Mavix M5 Gaming Chair with Elemax review — Quality materials and a variety of features combine to form a top-notch chair

Despite only being around since November of 2020, Mavix has garnered quite a reputation within the gaming community due to their sleek, adjustable, and – most importantly – comfortable gaming chairs. I had a chance to take their Mavix M5 for a spin and to say that I was impressed would be an understatement. Superb in nearly every way, the M5 manages to mix style, features, and quality materials into one incredible, albeit high priced, chair that easily lives up to Mavix’s reputation of excellence.

The Mavix M5 immediately stood out to me by being less flashy than many chairs currently on the market and more closely resembling an office desk chair. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a knock on the design – by going for a more ergonomic look the Mavix M5 immediately looks and feels familiar while also quickly being recognized as having superior material than your run-of-the-mill office chair. Covered in durable Mavix Mesh on both the seat and back, along with Mavix PU for the dynamic variable lumbar (DVL) support and neck rest, the M5 feels more than able to withstand years of use.

Despite it’s simple look, the Mavix M5 is surprisingly customizable, featuring a comfy and adjustable head support pillow, sturdy position locks that ring out a satisfying click when positioning the back height, DVL support that adjusts to your movements to constantly provide optimal comfort, a breezy mesh seating surface which remains cool, the welcome addition of adjustable seat depth which allows the seat to be slid out for optimal positions, an impressive tension recline, no slip locking wheels, comfortable two way adjustable arms, and a sturdy infinite locking position recline.

 

Even minus all the seating customizations, the M5 is comfortable. The mesh and PU leather are both cool to the touch and comfortable to the touch. I prefer the mesh to the PU when it comes to the seat, and I am glad that Mavix decided to only use the PU for specific areas of comfort, such as the neck and DVL supports, rather than throughout the entire chair. PU, while durable, does wear out quicker than the mesh and is susceptible to animals or other hazards ripping and tearing it, while the mesh feels nearly indestructible and should be able to easily withstand most everyday hazards and animals. The M5 features a good mixture of both materials and provides the right amount of support in nearly all areas, allowing for hours of pain free gaming or working.

The sturdy five-star base can hold either locking caster wheels or M wheels. I have both wheels and believe that either would suffice for home use, but if you plan to roll the chair throughout multiple rooms you may want to opt for the M wheels as they provide a bit of a smoother rolling experience, but I had no issues on hardwood or carpet with the plastic-coated caster wheels and feel that they would be fine for most individuals.

A selling point for all Mavix chairs is their dynamic variable lumber or DVL support, which is just as comfortable as advertised. The DVL section is covered in PU leather and can be adjusted along with the back to be placed at the optimal height for back support. Featuring a slight curve, the DVL adjusts well to a user’s movements while seated, allowing support no matter how you lounge. Coupled with the sturdy back rest which is capable of being precisely locked into a variety of height settings up to 53.5”, the DVL support and Mesh backing work together to create a relaxing seating experience.

Sitting atop that mesh back rest is the PU covered head rest which is cool to the touch and capable of being tilted to accurately support the curvature of your neck, providing a comfortable head rest whether you are in a sitting or reclining position. Speaking of reclining, the M5 is capable of reclining at a 105-degree arc angle with a maximum of a 135-degree recline and locks steadily into place via Mavix’s infinite locking position mechanisms. I was surprised by how far this chair reclined as, judging purely by the looks, I hadn’t expected much if any reclining options. The recline is easy to set and holds without any fear of the lock slipping out of place.

The final two adjustments available, the arm rests and the seat depth, help to further round out the seating experience users will have during their play sessions. The two-way adjustable arms can be lifted and lowered via a button on the side of each and can also swivel in and out to provide multiple choices of comfort for the user. The seat depth is adjusted via a small lever underneath the chair which allows the seat to smoothly glide away from or closer to the backrest, providing additional support for users of different heights.

The seat has a width of 20.5” while it can sit at a maximum of 23” off the floor. I found the chair’s height worked well for both myself and my wife, despite us having a difference of quite a few inches in height. At 48 lbs., the chair isn’t light, but isn’t too heavy if it needs to be carried, however I suspect most will opt to just roll the chair around the house. A class 4 heavy duty cylinder helps the chair effortlessly glides up and down as needed and is durable enough that it should last the life of the chair. Speaking of the chair’s life, Mavix is so sure of their products that they provide a 12-year warranty on all their chairs, providing ease of mind to those worried about making such an expensive purchase.

Now that I’ve covered the chair, I must dive into the Elemax. While not included with the base M5, the Elemax is an add-on which I would highly recommend as it provides heating, cooling, and massage functions to the base chair and can be attached in mere seconds.

The Elemax is made to fit snugly inside the back of the DVL support and comes with a plastic piece that can be attached to cover the Elemax aside from its function buttons. Assembly is as easy as shoving the Elemax into the open spot and clipping on the cover board (see above picture for reference). The Elemax can be charged via USB and holds a battery charge strong enough to last 7 full heating cycles. Users have the option to keep their chair plugged in for continuous use of the Elemax or to charge the battery and unhook for more mobility.

The Elemax has three defining features: heating, cooling, and massaging. The cooling is powered by dual fans which flicker on at the touch of a button and cool the DVL support, therefore lowering your body temperature along the curvature of your lower back and allowing for longer play sessions. Alternatively, during cold nights you can turn on the heating function which will heat the DVL support and warm your lower back for 15-minute intervals up to 131 F. Both heating and cooling functions can be used alongside the massage feature, which has two settings: variable or constant. The variable massage sends out a pulsating wave every second or so, while the constant massage is a steady stream of vibrations. For each setting you can also switch between gentle or powerful intensities, with the powerful intensity being much stronger than I would have expected from such a small addition. The Elemax comes with a separate 3-year warranty and retails for around $159.99.

While the Mavix M5 is comfortable on its own, the Elemax really adds flair to the chair and makes it a must purchase. I was impressed with the chair before turning on the Elemax, but after its addition I was completely sold and found myself randomly sitting in the chair throughout the day just to test out its various functions and marvel at how well it worked. My only gripe with the Elemax is that it is a bit awkward to control while sitting in the chair, as the controls are in the back and cannot be seen. Still, a bit of messing around behind your back will find the settings you want, as will jumping out of your chair for a second to set it, so it’s not a deal breaker, just a gripe some people may have. In all honesty though, I’d rather have to get out of my chair to change the settings than have a bulky remote attached to the Elemax just to save me a few seconds of movement.