We Tried It: Noblechairs Epic Series Review

A soft, adjustable lumbar support pillow makes you forget you’re sitting at all. Unfortunately, a few annoying issues are hard to overlook.

Read on to hear about everything this chair has to offer so you can decide for yourself whether to pick one up!

Noblechairs Epic – Pros and Cons List

Packaging

I’m always happy to see a shipping box with at least a little detail. Whether true or not, I feel like a company willing to spend a little time on its packaging is going to put a lot of effort into its chair design.

Upon opening the container, I was pleased to see how well everything inside was packaged. Like a puzzle, each of the chair’s pieces fit snugly together to eliminate any movement or damage during shipping.

After taking each component out of the box, each potential break point was carefully wrapped in bubble wrap. The wheels and plastic pieces were safe inside a separate cardboard box. With everything laid out and unpackaged, I was ready for assembly.

Assembly

The instructions that came with the Epic Series chair aren’t anything to write home about but were still better than some of the one-page disasters I’ve seen. There were no words alongside the pictures in a likely attempt to accommodate speakers of any language.

The plastic wheels fit well into the metal wheel base, but whatever was used to lubricate the wheel tips for assembly was over the entire wheel. It made for a messy process.

Attaching the hydraulic piston to the chair base was a breeze, and the wheel base fit in place without any issue.

Moving onto the seatback, I had to remove the screws on the sides to attach it to the chair’s base. I can’t for the life of me understand why those screws were not just included with the others in the package so I didn’t have to unscrew them in the first place. It seems like an unnecessary extra step.

When I did try to mount the seatback onto the seat, I had a lot of trouble getting the two pieces to align. I eventually attached everything without needing additional help, but it was touch and go for a while.

While screwing the plastic covers on either side of the chair in place, I noticed that the mounting hole on the left side didn’t seem to line up. After disassembling the chair to figure out where the mounting hole actually was, I discovered that the manufacturers forgot to drill one in the first place. I’m stuck with a chair with an exposed metal bracket on one side. If I had purchased the chair, I’d be returning it for sure.

I’m also really disappointed with the lumbar support pillow. When installing it, it feels very low quality and doesn’t seem to want to stay in place. I wouldn’t be surprised if the cheap-looking hooks keeping the pillow on the chair don’t last long.

Features

Noblechairs Epic Series Chair Specs
Weight: 60 pounds
Seat Height Adjustment: 19 to 23 inches
Seat Width: 21 inches
Weight Capacity: 265 pounds
Chair Material: High-tech synthetic leather
Reclining Angle: 80° to 135°
5-Wheel Aluminum Base
Padded 4D Armrests
Comes with a head cushion and lumbar support pillow
5-year extended warranty

I took a careful look at each of the Noblechairs Epic Series’ features. Here are my findings.

4D Armrests

The 4D armrests offer a lot of flexibility, moving along every axis while also rotating 45 degrees from side to side. It was no trouble for me to find a position I like where I tend to them and forget them. My son loves to come along and play with my settings, so I get a lot of practice adjusting the armrests back to the way I like them.

I have some difficulty aligning the armrests vertically, and I sometimes accidentally leave one slightly higher than the other. I discover the issue only after getting uncomfortable from sitting for a while. It’s nice that there are several options for vertical height adjustment, but can there be too many?

Backrest Recline

The Noblechairs gaming chair’s backrest reclines back to around 135°, a nice position for watching TV or a stream on your PC. While it doesn’t learn back as far as most chairs, I’ve never seen much benefit for a chair that goes back any further.

What’s weird about this chair is that nothing stops it from moving past vertical when returning to the upright position. It flies past vertical and doesn’t stop until it’s reached about the 70° mark. This must be a manufacturing oversight, as I can’t imagine anyone wanting to sit smashed by the backrest while trying to play a game.

The Rocker

One thing this chair does a decent job of is the rocker feature. It’s rigid enough that I don’t lean back when I don’t want to, but I can push back when I’m contemplating my next play in Hearthstone. My bodyweight isn’t enough to keep the chair from returning to upright after a few moments, but it’s something.

Headrest Pillow

The headrest pillow is at a good height for me, catching me squarely on the lower part of the head and the upper neck. It’s quite firm and isn’t comfortable for too long, but works best when I lean the chair back to about 95°.

This cushion is held in place by an elastic band that wraps around the top of the chair so you can move the pillow up and down slightly. I have it at the lowest position, so anyone shorter than six feet tall probably won’t get much use out of it.

Lumbar Support Pillow

The lumbar support pillow feels like a softer material than the headrest and offers a bit more comfort. It is designed to be moved up or down, and it’s not hard for me to find the sweet spot for it in my lower back.

