BraZen Stag 2.1 Bluetooth Surround Sound Gaming Chair Hands-On Review

BraZen Stag 2.1 Bluetooth Surround Sound Review	Rating
Packaging & Assembly	4/5
Features	4.5/5
Build Quality	3.5/5
Comfort and Ergonomics	4/5
Verdict	4/5

In the market for a new Bluetooth console gaming chair? The BraZen Stag 2.1 might be just what you’re looking for.

The Stag 2.1 is one of BraZen’s more competitively-priced pedestal chairs and boasts an impressive lineup of premium features, 2.1 surround sound, and cross-console compatibility. It’s been featured on the hit UK consumer electronics TV show the Gadget Show, so it must be pretty great, right? Well, that’s what I wanted to find out.

So, I had one delivered for myself and put it through its paces in order to compile this in-depth BraZen Stag 2.1 gaming chair review. Read on and find out if it really delivers on its promises.

Packaging Quality & Assembly

As soon as the chair arrived, the first thing I noticed was that the packaging quality was impressive and felt very premium.

Everything you need to assemble the chair comes in a (roughly) meter-cube sized box that weighs about 15kg, give or take, with each component individually wrapped inside.

The pedestal and other easily-scratched components come wrapped in a really thick, protective lining and I didn’t notice any scratches on them when I took them out of the box – just a little dust. The chair itself is folded to fit inside the box.

The assembly of the Stag 2.1 Bluetooth Surround Sound gaming chair is a breeze. Having assembled a few PC and office gaming chairs in the past, it usually takes me around 20-30 minutes to put them together. Not so with the Stag 2.1 – this took around 5-10 minutes.

The visual assembly instructions are super-simple and easy to follow; you just put the tube into the base, unfold the chair and fix the arms and mounting mechanism onto it using the provided fixings, and then pop the chair onto the base. It’s as easy as that.

It didn’t need two people or a ton of floor space to complete, and the only tool needed was the alan key that came with the box.

If I had to be really picky, I might point out that the process of attaching the fixings to the mounting mechanism was a little fiddly as the holes were so close to the mechanism that the alan key could only turn a quarter-rotation at a time. But again, this is only a teeny-tiny little gripe – more of an annoyance than anything.

Features

Alright, let’s talk about features.

Obviously, the main draw of a console gaming chair like this is the surround sound. It makes watching movies, playing games, and listening to music much more immersive. The sound quality and bass of the surround sound speakers and subwoofer are excellent and the bass is rich.

The Stag 2.1 is also advertised as offering Bluetooth connectivity, but this is a little misleading. While it does connect via Bluetooth, it won’t work for all consoles. You need a Bluetooth adaptor if you want to hook that to work for PS4 as Sony scramble their Bluetooth signal.

However, it will connect via the cables that come in the box to pretty much any device with an audio out port, including all the main consoles (PS3, Xbox One, Wii, PS4, smartphones, tablets, etc). The chair is mains-powered.

The armrests and seat height are fixed in place and can’t be adjusted. The backrest is also fixed in place and can’t be adjusted manually, but can be tilted by shifting your weight. It doesn’t have a tilt-lock or lumbar support, but it does have an in-built headrest.

Build quality

The build quality on the chair is excellent and the whole thing feels very durable. The upholstery is made of a comfortable mesh, the stitching was well done, and it felt sturdy when sat on.

The base is robust and you can rock back and forth on the chair without feeling like you’re going to break the mechanism (a problem I’ve run into with cheaper rocker chairs in the past).

It has a recommended max load weight of 100kg but I’m around about that weight and I didn’t feel like I was pushing its limits. The velcro is also that holds the chair into place when you unfold it is also impressively tough and sticks together very firmly.

The armrests are plastic molded and feel sturdy, and they don’t wobble when pushed as long as you’ve got your fixings tight enough. They also come with screw covers which improves the overall look of the chair.

One of the things I like most about this chair is how easy it is to store. By releasing the velcro, the chair folds completely in half which is perfect if you don’t have a dedicated gaming space in your home. Thanks to the robust nature of the velcro, I don’t think that it will get worn out easily from folding it too much.

In addition to this, all the logos on the chair are embroidered so it looks and feels very high quality and you don’t have to worry about them wearing away from excessive use.

Comfort

The BraZen Stag 2.1 is very comfortable. The seat feels nice and plush and the upholstery isn’t too rough. The mesh is breathable, so I didn’t find that I got too hot when sitting in it whilst gaming or watching movies.

The backrest is also nicely padded and there’s a curve to it that mimics the natural curve of your spine and feels ergonomic. There’s also a branded headrest to support your neck.

The armrests felt a little tight around my waist and they definitely didn’t leave much wiggle room, but then again, I’m a heavier user. Adults who aren’t big and tall and children should find it very comfortable.

I watched a movie in it for around 3 hours and felt super relaxed. Because you can rock back and forth, it makes it easy to fidget and quickly adjust your incline. When you feel like reclining back a little further, you can just lean back with more of your weight.

The surround sound also dramatically improves comfort when listening to music or just the audio on your game. You’re not wearing headphones and because you don’t have to have something strapped to your head, you can move more freely.

Verdict

Overall, I think BraZen have done a great job with the Stag 2.1. It offers excellent value-for-money, is super comfortable.

Although it’s not a super expensive chair, the overall look of the chair is impressive. Touches like the embroidered logo and metal base make it look much more expensive than it actually is. It would easily fit into any games room, and could even be placed in a multipurpose living room as the design isn’t too ‘out-there’.

I would have preferred it to be a little bigger and it’s probably not the best choice if you’re taller or heavier than average. But if you’re on the smaller side or buying it for your children, it’s a great choice. Just make sure you have a Bluetooth adapter if you’re hoping to use the Bluetooth feature to connect it to your PS4.

I’d definitely recommend it to any of my friends and I think it holds it’s own against much more expensive console gaming chairs.