Headset for video conferencing

Spoit

I occasionally get complaints that it's hard to hear me in calls, so with the summer sale season upon us, it's about time for me to up my video conferencing gear game. Right now I'm using a 5 year old buget anker headset which is literally falling apart at the seams. I've tried my sony xm4 headset and xm3 earbuds, but the mic quality on them were reportedly even worse. I'm creating a thread to ask, since those dumb SEO optimized "best of" lists keep putting the xm4 at the top of the list, when they're clearly not adequate

What I'm looking for is suggestions for wireless headsets that actually have a good mic. Wireless is necessary, since the laptop is placed far enough away that running a wire doesn't work very well (and I just don't like it). And I don't have desk space for a dedicated mic.

Or alternatively maybe an webcam that has a good mic, and can be angled down (I use a 48" TV as a monitor, so the viewing angle is not great).

djmitchella

I have a set of the Bose 700's and they seem to do fine for being heard in calls, for what it's worth. When I was looking at those -vs- the Sonys it was 'ability to be heard in noisy environments' that tipped the balance -- my "home office" is in the same room as the laundry and furnace so there can be a _lot_ of background noise at time.

(if you want to pair them with phone _and_ computer, I found there was a really annoying thing where they'd default back to the phone if I wasn't actively playing audio in windows, and then when I tried to play music in windows / an email alert sound played / etc, the headphones would make their 'switching source' sound before swapping over. This is solvable by only pairing them to my computer, but I figured I'd mention it just to be on the safe side)

Local H Jay

This is a gamer suggestion but, the Wireless Xbox Stereo headset is great for phone calls, I know because I use it for multiple hour phone calls

Pretty comfy too

BlazeFire

Is there maybe a different problem? I've never gotten a complaint with my XM3s and my coworkers XMs sound fine to me (headsets both).

Spoit

BlazeFire wrote: »

Is there maybe a different problem? I've never gotten a complaint with my XM3s and my coworkers XMs sound fine to me (headsets both).

I mean, the mic is often cited as one of the main weeknesses in most of the reviews I've seen. Supposedly the XM5s are better, but still not great.

Local H Jay

I feel like most music oriented headsets have worse mics because the focus is on things like the noise cancelling and sound profile. My Jabra headphones have a much better soundproofing but the microphone on my Anker set is definitely nicer and clearer for calls. And both are leagues ahead of a generic 40 dollar taotronics from Amazon or whatever

Jazz

Local H Jay wrote: »

This is a gamer suggestion but, the Wireless Xbox Stereo headset is great for phone calls, I know because I use it for multiple hour phone calls

Pretty comfy too

Seconded. It doesn't even look very gamer-y, no RGB lighting or anything like that. Just a really good headset for games and calls. It's even decent for music, for what it is.

BlazeFire

Spoit wrote: »

BlazeFire wrote: »

Is there maybe a different problem? I've never gotten a complaint with my XM3s and my coworkers XMs sound fine to me (headsets both).

I mean, the mic is often cited as one of the main weeknesses in most of the reviews I've seen. Supposedly the XM5s are better, but still not great.

*shrug* I've never been told someone can't hear me and I've never had issues hearing my coworker. There is "not the greatest quality" and "doesn't function at all".

Hahnsoo1

Keep in mind that Bluetooth of any kind typically has terrible mic quality due to limited bandwidth and latency, which is likely the issue with the Sony wireless cans (which aren’t 2.4GHz). If you do get a wireless headset, your best bet is probably a set that has a USB dongle for 2.4 GHz wireless.

I’d also get one with a boom mic with a cardioid pickup pattern (directional).

MichaelLC

I've been using Anker Q30s and they've been fine for work calls if your want to strick with Anker.

There's some higher models as well.

BlindZenDriver

I have, or rather me and my colleagues, have been using Jabra headsets for several years now. You can get them as one-ear or both-ear versions and they are nice. Sound is good, comfy, long battery time, quick to charge and real quick to connect. The ones I'm using are called Jabra Evolved or something like that. Their noise insulation is pretty neat - I have been able to have music on in a separate audio system without colleagues picking up I'm listening to music.

https://www.jabra.com/

PS. Forgot - they are also pretty clever. I can pick up calls with either turning the head set on or if it is on, then by activating a button on the headset. The headset also have buttons for volume and removing the boom away from your mouth mutes the mike.