Disclaimer: We received review units, courtesy of Armaggeddon Malaysia in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are the author’s own and not influenced by Armaggeddon Malaysia, and/or its affiliates, in any way.
It's been a while since we got our hands on Armaggeddon's audio products and it looks like they've been hard at work pushing out new designs for their lineup. I received the Hornet-7 Pro 3D and Nuke 5 a couple of weeks ago, and since then I've been putting them through the paces and here are my thoughts.
These wireless earbuds are very similar to the Hornet-3 Wireless Earbuds I reviewed last year, and upon first glance, I couldn't tell them apart from each other. However, when it comes to the case, it has a very different look. Where the Hornet-3 had a more subdued look, the Hornet-7 goes all out with the gamer aesthetics. It features an Armaggeddon logo badge and an LED strip around the opening. The lights come into play for checking the battery life remaining for the case (flashing red for under 10%, blue for fully charged). They also light up while the case is being charged through the USB C port in the back. Take note if you do charge it next to your bed at night - the lights are bright and constantly shift colours, with no way to disable them. I found this out the hard way during the first time charging the case.
Functionally, there seems to be no difference - you get the music mode, game mode, and the ability to answer calls and use your voice assistant. The lack of tactile feedback when 'pressing' the earbuds remains - it looks like they are here to stay.
Pairing the Hornet-7 Pro 3D was straightforward and hassle-free. I did experience the buds unpairing themselves occasionally but a simple case reset was enough to fix the issue. I used them with my laptop and smartphone without any problems.
In terms of audio quality, I have no complaints here. The Hornet-7 features a triple driver setup which is a step up over the Hornet-3. When testing it out with music, I found it pretty balanced with subdued mids and lows and highs taking precedence. Since the main purpose of these earbuds is to let you hear your teammates yell at you over voice comms, it makes sense. The issue with the audio clipping from the Hornet-3 is gone.
Comfort-wise - they are the same as the Hornet-3. The earbuds fit snuggly into my ears and remained comfortable even after wearing them for many hours.
Testing the quality of the onboard microphone (raw recordings, no adjustments done):
Quality-wise, there's not much difference between it and its predecessor - considering how it packs the same microphone, it's no surprise. Its noise cancellation is also effective at removing background noise. All in all, it's nothing amazing but definitely good enough for gaming and voice/video calls.
Battery life has been reduced to 28 hours (8 hours earbuds, 20 hours of juice from the case) - less than the Hornet-3 on paper but in practice, I didn't notice the difference. There wasn't a situation where I felt the pinch of not having the extra 4 hours. In fact, I managed to last over a week on a single case charge based on my listening habits. I know it's not the same for everyone but I think most people will be satisfied with the Hornet-7 Pro 3D's battery life.
One thing I realized about using the earbuds in 2021/2022 is that the lack of wires makes them great for use with face masks - no need to worry about any tangling. The Hornet-7 3D Pro has an RM169 price tag, which is pricier than the Hornet-3 but the improved audio experience makes it the better choice of the two if you're trying to decide between them. Shopee Link.
Sitting in the middle of Armaggeddon's PC gaming headset lineup, I found the Nuke 5 a bit harder to review. For context, on my home desktop, I use a Superlux HD668B headset running through a Behringer U-PHORIA UMC22 audio interface. For my voice, I use a Shure 55SH Series II also running through the same interface with a Klark Teknik mic preamp. While my own setup costs much more than just buying a pair of USB-powered headphones, I feel that it is absolutely worth the money especially since I use them for more than just gaming. Regardless, I'll try my best to give an unbiased review.
In terms of setup, the Nuke 5 does a great job here. It pretty much plugs it into your computer and you're good to go. If you have multiple audio devices, make sure you have it selected as your default output/input and adjust the levels accordingly. Most games will just use Windows' default settings for audio.
