This review misses the most important point for an office chair expected to get 5 or more hours of use a day, 5 or more days a week... You don't address if Fractal is committed to repair parts, as well as how long! At this price point there are awesome alternatives from SteelCase, Herman Miller, etc, who all provide spare parts for much longer than the warranty period. A used SteelCase is easily available in this price range and will last nearly forever. My experience is that most of these gaming chair manufacturers totally fail at supplying repair parts past the warranty period. I myself have several SteelCase chairs purchased used, that I've had for over a decade with no issues. That is a wise purchase.
A SteelCase Gesture is the best chair for "office" work, IT, or gaming. Yes, it's $1600 new, but you can frequently get one used, and even if you can't, think of it as a 10-year investment. $160/year on a chair that will legitimately last is worth it.
Yep, this so much. For background, I'm Australian and a few years ago I accidentally found a comment on an Australian forum that basically spurned cheap office chairs because they aren't properly tested to hold up and recomended to only look at AFRDI tested chairs. AFRDI are an Australian certification body. Amongst the list of AFRDI tested chairs are the big names like Herman Miller, Haworth, and Steelcase but also many other brands I'd never heard of. Almost all in the list of certified chairs are rated to AS/NZS 4438 Level 6 or higher which basically means good enough for use in police stations, military installations, control rooms and use in heavy industry where they expect 'extremely severe conditions of use' at 8 hours a day/5 days per week (approx 40 hours per week) up to 110kg (about 240lb ). They also have AFRDI 142 - Rated Load which can go as high as 160kg (about 350lb) multiple shift operations (greater than 40 hours per week) but far fewer chairs have this certification. Bought a Steelcase chair on the list and all the issues I had with cheap chairs disappeared and I've been loving it ever since. Interestingly enough, I just checked the list of certified chairs again and the SecretLab Titan Evo is on the list of AFRDI certified chairs.
@@RNG_Anarchist I knew the warranty. The problem is that after those 5 years, can you get any of the pieces? I've dealt with a number of cheaply made items where they just don't offer parts or after warranty service. Gaming chairs are one of the items that many people have had issues with. Unless they offer parts after warranty, that chair will likely be junk shortly after the warranty runs out.
It's funny to me that so many reviews for this chair are like "it's not a racing seat!," when it's actually the MOST racing seat. They even included an Alcantara option like higher end sports cars.
Looks great. I always hated how secret labs were racing chairs. It never made sense how a chair designed for comfort with your legs up "on pedals" is being used on a flat surface/carpet
Thanks for mentionning the wheels can be swapped, I have other wheels in order to not damage my floor and would like to switch the ones from the Fractal chair :)
I think you might have skimmed over it so I may have missed if you mentioned .... can the seat be fully locked, so that it DOES NOT lean back? Personally, I can't stand having the back of my seat lean back, I find it incredibly uncomfortable. I want to be able to lean back into the back of the chair and have it stay where it is. I'm always stuck with whichever office chairs a company has decided to buy (and as I'm frequently in as a contractor, I'm left with whichever chair no one else has claimed), and so often I cannot sit comfortably as the chairs always want to recline, and they're often very difficult to get them locked in place, if they even can be.
I purchased the dark fabric version of this chair almost immediately upon release and ended up returning it after roughly a week for a number of reasons. I typically prefer firm surfaces, but this was painful to sit on for any length of time due to how hard it was (my battered office chair purchased from Staples in 2002 is somehow a more pleasant experience.) The seat didn't slide forward quite far enough for my liking as was covered in the video; I am 6'0 for reference. My unit also had a manufacturing defect where the right arm rest slid back and forth freely without much resistance, which was disappointing but I understand that these things happen. The unconventional controls on the seat were aesthetically pleasing, if somewhat confusing. I frequently forgot which position was locked or unlocked, but then again I didn't keep the chair for very long so this may become a non-issue with time. The back of the chair felt very flat, and the lumbar support didn't do much to alleviate this. I also experienced the heat-trapping effect Jeff mentioned, though it seems the situation may be worse on the standard fabric version. After sitting for less than 20 minutes, my back would become unbearably hot despite being in a fairly well ventilated room. I live on the mid-Atlantic coast so it doesn't get terribly warm here, but this single issue would have been cause enough for a return. Unfortunately, the combination of above issues made it impossible for me to sit comfortably and I'll be looking at SteelCase and Herman Miller cases in the near future. As much as I love Fractal Design cases (I've owned 5 of them), I cannot recommend this chair.
