DXRacer Formula Series Review: A Nice Gaming Chair for Smaller Users

Our Rating: 8.4/10

DXRacer Formula Review: Pros & Cons

pro

A fairly comfortable chair for smaller individuals (recommended less than 5’8″ and 180 lbs.)

pro

DXRacer has so many different color schemes/options available for their chairs, you’ll likely be able to find a specific color scheme for you

cons

The arm rests on the OH/FD01/N don’t have a ton of adjustment features. Just the standard up & down.

cons

I would have preferred PU leather over mesh, but there are alternate Formula series chairs with PU leather

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to review the SecretLab Titan PC gaming chair. And, that review led me on a quest to review more of these racing-style gaming chairs. So, today I’m back with a DXRacer Formula series review.

DXRacer has six different versions of their Formula series. Today, we’re reviewing the OH/FD01/NR, which is the cheapest version of the Formula series lineup. I will also touch on some of the differences between this version and some of the more expensive options in the Formula lineup.

At just under $300, the DXRacer Formula Series gaming chair is a reasonably affordable price to pay for one of the top brands on the market. And, in fact, when you only consider the more popular names in PC gaming chairs (DXRacer, Maxnomic, SecretLab, AKRacing, Vertagear, etc.), paying just under $300 is about as low as you can go for one of the top brands.

Of course, there are a lot of lesser-known brands who are making similar-style gaming chairs for less. But, as far as the big name brands go, just under $300 seems to be the starting point.

So, in other words, the OH/FD01/NR is one of the least expensive chairs from the big name PC chair manufacturers.

In any case, let’s start out with the unboxing and assembly process and then I’ll go over the comfortability and features DXRacer’s F-Series chair offers.

DXRacer Formula Series Unboxing & Assembly

Even the best PC gaming chairs don’t come pre-assembled (they would probably cost 3x as much to ship because of their awkward shape.)

DXRacer F-Series Unboxing

So, just like with most other PC gaming chairs, the DXRacer OH/FD01/NR has to be assembled (and unboxed) before sitting in it.

DXRacer Formula Series Unboxing

The packaging is decent. Everything is well-protected and there’s nothing really to complain about there.

DXRacer Formula Parts

The instructions are fine as well. They’re nothing fancy, just a simple piece of paper with a sketch of the step-by-step assembly process.

DXRacer F-Series Assembly

Overall, the assembly process took me a little under 30 minutes to complete. It’s really not that complicated of a process in the grand scheme of things.

DXRacer Formula Assembly

How Comfortable is DXRacer’s OH/FD01/NR Formula Series Chair?

Now, first off, I’m right at the maximum of DXRacer’s recommended height and weight for this chair. I’m about 5’10” and 180 lbs., and DXRacer recommends a maximum height of 5’8″ and 180 lbs.

So, weight-wise, I’m right at the top of the spectrum and height-wise, I’m a bit over.

So, the chair is a bit snug to me. But, I don’t want to dock it for that reason, because technically, this chair wasn’t built for my body type.

And, since I just reviewed SecretLab’s Titan (in which I sit in the bottom range of the recommended height and weight for) going from having a ton of room in that chair, to a tighter fit in this chair was something that I noticed right away.

I think if I would have reviewed this chair before reviewing the Titan, and not had the experience of sitting in as roomy of a chair prior to reviewing this Formula series chair, I probably wouldn’t be hitting on how “snugly” the chair fits me, because I wouldn’t have the roominess of the Titan to compare it to.

Ultimately, the Formula series doesn’t offer what I would call top-of-the-line comfort, but it has still been a pretty darn comfortable chair to sit in.

And, if you’ve got a smaller body type, this chair isn’t going to be quite as snug for you. Which means that it will probably be even more comfortable for you.

Mesh or PU Leather: I Should Have Gone With An F-Series Chair With PU Leather Instead of Mesh

DXRacer Formula

As for the mesh material on this Formula chair, I’m not a huge fan of it. I would definitely prefer a PU Leather covering on it over the mesh covering that the OH/FD01/NR comes with. But, the good news is that there are different versions of DXRacer’s Formula series chairs that are fully covered in PU Leather.

The PU leather chairs do cost a bit more, but for me, I think the extra cost would be worth it after sitting in the mesh version.

The mesh covering isn’t terrible. To me, it’s just not as smooth and nice-feeling as the synthetic leather chairs I’ve become accustomed to.

