Nox Scout earbud review
July 2011 – Continuing our post E3 review of gaming headphones, we had a chance to test the Nox Scout Earbuds which are a muti-platform headset when used with the Nox Negotiator Gaming adapter. These headsets were tested in both single player mode and multi-player mode using on-line chat in the gamng platforms.
Review Summary:
Pro – excellent sound isolation, very light, worked on all platforms – PC, Xbox, PS3, iPad, iPhone/iPod, support HDMI video
Con – volume was high, wired connection on game consoles.
Overall – Great product for those that like ear buds, universal use – one headset all platforms, clear sound, strong microphone.
Nox Scout Earbuds with Microphone
Review Details:
The Scout headset is a stereo in-ear product, that uses replaceable rubber ear pieces to allows the speaker to securely seal with the ear. The primary application for the headset, is both gaming and telephone use on the iPhone an other wired smartphones using a standard 2 function 3 wire headset miniature pin (L, R & Mic). For the PC, iPhone and iPad, it comes in a complete kit – headset with built in microphone, multiple sizes of ear cushion and a splitter cable for the PC to separate the head phone and microphone connects.
The first thing we found was the high efficiency of the headphones. If you are used to listening with the std “white round objects” that iPods supply to put in your ears as earbuds you are in for a big surprise. First is volume, on the std earbuds, if you listen at 1/2 volume, and put up with the background hiss and static, you will get the same volume of sound at under 1/4 volume, with no distortion or clipping. The sound is very clean, crisp and responsive with the Scout earbuds. The flat cable on the earbuds also eliminates the annoying “twisting” of the earpieces when you move your head or hands. The Scout products stay in place and does not tug on the ear, or more importantly, flip the microphone around, when in use.
The unit is well suited to use on the portable platforms such as the iPhone/iPod or the iPad/tablet. Talking for phone calls was clear and surprisingly free of wind and air noise, as has plagued in wire microphone designs from other manufacturers. The earbuds come with an adapter to connect to the PC which has a split connection (speaker and mic). With the connector in place, the unit works well, and also provides high efficiency on sound. When used for either video/audio playback, the volume could be turned down significantly to provide the same level of sound. This required some adjustment of the setting on the PC when using Skype and other conferencing systems for separately returning the gain (input volume) on the microphone which usually gets a volume level linked to the speakers. Once the adjustment was made, it worked without problems for the video conf, search input and voice recognition input control.
Nox Negotiator Game Console Interface
To test the units with the gaming consoles, we used the optional Nox Negotiator product. This product features a wired connection from the Xbox360 and PS3 controller to the console. The connection to the console is through a USB dongle which connects to the controller and also an optical connection to the console. Unlike other game headset systems tested, this configuration using the digital sound channels from the consoles and as a result, allow for the use of HDMI output from the stations, yielding the best image possible. The end connector of the Negotiator takes one of two plug-ins: Xbox and PS3. Once you select the correct option, it simple plugs in to teh controller where a normal wireless headset would plug-in. The connector contains a volume control for the headset.
As the connection is wired, and is converted from the digital source, the sound is very clean, and there was no audible dropout or interference from other electronics in the room or other wireless in the room. The use experience was very strong and even though the earbuds are “small”, they did not impact the immersive experience of the games.
Unlike the over the ear headphones, there were no comments about “fit” from those with glasses for either standard viewing or 3D viewing. Most found the in-ear design comfortable for short periods (up to about 1.5hrs), but our reviewing committee preferred over-the-ear models for extended use (sessions beyond 2.5hrs). This makes the Scout a great selection as a very light, single purchase for all platform in-ear headset for t mid to heavy duty gaming up to about 2 hour sessions per use. On portable, devices, the extended use was not an issue, and the devices were comfortable for day long use.
Testing Environment:
The Console hardware was provided by Microsoft and was a new Xbox360 S console with the Kinect. The PC base hardware was a standard Dell Vostro laptop. The Xbox was tested with the network connection both as the default 802.11g wireless and with a wired internet connection. The console games used to test the headsets were Batman: Arkam Asylum, Halo 3: ODST, and Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, Call of Duty: World at War. The games used to test the headsets on the PC were provided by TellTale Games and several on-line games from Nexon. The tester were multiple people, who range from intermediate to advanced gamers, using the product for typical 2 hour game play sessions.
TellTale Games
The reference sound for the PC and portable devices is compared to Beyerdynamic DT 770M studio reference monitor headphones, and the built in microphone of the device. The reference sound from the gaming system, is that from the Xbox360 connected via HDMI to a 5.1 surround sound Sony receiver driving Klipsch KL-7502-THX in-ceiling speakers and a Klipsch SW-450 10″ subwoofer. The games were viewed and played back on a Panasonic Viera TH-58PZ800U THX Certified Plasma TV with HDMI v1.3 inputs.