Comfort-wise, I found them a bit tight for my head. Not sure if my head is too large but I think it would be suited for somebody with a smaller skull. And since I wear thick-framed glasses, the stock earpads pressed them against my face causing a lot of discomfort after an hour. It was hard to keep them on for extended gaming sessions. I've found this to be the case with most stock headsets (I've replaced the earpads on my own headphones with soft memory foam ones) so I wouldn't fault Armaggeddon. However, when I took the headset apart to see if I could replace the earpads, it looks like you'll need to puncture holes in your third party earpads to get them to fit. Seeing how Armaggeddon doesn't sell their own earpads, it's something to take into consideration if you wear thick frames like me. The PU leather also gets pretty warm after a while.
Audio quality was passable. Music sounded pretty flat by default (without changing any software equalizer settings) - highs, mids and lows all blended with each other. I thought it sounded better when listening to instrumental music compared to songs with vocals, with its deficiencies becoming more obvious with the latter (especially with heavier music). Vocals lose depth and sound thin. If you're not picky, it's fine but it's definitely not winning any awards for sound quality.
However, when using it for its intended purpose: listening to teammates over voice chat, it gets the job done. Stay away from this headset if you plan on mixing or mastering music. Surround sound worked well enough but considering how good surround sound is mainly dependent on software these days, it's not much of a selling point.
Like the WASP-7, the microphone is on this headset is great. I was quite surprised at how well it captured my voice during testing even when I wasn't in a quiet environment - the onboard noise cancellation impressed me. My voice came through loud and clear without having to make any adjustments. It's probably the biggest selling point of this headset. Check out the samples below (raw recordings, no adjustments done except for the last one):
One thing to take note of is that the mic will easily get bent out of shape if you frequently move a lot or take your headset off. The fact that the mic is non-retractable means there's no way to hide it if you're not planning to use it. Then again, you wouldn't buy this if you didn't want to use all of its features.
The non-detachable USB cable is braided (a nice touch) and features an inline remote - one dial for the headset volume, and a switch to mute/unmute the mic. Great for when you don't want to fiddle with onscreen or your PC volume controls while gaming.
However, being a USB device means the headset has some limitations. You can't plug it into an external DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) if you want to improve the audio quality of the headset. You're stuck with the headset's onboard DAC. On the plus side, this means that you'll be able to use it with any computer even if it doesn't have a soundcard (though that's pretty rare these days).
To plug it into a tablet or smartphone, you'll need to use a converter or USB hub. I tested it on a Pocophone F1 and it worked flawlessly, but my friend's phone (a Redmi Note 2) couldn't seem to recognize it even though it was powered (the lights were on). Results may vary depending on your device. But because of how bulky the headset is, I wouldn't recommend you pair it with your smartphone anyway, there are more suitable alternatives (like the Hornet-7). I also tested the Nuke 5 on a Mac Book Air (2020) and it worked with no issues.
If you're a fan of RGBs, you might like the design of the Nuke 5 - both sides feature a rotating light pattern that heavily screams 'gamer'. Unfortunately, there's no way to tweak or adjust the lights on the headset - they stay on as long as they are powered. If you're not a fan of bling on your headsets, you might want to skip this one.
Overall, the Nuke 5 is a decent way to spend RM85 if you're looking for an easy to use, bright and flashy, gaming headset with a good microphone. Not recommended if you have a large skull and/or wear thick-framed glasses. If possible, I would recommend saving up a bit more for better, more customizable headphones and a dedicated mic instead. Shopee Link.
Disclaimer: We received review units, courtesy of Armaggeddon Malaysia in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are the author’s own and not influenced by Armaggeddon Malaysia, and/or its affiliates, in any way.
Armaggeddon has decided to enter the wireless headset with two new earbuds in their new Hornet line - the Hornet-1 and Hornet-3. Since I was happy with the WASP-7 when it came to voice communications (it's my go-to headset whenever I need to take calls or meetings on my phone), I jumped at the opportunity to check out these earbuds. Boy, I was in for a surprise.