What bothers me about this cushion are the straps that hold it in place. Tabs on the pillow are threaded through a hook on the strap that refuses to stay in place for very long. The result is a loose connection that’s already come undone on me a few times.

Seat Height Adjustment

You don’t have to worry too much about how tall you are when using this Noblechairs gaming chair, as the seat adjusts vertically four inches. 19 inches from the ground at its lowest, you can raise the seat up to 23 inches high. I have my chair at the highest setting, but I have it a little higher than it needs to be.

Build Quality

Looking at this Noblechairs Epic Series gaming chair from a distance, it certainly looks sturdy. Even when I sit down, there’s no creaking or wobbling with any of the components. The only thing I don’t find particularly appealing are the armrests, but I can get over the look thanks to how comfortable they are.

The quality of the materials used in its design are what you’d expect to see for a chair at this price point. Starting at the bottom, the aluminum wheel base looks sleek and is a very durable material. I’m actually a bit surprised that it can only support 265 pounds, but that may be due to the wheels themselves.

For everything the wheel base is, the wheels simply aren’t. They are the same uninspired plastic wheels I’ve seen on a dozen gaming chairs, even ones at lower price points. The aluminum wheel base helps jack the price point up, but it seems like a total waste other than aesthetics.

The chair’s skeleton is a robust metal frame that has yet to make any noise, even when I’m sitting for hours on end. This is a really rare experience for me, considering most of the chairs I try make some sort of squawk when my rear meets the fabric. I don’t even hear a whoosh sound of air leaving the chair when I take a seat.

I’m also really pleased with the Noblechairs’ high-tech synthetic leather. It looks and feels really nice, and there aren’t any loose threads anywhere that take anything away from the quality. I don’t think I could trick anyone into believing it’s genuine leather, but it’s nice all the same.

There wasn’t anything broken on the chair when I received it, but Noblechairs did forget to make a hole in the side of the faux leather for me to drive a screw through. I assume there’s a thread on the metal frame underneath, but I have no way of knowing without poking a hole myself.

This missing hole is only used for mounting one of the side brackets to the chair that covers metal and a pair of mounting screws. It’s cosmetic and perhaps a bit of a safety issue if someone sticks their hands in that area, but it drives me nuts to have a $500 chair with an issue like this.

Comfort and Ergonomics

I’ve been putting this Noblechairs Epic Series chair through the wringer for a while now. I’m really pleased with the level of comfort I experience from the padding in the seat and backrest. They both offer a firm foundation, and I don’t find myself squirming after a while to find a better position. There’s not much give when I sit down, but I like that as opposed to a chair that I sink into.

This proves to me that the chair is very ergonomic as well, and as long as I can get the lumbar support pillow in the right location, it does its job. The problem is that this cushion moves around too much, and dealing with the weak connections supposed to hold it in place is a pain.

The pillow itself has just the right level of comfort, though. It’s very soft and has a nice amount of give that allows it to fill into your lower back. My lower back is the first thing to bother me after sitting for a while, and I don’t have any issues here.

I don’t share quite the same level of love with the headrest pillow. It’s at the right height for me at 6’1″, but I’m not sure anyone shorter than me will like its location. Above all, it’s way too firm for my head to sink into, and it just keeps my head at a weird angle. I’m not sure why it couldn’t be as soft as the lumbar support pillow is.

I alluded to it earlier, but I like the feel of this high-tech synthetic leather design. Since it is a faux design, I feel like it breathes better than actual leather would. I haven’t stuck to the chair or noticed any sweaty spots, even on a day like today where it’s pretty warm.

The armrests are quite comfortable, and I don’t mind using them for long periods of time. A thick layer of firm, rubbery material on the top provides that layer of comfort I need while I game.

Verdict

I’m glad to have had the chance to review the Noblechairs Epic Series gaming chair. It’s built well and has no issue supporting me no matter which way I move or turn. I’ve yet to have any issue sitting in the chair for hours on end, and I don’t feel any aches, pains, or otherwise after doing so.

I go back and forth about the approximately $500 price point for this chair. The comfort level is what I would expect from a chair this expensive and the quality of the materials is undoubtedly there. I simply can’t move past the poor design choices with the headrest pillow, bad lumbar support pillow connections, and the choice of wheels. There were also issues in quality control that Noblechairs should really clean up.

If I had to improve only one thing about this chair, I would redesign how the lumbar support pillow attaches to the chair. These loose connection points have come undone on me more than once, and there’s nothing worse than a pillow flopping around behind you when you’re trying to land a kill shot.

I’d have no issue recommending this to a friend in terms of comfort and overall design. This friend would have to be tall enough to appreciate the little bit of support from the headrest pillow and someone light enough not to risk breaking the generic wheels. Noblechairs has some work to do to make this a chair truly worth its price point, but they are well on their way.