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Oak Hollow Lyra Review

Derek Hales

Written By: Derek Hales

Updated on:

Oak Hollow Lyra Hero
92 Performance
100 Quality
100 Design
92 Value
92 Usability
95.2 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1

Best For

  • Perfect for office, gaming, and workstation desk chairs
  • High adjustability armrests and tilt
  • Sturdy base and form cushion

Considerations

  • The chair does not come with a headrest or the option to add one.
  • One size fits all for the piston height and weight.

Our Verdict

The Oak Hollow Lyra is a fantastic chair for its performance, quality, design, and value. Simply put, you will have a hard time finding a chair of this quality for its price. It comes with all the adjustable features, a comfortable foam seat, and a breathable mesh backing. The build quality is something we would expect from a high-end designer chair. And finally, it has an elegant design that gives a professional look in home decor.

The only consideration we have before buying this chair is the open-size-fits option for the chair piston and the absence of an optional headrest. Depending on your preference and body build, it would be nice to have these features, but it’s not a deal breaker for us.

Seat Type: Foam
Seat Height: 43″
Weight: 41 lbs.

In This Review
Performance | Quality | Design | Value | Usability | Specs | Product Evolution | Comparison | FAQs

Performance Summary

At Modern Castle we test 5 different factors that impact the performance, build quality, and usability of the Oak Hollow Lyra. Below is a complete list of our testing categories and their performance.

Test TypeTest Data
Performance92%
Quality100%
Design100%
Value92%
Usability92%
92

Performance

The Oak Hollow Lyra had an exceptional performance during our assessment. The Lyra had a wide range of motion, comfortable cushion, sturdy armrests, and a comfortable back mesh with an adjustable lumbar support. When looking at the whole purpose and experience of sitting in an office chair, the Lyra did not disappoint in performing its role.

100

Quality

Oak Hollow makes some exceptionally well-built office chairs that we have tested, and use. The Lyra matches our expectations in that quality with the parts feeling thick and well-weighted. Additionally, all components of the chair have a feeling of high quality and well-sourced materials. In our opinion, this chair is built with durability in mind.

Oak Hollow Lyra
Oak Hollow Lyra
PartBuild Quality
OverallExcellent
CushionExceptional
Arm RestsExcellent
WheelsExceptional
Back SupportExcellent
Chair BaseExcellent
100

Design

The design of the Lyra is simple yet elegant. It’s not overly flashy like a gaming chair or an advanced ergonomic chair. Instead, it has one design theme, simplicity. Its chrome metal base offers a low center of gravity to the system.

Oak Hollow Lyra Front
Oak Hollow Lyra Front

The 27-inch width and 26-inch depth of the seat allow owners of all sizes to fit in the chair. The cushion is firm, yet conforms to your body as you sink into the foam. The adjustable lumbar support adds adjustability to fit the owner’s specific body contour. Overall, the Lyra has an exceptional design for an office chair.

92

Value

Oak Hollow offers durable and financially affordable high-end office chairs. They hold their value through durable material sourced for the components. This high quality build is expected to provide comfort throughout its lifetime. For the price of the Lyra, you’ll be investing in a chair that will withstand the daily use associated with an office chair. 

Oak Hollow Lyra Left Side
Oak Hollow Lyra Left Side
92

Usability

The Lyra has subtle adjustability features that allow the owner to customize their chair to their comfort. However, the features are less in-depth than other chairs on the market.

First, you can adjust the height via the chair’s piston. It supports up to 300 lbs. and can accommodate a range of average-height adults. It only comes with one piston size, So if you are short, tall, or exceed the 300 lbs limit, you may need to swap the piston out for an aftermarket part.

Next, The armrests have several adjustability settings. They can raise and lower independently, and turn inwards or outward at a 15-degree angle.

Additionally, the back lumbar support does slide up and down to fit the contours of your back. At first glance, it doesn’t look like it should move. However, apply a little vertical force and it will adjust to your comfort.