I'll say it outright - these earbuds aren't great if you're purchasing them to listen to music. While overall they are usable, what bothers me is how music constantly sounds like its clipping. It reminded me of listening to music on an FM radio when you can't find the exact sweet spot of the perfect frequency - the music can be heard clearly, but there's that very slight hint of distortion. Tweaking my equalizer settings helped to reduce it but it's not something I expect most people to do. When your budget earbuds don't play well with default audio settings, it's a point of concern.
This is much less prominent on the Hornet-3, which has a heavier low-end that drowns out the clipping but it is very noticeable on the Hornet-1. The audio quality would be acceptable if the earbuds were priced cheaper, but at RM129 (Hornet-1) and RM179 (Hornet-3) - I expected them to sound better than the notable budget-friendly options out there.
This distortion isn't present when listening to voices, podcasts and in-game chat (but the quality of your teammates' voices are out of your control) so if music isn't a priority to you, the Hornet earbuds are adequate.
Honestly, the microphones on these earbuds performed a lot better than I had expected, but they are nowhere close to the quality of the one on the WASP-7. Though the sound was slightly muffled, Armaggeddon did a good job with the noise suppression/cancellation. My voice sounded clear when I was speaking normally.
Here's an example of what my voice sounded like while using these earbuds:
Hornet-1 (quiet environment)
Hornet-1 (next to a fan)
Hornet-3 (quiet environment)
Hornet-3 (next to a fan)
Perhaps Armaggeddon could include the detachable mic in future versions of their wireless earbuds?
Both earbuds didn't come with custom tips for different ear sizes but they could fit snuggly into my ears. The Hornet-1 felt very light but I was never worried about them falling out of my ears when walking around. No complaints regarding their comfortability.
The Hornet-3 looks like a trimmed version of the WASP-7, which I thought looked pretty cool, but the LEDs were too loud for my taste. I prefer the more subtle look of the Hornet-1.
Though buttonless touch controls look fancy and 'next-gen', they were a pain point of these earbuds. When you can't feel if you've successfully pressed a button and you can't see the lights on the earbuds without a mirror or removing them, adjusting the audio was quite a challenge. The lack of tactility and any visual cues led me to rely on my phone to control my music. The only thing I could do reliably was play/pause the audio and turn them on/off. Adjusting the volume was near impossible - the earbuds kept pausing the music instead.
The Hornet-1 and Hornet-3 feature a 'game mode' (tap the buds four times to enable/disable it) which is said to improve audio latency. As to why it isn't the default mode, game mode reduces the functional range of the earbuds and drains the battery quicker. I played around with the modes and personally, I didn't experience any perceivable differences in latency with it on. I'm sure results will vary for people with other devices (I tested the earbuds with my laptop, a Pocophone F1 and an iPhone 12), but it didn't make a difference to me, so I left it off.
Purely anecdotal but I've had wildly different results trying to connect the earbuds to different devices while testing them. Connecting them to my phones was effortless, I had no issues. Turn the earbuds on, select them in my phone's menu and I was all set - straightforward and fast.
When pairing them with my laptop or desktop it was a whole different story. I had to turn the earbuds on and off and attempt to connect them via the Windows 10 Bluetooth menu many times before I could make a successful connection. Once they were connected they functioned expectedly, even when walking in and out of range causing the connection to drop and pick up again. The problem only came during the setup stage. If you have no plans to use them with a computer, this won't be of any concern.
No complaints here. Both earbuds were good enough to last at least half a day of constant usage before I had to charge them (in their nice and handy cases). The Hornet-1 is said to have 15 hours battery life (5 on the headset and the case able to provide 10 hours) and the Hornet-3, 32 hours (8 + 24). The cases also make use of USB-C which is appreciated in this day and age.
