What are graphene drivers?

2024-01-31

HardwareTechWhat are graphene drivers?When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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(Image credit: Future)

close up on cup grills of Corsair Virtuoso Pro showing open back design and logo

The past five years have been pretty steady in the gaming headset space, but there’s a new material looking to shake things up. 2023 introduced a plethora of new cups to hear through, but among them stood a few contenders doing things a little differently. Gaming headsets like theCorsair Virtuoso Pro,Logitech G Pro X2, and the soon to be released Astro A50X have introduced graphene to their construction, and shouted about its benefits pretty loudly - but what exactly are graphene drivers, and what are they doing in some of thebest gaming headsetsto change your listening experience?

Graphene drivers are:✅ Less distorted✅ More responsive✅ More energy efficient❌More expensive

Graphene drivers are:

✅ Less distorted✅ More responsive✅ More energy efficient❌More expensive

✅ Less distorted✅ More responsive✅ More energy efficient

❌More expensive

To answer that, we’ll need to take a look inside a standard headset. We talk a lot about 50mm or 90mm, planar or dynamic drivers - these are all terms describing the size and design of a diaphragm and magnet that is responsible for converting electrical signals into sound. We’re focusing on dynamic drivers here, rather than planar or electrostatic options.

In the case of a dynamic driver, this membrane is connected to a magnet via a copper coil. That copper coil becomes magnetized when an electric signal is passed through - causing it, and therefore the diaphragm, to vibrate and produce the sound you hear through your headset.

(Image credit: Logitech)

Logitech graphene driver render

Graphene drivers are simply dynamic drivers that use graphene for this membrane.

There’s a problem here, though. Dynamic drivers power the vast majority of headphones and gaming headsets, because they’re the cheapest options on the market. That also means the membrane (or diaphragm) covering the magnet tends to be made out of cheaper and more flexible materials. These can warp once those vibrations become too much, creating distortion, particularly with higher volumes. Of course, there’s more to it than that - there’s a whole world of dynamic driver designs and materials that each have their own sound qualities and limitations. However, graphene drivers are simply dynamic drivers that use graphene for this membrane.

In short, graphene drivers are dynamic drivers that use super thin atom-sized membranes to produce a low-distortion, highly responsive sound through a gaming headset.

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Today’s best graphene gaming headset dealsCorsair Virtuoso Pro$199.99$149.99ViewSee all pricesLogitech G Pro X 2$249.98ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices

Today’s best graphene gaming headset deals

Corsair Virtuoso Pro$199.99$149.99ViewSee all pricesLogitech G Pro X 2$249.98ViewSee all prices

Corsair Virtuoso Pro$199.99$149.99ViewSee all prices

Corsair Virtuoso PRO Wired…

Corsair Virtuoso Pro

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$199.99$149.99

$149.99

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Logitech G Pro X 2$249.98ViewSee all prices

Logitech G Pro X 2

Amazon

$249.98View

$249.98

See all prices

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