I know the benefit of mesh seats is that they “breath” better than leather. But, from a comfort standpoint—as well as an aesthetic standpoint—I prefer the PU leather.

Of course, there are likely some out there who prefer mesh over PU leather. And, if that’s the case, then fortunately this chair has that covered for you.

Also, leather is more sensitive to temperature changes, and so if you are planning on putting your chair in an area that either gets too hot or too cold, you may not enjoy sitting on leather as much.

Overall, the mesh vs. leather debate is kind of a personal preference thing. But for me, I probably should have gotten one of the Formula series versions that had PU Leather on it.

As a result, I’ll dock a few tenths of a point off of this specific Formula series chair, that I wouldn’t dock on the F-series versions that have a leather covering.

The Lumbar Support and Head/Neck Pillow… Not Too Bad!

DXRacer F-Series Lumbar

The cool thing about SecretLab’s Titan was that its lumbar support was built into the chair. Most of these racing-style gaming chairs come with pillows that attach to the chair by two straps.

From an aesthetic standpoint, the Titan’s built-in lumbar support makes the chair look a lot cleaner (in my opinion.)

However, as I do sit closer to the minimum height recommendation for the Titan, I’ve found that its lumbar support hits me slightly higher than I’d like. And, there’s no way to adjust its height.

With the adjustable PU leather lumbar support pillow that the DXRacer Formula series comes with, I can move the pillow around to hit the right spot on my back.

So, in terms of finding the right height placement for lumbar support, the adjustable pillow works better for me than the Titan’s built-in lumbar support.

The other thing I like about the adjustable pillow is that sometimes I like to move the lumbar support to different spots on my back. Sometimes I want it higher and sometimes I want it lower.

With the pillow I can easily move it around to “switch it up” a bit.

Some Downsides of Lumbar Support Pillows (In General)

However, the lumbar support pillow isn’t perfect.

Again, from an aesthetic stand point I don’t think it looks as good.

The other thing I don’t like about the lumbar pillow is that I can’t “dial it back.” On the Titan, I can turn a knob and tone down how much lumbar support the chair gives me. With the Formula series, it’s either all or nothing.

Overall, I prefer the built-in lumbar support on the Titan to an adjustable lumbar pillow. But, each have their pros and cons, and the OH/FD01/NR’s pillow is a completely fine alternative for lumbar support.

The Neck/Head Pillow is Pretty Standard

As for the neck/head pillow that comes with the OH/FD01/NR, it’s a pretty standard offering. The pillow is covered in PU leather, just like the lumbar support pillow and says “DXRacer” on it.

It has a strap that allows it to wrap around the chair. And, it can be adjusted by moving the strap around.

DXRacer F-Series Head Pillow

Ultimately, there really aren’t a whole lot of differences between head/neck pillows among the different chairs on the market. They’re all pretty standard and there’s nothing that makes the head/neck pillow on this F-series chair stand out.

But, it is there, and it’s on par with what DXRacer’s competitors offer.

Arm Rest Comfort? They’re Not Amazing, But They’re Not Bad Either

DXRacer F-Series Gaming Chair

The arm rests aren’t anything that will blow you away. Just like the neck/head pillow and lumbar support pillow that the OH/FD01/NR comes with, the arm rests provided are a standard offering for racing-style chairs in the $200-$300 price range as well.

The arm rests are a bit narrow and they are a little firm. Now the firmness doesn’t really bother me, but I know from reading others comments & questions on my SecretLab Titan review and the unboxing video of this chair, that arm rest comfortability is something people care about.

I can’t really speak to what other people find comfortable in their arm rests, so the only real way I can approach this is how the arm rests feel to me. And, from there I can try and guess as to how they might feel to others.

So, ultimately, I think the arm rests are fine in terms of comfort. They may not be overwhelmingly comfortable, but they are probably comfortable enough for most people.

Now, if you have larger forearms, again, the arm rests are a bit narrow and they might not be something that would be a great option for you.

And, if you’re someone who is looking for high-end arm rests, my guess is that these arm rests won’t be up to your standards.

But overall, for me, I haven’t noticed any pain or discomfort when resting my arms or elbows on them for extended periods and, while they are a bit narrow, they fit my arms fine. And, for my preferences, that’s all I really require out of arm rests. So, they do the job just fine in my opinion.

The Adjustment Options on the DXRacer F-Series

DXRacer F-Series Recline

As no two body types are the same, a chair’s ability to adjust is fairly important.

