Expert's Rating
Pros
- Stylish and well-built
- Plug in and go
- Install G Hub for lots of settings
Cons
- G Hub works like this on Mac
- The price
Our Verdict
If you need a simple microphone with really good sound for videos, podcasts, video meetings, or whatever, this mic is worth checking out. The price is a bit high, but so is the quality.
Best Prices Today: Logitech G Yeti GX
There’s a wide range of uses for computer microphones these days. Video meetings at work, video calls with friends, recording a podcast, streaming something of your own on Twitch, or bubbling with your mates in Discord while gaming. The experience can be greatly impaired by poor sound quality, so it’s usually a good idea to invest in a microphone.
There are many to choose from out there, but one brand that can always be counted on are the Yeti models. Originally called Blue, the microphone specialists are now known as Logitech G, and the latest model is the Yeti GX. Yes, it has RGB lighting with Lightsync support and feels substantial, while being easy to handle. As usual, the quality of the materials is high.
This USB microphone can be placed on a table or mounted on a boom arm. The latter is probably preferable because otherwise you can easily get pick up keyboard pressure or other movements you make on the table top.
Further reading: See our roundup of the best UCB microphones to learn about competing products.
Logitech G Yeti GX design and specs
Yeti GX maintains a sparse design profile with few and simple controls. It’s black, has a solid weight, and has lighting that adds a little extra atmosphere to your desk. On one side, the G logo is illuminated and a matching LED ring adorns the bottom edge of the mic. Turn the mic over and you’ll find a scroll wheel, just like on a mouse, that allows you to adjust the gain and in the center of the scroll wheel is an LED strip that indicates whether you’re at an appropriate level. There is also a button to activate mute. The strip in the scroll wheel will turn red (as it will if the sound starts to cut).
There’s a USB-C connector on the bottom, but unfortunately no 3.5mm aux plug to connect your headphones. If you want to hear yourself for, say, a podcast recording, you’ll have to resort to other means.
The other end of the included USB cable is USB-A, which is fine for backwards compatibility, but it would have been more modern to use USB-C at all ends.
Ida Blix / Foundry
You can use the microphone just by plugging in the cord, choosing the right microphone, and starting to talk. It sounds great as long as you’re not hammering on keys or banging on the table at the same time. But if you want to influence the sound, or the RGB lighting for that matter, you’ll need Logitech’s G Hub software, and unfortunately the app is a mixed bag.
How does the Yeti GX sound?
The sound quality when recording is commendable. Logitech G Yeti GX runs at 96kHz sampling frequency and 24 bits, which gives a nice sound regardless of what basic material (the voice) we have to work with. The mic uses supercardioid audio pickup that focuses in the center of the puff guard and it should filter out background noise.
Logitech promises that button clicks won’t be heard, but we don’t quite agree with that. If we want to record a podcast, we’ve learned to keep our fingers away from the table the mic is on, but this would probably be solved if we mounted it on a boom arm instead. An adapter for that is included in the box.
The Logitech G Hub has settings for the RGB light and sound. On the PC side it seems to work properly, but on the Mac side they haven’t even managed to update the app for Apple’s own processors. It requires a lot of rights in the operating system, so I couldn’t install it on my work computer. Once I got it installed on another Mac, the app works and it’s easy to make adjustments to the sound to get it just right. There are also blue voice filters and effects to play with.
One feature worth mentioning is the smart audio lock. This is an analogue limiter that adjusts the gain to prevent clipping. This feature can be activated by pressing the scroll wheel or via a checkbox in the G Hub. In theory, it sounds super smart, but the lock should probably not be left on by default. For example, in a podcast recording with other participants, you get a much more even sound level. It will simply be the same level whether you talk low or high. This probably works really well in live broadcasts where you cannot influence the sound afterwards and where you speak yourself.
Should you buy the Logitech G Yeti GX?
In summary, I can conclude that Yeti GX maintains high sound quality right out of the box and is a compelling proposition in its price range — everything really oozes quality. It fits well with most scenarios, even if Logitech G is aimed at game streamers.
Specifications
Product name: Logitech G Yeti GX
Tested: September-October 2023
Manufacturer: Logitech G
Connection: USB-C to USB-A
Microphone technology Condenser capsule
Sampling frequency : 96kHz
Bit depth: 24 bit
Frequency range: 50Hz – 18kHz
Polar pattern: Supercardioid
System requirements : Windows or Mac
Size (incl. stand) : 10 x 10 x 17 cm (WxLxH)
Weight (incl. stand ): 616 grams
Rec. price: $149.99
This review was translated from Swedish to English and originally appeared on m3.se.
Best Prices Today: Logitech G Yeti GX
Author: Ida Blix, redaktör
Ansvarar för video och sociala medier på M3, Macworld och PC för Alla.