Hi, great review, You went into great length about most of the chair, but I would like to know about the seat, do you float or is there any base or frame that your butt may touch if your a little heavier.
Somebody else said that the forward and backward adjustment for the armrest is extremely loose, what are your experiences with it? If it's loose, do you know if there's some way to open up the armrest somehow and tighten the forwards/backward adjustment?
Not sure about anybody else, but here in New Zealand with current currency conversion that chair equates to about $900. No thanks, no matter how good it is!
I looked at professional office chairs a few years back and got into knowing just a bit to much about them. Thing is the professional chairs were expensive, real expensive, but they seemed to make it up in quality. In the end I just bought a cheap office chair that a store just across the street sold. It was crap and still is. But I could have bought ten of these for the price of one of the real ones. Thing is the really professional chairs are hard to find if you are looking online or in ordinary stores. You can find them on sold in auktions when companies shut down, but to buy them new you have to contact the companies directly. I remember one chair I really wanted. It was rated for 24/7 use and came with a ten year warranty. The company also refurbished chairs that were that old. New seats back armrest and everything. They were really meant for stations where you have people 24 hours a day working in shifts so they had individual settings for several people. The chair was originally designed for long distance trucks, just beefed up a bit and having a sturdy base with all the usual adjustments. Anyway I remember that it started at about $3500. This was ten years ago, so quite expensive. I don't dare to check now. It was to expensive back then, I bet it's even more expensive today. I still would want one if I could get hold of it in decent shape and at a low price. For some reason I've never seen any sold on the used market...
I personally think a remanufactured SteelCase Leap V2 from Crandall Office Furniture is a much better buy than any of these "gaming" chairs as they're meant to be in use 24/7/365 by operations centers.
not for playing games though. I actually own a stealcase leap v2, and it's great when sitting up straight and working, but not so much if you want to chill our and recline.
@@liam4184 I guess I've never understood the desire to lean back in your chair further than something like the Leap V2 allows for. The whole "gamer slouch" seating position just doesn't make sense to me.
Bolsters on seat and sides are rock hard which is the biggest con, there's no give in cylinder, seat too firm, back is way too flat, casters aren't smooth on carpet.
Alcantara and durability in the same sentence? Don’t get me wrong, it is durable. But it’s highly prone to wear w/ repeated use. Anyone that’s had an Alcantara steering wheel knows this all to well. It ends up looking like garbage in a few years time. I’d imagine a chair would be even worse in this regard. Price point has it competing against real office furniture w/ repair parts availability and legit warranties. That’s going to be a tough sell unless you want the “gamer” look. For me if I wanted that look I would go out to the garage and grab any number of Recaro buckets I have and fit it to a frame and casters. At least I know the chair portion would be comfortable.
Stay in your lane Fractal…LONG LIVE SECRET LAB CHAIRS! For the record…. If Secret Lab made a computer case my response would be LONG LIVE FRACTAL DESIGN CASES!
If that were the case…. Sony, Panasonic, Microsoft, Samsung, and every other Mega-Corp with extensively-diverse catalogues wouldn’t have brought us products that push the tech industry forward….
This review misses the most important point for an office chair expected to get 5 or more hours of use a day, 5 or more days a week... You don't address if Fractal is committed to repair parts, as well as how long! At this price point there are awesome alternatives from SteelCase, Herman Miller, etc, who all provide spare parts for much longer than the warranty period. A used SteelCase is easily available in this price range and will last nearly forever. My experience is that most of these gaming chair manufacturers totally fail at supplying repair parts past the warranty period. I myself have several SteelCase chairs purchased used, that I've had for over a decade with no issues. That is a wise purchase.
A SteelCase Gesture is the best chair for "office" work, IT, or gaming. Yes, it's $1600 new, but you can frequently get one used, and even if you can't, think of it as a 10-year investment. $160/year on a chair that will legitimately last is worth it.
