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Category: Audio
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Published: Monday, 21 December 2015 19:56
Over the past few years it seems like everyone has been jumping into the portable bluetooth speaker market. You have trendy brands like beats pushing it heavily and even smaller companies bringing them out to slip into the market as well. Well Creative Labs got in fairly early with the original Sound Blaster Roar but I never took a look at it. Frankly portable audio isn’t exactly something that fits in my life very much, I’m typically in my car if outside of the house and in the house I have more than enough to output sound including the Sound Blaster X7 that I recently reviewed. That said a while back Creative Labs asked if I would be interested in checking out the Roar 2 and I figured it was about time I took a look. I’ve been using it around the house and whatnot for a while and now I can finally sit down and dive into its features and talk a little about my experience. So hang on, let’s take a close look at the Sound Blaster Roar 2.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Thursday, 22 October 2015 17:51
Like most of you PC and along with it my office is almost like a living being, slowly evolving. Every year or two I’m changing out my video cards, my motherboard, even keyboards and mice. It’s weird though, looking back there are only a few things that seem to be very consistent, my desk and for the most part my speakers. Well when I was replacing my desk last fall I decided that I wanted to move from the Corsair SP2500’s to something new. Now keep in mind, the Corsairs sounded good as did the Klipsch’s that I have before that. So to continue to evolve I wanted to go a new direction. Well the timing was good as Creative Labs had just recently introduced their X7 and more recently their E-MU XM7 bookshelf speakers. I loved the X5 when I covered it and for a long time I even used it over the onboard on my PC but the X7 looked to be a much more fitting permanent option. Well I’ve been testing both the X7 and the XM7 speakers for a while now and we can finally sit down and go over what they are and how well they performed.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Wednesday, 08 July 2015 19:33
I’m not sure if you guys have noticed, but the streaming market has been growing almost daily. Amazon invested over a billion dollars in buying Twitch last fall and even Google is expanding and doing their own game streaming service. It’s popular with people watching obviously, but that expansion has also meant a lot of people have been streaming, including a lot of the members of our community. We have even been streaming our LAN events as well. Razer recognized this and introduced their own USB desktop microphone the Seiren and more recently they followed that up with the Seiren Pro. Both get a high quality microphone into streamers, artists, and gamers hands. The Pro model does have a few improvements like the built in XLR port for anyone who later wants to move from USB to a proper mixing setup. Well Razer isn’t the only company with microphones focused on streaming and podcasts, so today I’m going to take a look at the Seiren Pro and see what it’s all about.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Friday, 17 April 2015 05:06
When it comes to headsets, just about every company you can imagine makes their own. You can find them in all different shapes and with countless features. That said I can’t honestly say that anything out on the market is the end all be all gaming headset. That is because everything about them is subjective. That said when a company like Asus puts out what they market as a high end gaming headset, I take notice. In just about everything they do they do an amazing job, especially on the audio front. So when the Asus Strix 7.1 gaming headset came in I couldn’t wait to test it out.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Wednesday, 28 January 2015 14:46
A while back I had the chance to check out the E1 from Sound Blaster. This was a small portable headphone amp that also doubled as a portable USB sound card. You could hook it up to our phone or portable gaming devices to increase the audio quality or if you wanted you could plug into your laptop or PC. Well Sound Blaster has been busy, after the introduction of the E1 they went on to introduce a Bluetooth version (the E3) and also the E5. What’s the E5? Well the E5 takes the same idea but rather than a sound card you get a full DAC (Digital Audio Converter). You get the same features of the E1 and the E3 but they really stepped things up even more on the audio quality side of things. Of course we can’t take their word for it, let’s dig in and see what the E5 is all about.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Tuesday, 28 October 2014 20:26
The tech geek in me loved hearing about the new SteelSeries Siberia V3 while the developing grumpy old man in me was a little concerned. I have learned over the years that sometimes a launch like this can be an amazing thing and other times companies change things just to change things and they end up messing up something that was great in the first place. You see, the original Siberia was good, but had many flaws. When SteelSeries introduced the Siberia V2 I was seriously amazed. They really stepped things up. Heck, I’ve been using the V2 with both the office and also with my LAN rigs for a few years now. Now with the introduction of the Siberia V3, will this model be a requirement in the office as well? I sure hope so, but improving on the Siberia V2 will be a tall order. Let’s take a look to see what has changed to determine that!