The Hornet-1 and Hornet-3 are a fair debut from Armaggeddon but are a bit tricky for me to recommend. Like their Starship VI gaming chair, these earbuds are considered pricier than what we've come to expect but these come with compromises.
If voice communications and battery life is a priority for you, these earbuds will get the job done. With voices, you won't have to worry about the distortion that's present when listening to songs. However, if you're after a good musical experience, there are much more affordable alternatives out there.
With their first product out of the way, I look forward to seeing Armaggeddon improve future iterations of their wireless earbuds.
The Hornet-1 and Hornet-3 wireless earbuds are available now for RM129 and RM179 respectively, on the official Armaggeddon Shopee store. They're having a promotion on March 16th where you'll get a power bank as a free gift when purchasing the earbuds.
Malaysians love a deal when they see one - gamers included, and Armaggeddon is one of those brands that recognize this. They popped into the scene ten years ago, bringing budget devices to people looking to spice up their gaming rigs, and have been consistently doing so since then. From earphones to keyboards and gaming monitors, the company has been at the forefront of the entry-level market.
To celebrate its tenth birthday, the company announced that it will be having special deals and promotions (up to 65% off!) on a large selection of their products (in conjunction with the upcoming 11/11 sale). Lucky customers will also be in the running to win exclusive Armaggedon merchandise like t-shirts and mugs.
So if you've been looking for an excuse to upgrade your PC gaming setup with swanky new RGB peripherals, check out the official Armaggeddon online store today! Don't forget to read our reviews of the WASP-7 earphones and SMK-6C Mechanical Keyboard to help you make up your mind!
Disclaimer: We received a review unit, courtesy of Armaggeddon Malaysia in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are the author’s own and not influenced by Armaggeddon Malaysia, and/or its affiliates, in any way.
Computer keyboards are quite tricky devices to review. Everybody has different needs and purposes, with no one-size-fits-all keyboard out there. As someone who’s well-versed in the custom mechanical keyboards and uses many different boards on a daily basis, I decided to take up the challenge of writing about the Armaggeddon SMK-6C. I used the keyboard as my home daily driver (it’s too big to travel with), and here are my thoughts after two weeks.
The keyboard is one of the most important pieces of equipment I own - without a keyboard, there would be no way for me to use my computer (for work or play). In this case, it is essential to my daily use, so the layout/form factor and comfort of use are what matters the most to me. Since aesthetics is a matter of personal taste, I won’t spend too much time on that aspect.
The Armaggeddon SMK-6C is a budget-friendly, full-sized keyboard (104 keys) with RGB lighting. The model I reviewed comes with blue Outemu low-profile switches (clicky). It is also hot-swappable if you are interested in swapping the switches or replacing them with other Outemu low-profile switches in the future.
I have no complaints about the build quality of the board. For its budget price tag, I’m surprised at how sturdy it felt. There’s little to no flex on the case itself, and the keyboard is pretty heavy despite its low-profile appearance. The keyboard comes with a fixed USB cable, so no custom cables unless you intend to mod it.
In terms of form factor, it has been many years since I’ve used a full-sized keyboard. I have no use for a navigation cluster and numpad (if I do need the latter, I have an external one within an arm’s reach away), so it took me a while to get used to this layout again. As most of you would know, the length of a full-sized keyboard forces you to extend your arms to use both the mouse and keyboard at the same time. While most people won’t have an issue with this, if you’re used to having both hands close to each other while at the computer, it’s going to take some adjusting. Fortunately, Armaggeddon does offer this keyboard in the shorter TKL form-factor which removes the numpad. However, for those who need a numpad and are familiar with standard layouts, you will have no trouble getting used to this keyboard.
The keyboard also comes with a keycap puller, a switch puller, and three extra switches in case you need to do any switch replacements.
I don’t have a single favourite switch. Because I swap around different keyboards with different switches, I tend to use what I feel like using on that day itself. I have boards with linear, clicky and tactile switches; that being said, all of them are regular full-travel switches. The SMK-6C features Outemu low-profile switches that have a noticeably shorter distance to actuate (meaning how far you have to press before the computer registers your input).
