LifeChat LX-3000 Headset (JUG-00013) with Clear stereo sound, Plug and Play, Noise-cancelling Microphone for Laptop/PC, Over-Ear

This is a fantastic headset. I've tried other models commonly found at Walmart and Radio Shack, and this one blows them all away - and at a lower price, to boot. I am hearing impaired and wear behind-the-ear hearing aids. The headset wraps beautifully around the ears, cushioning them comfortably, preventing slippage, and muting ambient sound. They should be very comfortable for anyone without hearing aids, but if you are looking for something compatible with aids, this is perfect. The size seems quite adjustable - my head is small so I can't say for sure that it fits large heads, but it seems like it would accommodate a variety of sizes. My 8 year old daughter also can adjust the set to her head. Because of my hearing impairment, it is critical to have a good maximum volume on the device. The maximum volume on other headsets have not been adequate to meet my needs. Obviously the volume is fully adjustable, so your non-hearing-impaired ears will not be blasted. The microphone quality is so good that people frequently remark how clearly they can hear me. The position of the mic is easily adjustable. I find it useful to position the mic at the level of my nose (an inch or two away horizontally but at the same level vertically), rather than under it, so my breathing isn't picked up. I've used the mic for the following purposes: - Skype - GoToMeeting and WebEx - Dragon Naturally Speaking - Recording the speaking part for a software demo (sorry, I don't remember what video software I used for this project) I've had this model for... oh, years. I just bought another because my daughter, who is currently 8 years old, was really hard on it (slamming the cord into drawers, dropping it, running over it with the rolling chair, bending the mic every which way), For years. So I won't say it's completely immune to abuse, but it's taken a lot from a child for a long time, and I'm very happy with the value.

Well, I didn't want to spend this much but the reviews about the voice quality tipped me. They are correct. I was complimented in a national online conference, both in asides convos and in addressing the entire group (gulp). I took it out of the box, plugged it into my Win7 machine, it autoloaded drivers and that was that. Self-powered through USB, this is a DSP processing, noise-reducing system with enough hear-through to let you know if you're about to miss out on the last slice of pizza at work! It's a bit snug on my big noggin but the top bands are nylon, so over time and with a little encouragement, it is getting more comfortable, and the headphone audio quality is perfectly decent, not shrill. In the Sound Control Panel (for PC) installing this headset activates some useful headset audio functions like adjustable AGC, a low-cut (high-pass) filter at 100Hz, which could be a bit higher but cuts down on "popping," and a few other niceties. You can also tell your computer you'll be listening to music (or gaming, I suppose) and you won't find the headphones offensive, especially for the money. True circumaural ear-cups are MUCH more comfortable than on-ear cups are, especially if you wear glasses. As I mentioned, the headband is a bit tight, but gently stretching it out every use will make it better in time. As well, this is background noise reducing but not noise-killing for you. You will hear pages, etc. For the people you're speaking with, your voice and background noises are being processed, and the little mic boom has openings toward the mouth and away for active echo and background noise cancellation. It works. The mic boom swings all the way vertical to hug the headband, and is can be shaped, unlike many other brands, like many Plantronics models, for a better fit and control over your tonal quality. I wish the cable was not hard wired, but was plug-in replaceable, but if it doesn't break, who cares. One complaint (maybe two): The included mute/volume control inline assembly on the cord is too close to the headset, so it won't sit directly in the lap without weighing down. This is a terrible design choice unless the target market is 4ft tall kids. I don't think so. Otherwise, I like this quite a bit... another winner accessory from MS!

Recently ordered 6 different headsets: The Microsoft LX-6000, Microsoft LX-3000 (this one), Logitech H390E, Logitech H650E, Sennheiser PC 36, and the Sennheiser SC 660 USB CTR I've yet to receive the SC 660s, which are the most expensive pair by far, but I can tell you that out of the above, I far preferred the Sennheiser SC 36 for pure "like you're there in the room" quality and the LifeChat LX-6000 for noise reduction. However, the LX-3000 has the second best mic out of the 5 headsets I tried above, as well as several gaming headsets I've gotten to use over the years (including Turtle Beach and Sony). It's one of the few where the boom goes goes right IN FRONT on your mouth, where it should for the best quality. It also has nice big earpieces, which can be good if you're seeking a bit of isolation from your environment for listening. Noise reduction wise, though, the LX-6000 has some additional circuitry this doesn't. However, that comes with a higher amount of self generated noise, what audio engineers would call a high "noise floor", which this doesn't have. i.e., when you're not speaking, the LX-3000 is less noisy than the LX-6000 overall. The LX-6000 also has a considerably inferior mic, which is bandwidth limited and makes you sound more like you're talking on a decent quality cell phone. The LX-3000 sounds more like a mic should. It's more natural and present. You could use this headset to do basic voiceovers for instructional videos, YouTube, podcasts, etc., without being made fun of for audio quality. That's a rarity for headsets, which tend to have awful microphones. If you're looking for a step up, I'd go with the Sennheiser PC-36. Both male and female voices sound better when recording through it's mic, and it's also a bit easier to make out what people are saying through the Sennheiser earphones. But at the time of this writing, this headset is half of the price of the Sennheiser, with perhaps 75-80% of the quality. Since it was so inexpensive, I'm going to keep this one around as a backup to my Sennheiser. I think it's an amazing deal overall. Basically a cheap but highly usable headset which doesn't make you sound poor or dumb. (oh, and although I had access to a PC, I tested this just fine with a Mac running OS X Mavericks)