Yep, this so much. For background, I'm Australian and a few years ago I accidentally found a comment on an Australian forum that basically spurned cheap office chairs because they aren't properly tested to hold up and recomended to only look at AFRDI tested chairs. AFRDI are an Australian certification body. Amongst the list of AFRDI tested chairs are the big names like Herman Miller, Haworth, and Steelcase but also many other brands I'd never heard of. Almost all in the list of certified chairs are rated to AS/NZS 4438 Level 6 or higher which basically means good enough for use in police stations, military installations, control rooms and use in heavy industry where they expect 'extremely severe conditions of use' at 8 hours a day/5 days per week (approx 40 hours per week) up to 110kg (about 240lb ). They also have AFRDI 142 - Rated Load which can go as high as 160kg (about 350lb) multiple shift operations (greater than 40 hours per week) but far fewer chairs have this certification.
Bought a Steelcase chair on the list and all the issues I had with cheap chairs disappeared and I've been loving it ever since. Interestingly enough, I just checked the list of certified chairs again and the SecretLab Titan Evo is on the list of AFRDI certified chairs.
I would like to believe the would as they offer every single screw and piece to their cases upon request, but you never know
Ok, I just checked it has a 2 year warranty on fabric, and rubber 5 years on hardware and plastic
@@RNG_Anarchist I knew the warranty. The problem is that after those 5 years, can you get any of the pieces? I've dealt with a number of cheaply made items where they just don't offer parts or after warranty service. Gaming chairs are one of the items that many people have had issues with. Unless they offer parts after warranty, that chair will likely be junk shortly after the warranty runs out.
It's funny to me that so many reviews for this chair are like "it's not a racing seat!," when it's actually the MOST racing seat. They even included an Alcantara option like higher end sports cars.
Looks great. I always hated how secret labs were racing chairs.
It never made sense how a chair designed for comfort with your legs up "on pedals" is being used on a flat surface/carpet
Good luck! Alcantera is notorious for getting dirty. lol
Thanks for mentionning the wheels can be swapped, I have other wheels in order to not damage my floor and would like to switch the ones from the Fractal chair :)
What is with the important question, how about sit cross-legged? Is it comfortable?
I think you might have skimmed over it so I may have missed if you mentioned .... can the seat be fully locked, so that it DOES NOT lean back? Personally, I can't stand having the back of my seat lean back, I find it incredibly uncomfortable. I want to be able to lean back into the back of the chair and have it stay where it is. I'm always stuck with whichever office chairs a company has decided to buy (and as I'm frequently in as a contractor, I'm left with whichever chair no one else has claimed), and so often I cannot sit comfortably as the chairs always want to recline, and they're often very difficult to get them locked in place, if they even can be.
Yes, there is a lock for the recline.
i was just staring at the beutiful camera gear on the desk 😍
I purchased the dark fabric version of this chair almost immediately upon release and ended up returning it after roughly a week for a number of reasons. I typically prefer firm surfaces, but this was painful to sit on for any length of time due to how hard it was (my battered office chair purchased from Staples in 2002 is somehow a more pleasant experience.) The seat didn't slide forward quite far enough for my liking as was covered in the video; I am 6'0 for reference. My unit also had a manufacturing defect where the right arm rest slid back and forth freely without much resistance, which was disappointing but I understand that these things happen. The unconventional controls on the seat were aesthetically pleasing, if somewhat confusing. I frequently forgot which position was locked or unlocked, but then again I didn't keep the chair for very long so this may become a non-issue with time. The back of the chair felt very flat, and the lumbar support didn't do much to alleviate this. I also experienced the heat-trapping effect Jeff mentioned, though it seems the situation may be worse on the standard fabric version. After sitting for less than 20 minutes, my back would become unbearably hot despite being in a fairly well ventilated room. I live on the mid-Atlantic coast so it doesn't get terribly warm here, but this single issue would have been cause enough for a return. Unfortunately, the combination of above issues made it impossible for me to sit comfortably and I'll be looking at SteelCase and Herman Miller cases in the near future. As much as I love Fractal Design cases (I've owned 5 of them), I cannot recommend this chair.
WHY DIDN'T THEY CALL IT THE FRACTAL DEFINE RECLINE
Hi, great review, You went into great length about most of the chair, but I would like to know about the seat, do you float or is there any base or frame that your butt may touch if your a little heavier.
