"Gaming Chairs" - Yay or nay?

Lewisham

The missus has been asking if I want an Audio-X Rocker "gaming chair" for Christmas.

I'd never seen or heard of these things before I came to the US, and have no idea what to make of it.

Has anyone used one of these? Are they good stuff? Does it enhance games, or is it just something better than sitting on your sofa with the built-in speakers of your TV?

I'm not sure what else I would want for Christmas, so it seems like a good idea, but if anyone has any experience with something like this, I'd love to hear it.

Zeromus

Looks comfortable, at least

tardcore

They look hard to get up from.

Rodent242

99.99 won't buy you a good chair, or good speakers. So I'm going to guess this gaming chair isn't that great.

bamjo

Try before you buy. Those types of chairs fuck up my back after about an hour of playing. They should have similar ones at best buy you can try to see if you like the design.

That audio-x rocker does look like one of the nicer gaming chairs I have seen. Most of them are plastic pieces of crap.

frank as fuck

I'd pass on the one you linked, but in general, "floor rocker" chairs are pretty great if you want to sit closer than your couch allows. I want one bad, because my couch is just too far away from my TV for my liking.

dispatch.o

I'd rather have a good beanbag and some good headphones. A beanbag for one shouldn't cost more than 120$ if you look around.

Improvolone

Does it look like something you would want to keep with you in your house?

KaOs

One of the lounges are college bought 10 of these to go with the entertainment section and I have to say they were really really nice. No back pain, tilts way far back while still maintaining balance, and overall well designed.

minigunwielder

Oh, the car seat things.

Yeah, sound actually travels through that well, if they combined that and Phillips AmBx I would explode.

In joy.

Lewisham

Improvolone wrote: »

Does it look like something you would want to keep with you in your house?

I don't mind, my office is full of crap anyway

If anyone has any other ideas for gaming gifts between $50-100, I'd love to hear them Perhaps I'll change this thread into a Christmas gift thread...

frank as fuck

The AK Rocker is the best out of any of them, imo. I'd go for one of those, and they can be had for under $100 on Amazon with free shipping.

Wootloops

It's about double what you want to pay, but Sumo Sacs are pretty damn comfortable for gaming or just a nap.

With that said, Im not a big fan of the gamer rocker chairs. My back tends to hurt after about an hour on those things and the sound boost is easily negated by a good pair of headphones. I say find an affordable bean bag type chair.

TheKoolEagle

i don't know about the actual chair in question but let me tell you...

i love those chairs that rock back and forth on the ground like that.

but yes, if you want something comfy to game in love sac or sumo sacs are great, also i forget what they are called... but the chairs that are huge and have like 1 circular pillow and you sit inside it, those things are awesome as well

edit: i found the name they are called papasan chairs, i love them. my roomate has one made out of wood and it is sooooo comfy

AbsoluteZero

I've used one of these. The chair part is fine, the speakers are useless.

Smashism

Went to a used office supply warehouse in long beach.
Bought a used leap chair for 200 bones, usually worth 400+

Sit in it for computing, writing, consoles, movies, everything. Most damned comfortable computer chair I have sat in my life.

I had an earlier version of those audio rockers, and while they can be comfortable to sit in, some people hate them. As a tall guy, I can't really get my legs in a good position while sitting on the floor. And I have a big friend (6' 5", 250 lbs) who can't even sit in the damned thing.
The sound on mine was crap, athough, like I said, it was a really early model, years back.

edit: woah the version you linked looks classy actually. Nice and wide too.

ArcSyn

That chair is nice if you usually sit on the floor while playing games. If you sit on the couch it would be hard to get used to because it's very low to the ground vs. a regular chair.

I have both a Sumo beanbag and a Papasan and I LOVE them both. The beanbag is great for whatever position you may feel like sitting in (position like the chair you are looking at, lying down, lying back, sitting normally, or on a big pad like a papasan) and the Papasan is just plain comfortable for curling up in and playing a relaxing game or watching a movie. Papasans take a LOT of room though (mine takes the room of a good swivel recliner), where the Sumo is nice because I can flatten it out (it's a big square vs. the old style circular ones) and stuff it behind the couch to put it away.

Sumo


Papasan

JamesDM

I won a pair of AK Ratchet(now discontinued) gaming chairs a few years ago and to be honest, I don't ever use them even though I have a shitty gaming arrangement in my room. I usually sit either on the bare floor/pillow/bed before I use the chairs.

Smashism wrote: »

Went to a used office supply warehouse in long beach.
Bought a used leap chair for 200 bones, usually worth 400+

Sit in it for computing, writing, consoles, movies, everything. Most damned comfortable computer chair I have sat in my life.

Fuck. Yes. The office I used to work in had leap chairs and they are in fact the most comfy office chairs ever.

Tiemler

Nay, sir. A thousand times, nay.

Gaming doesn't require its own customized furniture, sound systems, "grub," or other marketing-ploy paraphenalia. It's not a goddamned habit, it's a hobby. I don't want things in my apartment that I have to put away when I have company or shove in a closet before a date comes over.

A nice, cozy sofa or some bean bags for the win.

TheStig

Tiemler wrote: »

Nay, sir. A thousand times, nay.

Gaming doesn't require its own customized furniture, sound systems, "grub," or other marketing-ploy paraphenalia. It's not a goddamned habit, it's a hobby. I don't want things in my apartment that I have to put away when I have company or shove in a closet before a date comes over.

A nice, cozy sofa or some bean bags for the win.

What he said.

In today's economy you want to consider this chair, it's much more practical, has multiple uses and is very cheap, some times free.

marty_0001

I will second papasans (I didn't know that's what they were actually called) for cosyness. But yeah they do take up a tonne of space.

