To be able to compare the headphones with other recently-reviewed Verbatim, I chose the same test method. I wore them for a few days and listened to the music. The testing program included playing music from bands such as Enya (New age, An instrumental, The Celts), Nickelback (hard rock, pop rock), Evanescene (alternative rock), OST (various Japanese music because of its wide range of musical instruments and variety genre, then a harder sounding soundtrack from game Prince of Persia etc.), I even added some classical music of Ludwig van Beethoven. All compositions were in MP3 format encoded at 192 kbps bit rate to obtain the best sound conditions. As the product tested were headphones, I opened the control panel, selected Creative Surround Mixer - software provided with SoundBlaster sound cards, and selected the headphones profile. I am not sure why Creative thinks the "headphones" option works better for headphones, but after listening to the first song I set it back to "2/2.1 Speakers" to obtain clearer and more realistic sound.





As far as the recently reviewed Verbatim speaker systems are concerned they are far behind the Saitek headphones. While listening to the music through the Saitek headphones I heard sounds I haven't heard before, the same applies for the background sounds (maybe with the exceptions of 2.1 Multi Media Speaker systems which are able to reproduce some of it). Frequency response is definitely good. The sound quality was generally good apart from the heavy bass effect when instead of an accurate and precise sound, the headphones reproduced something similar to a low-pitched roaring sound. Other than that the sound was good. I also tried SRS (3D audio enhancement effect even if you only have stereo). Since it isn't supported by hardware I had to be satisfied with software emulation through Windows Media Player (the absence of hardware support for 3D audio enhancement is nothing unusual, headphones supporting this effect are not as common). It was nothing special but same can be expected for any headphones without hardware SRS support.

The soundproof level was sufficient. When I increased sound intensity the "isolation" started to fail. It's nothing bad since most users listening to music or playing games never crank up the volume to such an unhealthy level. If the volume is set to approximately 80 percent, a slight hum can be heard from speakers, this intensifies exponentially with every volume increase. The humming sound can be only heard when headphones are put on.



I have to mention the sensitivity of headphones. It's disappointing that they react to every external disturbance. Some buzzing sound was heard every time my mobile phone was nearby, when placed near modem there was a growling sound (similar to tapping on a microphone). Besides these, there was some kind of rattling noise, the source of which I was unable to identify. Some cracking was also heard when turning the mouse wheel while manipulating windows or when connected to the Internet via modem and with the vibration feature turned on (interaction with USB connectors is out of question since my mouse is connected via PS/2). That's enough about sensitivity, but it can really be frustrating and annoying experience. I'd also like to mention the microphone quality. I recorded sound through the Sound Recorder (in Slovak language "Nahravanie zvuku") which is part of the standard package of Windows XP. As it only records in WAV format (records the whole sound spectrum) the recording quality has to be good. Microphone definitely works perfect and the recording was clear. Be careful when playing strategic games via multiplayer where game players usually don't yell at each other since the microphone boom is too short and if you only mum your partners won't hear you (although this can be convenient if you have a bad luck playing a game :)).



Conclusion





Saitek GH20, as an entry level model the company offers is not bad. These game headphones are also suitable for listening to the music thanks to their good audio performance, and unless you listen to heavy metal only or some high pitched music, they are fine. The vibration feature provides bass boost, enhancing the listening experience. There certainly will be heads that these headphones won't fit because the ear cup padding (small size, stiff material) is not ideal. Another nuisance is the sensitivity of headphones. Some will find the price tag too high, $40 for a headset that doesn't have a surround sound maybe too much. But keep in mind that surround sound in headsets for $20 isn't really worth much and same goes for their sound quality. Saitek GH20 is not a low-end product and cannot be compared with $20 headset. If you buy it, you won't regret it.



Thanks to Saitek company for loaning us the headset.