Looking for a New Gaming Chair/Chair for Gaming

Slashee the Cow on 31/03/2023 - 21:41

Hiya folks! (TL;DR: go to the heading below, or the one below that)

Need to get a new chair for my computer and the likely ten hours or more a day (never counted) sitting at it. Had an original Secretlab Titan, but that started disintegrating a couple of years in and quickly deteriorated from there (bits falling off armrest, PU "leather" flaking off and a couple of holes due to stress, foam/whatever the hell is inside shifting around and moving off centre, reclining mechanism seizing up and not going anywhere). Kept patching it up for far longer than I should have. Not the most comfortable chair I've ever had, seemed to have negative lumbar support and didn't appear to be designed for someone of my stature.

Start of last year I was at Costco and they had a Zen Tarok Pro Razer Edition (say that five times fast) for $300, gave it a bit of a test sit, seemed good so I bought one (and put the Titan up for free on Gumtree, surprised how much attention it got). The Tarok has been pretty good (other than the reclining mechanism being a bit noisy) until a couple of weeks ago the seat pole fell through the wheel base, not too bad to start but now it's at the point where the pole is lower than the wheelbase so it stands on the pole. Going to get a refund for it as soon as I can get some transport to take it back (n.b. I know under the consumer law the seller has to be responsible for transporting bulky goods but given it'll fit in a large car I wasn't going to push my luck).

TL;DR

Which leads to the main point of this post. Any recommendations? Usually when someone asks me for advice I tell them to go to Officeworks, try a few chairs and buy one designed for sitting in all day. Entirely possible some of you fine folks out there know better than me (for all the things I'm versed in, chairs is not one of them). Just a few criteria I'm hoping to meet as many as possible of:

  • Not Secretlab. The Titan Evo, especially the large version, looked it up and was surprised how holy shit fucking hell incredibly expensive it was. Plus the website itself screams "dodgy" in so many ways which it didn't when I got my Titan
  • Not another one of these. Or anything else from Zen (not that I've ever seen any of them in this country outside of Costco)
  • As mentioned earlier, I'm of reasonable size. A few centimetres shy of two metres tall and weight generally varies in the range of two digit numbers which start with 9, so… if it's designed to cater to those of us who were too clumsy to play basketball, that'd be nice
  • Reclining: really nice to have, gaming chairs do it, not sure if office chairs do, not sure if missing it would be a deal breaker
  • High back: great for reclining so I can put my head back, again, very preferable but not necessarily a deal breaker if lacking
  • Material: nothing a deal breaker, but with how messy I am I'd be surprised if I didn't get a permanent stain on a fabric chair within two weeks. Don't have any breathability problems with this PU leather
  • Test: It'd be nice to be able to try before I buy, but I've bought chairs arse unsat, so not a requirement (in southwest Sydney, one of the more southwest parts because it's ridiculous how much area is called southwest Sydney)
  • Price: the $300 refund I'd get for this thing isn't my ceiling (although if there's a good option around or less than that price I certainly wouldn't be opposed), but roughly $500-600ish depending on how good a case you can make for it

Really TL;DR

So what chair can you fine people recommend for me? Oh, and thanks for putting up with my utter inability to be terse.

Computing Chair Gaming Chair Office Chair

Comments

  • Hybroid on 31/03/2023 - 21:52

    Sorry didn't read all above, but have been using this for past year many hours a day just fine:

    https://www.ikea.com/au/en/p/matchspel-gaming-chair-bomstad-…

    Couple it with one of these:

    https://www.kmart.com.au/product/memory-foam-gel-cooling-sea…

    • harshbdmmaster718 on 01/04/2023 - 00:52
      +1

      Got the same chair and setup lol. The cushion foam got compressed and started feeling hard pretty quick thanks to my enormous girth, needed to get an Amazon seat cushion for a car. My cushion looks a little thinner than your Kmart one, but it came with straps with plastic circles on the ends which hold it on the seat very well.

      Price of the Matchspel has gone up by the way, I paid $249 before the price got jacked to $299.

  • rumblytangara on 31/03/2023 - 23:00

    Had an original Secretlab Titan, but that started disintegrating a couple of years in and quickly deteriorated from there (bits falling off armrest, PU "leather" flaking off and a couple of holes due to stress, foam/whatever the hell is inside shifting around and moving off centre, reclining mechanism seizing up and not going anywhere). Kept patching it up for far longer than I should have. Not the most comfortable chair I've ever had, seemed to have negative lumbar support and didn't appear to be designed for someone of my stature.

    That's a fantastic example of why not to buy anything with the word "gaming" in it. I had a look online and saw what they are selling for. >$700 for a chair that lasts a couple years is terrible.

    Secondhand 'proper' task chair e.g. Herman Miller or Steelcase. If HM, a secondhand Mirra would be 500 or less. I don't know if they come in a range of sizes like the Aerons. These are chairs that should last over a decade without bits falling off. If bits do fall off, or if the gas lift needs replacing, you can get the parts.

    • Slashee the Cow on 31/03/2023 - 23:25

      Back in good ol' 2018 it only cost me $540 delivered. Accounting for inflation, I think that's about five hours' rent for a one room apartment in Sydney

      Edit: Also, where do you get second hand decent chairs like that? Never something I've looked for.

      • SydStrand on 01/04/2023 - 02:33

        You have to keep your eyes peeled on Marketplace, Gumtree, etc. Good luck, as most sellers know how much their Herman Millers are worth, there are even dedicated 'guides' on what to look for, and liquidations are usually snapped up in bulk by dedicated used office supply companies.

      • rumblytangara on 03/04/2023 - 15:26

        I've not looked around much, I have noticed these being sold on Facebook Marketplace though which is where I got the ~500 pricing from. Some were private sales, one was a company that seemed to buy up loads and then resell to consumers.

    • Bigboomboom on 03/04/2023 - 14:27

      I bought an AK Racing chair in 2017 and it's still going strong. I went with the only fabric option as I know fake PU leather will flake, the foam seat is still fine. Much better than anything from Officework, they usually survive for about 3 years top.

  • Pelicannn on 31/03/2023 - 23:15

    I bought a Battlebull from PLE about a year ago and it’s been amazing.

    I’d say on par with my friends SecretLab but half the price. Worth checking out.

  • SydStrand on 01/04/2023 - 02:30
    +1

    Don't buy a 'gaming chair.' All the neon piping, LEDs, and flared wings aren't contributing one bit to build quality or comfort, and those companies tend to spend more money paying streamers or promoting gaming events than actually designing products that last. If you can afford it, get a quality ergonomic office chair from the likes of Herman Miller, Ergohuman, or Steelcase; if you can't, get an Ikea Markus.

  • Loubon on 01/04/2023 - 07:12

    Andaseat Kaiser XL has been great for me.

    I am also quite large and it is very comfortable.

    Still perfect after a couple of years.

  • Overclocked91 on 01/04/2023 - 08:51

    https://www.ple.com.au/Products/623176/battlebull-crosshair-…

    The chair I've got but in white. Could not locate it on PLE. Does the job, semi-firm/good support so comfortable to sit on for long periods. Also, it doesn't break the bank.

  • Horacio on 01/04/2023 - 17:41

    I do hope this question turns up some good office chair options.. Most of the recommendations in previous threads seem very pricy and I'm not quite resigned to that yet

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