What's a leap chair?

McCly

I've got this comfy saucer-chair that I got from Target. Best gaming chair ever, next to my couch.

Here it is-
http://www.target.com/Wide-Wale-Corduroy-Sphere-Chair/dp/B0014WFIFK/sr=1-1/qid=1226197064/ref=sr_1_1/189-9755787-6475102?ie=UTF8&index=target&field-browse=1038614&rh=k%3Achair%2Cn%3A13379861&page=1

ArcSyn

marty_0001 wrote: »

I will second papasans (I didn't know that's what they were actually called) for cosyness. But yeah they do take up a tonne of space.

What's a leap chair?

I had to look them up too. Just seems like a specialty ergonomic office chair.

I thought it was perhaps that chair where you sit forward on your knees.

Olivaw

Just get a new couch, fer crissakes

I can guarantee it will be more comfy than some lame ass X-Treem Gamer Chair

TheStig

That looks more like some perverted sex apparatus than an office chair.

ArcSyn

TheStig wrote: »

That looks more like some perverted sex apparatus than an office chair.

My dad had one in his office for years, it was ok but unless you sat in it constantly it would wear you out because your body just wasn't used to having to sit up straight. I'm sure if you sat in it constantly it would be pretty nice.

Lewisham

Olivaw wrote: »

Just get a new couch, fer crissakes

I can guarantee it will be more comfy than some lame ass X-Treem Gamer Chair

The interest stems from the subwoofer in the chair, which could make shooty games more shooty.

It is not that I need a chair, I have a couch to sit on.

I think I'll switch this thread over to Christmas present suggestions in my budget instead tomorrow, it seems the consensus is a big no.

marty_0001

Yeah people seem to say those knee-sit chairs are nice. I wanted to try one out a while back when I was shopping for a new chair but being branded "ergonomic" they seem to automatically be hells of expensive.

I know a couple of office workers who sit on those big exercise balls. They say they're good for your back but having tried them I thought they were fairly awkward.

ArcSyn

marty_0001 wrote: »

Yeah people seem to say those knee-sit chairs are nice. I wanted to try one out a while back when I was shopping for a new chair but being branded "ergonomic" they seem to automatically be hells of expensive.

I know a couple of office workers who sit on those big exercise balls. They say they're good for your back but having tried them I thought they were fairly awkward.

Viscountalpha

Lewisham wrote: »

Olivaw wrote: »

Just get a new couch, fer crissakes

I can guarantee it will be more comfy than some lame ass X-Treem Gamer Chair

The interest stems from the subwoofer in the chair, which could make shooty games more shooty.

It is not that I need a chair, I have a couch to sit on.

I think I'll switch this thread over to Christmas present suggestions in my budget instead tomorrow, it seems the consensus is a big no.

Its probably better to go with a buttkicker setup if you want speakers in your chair. I have yet to get one myself but, I've experienced the pleasures of it. It is something to behold.

Shabooty

McCly wrote: »

I've got this comfy saucer-chair that I got from Target. Best gaming chair ever, next to my couch.

Here it is-
http://www.target.com/Wide-Wale-Corduroy-Sphere-Chair/dp/B0014WFIFK/sr=1-1/qid=1226197064/ref=sr_1_1/189-9755787-6475102?ie=UTF8&index=target&field-browse=1038614&rh=k%3Achair%2Cn%3A13379861&page=1

I have one of those and it is very comfy. It can fit my entire body when I curl up on it.

Rigor Mortis

Just stick with a normal chair and clamp one of these on. Costs less and you can keep using the good speakers.



http://www.amazon.com/Buttkicker-BK-GR-ButtKicker-Gamer/dp/B000AOTLP6/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1226202006&sr=8-1

FreddyD

Viscountalpha wrote: »

Lewisham wrote: »

Olivaw wrote: »

Just get a new couch, fer crissakes

I can guarantee it will be more comfy than some lame ass X-Treem Gamer Chair

The interest stems from the subwoofer in the chair, which could make shooty games more shooty.

It is not that I need a chair, I have a couch to sit on.

I think I'll switch this thread over to Christmas present suggestions in my budget instead tomorrow, it seems the consensus is a big no.

Its probably better to go with a buttkicker setup if you want speakers in your chair. I have yet to get one myself but, I've experienced the pleasures of it. It is something to behold.

I found the world's ugliest office chair and installed a bass shaker transducer in it, and it basically turned a cheap subwoofer into a theater quality one. The chair was so ghastly that I couldn't not buy it. Seriously, it looked like everything wrong with the 70s was turned into a chair. It looked like this only as an office chair.

Tiemler

You can't lay down and doze off in the wee hours of a weekend morning while playing a leisurely-paced game, while sitting in a chair.

Therefore, the chair fails as a gaming peripheral.

Bullio

I have a generic floor rocker that I bought to game with, and after a week it went into the basement to never be seen again. Wasn't particularly comfortable, rocking often lead to turtling, and it traveled a lot when rocking. Sitting straight up was difficult, not to mention uncomfortable. If your TV isn't on a really low shelf or on the floor there's no point. Mine's wall mounted and was just too high up to enjoy. If you have the space, go buy yourself a comfy recliner.

Rami

TheStig wrote:

That looks more like some perverted sex apparatus than an office chair.

This is what I like to call a win-win situation.

Dashui

Wootloops wrote:

It's about double what you want to pay, but Sumo Sacs are pretty damn comfortable for gaming or just a nap.

There's a bean bag chair there? All I'm seeing are boobs.

minor incident

What a seamless resurrection of a 3 year old thread. I'm genuinely impressed, guys.

Echo

You can stop chatting with the spammer now.