Communications Solutions UK Limited
Computer headset
Computer headsets generally come in two connecting types,
standard 3.5 mm & USB connection. General 3.5 mm computer
headset comes with two 3.5 mm connectors, one connecting to
microphone jack (line-in) and one connecting to speaker jack
(line-out) of the computer. 3.5 mm Computer Headset connects
to the computer via a soundcard - which converts the digital
signal of the computer to analogue signal for the headset.
Depending on the quality of the soundcard, the sound quality
of 3.5 mm connection generally is not as good as a USB
connection. USB computer headset connects to the computer
via USB ports, and the audio conversion occurs in the USB
PCBA located in the headset or in the control unit of the
headset.
3.5 mm computer headset
Usually 3.5 mm headsets are much cheaper in pricing, and
this is reflected in the quality of the material a developer
chooses. For very basic communication, or entry level users,
a 3.5 mm headset is more than sufficient. Connection is
simple and compatibility is high. Virtually any device can
be connected with a standard 3.5 mm jack, meaning users can
connect the speaker (line-out) plug to a MP3 player or a CD
Player with a 3.5 mm jack without any problems. Users can
also connect the microphone (line-in) plug to any digital
recording device with a 3.5 mm jack as well. However, the
sound quality is marginal for these types of headset. Even
coming from big brand names like Logitech, one cannot expect
high-end quality from this type of product. A new feature
has been seen recently that automatically switch the sound
from speaker to headset, the function is referred to as
Jetswitch
USB headset
USB headsets are usually more expensive, but the sound
quality is usually much better; not just in the actual sound
quality of USB technology, but also in the choice of
materials from headset developers. There are, however,
actually two sub-types of USB headsets:
- Headset with USB connection and
- Direct USB headset.
Headset with USB connection
Headset with USB connection refers to those computer
headsets with a standard 3.5 mm headset bundled with a USB
adaptor. One end of the USB adaptor is a standard USB plug,
but the other end is a pair of 3.5 mm jacks where the 3.5 mm
computer headset is connected. The benefit of using this
type of solution is that users can just buy the USB adaptor
to use with their existing 3.5 mm headset, or they can use
their existing multimedia speakers or desktop microphone. By
connecting the devices to the USB adaptor, users have a
higher flexibility. However the down-side is that the sound
quality of this type of solution is much lower than a
standard Direct USB Headset, plus the adaptor and all the
cables makes this solution very cumbersome. Brands offering
this cheaper-end solution includes Philips, Logitech and
Altec Lansing (now part of Plantronics).
Direct USB headset
Direct USB Headset usually has a digital volume
controller which also includes the USB module, however some
solutions have separated the controller and the USB module.
This type of solution is usually offered in higher-quality
design, as this direct connection minimizes the chance of
interference as well as length of path; this is the
preferred choice for users seeking top end sound quality.
Users will find that this type of solution is usually priced
a bit higher, but extra audio features like Digital Signal
Processing (DSP) or noise cancelling technology are very
common. Brands offering these types of solutions include
Plantronics, Jabra and Accutone.
With most newer Operating Systems (Microsoft Windows,
Apple Mac OS X, Linux) USB Headsets are plug-and-play, and
no drivers are required. However, depending on the extra
features the headset offers, some may require extra software
installation. In addition to sound quality, a benefit of any
USB headset is Interactivity, meaning users in addition to
getting audio signals from the computer, users can actually
control the computer using the headset. There are some
products in the market which users can use the USB headset
to start up Skype, and control various functions of the
Instant Messenger (IM) Application by only using the
headset. |
