Reviewed: August 17, 2005
Reviewed by: Mongoose

Manufacturer
Logitech

Type: Gaming Headset
System: PC

Rating: 9.4

Package Contents

  • Stereo PC headset
  • User guide
  • 1-year limited warranty

    MSRP: $29.95

    		•  Welcome to my first hardware review for GCM. It’s only fitting that I am reviewing a Logitech product. I’ve been a longtime fan and user of their game gear for years now. I use their wireless communicator for the Xbox as well as their 2.4GHz controllers for both Xbox and PS2, plus I have a few of their PC gamepad lying around for those rare occasions when I need a gamepad on the PC.

    I’m a huge online gamer, but more specifically I play team-based games that require a lot of strategy with little time for typing message in a chat box, even with macro shortcuts, thus making a headset a crucial item to the way my team and I play and interact online.

    I’ll admit that most of my online gaming is confined to the Xbox but the recent release of Battlefield 2 has gotten me back on my PC for countless hours of online gaming and as anyone who has played BF2 (seriously) can attest, you need a good headset if you want to function.

    Prior to receiving my Logitech Precision PC Gaming Headset for review I had been using my USB headset from my PS2 (also made by Logitech). I had no real complaints with using that headset. I hardly got any use out of it on the PS2 and it was pretty much plug-n-play on the PC with the USB, and it worked really well with BF2.

    The Precision PC Gaming Headset improves upon the PS2 version with a comfortable set of open-air headphones over both ears (not just one) so you can now use the headphones for both chatting and game sounds. Now, if you have a 1000w home theater hooked up to your PC then you might not want to sacrifice that kind of power with a pair of 40mm neodymium stereo drivers, but rest assured the sound coming through this headset is crisp, clean, and plenty loud.

    For the number crunchers out there, here are some stats to chew on:

    • Sensitivity: -58 dBV/uBar, -38 dBV/Pa +/-4dB
    • Frequency Response:
      • Headset: 20-20,000 Hz
      • Microphone: 100-16,000 Hz
    • 10-foot with Gold Plated Audio Connectors
    Hooking up the headset isn’t as simple as it would have been with USB. You’ll have to jack into the headphone and mic ports on your sound card. Fortunately for me, my Creative Labs speaker system has a control hub that sits on my desk with easy access to these ports so I didn’t have to crawl behind my computer.

    It took me about 30 seconds to get plugged in and another 2-3 minutes to get the headset configured and optimized for BF2. The first thing that struck me was the sheer volume this headset is capable of pumping out. Initially, I was worried I wouldn’t get the same experience as I get from my THX speakers and sub-woofer, but this headset can generate enough volume to get uncomfortably loud, and who needs more than that? Even more impressive was that the sound didn’t distort, even at the highest volume.

    The microphone is that ratchet boom style that comes about halfway down your cheek. I had to take my teammates’ word for it but they assure me that I had never sounded better barking out orders and there was far less background noise and hiss coming through while using this headset. Obviously, that noise-canceling technology is doing its job.

    Ideally, I would like to see a USB version of this headset if for no other reason that a simpler installation procedure and the added benefits of digital audio. But for a good mid-range gaming headset, the Logitech Precision PC Gaming Headset is a great piece of gaming gear and certainly worth the $5 more than Logitech’s basic headsets.

    I’ve already talked a few of my teammates into getting this headset, and if you take your online gaming seriously then you’d be hard pressed to find a better mode of communication for your PC.