While most regular switches actuate at around 2mm, the Outemu low-profile switches actuate at 1.2mm - though it may seem insignificant, it was very noticeable to me. In fact, I did run some tests to verify that my mind wasn’t playing tricks on me and I noticed an improvement in my typing speeds. This is probably because I bottom out while typing (I press each switch all the way until it hits the bottom) and the milliseconds saved from moving slightly less per key made a difference. Regardless, the additional typing speed didn’t matter to me because there’s no need to type over a 100 words per minute for the kind of work I do, but it might for other people out there.
When it came to gaming, I didn’t feel like I performed better than before (I’m not great at games, so I guess no keyboard would improve my skill anyway!). For what it’s worth, the keyboard was adequate for all the games I usually play.
Here's a typing test of the SMK-6C:
Aesthetically - I’m not a fan - I understand that it is a budget keyboard so I won’t harp on the looks too much. Fortunately, the Outemu low-profile switches use the standard MX-cross stem, so it’s possible to change its appearance with aftermarket keycaps, so that’s a plus point.
Here’s where I had my first stumbling block with the keyboard. The SMK-6C isn’t reprogrammable - which is fine if you’re used to standard layouts. The only thing programmable on this keyboard is its RGB modes.
In my case, I had to resort to third-party remapping software (Microsoft Power Toys) to rebind the keyboard. While this was useful when using Windows applications, the remapped keys didn’t work as intended when playing games - not that huge of a problem, but if you play many different games, the time spent configuring your keyboard adds up. Though I understand this isn’t going to be a problem for most people, it’s what I encountered - so if you use unorthodox layouts like the Happy Hacking Keyboard, you’ll have to bear that in mind when picking up this keyboard.
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by my experience with the SMK-6C. Despite its minor setbacks due to specific needs, the keyboard was a treat to use. The low profile keys felt fine to type on and didn’t take much adjusting to. I had no issues working with or playing games on the keyboard. While the form factor was a bit too large for my liking, the smaller versions of the keyboard solve this issue. With a low price tag to boot, the Armaggeddon SMK-6C makes sense if you’re new to the world of mechanical keyboards and are looking for a way to dip your toes.
Armaggeddon’s keyboards are also available in two other variants - a smaller TKL version, and a full-RGB and programmable version, in a variety of switches. If you're interested in picking them up, they're available on their official Lazada store:
Stay tuned to eGG Network for more news and reviews on gaming hardware and technology!
Disclaimer: We received a review unit and two to give away, courtesy of Armaggeddon Malaysia in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are the author’s own and not influenced by Armaggeddon Malaysia, and/or its affiliates, in any way.
First things first, let’s get any misconceptions out of the way - if you’re looking for earphones to mix and master audio or to listen to high-quality FLAC tunes, these aren’t what you’re looking for. Armaggeddon has created a product that’s targeted at a very specific audience - gamers on a budget who want something better than the default headset that comes with their phones.
It’s not that you can’t listen to music with these WASP-7 - it’s just that when you put them on, you’ll want to hop into a lobby so you can command your teammates to push or gank without dealing with clunky chat wheel UI; not bop out to the latest Taylor Swift release. On that front, Armaggeddon has delivered.
Packaging
Here’s what you get in the box: wired earphones, a detachable microphone, extra tips, and a Y splitter. Nothing fancy, everything you expect comes packaged neatly in the box.
Comfort and Design
While I know it will vary from person to person, the in-ears fit into my ear canals perfectly out of the box. I was able to wear them for a few hours straight with no sign of discomfort. Though there’s no active cancellation, the silicon ear tips did a good job blocking out external noise while it was in use. It also comes with 2 pairs of additional tips in case the default ones are too large or small for you.