For the money, this thing is awesome. ====== Product: It's an around-ear headphone with surprisingly good bass, however noise isolation is next to none. Good cable length, and adjusts well. ====== Microphone: The microphone is completely adjustable and has a built in foam pop filter that works pretty well. Sound quality on the microphone is damn near excellent for a headset mic - on the other end listeners can hear everything without any muffled sound. It's very good. ====== Sound: Like I said, good dynamic range. Not much on noise isolation but I do like how it's an around-ear headphone, adds to the comfort factor that I don't have to keep readjusting this every few minutes. I can sit with these on for 2-4 hours with no problem when I game. ====== Attachment: The headset has a volume and muting attachment which makes it ridiculously easy to adjust volume and mute/unmute yourself. I originally thought it was super clunky but over time I've gotten used to it and I actually prefer it to the smaller ones that I always end up fiddling around with to work. ====== For <$20 - this thing is a steal. I'm not super interested in paying upwards of $50 for a headset I don't use all the time so this is a good alternative and is quite useful.

This headset works great. My son wanted a headset with a microphone to use when he is playing games. I decided to test it out. I'm an every day user that doesn't want to understand technical details. I want to be able to plug something in and have it work. I am not going to compare this headset to five others, becasue this is the headset I use if I want to use one, otherwise it's my son's. The headphones seem to have some noise cancelling. It was easy to hear what came across on the headphones. The sounds were clean and clear. When I speak into the microphone the person on the other end is able to hear me and understand me. I don't get a lot of complaints and neither does my son when he is using this headset. The cord is long enough that I can sit at a chair in front of a lap top and still have some moving room. I don't feel tethered to the lap top and as if I can't move without pulling the lap top off of the table. Overall, for this price, if something happened to this pair, I'd buy another set like this.

I had been using cheap headsets for years and when I first made the switch to the microsoft lilfechat headset I was surprised at how much sound I was missing. I'm a gamer and my games had little subtle sounds like bird peeps, footsteps, thunder in the distance, and whispers (I could even tell which direction the whispers came from!). The volume buttons on the headset give added control over the sound output, and the mute button works fantastically to mute the microphone. I often have the microphone pointed straight up rather than at my mouth but the pickup is so sensitive that I am easily heard. My biggest complaint is that I sometimes whack the mute button by accident as I am gaming with my friends and then wonder why nobody is responding to what I'm telling them. As long as I'm careful, this is only a minor issue. I've used these headsets for years. I average about two years of life out of them when I replace them for a new set - not because they stop working, but because I like a snug fit and they "loosen" over time. I usually hand down the older set to one of my teen children who then subsequently use it for another two years (and they are NOT gentle with their things!) before it dies. The death of the headset usually involves too much tugging/twisting on the cable so that the microphone or one speaker stops working, but the amount of torture that I (and subsequently my children!) put this headset through before there's a failure really speaks to it's durability. This is WELL worth the price at $50, and for the price I have found them here on Amazon, (much less!) I am tempted to purchase several more to have on hand for later.

I was, and remain, absolutely shocked by this headset. I fully expected to have bought, at best, a mediocre headset that I would have to replace sooner rather than later. Thankfully that couldn't be further from the truth. I've had the headset for going on eight months, and while that's not an extremely long time, it's enough to have put a good deal of use into them. Even over half a year later the headset's in the same condition it was in when I bought it, and I use it heavily. There is no tearing in the ear padding, no damage or fraying to the cord, the microphone mute still works perfectly, as do the volume controls. I am in no way an authority on high quality sound, but for my use the headset provides above and beyond any expectations I may have had going in. The sound is rich and full, never tinny, and the microphone does a great job too. When I first went into buying this I was looking for a headset that wouldn't be too tight, and upon reading others questions and reviews I decided to give it a shot. I've always considered my head big, but I will say that this headset engulfs it. Even fully tightened and not let out, it's loose on my head. Thankfully the foam ear padding is comfortable, resting over the ears in a way that's not painful, though with both the size and the fit on the ears, ymmv. All in all this is a great headset. It's well built, performs great, and looks nice, all at an amazing price. Definitely worth buying. - - | U P D A T E | Nov 08, 2015| - - After having had the headset for less than half a year, I'm a bit late in editing, it has been dead for a couple of months now. In fact, it died Dead meaning: first the microphone stopped working right after my initial (late, compared to purchase date) review and the sound went out a little less than a month after that. I was incredibly disappointed, but I suppose it was worth it for the time it lasted?

I am writing this review using this Microsoft LifeChat LX-3000 headset, along with the speech recognition software included with Windows 7. The results are actually surprising - startlingly good in fact. The microphone is clear and accurate, and the speakers aren't too shabby either. After completing the tutorial for the speech recognition software, along with an additional "training session" in the options, I've been able to complete this entire review with only the use of my voice. The only issue I had was with the name of this product, which took a little effort to correct, and I had to spell it out, but was easy enough to do. I did have to adjust the software settings somewhat so I could use this USB headset, but that wasn't very hard to do. In fact I suggest that anyone considering purchasing the Dragon speaking software should try the Windows 7 software first, if able to. And this semi-cheap ($21) but decent quality headset would be a good idea as well. Note: The USB cable is a bit short (6 feet), so I purchased a 15-foot extension (was the same price as a 10-footer) for just a few more dollars. Now I can sit across the room and use this headset whenever I want, using the Windows speech recognition software to control my computer. And when I want to return sound from the headset back to my computer's speakers, I just unplug the headset from the USB extension cable and just like that it switches back. VERY nice. I have also used this headset with Rosetta Stone (V. 3) to bone up on my French, and it performs perfectly.