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72 of 80 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Genuine Fun., June 21, 2009
This review is from: Logitech G35 7.1-Channel Surround Sound Headset (Electronics)
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These headphones are a lot of fun.
I'm not a gamer - can't play many games because I get dizzy, but I am sort of a collector of headphones. Frankly, I expected these to be awful and was more than pleasantly surprised to find that they are really quite good.
OK, so they look like some kind of boy toy science fiction gizmo. For me, I could do without all the buttons. But having a volume button on the headphone and a mute for the mic is very useful.
Most headphones depend upon the right combination of source and headphone to get a good sound. If you plug most high end headphones directly into your ipod or computer soundcard the sound quality is atrocious. The right mate of source and sound can mean that the right $20 headphone in your ipod can give surprisingly good sound if it is a good match.
The good (and the bad) of a USB headset is that it bypasses the amp in your computer soundcard. Instead, the digital to audio processing occurs through USB. This approach can allow very high quality sound, and in the case of this headset, it succeeds.
As to sound quality. I am impressed with the surround sound where normally I find surround unbearably processed and artificial, the software does a good job. With the surround sound turned off, and these headphones are in pure stereo mode, forget it, it's awful. But that isn't what these headphones are for. Bass is excellent with good low extension and not even the slightest touch of boominess. Artifical bass enhancement is one of the things I hate about most processed sound, and I was delighted to find that none was present. Logitech is to be commended for making that choice in the design because most people equate sloppy boomy bass with high quality (think car stereo woofer).
The mid range is outstanding. That's where the sound really excels. I have a few very high end headphones where the midrange is weak. With these headphones subtleties of tone and shading in human voices are easy to hear.
The high end of the sound spectrum is the weakness of the sound signature. Lost highs are the big price for processed sound. Imagine a bell ringing. After the bell rings the sound hangs in the air and slowly fades. When the highest highs are lost, and the sound is processed, the sound gets artifically cut off and the "air" is gone from the sound. At the present state of technology this seems to be unavoidable in all processed sound. The good news with this headset is that this loss of highs is not too horribly bad. I could listen to music (which is not what these are for) and it was not too distracting. The offset was the beautiful mids and the realistic sound stage.
Listening to movies, other than gaming, is where this headset excels. This is where location of sound can make a huge difference, and the ambiant sounds contribute to the experience. Watching a movie with these headset while sitting right in front of my computer screen is immersive and exciting. I can imagine that in games, where location of sounds is critical, that these would greatly enhance the experience and give the player an extra edge.
Finally, they are pretty comfortable. The choice of cushioning is very appreciated.
My partner and I both want to use them. I was given these to review but I might have to buy another set. The price, when you consider that it includes the digital audio converter and amplification, is very reasonable for a headset of this quality.
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42 of 49 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Great audio positioning, lackluster quality, July 5, 2009
This review is from: Logitech G35 7.1-Channel Surround Sound Headset (Electronics)
For the past half-year, I've been using a Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer sound card and a pair of Sony MDR-NC40 headphones. The combination provides wonderful control over sound quality, whether in music, media, or gaming. However, the CMSS Headphone "Virtual Surround" technology that the Creative cards use isn't particularly impressive to me. It works incredibly well for some people, but it doesn't "cut it" in my case.
Today, I purchased a G35. I was incredibly eager to try it out because, wherever I looked, the headset got positively glowing reviews, praising the clarity of the headset and the impressiveness of the Dolby 7.1 Virtual Surround soundfield. Driver installation was simple enough; I downloaded the proper driver from the Logitech website and installed it. I didn't have to restart my computer, which I always find to be a plus.
I plugged in the phones, fired up a DTS demo, and... it sounded terrible. I went into the drivers and tried playing with the provided settings. Unfortunately, the "equalizer" consisted of simply main volume, bass, treble, and mic volume. This was pretty disappointing to me. Every sound card I had ever used had had at the very least a 10-band equalizer, if not 12- or 24-band. In short, I couldn't customize the G35 to have anywhere near the audio quality of what I had before.
I will say this; the Virtual Surround positioning is indeed excellent. It's the best virtualization of a 7.1 surround sound system that I've ever heard. That said, I can't sacrifice quality sound for "more" sound.
If you don't use a discrete sound card with your PC, then you'll probably think that the G35 sounds like audio heaven. If you have used a discrete sound card and a decent pair of headphones, you probably won't be particularly impressed. If you do end up getting a G35, I'd suggest purchasing a pair from a location with a no-questions-asked return policy, just in case it's not what you thought it'd be.
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21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Finest USB headset I have ever used., April 24, 2009
This review is from: Logitech G35 7.1-Channel Surround Sound Headset (Electronics)
Logitech's G35 really sets a mark for gaming headsets. Other surround sound headsets that I have used have been large and uncomfortable after sustained use, however the G35 has an adjustable headband and comes with three different cushions for whatever shape head you may have. The cups are padded rather nicely and do a pretty decent job of blocking out ambient sound. The USB cord is sleeved and the whole thing really feels well crafted. Features like the microphone automuting when you put it in the upright position make you wonder why this hasn't been done with every headset on the market.
The software is simple and easy to use, however i found it somewhat limited. The only balance controls are for bass and treble, with no presets or anything like that for types of music. Their is no control over the surround sound to balance your own levels or test it; the only thing you can do is turn the surround sound on and off using the manual switch on the back of the left cup. The customizable buttons are a great concept and comes with custom actions for programs like Itunes, Windows Media Player and Ventrilo, however it lacks Teamspeak support. The voice morphing is fun, but superfluous. For the price of this headset I would like a little bit more technical features and control over the sound. Note: the program uses 19MB of memory when you are using the headset, but on my laptop (Intel core 2 duo 2.2ghz, 2 gigs of ram) I haven't noticed a performance decrease.
The sound quality is superb for a USB headset. It doesn't sound as good as my Creative X-Fi sound card, but it definitely gets the job done. I haven't heard any distortions or crackling while gaming, and the directionality of the sound is very distinct and enhances gaming for sure. The low end is undistorted and you can actually feel explosions and things of the sort. The microphone records crisp and clear, and while the microphone is advertised as noise canceling, it occasionally picks up some background noise.
130$ is a lot for a headset, but these things deliver. I'd prefer some more control over the more technical aspects of the sound, but I am satisfied and have enjoyed using this device. If money isn't an object, go ahead and pick yourself up a pair.
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