The earphones aren’t too flashy, in fact, the most eye-catching part (the golden drivers behind the transparent housing) aren’t visible when they’re plugged into your ears. From the outside, all you see is Armaggeddon’s signature logo and shiny gold inserts peeking through. Subtle, yet recognizable enough for anyone familiar with the brand - something I appreciate since I’m not a fan of over-the-top gamer aesthetics.
Performance
While the WASP-7 features a triple neodymium setup - more than its sibling, the WASP-5 which only has dual neodymium drivers - it doesn’t shine when it comes to music listening. Based on the sound tests I ran, the bass was surprisingly strong, but mids were slightly muddied and highs very muted. Though not a terrible experience, it was only satisfactory. I’ve had better experiences with other similarly priced earphones (wired and wireless) on this front.
However, when it comes to voice communications, the WASP-7 is on a league of its own. Taking cues from more expensive gaming headsets, the WASP-7 has a detachable microphone that plugs into the left earpiece and hangs right next to your mouth, allowing it to pick up your voice loud and clear. I was surprised by how effective the microphone was at picking up my voice during heated gaming sessions.
While I appreciate its sensitivity, it does pick up slightly too much ambient noise when you’re not speaking - try not to use it next to a fan, or make sure you enable noise removal on your communication apps when possible (i.e. Discord Noise Suppression).
The WASP-7 also include a traditional controller on its cable which has a nifty slider that allows you to easily adjust the volume of what you’re listening to instead of buttons that incrementally increase or decrease it. This makes controlling the audio coming through the speakers much faster and efficient. You also get a mute button to toggle the microphone and a button for pause/play operations.
Impressed with the range of sounds that the microphone was able to pick up, I decided to see how it would fare with music - since I noticed it's something other cheap mics and built-in mics on phones struggled with. While it's nowhere near the quality of studio-quality condenser mics, it was definitely good enough for home music demos. Again, make sure you’re in a quiet location so it doesn’t pick up too much ambient noise.
If you happen to misplace the detachable microphone or don’t have it with you, you can still use the regular microphone on the control piece. Great for those times when you want a more discreet look, but you’ll have to speak louder due to the mic’s position.
Lastly, if you’re planning to use this with a desktop PC, the WASP-7 also come with a Y splitter so you can plug the device into separate mic and headphone ports. This will also allow you to use it as a dedicated mic or earphone if you want to pair it up with another device. The removable microphone also makes this task a breeze - when you’re not gaming, just remove the microphone and you’ve got yourself a pair of regular earphones.
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a very capable microphone + headset combo for mobile gaming, you can’t go wrong with the WASP-7. It checks all the bells and whistles when it comes to performance with voice communications and a reasonable price tag to boot. That being said, if you’re in the market for a headset to mainly listen to music, you’re better off looking elsewhere.
The WASP-7 Pro 3D earphones are available on Armaggedon's official Shopee store for RM89.90.
Interested in checking out these earphones for free? We’ve got two units of the WASP-7 3D Pro to be given away. Stay tuned to eGG Network’s Facebook and Instagram page for details on how to win them!
EVOS Esports, the organization which fields multiple games like PUBG Mobile, Mobile Legends and Free Fire in the Southeast Asia region, has announced a new sponsorship from Singapore-based gaming gear manufacturer, Armaggeddon. Thanks to this new sponsorship, their Malaysian and Singaporean teams will be decked out with full livestreaming kits which include Armaggeddon PCs, monitors, keyboards, mice and headsets - equipment for their players to stream and create content with.
In exchange, EVOS Esports will be producing exclusive videos highlighting Armaggeddon’s products, integrate the brand with the EVOS Esports jersey, and participate in online community engagement events with their fans and interactive social media campaigns.
Looking forward to more content from the squads with their new equipment! Also, stay tuned to eGG Network this Saturday for a very special interview we carried out with the boys from EVOS VIP, the Malaysian PUBG Mobile squad, in a very special location!
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