Like many things, a good chair is hard to find, and a great one is even harder. There is a wide variety of options out there to choose from, and more often than not, they either have high retail value or low quality. In my work history, I have come across desk chairs that run from $500 to even $1000; cue the meme. YouTubers feature gaming chairs all the time, so you have undoubtedly seen one or two in your time.
The E-Win Champion Gaming Chair is much like them. I personally never had an interest in them until I got my tuchus in one. Now, very little keeps me from looking at any other chair on the market.
E-Win Gaming Chair Assembly Is Rather Simplistic
I knew I had a chair coming in the mail, but the size of the box it came in still surprised me. Inside, the backrest was completely assembled, the seat was packaged with armrests, and the rest of the components were separate. The chair tilt mechanism under the seat, complete with preinstalled lever for raising and lowering the chair, uses six bolts already affixed to the bottom of the seat to attach it to said seat.
Following this, the lift cylinder magnetizes in its slot on the tilt mechanism. The five-star wheel base simply slips on the bottom of the lift cylinder, and friction combined with chair weight keeps it in place. The wheels then simply click into their places on the wheel base.
Only three pieces of the chair require any tools. Fortunately, two Allen wrenches, as well as necessary bolts and washers, come packaged with the chair. On each side, two bolts affix the back of the chair to the seat directly. Then, a plastic piece rests on top of this adjoining point, allowing for a clean, presentable finish to the chair assembly. All in all, putting the chair together is incredibly straightforward, taking me only 20 minutes or so to complete.
Yeah, But This Support, Though
One thing I constantly take for granted is good lumbar support. As I’m 32 now, my back demands more support than it ever has. That’s a pattern I don’t see changing much. At the same time, I’ve never responded well to most lumbar supports. They tend to either rest in the wrong place or extend way too far forward for my comfort. Even the supports in my car helps me so little that I retract them.
I also like to sit cross-legged, even in chairs. There are slight lips on each side, where I can rest my foot underneath the opposite leg without having to help keep them in place. The lumbar support still works incredibly well for this position, since there’s often zero lower back support when sitting like this in normal seats.
This is not the case with the E-Win Gaming Chair. The adjustable cushion rests on tight, elastic straps that allow you to raise and lower it to your liking. At the same time, the support adjusts to your back naturally, even if you set it in the wrong place.
I generally have bad posture. However, the comfort of this chair reminds my body that I will actually be more comfortable sitting back. I love this.
Strapped between two gaps behind your head, the neck cushion behaves a bit differently. At rest, it resides at the bottom of those two gaps. When you sit, it easily shifts to match the arch in your neck, returning back to the bottom once you’ve moved. Depending on your torso height, it might be in the perfect position every time. For me, the height sits a hair low. Either way, a slight shoulder shift lifts up the cushion the inch I need to rest perfectly.
E-Win’s Pristine Comfort, With Minimal Downside, Comes At A Hefty Price
In terms of feel, the only part of the E-Win Gaming Chair that feels cheap is the armrest. The rest of the chair consists of either metallic or leather, while some parts are plastic. This is not a big deal for the joint cover between the back and the seat, but the armrests are a different story. Personally, I’m missing the memory foam and leather construction that the chair and cushions have. The hard plastic detracts from the quality of the chair as a whole. Furthermore, the armrests can only rotate in three different positions.
Realistically, this may not be a negative for everyone. I’m one of those people who constantly rest on my elbows and lower arms when I’m sitting anywhere. A common position for my arms, when not on the keyboard is elbow resting on the armrest with my hands laying flat in my lap. The inside edges of these armrests have a small, 90-degree divot in them. This puts an odd pressure on my arm.
The other three sides of the armrest have a slant to them, and I think the design would have benefited from having this slant on all four sides. As a counterpoint, the construction of the armrests is quite stable. Many office chairs before it have flimsy arms that feel loose. These armrests stay firm with minimal movement. Adjustments are easy to make as well. A button on the inside slides the rests forward and backward.
The button position is perfect for this, as it sits right under your thumbs when your hands grab the end of the armrests. Two lift levers on the arms themselves allow for the armrests to rise and lower to your liking, with seven different heights to choose from.
The other downside to this chair is the price point. I received the Champion Series model, and it normally asks you to cough up $350. This cost lands in the middle range for costs from E-Win, with the top end reaching values of $500.
E-Win Champion Gaming Chair Delivers On Comfort In Spades
The first order of business comes in the price tag: These gaming chairs are not cheap. At the same time, the chairs are worth the price. This chair has a level of comfort I have never had in an office chair before, and it has the support no seating apparatus has offered me before. Assembly is incredibly simple as well. All in all, the E-Win Champion Gaming Chair is a more-than-worthy purchase if your wallet can swing it.
Where to buy: PC Gaming Chairs on ewinracing.com.
Disclaimer: EwinRacing provided PlayStation Universe with the EwinRacing Champion Series chair in blue color for the purpose of this review, though all opinions are our own.