Audio Performance

I'll split the audio performance analysis into two parts—gaming and music. Even though the headset produces the same sound regardless of what it's being used for, you won't necessarily look for the same things while annihilating your virtual opponents as you will when listening to your favorite tunes.

Gaming

As mentioned in the introduction, the Cooler Master MH752, much like the MH751, is most likely a rebrand of the Takstar Pro 82, but with an added microphone. The Takstar Pro 82 is a set of "regular" headphones, positioned in the studio-monitor category, known and liked for their low price and detailed sound, with good imaging and a wide soundstage. Those are the exact words I'd use to describe the sound of the Cooler Master MH752 too, thus solidifying my assumption that both the MH752 and MH751 are indeed a rebrand of the Takstar Pro 82.

The overall sound signature of the Cooler Master MH752 is quite neutral. No part of the frequency range sounds artificially boosted or annoying to the ears. Not necessarily the most exciting headphones to listen to—the low-end could do with a bit more slam and bite—everything still comes together nicely. They're capable of reproducing a hefty amount of detail in the mid and high range which, when gaming, translates into plenty of information about the whereabouts of your in-game targets. I had a great time using this headset in my PUBG, CoD: Black Ops 4, and Battlefield V sessions, never feeling like someone could sneak up on me without being heard or wondering where I'm getting shot from.

Even though the MH752 doesn't have a massive amount of bass, I can't say I found it lacking in games either, although that doesn't change the fact that some competitors do a better job of shaking your head and increasing your heartrate when you crash your virtual car or a nearby tank fires its front cannon. Having said that, the MH752 generally sounds well-balanced and unusually spacious.

The built-in 40-millimeter dynamic drivers don't distort at higher listening volumes and respond quite nicely to equalization. I'm mentioning this because Windows users can install the official Portal driver and use the built-in system-wide equalizer to thicken the bass of the MH752. We'll come back to that in the software section of this review.

Thanks to the closed-back nature of the ear cups, the Cooler Master MH752 doesn't leak sound in any direction.

Music

The neutral nature of the Cooler Master MH752's sound makes this headset suitable for a wide selection of music genres. Rock, metal, and anything else that's heavily guitar-driven manages to stay clean and crisp; fast drumming won't turn into a sloppy mess, nor will the bass guitar stick out too much. More subtle types of music (think Norah Jones, Leonard Cohen, and such) sound intimate and lovely, which is achieved by pushing the vocals somewhat forward and not letting the high frequencies run loose and become piercing.

The only thing missing is—you guessed it—the bass. Once again, don't get me wrong: The bass is definitely present, and there's enough of it for the Cooler Master MH752 not to sound sterile and dull. It just isn't particularly deep and thick, doesn't have that meatiness and slam that makes everything sound more fun and enjoyable. Good news is that this issue is fixable by playing around in the system-wide equalizer included within the Portal software. This headset responds extremely well to equalization and high volumes with no distortions or related anomalies.

Virtual Surround Sound

Cooler Master doesn't specify which virtual surround sound technology is being used on the MH752. Either way, the 7.1 surround sound is activated in the Portal software driver or by pressing the appropriate button on the in-line remote control. In an attempt to verify their official claims that it greatly helps with spatial positioning, I tested the surround sound extensively in multiplayer first person shooters, including Battlefield V, which is pretty much the best-case scenario for any surround sound system as DICE's game is known for its superb sound design.

Unfortunately, the effect feels gimmicky. It absolutely didn't help me pick up my targets more readily. If anything, most of the time, I ended up confused as the sound seemed to move around my head in an unnatural way. For example, I heard an enemy tank "behind my ears", turned around, and died instantly because it was actually slightly in front of me and to the left. At a different time, I was certain a tank was waiting for me behind a wooden fence, threw my dynamite charges and detonated, hitting nothing and exposing my soon to be dead body. The tank was in fact about 10 meters away from the fence, which I would have easily figured out had I used regular stereo instead of the virtual surround sound.

It can be somewhat immersive in slower, atmospheric games, those that don't rely on quick target detection, as the sound doesn't significantly distort or become tinny when the surround sound is activated. Just don't count on it helping with your K/D ratio. Stereo mode does a much better job at that on the Cooler Master MH752.