Verbatim Mad Catz The Authentic F.R.E.Q. 4 Gaming Headset - Black

I purchased a Mad Catz F.R.E.Q. 2 headset in January 2021. I originally chose this product because the construction appeared to be more durable than its competitors, with metal hoops over the head providing the tension to wear the headset comfortably -- (my previous Logitech G430 headset lasted about five years but eventually the plastic parts connecting the ear cups failed beyond recovery despite significant glue+tape reinforcement, so I wanted something that didn't have obvious thin plastic parts as structural elements)This looked like it was mostly metal, and at a decent price.Unfortunately, while most of the structure is metal, after less than five months I found that the plastic brackets connecting the overhead metal flexing beams with the ear cups had significant fatigue fractures on both sides at an obvious stress point and was coming loose / about to break on the left side.It is pretty clear that the plastic bracket is not strong enough to survive normal use unless (MAYBE) worn by someone with a small head, the tight fit of the headset when worn by an adult puts too much stress on the thin plastic of the corner, leading to stress fractures and eventual failure.I've opened a RMA request with Mad Catz and will update this with the results.Unless there is an update where the brackets are reinforced substantially I can't currently recommend this product as currently built.

I have had this headset for about a year but only use it 30-40% of the time so I was a little frustrated when the ear part broke off today. I am generally pretty carful and only use enough force to get it on my head (I don't have a watermelon head or anything) so I was a little shocked. At first I thought it might just be a bad part so no big deal but then after looking closer I noticed that the other side had started to crack as well and was about to fail. It was a decent headset other then that and if you end up getting one just make sure to grab the top part where the metal is mounted.

Not only did they just break, but I've been hearing a strange noise through them since I got them. What a waste of money

Sound is good and they seemed to be decent comfort but the material seems cheapee

They are being used for gaming. My son says they are comfortable and the soundis perfect.

I've always bought Mad Catz, for years I've been pretty loyal, when one breaks I just buy another. I like their functionality quite a bit for quality and price. For some reason, these always would "shut off" when static electricity happened. I had to unplug it and replug it back in for it to reconnect. I know it wasn't a port problem because I seated it in all of my different ports and it still happened. I have NO clue as to why this is happened, I've never had anything like this happen before. At this point, I don't know if I should just give up on Mad Catz altogether because this is very frustrating.But, like I said...I've bought a lot of headsets from them. This is the only one where this has happened.