Missed opportunity to call it “Recline”.
Could you try something like high-performance clustering?
Somebody else said that the forward and backward adjustment for the armrest is extremely loose, what are your experiences with it? If it's loose, do you know if there's some way to open up the armrest somehow and tighten the forwards/backward adjustment?
Still hoping for a Define 8 to drop soon. Don't forget your original fans, Fractal! :(
Btw, also getting this chair. Seems decent :)
Not sure about anybody else, but here in New Zealand with current currency conversion that chair equates to about $900. No thanks, no matter how good it is!
I looked at professional office chairs a few years back and got into knowing just a bit to much about them. Thing is the professional chairs were expensive, real expensive, but they seemed to make it up in quality. In the end I just bought a cheap office chair that a store just across the street sold. It was crap and still is. But I could have bought ten of these for the price of one of the real ones. Thing is the really professional chairs are hard to find if you are looking online or in ordinary stores. You can find them on sold in auktions when companies shut down, but to buy them new you have to contact the companies directly. I remember one chair I really wanted. It was rated for 24/7 use and came with a ten year warranty. The company also refurbished chairs that were that old. New seats back armrest and everything. They were really meant for stations where you have people 24 hours a day working in shifts so they had individual settings for several people. The chair was originally designed for long distance trucks, just beefed up a bit and having a sturdy base with all the usual adjustments. Anyway I remember that it started at about $3500. This was ten years ago, so quite expensive. I don't dare to check now. It was to expensive back then, I bet it's even more expensive today. I still would want one if I could get hold of it in decent shape and at a low price. For some reason I've never seen any sold on the used market...
I'm watching a chair! - Ralph Wiggum
I love how the "boss" voice reminds me of J. Jonah Jameson
Nice shirt, I have the same one from Marshals hopefully you got a good deal
LOL, nailed it. Picked it up a couple weeks ago.
The welded joins were the Achilles heel for your Achilles chairs....
Yall think worth to build x79 system? asus P9X79-LE, i7 3820, 4x4gb ddr3 team elite plus 1866mhz (from IT collage where i work as janitor)?
hmmmm Velour......
sorry had to pull a Futurama Reference.
Leela, get over here and feel this!
tell them I will do a review for them too cause for 550$ that's the only way it's getting to my house
3:40 to skip the rant about his old chair(s)
Oh no! Context?!? In this economy?!!!?
For some, five inches is a lot.
I personally think a remanufactured SteelCase Leap V2 from Crandall Office Furniture is a much better buy than any of these "gaming" chairs as they're meant to be in use 24/7/365 by operations centers.
not for playing games though. I actually own a stealcase leap v2, and it's great when sitting up straight and working, but not so much if you want to chill our and recline.
@@liam4184 I guess I've never understood the desire to lean back in your chair further than something like the Leap V2 allows for. The whole "gamer slouch" seating position just doesn't make sense to me.
Bolsters on seat and sides are rock hard which is the biggest con, there's no give in cylinder, seat too firm, back is way too flat, casters aren't smooth on carpet.
Alcantara and durability in the same sentence? Don’t get me wrong, it is durable. But it’s highly prone to wear w/ repeated use. Anyone that’s had an Alcantara steering wheel knows this all to well. It ends up looking like garbage in a few years time. I’d imagine a chair would be even worse in this regard.
Price point has it competing against real office furniture w/ repair parts availability and legit warranties. That’s going to be a tough sell unless you want the “gamer” look. For me if I wanted that look I would go out to the garage and grab any number of Recaro buckets I have and fit it to a frame and casters. At least I know the chair portion would be comfortable.
any one else think thay got a job lot of mac pro wheels and painted them black for that chair
Pffft for those prices get a Steelcase office chair and you'll be more than happy than this "gaming" garbage.
Your chair costs more then my system😅
Stay in your lane Fractal…LONG LIVE SECRET LAB CHAIRS! For the record…. If Secret Lab made a computer case my response would be LONG LIVE FRACTAL DESIGN CASES!
If that were the case….
Sony, Panasonic, Microsoft, Samsung, and every other Mega-Corp with extensively-diverse catalogues wouldn’t have brought us products that push the tech industry forward….
Can you believe the company that makes the Walkman makes video game consoles now?