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Category: Audio
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Published: Friday, 03 October 2014 12:30
While I suspect the Siberia V3 and even the Siberia Elite Prism will get the most attention with SteelSeries introducing an entire new product lineup. They also slipped in a new product the Siberia RAW Prism. We already know that Prism represents the full color lighting and Siberia is their most popular audio line. In the past we have seen RAW mice, in those cases they dropped the fancy features and sold the basic gaming mouse at a lower price. So with that we can come to the conclusion that the Siberia RAW Prism is their new budget friendly gaming headset. Frankly this isn’t an area that SteelSeries has competed in very much, they have always stuck with the mid-range audio products and more recently a little on the higher end with the Elites. Because of that I’m excited to see what they put together.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Tuesday, 30 September 2014 10:41
When SteelSeries introduced their Siberia Elite I couldn’t have been more excited. Sadly after testing I was left with a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. They weren’t as comfortable as the Siberia v2 and I had a few audio issues as well. To the point where we even tried replacing them mid testing thinking my set might have been bad. In the end they weren’t terrible, but considering their price they didn’t live up to what they should have been. At our last LAN SteelSeries pulled me aside and had me try out a prototype Elite with a few changes and later they invited me to visit their Chicago office to check out their revamped product lineup. Well they listened to both us and the customer reviews on Amazon and made a few big changes with their new Siberia Elite Prism headset. Today I’m going to kick the dust off the original Elites and compare the two headsets to see if those changes are enough.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Wednesday, 16 July 2014 14:04
A few years ago, we used to see the fatal1ty headsets all over the place at events. They were without a doubt the best low budget gaming headset on the market. They performed well and took a beating without falling apart. Even now, it is still one of the highest rated headsets on Newegg. Here we are seven years later and Creative is introducing the SB Inferno, the spiritual successor to the Fatal1ty Gaming Headset. It’s amazing how much has changed in seven years, I can’t wait to see how the SB Inferno compares to today’s latest and greatest in gaming audio.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Wednesday, 14 May 2014 23:57
As phones, laptops, and other mobile devices continue to get smaller and smaller we have to compromise in some areas. A great example of this is overall sound quality. When was the last time you were shopping for an ultrabook and even considered what sound card was installed in it. I know when I picked up mine I didn’t give it any thought. Creative Labs recognized this and today is introducing two new mobile Sound Blaster products called the E1 and the E3. Today I have the chance to take a closer look at the E1 and see what it is all about.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Tuesday, 04 March 2014 13:59
Most of you are familiar with most of Logitech’s product line at this point from having owned one or knowing someone who uses Logitech products. For the most part their product line has stayed the same, with just a few exceptions and with small refreshes like what they did this past year. One area where they expanded their product line this past year though was their audio line. Before they just had the G35 and the G930, but they have now added the G430 and the G230. You may have seen them with their funny commercials during LCS this year. Today I am going to find out how the G430 compares to the G930 and gaming headsets from their competition.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Thursday, 13 February 2014 10:00
Quality sound and a comfortable fit aren’t exclusive to just PC gaming but for the most part finding the same experience in a console headset can be difficult and expensive. For most, owning a set of quality headsets for both your console and your PC simply isn’t cost effective. Today we take a look at the Ceres 500 from Cooler Master that looks to buck the trend and proved a quality experience to both platforms with the ability to switch between them on the fly. Is this performance too good to be true? We will find out.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Monday, 27 January 2014 09:00
We recently took a look at a gaming mechanical keyboard from an unlikely source, Func. In that review we also made allusions to Func bringing their design focus of innovative functionality without gimmicks to a whole range of gaming peripherals. Today we are here with the final piece of hardware in this new Func collection, the HS-260 Gaming Headset. Will Func continue to impress us with their new line of "Functionality. Perfected." peripherals or will audio prove to be their downfall. Let’s find out as we take an in depth look at the HS-260 Gaming headset.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Wednesday, 18 December 2013 14:48
