[Product Review] Logitech® Premium USB Headset 300

[Steve]

<p>Logitech® Premium USB Headset 300</p>
<p>Computers are being used in more ways than ever now and are increasing becoming the complete multimedia machine. No longer are they just being used for typing up homework and keeping track of accounts, but for gaming, listening to CD's and mp3's, watching DVD's and TV.<br>
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So sound is definitely important, But do you really think everyone in your street wants to hear from your 5.1 surround sound speakers (complete with sub woofer that is bigger then your monitor), a circling Blackhawk in the early hours of Wednesday morning? Well, believe it or not, they don't! and if you haven't found that out yet then beware.<br>
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Instead of those big speakers you can have two smaller ones strapped to your head. Hey that's an excellent idea. Now I can listen without disturbing anyone and without being disturbed myself, seems like a good plan to me. <br>
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Even more useful is a microphone attached to the headphones, so now no matter where i move my head, the microphone is still just in front of my mouth. <br>
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So what do you do when you beloved headset / mic. decides to let you down and end its own life? GET A NEW ONE!
Through bad experiences in the past I decided a quality headset would be essential, and how can you tell quality? Price of course... surely?<br>
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Right now I'm listening to some funky house through my brand new


<strong>Logitech® Premium USB Headset 300</strong>.<br>
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<img src="http://www.logitech.com/lang/images/0/1502.gif"><br>
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Weighing in at approx <strong>$50</strong> (U.S.) (approx £50 in the U.K., seems the exchange rate has changed or the people in the U.K. are getting another bad deal). Personally I would say that was pretty expensive, most headsets are 50% cheaper but other companies make much more expensive headsets for computers.<br>
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The specification of the


<strong>Logitech® Premium USB Headset 300</strong> are as follows:<br>
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<strong>Frequency response:</strong><br>

Headset: 20-20'000 Hz
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Microphone: 100-16'000 Hz
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<strong>Sensitivity:</strong> <br>

-58 dBV/µbar, -38 dBV/Pa+/-4dB </p>
<p>Ok, I admit that I don't really know what that means, but I did compare the specs. to other headsets and it seems the extra cost provides you with that little bit extra in the way of frequency. <br>
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<strong>The box contains:</strong><br>
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Premium Stereo USB Headset<br>
Documentation<br>
Full product support<br>
2-year guarantee<br>
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<strong>The system requirements are:</strong><br>
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PC with Windows® 98, Me, 2000, or XP <br>
Macintosh® with OS 9.0.4+ <br>
USB port <br>
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You might have noticed by now that the headset is <strong>USB</strong> based. This means it doesn't plug into the usual socket that you might expect with some headphones or a mic. As with the majority of USB devices, this is simply plug and play and there is absolutely nothing to install. You simply plug the headset into your nearest USB socket ( USB 1 or USB 2 ) and Windows automatically detects it. </p>
<p>Incidentally the downfall of my last headset was the headphone and microphone jacks coming from the same source. They had become twisted and the wire case had split rendering the headset useless. The cable on the logitech is pretty thick as most USB wires are so it would be very unlikely that this cable would let me down.<br>
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Also due to the USB functionality, there is no need for your computer to have a soundcard. This might seem a little weird but the set does plug into your USB and not you soundcard so it does make sense. This would probably be more useful for a laptop as a lot of computers have decent sound cards.<br>
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Yet another advantage of the USB connection is the digital audio rather then analogue. Look that up on Google if you want more information, this is not a physics class.<br>
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Funnily enough though, the USB connection has been the biggest issue I have with this product.
Firstly when the headset is plugged in, your regular speakers are muted, it pretty much stops all activity from your sound card. That kind of makes sense although I would would love a button on the headset to switch it on and off. Mainly because my USB ports are at the back of my tower which is on the floor under my desk! So switching is a pain for me personally, but I went out and bought a USB extension cable which has eliminated that problem.<br>
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I found that when plugging in the headset that it sometimes takes a little while to be recognised and you cannot switch between headset and speakers when an application such as winamp or a game is running or you will not get any sound at all. You need to shut your application, disconnect / connect the sound device, then restart your application. Just one of those <em>little things </em>I guess.<br>
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Then comes the most annoying thing, the microphone doesn't always work in my experience. I have to reconnect the headset two or three times, even ten times before it will work. My system meets the device's recommendations, I run Windows XP, and there are no drivers to install so I cannot see the problem.<br>
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The microphone does seem to be pretty good when it is working. You can record high quality sound on .WAV files and the sound is as good as can be expected on voice comms. while playing games.<br>
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The mic sits comfortably just at the very side of my mouth and the last few cm. is flexible but holds its position. The mic, can be moved up or down also so you can get it out the way altogether or move it slightly to drink etc. The only thing it is missing is the ability to extend or shorten the length of the mic.<br>
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The headset can be worn equally comfortably either way around so the mic is on the left or right. If you are playing games then the mic needs to be on the left or your sound will be completely incorrect and you will be running around in circles trying to follow gunshots. <br>
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The ear pads actually fit on your ears, not over or in the ear like some. This does let you ear breathe and is a lot more comfortable than I was expecting. The pads have a kind of velvet texture and I have worn them for five or six hours at a time without discomfort! Impressive. The design of the headset is overall good and they are very light indeed.<br>
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Of course with the design being the way it is with small(ish) speakers limits the sound capability. There is a distinct lack of bass, it seems like there isn't any at all to be honest. And the effect of this is worsened by the fact that I was previously using large over the ear headphones that actually had bass capability. However, the Logitech's can go loud but keep good sound quality. One of the downsides of the USB connectivity is that you cannot alter the bass / med / treble settings on you sound card. <br>
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The headset has inline volume control on the cable. It has a clip so you attach it to yourself if you want to (?). This control also has a mute button for the microphone which can be useful at times. Logitech have put an annoying green LED on the volume control, I presume it is just to show that is connected and if you mute the mic then it becomes more annoying as it flashes. Right now I see out the bottom of my eye this unforgiving flashing LED which is not too hard to forget about except I'm typing about it. Time to move on...<br>
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I think overall this is a good product. The design is great, there is a few technical problems but Logitech have support and a forum on their web site where you can get help, plus I get a 2 year guarantee should anything go wrong like maybe a smashed LED light. The headphones perform well when playing games, the sound is clear and the stereo sound defiantly works for finding pesky snipers. I don't think I can fully recommend them for simply music listening only, and then why would you need the mic as well? But for gaming, voice comms, speech recognition, then these are perfect.<br>
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The last thing I need to mention is I really do not feel they are value for money. You could effectively pick up a cheaper pair of over the ear headphones that produce much richer sounds and a desktop microphone. Then you lose the benefits of the Logitech headset.<br>
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If you are a hard core gamer that uses voice comms and have some spare cash then you will get your money's worth, if not, then decide carefully about these. (Unless you see these on sale, then grab as many as you can and sell them to your squad mates). <br>

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