The DXRacer OH/FD01/NR doesn’t have a ton of adjustment options, but it does have the basic adjustment features, as well as the ability to recline backwards.

The chair’s height can be adjusted, as well as the height of the arm rests.

The chair can also tilt back and forth at its base, or lock into a non-tilted position.

Unfortunately, though, the F-Series chair cannot be locked into a tilted position at its base. So, you can either leave it unlocked and be able to rock back and forth in it, or you can lock it at a zero tilt angle, but you can not lock the base at a tilted angle.

Of course, as is standard with most of these racing-style gaming chairs, you can recline the back of the OH/FD01/NR.

It can’t recline as significantly as other chairs, but it can go back 135°. So, you can kick-back in this chair and sit at more of an angle.

And, as we mentioned above, you can adjust the lumbar support pillow up and down. The head/neck rest is also adjustable as well.

Overall, this DXRacer F-Series chair doesn’t have as many adjustment features as some of the other gaming chairs out there—especially on the arm rests—but it does have the basic adjustment options.

Other Things to Consider: Build Quality & Color Options

Since the OH/FD01/NR has a recommended maximum weight capacity of 180 lbs. (and an absolute maximum weight capacity of 200 lbs.), it obviously doesn’t have the best build quality out there.

Clearly, if you’re over the maximum weight capacity of this chair, you should not be considering it.

So, instead of talking about the chair’s overall build quality, I’d rather approach it from the angle of what its build quality is like in relation to the types of users that should be sitting in it.

Again, I am slightly over the recommended weight capacity of 180 lbs. (but I do weigh less than the maximum weight capacity of 200 lbs.). I think this gives me a bit of a unique perspective, as according to the manufacturer’s recommendations, I’m probably not ideal for this chair.

However, I’ve been sitting in the Formula Series chair for a couple of weeks now and I can safely say that the chair has no problems holding me.

So, while I wouldn’t say that it has as good of a build quality as the SecretLab Titan, I’d say that it’s build quality is plenty good enough for the body types that the chair was built to accommodate.

Arm Rest Build Quality

The other area that I’ve been asked about is on the build quality of the arm rests.

Again, these are not incredible arm rests. They are pretty standard in terms of overall quality.

The arm rests, however, are very sturdy at their base. They are a bit wobbly at the top, but that is a result of the up and down adjustment feature.

Plenty of Color Schemes to Choose From

The DXRacer Formula Series has a ton of different color schemes and styles.

The OH/FD01/NR in particular has four different styles, but some of the other versions of the Formula Series have upwards of 11 different color schemes to choose from.

So, needless to say, if you’re looking for a specific color scheme for a Formula series chair, DXRacer likely has the right one for you.

For me, specifically, I like that DXRacer offers an all-black chair. If you’re like me and you don’t want a lot of flashy colors on your chair, it’s nice to have the option to go with something that isn’t too extreme looking.

Verdict: The base Formula Series chair is solid for the price, but I’d choose a higher-end F-series model if I could do it over

I’ll just get straight to it. The DXRacer OH/FD01/NR is a pretty good chair when all things are considered.

It does have some flaws, and it won’t be a great option for a lot of users.

However, it is a solid chair that will get the job done for the people who meet the chair’s recommended height and weight capacities.

Also, it’s important to note that the OH/FD01/NR doesn’t have a lot of overwhelming features. And, so, I don’t expect many people to be ‘wowed’ by it.

But for those users out there who aren’t super picky with their chair’s comfort levels or features, and who just want something that is suitable in those areas, but that also looks really cool, then this will likely will be a good choice.

I will say, though, that I think that if I had reviewed one of the Formula series chairs that has a PU leather covering instead of this chair (which is covered in a mesh material), I probably would have rated those chairs at least a couple of points higher than the 8.4/10 that I have given this chair. (So, a bump up to 8.6-8.7 for the F-Series chairs that do have PU leather.)

But, even with the mesh covering, it’s still a decent option overall.

Ultimately, though, if you are looking for a more polished chair that offers more features and better comfort, you’ll likely want to consider spending a little more. If not, though, this one is a viable option to consider.

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Hey, I’m Brent. I’ve been building PCs and writing about building PCs for a long time. Through TechGuided.com, I've helped thousands of people learn how to build their own computers. I’m an avid gamer and tech enthusiast, too. On YouTube, I build PCs, review laptops, components, and peripherals, and hold giveaways.

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