uneven, and the malleable boom mic doesn't hold its position well. That said, they don't seem particularly fragile, though - they still feel capable of handling a fair bit of use, especially thanks to their braided cable that should help with durability.

The RUNMUS RGB K1 have poor stability. All it takes is a light shake of the head for them to start sliding off. This shouldn't cause too many problems during a casual gaming session, but if things start getting heated and you move your head around a bit, you'll likely find yourself having to readjust them often.

• RUNMUS RGB K1 headset
• Y-splitter
• USB extension
• Manual

Th RUNMUS Gaming Headset are headphones with a dark sound profile. It delivers more punch than rumble, to the point that it can sound muddy. Most speech and vocals should be fairly clear, but its treble is veiled, which reduces detail and clarity in the overall sound.

Note, however, that these headphones reproduce audio very inconsistently across different users, so you may experience a completely different sound profile than what we measured here.

The RUNMUS K1 have poor frequency response consistency. There's a very significant amount of variation in the bass range, so two different people may experience completely different results depending on how the headphones fit. You might notice less or more bass than we measured, and you'll likely find the treble response to change as the headphones shift around on your head too, which can be especially annoying while gaming.

These headphones have mediocre bass accuracy. They lack low-bass, so they're weak on thump and rumble, but their mid and high-bass response is overemphasized which makes their overall bass sound boomy.

However, it's worth noting that their bass delivery varies quite a bit across users, and is sensitive to the quality of fit, seal, and whether you wear glasses. This represents the average bass response and your experience may vary.

The RUNMUS RGB K1 have great mid accuracy. Their mid-range is fairly even, which helps with clear reproduction of speech, as well as lead vocals and instruments. Unfortunately, the high-mids are quite underemphasized, which weakens vocals and instruments and makes them sound more distant.

The RUNMUS K1 have terrible treble accuracy. The entire range is significantly underemphasized, which reduces detail and clarity in the overall sound. However, their treble response varies noticeably depending on how the headphones are positioned, so your experience may vary.

The RUNMUS Gaming Headset are headphones that have many pronounced peaks and dips that negatively impact their audio quality. The audible bump between mid-bass to low-mid brings extra punch to their sound but also makes them sound boomy. The profound dip in low-treble reduces clarity and detail, giving these headphones an overall dark, veiled sound.

These headphones have great imaging. The weighted group delay is just within good limits, with the GD graph showing that nearly the entire group delay response, save for a little bit in mid-bass, is below the audibility threshold, ensuring mostly tight bass and transparent treble reproduction. The L/R drivers of our unit were also quite well-matched, which is important for the accurate localization and placement of objects (voices, instruments, video game effects) in the stereo image. However, these results are only valid for our unit, and yours may perform differently.

The RUNMUS Gaming Headset are headphones with a decent soundstage. They have a relatively large soundstage that feels pulled outside the listener's head, but perhaps to the point of it feeling unnatural. Also, since they're closed-back headphones, they won't sound quite as spacious or immersive as open-back headphones like the Astro A40 TR Headset + MixAmp Pro 2019.

The RUNMUS RGB K1 are advertised as having 7.1 surround sound, but even with their USB dongle there didn't seem to be any soundstage virtualization happening, which is disappointing.

The RUNMUS Gaming Headset are headphones with decent weighted harmonic distortion performance. There's a bump in low-bass, which can make these frequencies sound a bit harsh and impure at higher volumes, but shouldn't be too noticeable overall.

These headphones' results are only valid for these test settings.

Like most gaming headphones, the RUNMUS RGB K1 have bad noise isolation. They don't isolate any noise in the bass range, so you'll find they let in lots of rumbling if you wear them on the bus. They're also not very effective at blocking out speech in the mid-range either. They do alright at isolating noises in the treble range though, like 'S' or 'T' sounds (sibilances) or the sounds made by an A/C unit.

The RUNMUS RGB K1 leak quite a bit of sound, but not quite as bad as other gaming headphones we've tested. Their leakage covers a broad range so it will sound quite full, but it's not too loud. It'll be audible to people right beside you but shouldn't be an issue to others in neighboring rooms.

These headphones have a boom microphone that isn't detachable but can swivel to different positions.

The RUNMUS K1 RGB Gaming Headset are headphones with a boom microphone that has an excellent recording quality. Speech recorded or transmitted with this mic sounds not only very clear and easy to understand but also surprisingly detailed and full-bodied. It's only lacking a little bit of airiness to sound even better, but still results in a very natural voice.

Noise handling is acceptable but surprisingly worse than most wired gaming headsets we've tested. The boom mic can separate speech from noise in moderately noisy environments but will struggle in loud situations. You shouldn't have an issue if you're just gaming at home, though.

These headphones feature RGB lighting that you power via the provided USB connection, so they don't need a battery. Note that they only play audio passively - the USB connection doesn't provide any audio, only RGB lighting.

The RUNMUS Gaming Headset are headphones that don't have a companion app. For wired gaming headphones with a great support software, check out the Logitech G Pro X.

These wired headphones don't support Bluetooth. If you want a wired gaming headset that does, check out the HyperX Cloud Mix or the SteelSeries Arctis 3 2019 Edition Wireless.

The RUNMUS Gaming Headset are headphones that don't have a non-Bluetooth connection. Check out our best wireless gaming headsets if you'd like something with non-Bluetooth wireless support.

These wired gaming headphones come with lots of cable options. They provide audio via their 1/8" TRRS connection and come with a Y-splitter too. The USB connection is only to power the RGB lighting - an extension cable is provided, which is nice.

These headphones use a standard 1/8" TRRS connector, so you can plug them directly into your PS4 controller or into the headphone port on your PC for audio and microphone compatibility. A Y-splitter is included too for compatibility with more desktop PC setups.

You can plug these headphones directly into your Xbox One controller for audio and microphone compatibility thanks to their standard 1/8" TRRS connector. Depending on your generation of controller, though, you may need an additional adapter.

These headphones don't come with a base or dock.