Microphones on Gaming headsets and on motherboards suck?! A solution for ~8$

[Folterknecht]

The sound solutions on motherboards and headsets are improving when it comes to playback the last years, but audio capture is still a big issue. Here is a solution for around 8$ that should at least improve the situation for many users.



While I don't Skype that often and my Teamspeak/Discord use is also very low lately, I'm aware that my Corsair Vengeance 1500 produce great sound (in stereo mode - forget that software genereated 5.1/7.1 nonsense) but the microphone is subpar producing a clear high frequency beep noise in the background. That's why I bought a ModMic 4 from Antlion two or three years ago.

That improved my mic-situation quite a bit totally eliminating that high frequency beeping (that I also hear in my cans). Thing is now I was back to capturing my voice using the onboard soundcard of my ASRock Fatal1ty Z77 Professional with it's Realtek ALC898 codec. It's not that bad in combination with the Modmic but now I can pick up some "white noise" in the background.



A few weeks ago I stumbled across a new gadget in some PC techforum proclaimed to be the small (coin sized) and cheap solution (8$) for people who are using a mic plugged into the back of their PCs. So I bought it ...



The EE803 from TeckNet (MPN/Herstellernummer seems to be 846947. Labeling of the device seems to differ depending on market.)

Plugging it into my PC, I think this is as good as is it can get with my current microphone. I recorded 3 short audio samples with OBS for comparison. Please keep in mind that the location I'm recording had a strong echo - this is not the fault of the involved audio devices or mics!

Corsair Vengeance 1500 (USB headset with integrated mic) - "Gaming" micro aka junk ...

ModMic 4 plugged into my motherboard ALC898 - dull/muffled

ModMic 4 plugged into the EE803 from TeckNet - best of the 3, clear(er) not muffled and "no" strange noise in the background



What do you guys think?


Edit:

They work great for laptops with busted headphone jacks. My wife and my son killed theirs at least twice and these put them back in service w/o me hunting for replacement parts and tearing apart the laptops to fix them

 

[fullinfusion]

Honestly I believe you get what you pay for , when you purchase a headset and Mic buy a good brand. I could recommend a Sennheiser cans with Mic and they have amazing sound and the microphone is extraordinary.

But thanks for the tips on the other two items as others may find it very useful.

 

[Toothless]

Never heard of a heatset but I've never had issues with onboard audio.

 

[Folterknecht]

Honestly I believe you get what you pay for , when you purchase a headset and Mic buy a good brand. I could recommend a Sennheiser cans with Mic and they have amazing sound and the microphone is extraordinary.

But thanks for the tips on the other two items as others may find it very useful.

Ofc you get what you pay for - often. But for those that don't want to invest into a big external soundcard, this a great solution I think. Now I don't know what kind of plugs the Sennheiser cans are using (probably not USB), you 'll probably still have to deal with your onboard soundcard - which most of the time isn't that great when it comes to capturing.

And just look at the reviews here (or on other sites) when it comes to gaming headsets - the cans are often good or even better when you spend at least ~80$, but the mics ... a desaster even at 120-150$ most of the time.

Never heard of a heatset but I've never had issues with onboard audio.

Had that already fixed - hit F5 more often! ;-)

 

[fullinfusion]

Ofc you get what you pay for - often. But for those that don't want to invest into a big external soundcard, this a great solution I think. Now I don't know what kind of plugs the Sennheiser cans are using (probably not USB), you 'll probably still have to deal with your onboard soundcard - which most of the time isn't that great when it comes to capturing.

And just look at the reviews here (or on other sites) when it comes to gaming headsets - the cans are often good or even better when you spend at least ~80$, but the mics ... a desaster even at 120-150$ most of the time.

Had that already fixed - hit F5 more often! ;-)

The sennheiser's use dual 3.5 mm plugs and they work great. I just plugged mine into the front of the PC and never have issues unless the cat decides to chew through the cable LOL.

 

[Rehmanpa]

I use a blue yeti with a pair of sennheiser hd 598 pro. I wonder how this compares in sound and audio quality?