It’s really hard to believe that the SteelSeries Siberia v2’s that we know and love have been out for over four years now. In that time most of you have rebuilt your PC at least once, have played countless game, and even lived through the Harlem Shake and Gangnam Style. So after all of that, I’m not surprised that SteelSeries is finally introducing another Siberia model to sell alongside of the v2. I have been looking forward to seeing what SteelSeries could do with their latest Siberia headset, let’s dive in and see what they are all about and see if they live up to their Elite name.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Monday, 16 December 2013 13:00
The gaming headset market is flooded but conventional wisdom has always been that if you want quality sound and a comfortable fit you are going to have to pay a little bit more for it. Today, however, we review an introductory model from Cooler Master that promises all the performance and comfort you’d expect in a mid-range headset at a price tag of under $30. The Ceres 300 is a follow-up to the Ceres 400 and comes with a more streamlined look and feel. Everything you’d expect to see in a head twice the price seems present but we will put it to the test to see if the Ceres 300 is truly worthy of praise.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Friday, 13 December 2013 11:16
I have gone through a whole collection of headsets in the past due to a cable going bad. This happens when you run over the wire with your chair when the wire is too long or when the cord is to short and you get hard tugs on it. Because of that I have been a big fan of wireless headsets, especially because latency is less of an issue with them. Well today I’m going to take a look at Logitech’s G930 wireless headset. I’m especially interested in how it compares to the Corsair Vengeance 2000, another popular wireless headset in the same price range. If the last two wireless mice from Logitech are indication, the G930 could be a good option. But let’s look closer before making any judgment.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Monday, 09 December 2013 10:01
SteelSeries has been busy introducing a few different products including a full rework of their H series of headsets, the new Siberia Elite, and even a new mouse. To start off our coverage I wanted to check out the new H series headsets, but with the size of my head I was limited to the new 9H that is larger than the 7H that we took a look at it years ago. With a new look, new drivers, and a new size I couldn’t wait to put my Siberia v2’s aside and try them out.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Wednesday, 04 December 2013 13:29
Almost every big headset manufacture has introduced their own wireless headset at some point over the past few years. SteelSeries did one specifically for console gamers as well. When I asked at the time they told me that a PC specific model was something they were considering. Well here we are on the brink of a new year and SteelSeries recently announced their H Wireless. While at MLG we had the chance to sit down with them and find out more about the H Wireless and then later take one home with us to put to the test. Let’s see what it’s all about and how it performed!
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Category: Audio
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Published: Wednesday, 16 October 2013 15:12
Thermaltake has churned out a long list of products under their Tt eSPORTS branding this past year and with each offering have displayed unique designs and portability minded function. Earlier we reviewed the MEKA G-Unit Illuminated keyboard and today we are back with a headset. The Cronos is a mid-range offering looking to deliver on the brands staples while also offering clear audio and voice communication all gamers crave. Join me as I put the Cronos through its paces and see if it is indeed worthy of the Tt eSPORTS name.
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Category: Audio
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Published: Wednesday, 03 July 2013 20:08
The headphone market is flooded these days. Whether you are strictly a gamer or enjoy watching TV and listening to music from time to time it seems to be harder and harder by the day to make call on which product you should settle on. Today I take a look at Alienvibes by Ineo Technology’s EP02 offering with active noise cancelling features and the promise of high-end sound in a portable mid-range price. Let’s see if the EP02’s have that special something that can separate itself from the pack or will simply fade into the crowd.
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