And finally, the reclining feature allows the user to lock the chair at 5 different reclining points.

Specifications

The following table details the product specifications according to the manufacturer.

Specifications
TypeOffice Chair
ManufacturerOak Hollow
ModelLyra
Height43″
Width26″
Length22″
Weight41 lbs.
Warranty30 Days
PriceCheck Price

Product Evolution

Oak Hollow has several different chair models that follow a similar design to more expensive high-end designer chairs, however, at a fraction of the cost. Other Oak Hollow chairs including the Aloria, Renia, and Valera utilize designs similar to Herman Miller, Steelcase, and others. The Lyra is a newer model that features high-quality material and design but is at an impressively low price. This makes the Lyra one of Oak Hollow’s lowest-priced options.

If you’d like to check out our review of the Aloria, click here to find out more.

How does Oak Hollow Lyra compare?

Below is a complete list of tests and critical product data compared on all of our Office Chairs tested to date.

ChairComfortSupportDurabilityAdjustableOverallPriceLink
Herman Miller AeronASSSS$$$$Check Price
Oak Hollow AloriaASSSS$$$Check Price
Oak Hollow
Lyra
AAAAA$Check Price
DX Racer OHBASAA$$Check Price
DX Racer DOHCBBAB$$Check Price
Branch ErgonomicBBCAB$Check Price
Serta Layers Jennings Super TaskABCCB$$Check Price
IKEA MarkusDCDCD$Check Price

We recently tested the office chairs our team uses (Click Here). We only recently tested the Lyra, so it wasn’t included in our larger best chair comparison. However, if the initial performance is any indicator we expect great durability and longevity from Lyra.

What sets the Lyra apart from the other chairs is the quality of the material, especially considering its exceptional price point. The IKEA Markus for example is around the price of the Lyra. In our opinion, the Lyra dominated the Markus in quality, design, comfort, and price.

Other Office Chairs to Consider

Herman Miller Aeron

Herman Miller Aeron

The chair has an incredible level of adjustability including the seat height, arm height and angle, tension tilt and lock, lumbar height, and more.

This fantastic chair received the highest performance scores in our recent review and it also has exceptional durability. The Modern Castle Aeron used in our office is 7 years old and still operates like it’s straight out of the box.

Branch Ergonomic

Branch Ergonomic Chair

Branch is a newer direct-to-consumer brand that sells chairs, desks, and other workplace essentials.

This chair would be best for someone who needs a daily office with some adjustability but doesn’t want to break the bank in purchasing a chair.

Oak Hollow Aloria

Oak Hollow Aloria

The Aloria office chair by Oak Hollow is a more affordable option compared to some designer office chairs.

This chair is best for someone who is looking for high adjustability and comfort, without the price tag of a designer chair.

FAQs

Use Also Asked to find relevant FAQs. And/or just create a few of your own that you think are relevant in case where Also Asked isn’t providing good questions.

How much weight does the Lyra support?

Oak Hollow suggests this chair is suitable for individuals 300 lbs or less.

Does the Lyra come with the option to put a headrest on?

No, the chair does not come with an optional headrest.

Why are office chairs so expensive?

While we can’t give you a definitive answer, office chairs need to be comfortable, durable for repeated use, and have adjustability features for comfort. This can raise the price tag depending on how the manufacturer sources and builds their products.

Is an expensive office chair worth it?

In our opinion, yes, but within your budget. We spend a lot of time in our chairs while working or recreating, so it makes sense for us to invest in quality chairs. We generally see thatchairs built with adjustability and quality materials outperform lower-priced chairs in our testing categories.

About Derek Hales

Derek HalesDerek Hales is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of ModernCastle.com. He has been featured in Fast Company, Reader's Digest, Business Insider, Realtor.com, She Knows, and other major publications. Derek has a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from Kansas State University. Hales has been testing and reviewing products for the home since 2014.