 

[Kursah]

I've used one of those cheap adapters, though mine was a different brand and all plastic. Was very impressed how well it worked in my kid's time of gaming comm's need. Plenty of volume, worked right away with Windows 7 and 8.1 (retired before upgrading to 10). Handy to have in the event it is needed now. I keep one in my collection of spare parts.

 

[Folterknecht]

The sennheiser's use dual 3.5 mm plugs and they work great. I just plugged mine into the front of the PC and never have issues unless the cat decides to chew through the cable LOL.

Maybe record some audio sample from the mic in different ports/sound devices and compare them?

I use a blue yeti with a pair of sennheiser hd 598 pro. I wonder how this compares in sound and audio quality?

I 'm only using the mic-port on this small soundcard for my Modmic. The cans are USB anyway.

 

[Norton]

I've used one of those cheap adapters, though mine was a different brand and all plastic. Was very impressed how well it worked in my kid's time of gaming comm's need. Plenty of volume, worked right away with Windows 7 and 8.1 (retired before upgrading to 10). Handy to have in the event it is needed now. I keep one in my collection of spare parts.

They work great for laptops with busted headphone jacks. My wife and my son killed theirs at least twice and these put them back in service w/o me hunting for replacement parts and tearing apart the laptops to fix them

 

[RejZoR]

It's very hard to believe some cheapo gadget for 8 bucks produces better sound than higher tier integrated soundcards.

 

[Vario]

I've used one of those cheap adapters, though mine was a different brand and all plastic. Was very impressed how well it worked in my kid's time of gaming comm's need. Plenty of volume, worked right away with Windows 7 and 8.1 (retired before upgrading to 10). Handy to have in the event it is needed now. I keep one in my collection of spare parts.

Does it have a option for mic gain boost? I have found that a lot of 3.5mm cheapo microphones without a dedicated amp don't amplify enough even with +20db boost in windows.

 

[Kursah]

Does it have a option for mic gain boost? I have found that a lot of 3.5mm cheapo microphones without a dedicated amp don't amplify enough even with +20db boost in windows.

No, if I recall correctly though we might have had to turn the gain down in Windows Audio Mixer anyways but I could be mistaken. But there is no gain boost or switch that I can recall.

Here is the link to the one I purchased for my son's PC that was a temporary solution. There was no mic gain boost but he was able to use his mic for gaming just fine with it. For the price, which when I bought it was still under $10 shipped, I can't complain!

 

[Vario]

As a whole, (not specifically the mic input), the various Syba branded generics aren't bad from my experience.

 

[Folterknecht]

It's very hard to believe some cheapo gadget for 8 bucks produces better sound than higher tier integrated soundcards.

You have my sound samples - judge for yourself.

What I can't tell you is how much the Mic-In on ALC1220 improved to ALC898, but the Z77 board I use is a good one, not some cheap 75$ model.

 

[jaggerwild]

Why spend $8 on a device that comes built into the motherboard anyway? You can then upgrade drivers from the headset you use....

 

[de.das.dude]

Never heard of a heatset but I've never had issues with onboard audio.

its a special headset you use in winters, comes with heating to keep the ears and head nice and warm.

 

[Vayra86]

Or you buy this one, kiss all the overpriced gaming nonsense goodbye and skip the audio jack altogether. I've never heard a single complaint from anyone I play with over voice quality

https://www.conrad.nl/nl/sennheiser...01034486_pla-60095708856_pla-917654&WT.srch=1

Bonus points for Windows Sound device integration over USB as well, you can set this for speech only and it will auto recognize and divide the channels proper.

Just gotta cut out the analog input, and most of the buzz and beep will vanish

 

[de.das.dude]

am i the only one who made their own mic and used it for gaming

 

[Folterknecht]

Why spend $8 on a device that comes built into the motherboard anyway? You can then upgrade drivers from the headset you use....

Because the Mic-in produces bad sound or might be defect?

Drivers usually don't produce better sound.

 

[Vario]

Wish there was an easy way to integrate a decent mic onto my ATH-M50X, the desktop mic is a nuisance and I am not too impressed with what the mod mic appears to be. A USB mic that cleanly attaches to an analog headset would be nice.

I had a great time with a Microsoft Life Chat LX3000 for a long time. Very reliable mic. The ATH-M50X has better audio sound quality though.