Sunday Salutations: The Search for a Headset
Today I am testing a new headset. I’ve already tested three different headsets in the past week. And during my week off I’ll be testing at least one more. If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know. While Tod is wonderful at finding headsets, we are currently looking for light-weight headsets (under 200 gram) that go over the ears, do not press in too much, and still fit my head (which is on the small side). I feel like I am the Goldilocks of headsets.
Headset 1: SteelSeries Arctis 9
The first set I tried was the SteelSeries Arctis 9. It supports radio frequency and Bluetooth connections.
Tod had found this headset had particularly good ratings. He is good at extensive online research on arbitrary areas, anything from the best cooking pan, the best throwing knife targets, to how to dress to stay warm in Alaska in -30C. Tod ‘s search strength is strong!
So, it’s no surprise that he was able to find a very nice headset that worked very well. If it were not for one teensy itsy-bitsy problem. They made my head hurt. A lot. It was to the point where I was taking prescription medication for headaches, until Tod tried a different SteelSeries (the Nova 7) and realized he was getting a headache after an hour or two. I stopped using the headset and magically, I had no headache.
Needless to say, we returned the headsets as neither of us could use them.
I am slightly sad because I loved the microphone on the Arctis 9. It worked marvelously in every other sense. The microphone picked up only my voice, even when there was background noise going around. I could basically whisper, while there were sounds going on around me, and the headset would still parse the words correctly. Or at least correctly enough for a rough draft. So, if you can handle the heaviness of a 377 gram headset then they are the top choice. However, if you are a delicate little snowflake like I appear to be, and need a lightweight headset, I will be posting about the different ones I try until I find one that I like.
Headset 2: Razer BlackShark V2 X
The second set I tried while we were waiting to get another in was my gaming set that I use every other weekend for our Traveller game. The Razer BlackShark V2 X headset in white was a gift from my sister. (Thanks Julia!) This is a wired headset that fits over the ears.
I knew this headset did not hurt my head and that I could wear it for an extended period, as have used it for about 4 hours at a time without a problem. I also knew that the sound quality worked very well for gaming. However, I was not entirely sure about the dictation as the microphone was not unidirectional.
It turns out that it does not work for dictation at least for me, as I tend to speak softly (She speaks so quietly, you can’t tell she’s talking. – Tod) that it requires a uni-directional microphone.
This specifically was an issue when I was testing, and Tod was working outside. The microphone could not make out anything I said because it was just picking up the motor. Another issue was that Tod or my sister could walk into the room and say a few words and their words would get picked up. Not so great, when you are trying to get a line right or even brain storming.
Headset 3: Logitech Wired 750
The most recent set was the one that I used to write the first part of this review with, a Logitech Wired 750 headset. It is an on the ear headset.
I actually was not planning on writing this review yet, as I just started using the headset. I am trying to be fair in my testing, giving each headset a few tries before I call it quits.
But this is a fit issue, which is much harder to fix than some of the others. The 750 headset pressed into the sides of my head instead of being just a weight on it. And it made my ears hurt.
After 1 hour of testing, I had to give up on them. The headset did okay at blocking out sounds. At least I was able to talk at my normal volume (A bit louder than with the Arctic 9. You could tell she was talking and even understand her if you listened carefully. -Tod) and even with the dog drinking in the other room it could parse my words. (We have a Newfoundland dog. His drinking is a Zoom interrupting extinction level event. -Tod)
Since neither human that I live with talked to me while dictating, I am not able to say how well they handle blocking out extra words. I guess I could check it, but I don’t need to know, since I don’t want to use them.
Maybe I need to just look for a microphone. (Except she likes to work stretched out on the couch. -Tod) Things to think about.
~Anna
P.S.
Hope everyone’s weekend and summer is going well. We took this week off so that we don’t lose PTO at work. My goal is to finish the first draft for the current work in progress, which is currently 85K words long. I hope to get to about 100K. I have it plotted, but it might take me more than 15k to wrap it up… We will see. I will then hand it off to Tod. He will work his magic on it. (Cutting extra here, marking, or straightening out tangles, and in general doing developmental edits, doing rewrites as needed, and querying Anna about what she meant in certain places. -Tod) Then, we will get to do some general edits before we send it to beta readers.
P.P.S.
While editing this, the next test headset arrived. The new headset is a Logitech Vibe 100. The headset is currently charging, but when I tried it on it felt really comfortable. (I have a large head.) I’m also testing a Logitech MX Ergo, which is a thumb-trackball mouse replacement. It’s already way more usable than other trackballs I’ve tested in the past. -Tod