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‘Shadowlands’, the new expansion for ‘World of Warcraft’, was scheduled to launch on October 28, but unfortunately it has had to be delayed until the end of the year. That, however, has not been an obstacle for Logitech to launch the new Yeti X World of Warcraft, a microphone designed for streamers that, effectively, changes our voice for that of ‘WoW’ characters.
In Engadget we have had access to the microphone and we have not only been playing a little with the voice presets, but we have been able to verify that the changes are also on an aesthetic level. The microphone is exactly, but exactly the same as the original Yeti X, only it is decorated with a number of details related to the ‘WoW’ universe and has this peculiar voice modulation function. What is the experience? Let’s see it.
“Aaaaaughibbrgubugbugrguburgle” – A random murloc.
Yeti X World of Warcraft Datasheet
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BLUE YETI X WORLD OF WARCRAFT |
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|---|---|
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DIMENSIONS AND WEIGHT |
11 X 12.2 x 28.9 cm |
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SAMPLE RATE / BITS |
48 kHz, 24-bit |
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CAPSULES |
4 Blue patent 14mm condenser capsules |
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POLAR PATTERNS |
Cardioid, Omnidirectional, Bidirectional, Stereo |
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FREQUENCY RESPONSE |
20Hz – 20kHz |
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MAX SPL |
122dB |
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CURRENT CONSUMPTION |
62mA – 203mA |
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HEADPHONE AMPLIFIER |
Ohms min, 16 Ohms typical |
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HEADPHONE AMPLIFIER |
72mWrms per channel |
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HEADPHONE AMPLIFIER |
20Hz – 20kHz |
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HEADPHONE AMPLIFIER |
100dB |
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REQUIREMENTS |
Windows 7 or higher |
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PRICE |
209.99 euros |
A review of the exterior
As we said at the beginning, in terms of dimensions, weight and pure and simple design, the new Yeti X World of Warcraft it is exactly the same as the original Yeti X. It has a sober black finish decorated with gold accents which, in the case of the original Yeti X, are silver, see top plate or base.
The detail of the lower area draws attention, since it is engraved with a series of runes of the game that, unfortunately, we do not feel capable of deciphering. It is likely that the most passionate of the game know how to identify them, but whatever the truth is that they give a touch of the most interesting to the microphone.
It is not the only place where Blue has taken care of the details. As we can see in the images, in the front area we have a button with some LEDs around it. These LEDs on the regular Yeti X are round, but in this version ‘World of Warcraft’ they are shaped like runes from the game.
It is not merely aesthetic, since the lights are light up with our voice depending on the volume. It is a particularly useful function for streamers and podcasters, since it allows you to easily know if we are being heard too loud or too low.
In addition, if we hold down the button for two seconds we will access different functions: gain, headphone level (on the back it has a 3.5 mm jack so that we can listen to ourselves in real time) and Blend. Another very interesting function is that if we press the button once we silence ourselves, very useful for coughing or talking to a person without all the listeners hearing our voice.
The microphone can be tilted to put it in different positions, although the ideal is to have it completely vertical right in front of us, especially if we do not plan to do interviews. It is quite (quite) heavy, but it is not something that really important too much since 1) it is most likely that it is always fixed in the same place and 2) it helps to transmit a pleasant feeling of robustness.
At the aesthetic and construction level you can not fault it, it is a microphone that feels premium, resistant and well finished. The only “but” is that its USB port is microUSB, not USB type C, but it is somewhat minor. Due to its aesthetics, and based on the fact that the only difference in terms of functions with respect to the Yeti X are the filters of ‘World of Warcraft’, we could say that this mic is more of a collector’s item than a mass mic.
From orc to gnome and I shoot because it’s my turn
But beyond the purely aesthetic, the grace of the microphone is in the software. Like other devices under the Logitech umbrella, the Yeti X World of Warcraft can be sync with Logitech G Hub, your management software. Necessary? Absolutely. The microphone is plug & play, so we can use it without major problem just by connecting it to a USB port. Now the only way to use voice modulation is with software.
When we connect the microphone and synchronize it with the G Hub we can access Blue VO! CE, the modulation system including ‘World of Warcraft’ presets. Although these are configured by default, we can modify them to our liking to better adapt them to our tone of voice, either because it is lower or higher, or simply because we want to sound different.
The available presets are orc, gnome, extreme gnome, demon or imp (Imp). We can also use those that were already available for other microphones, such as robot, voice with helium, etc. We can use the one we want and even go change it in real time. Just press on the preset and our voice will change automatically. How do they sound? Better to see it (or hear it) than to explain it.
Review of all voices
Individual voices
As the sound is applied directly via software, it is not necessary to do anything at all in tools such as StreamLabs, Twitch or video calling apps. The preset is applied automatically just by selecting it. It sounds really good and the effect is most curious, particularly that of the devil, which has that reverberation so typical of these races.
Another interesting aspect is that the presets that we create can be shared with other users and we, of course, can download the presets of others. Now the World of Warcraft presets can only be used on Yeti X World of Warcraft microphonesSo if you create a preset using the voice of an orc and pass it on to a friend with a normal Yeti X, they won’t be able to use it.
Audio samples for all tastes
In addition to voice, which is undoubtedly one of the main draws, the Logitech G Hub software has hundreds and hundreds of typical game sound effects. All of them are in English, for the moment, but from Logitech they explained to Engadget that they are working to bring them in other languages. Because of this they may not be very useful for streamers who broadcast and play in Spanish, but they give us a preview of what we can expect.
Available sounds include character phrases such as Bolvar, Jaina, Sylvanas, and Thrall. Sounds like “For Azeroth!”, “Lok-Narash”, For the Horde! or “For the alliance!” The idea is that we can launch these sounds while we are streaming And, in that sense, the function of assigning macros is interesting: we can assign a sound to a key combination to launch it without having to look for it in the software.
In addition to the phrases of the characters, there are ambient and location sounds, interesting to put in the background in streaming; sounds of spells and miscellaneous miscellaneous, of creatures like ghouls, Kobold, dragons and the mythical Murloc; as well as interface sounds, see the sound that is played when epic loot is achieved, the call to arms of the Alliance, the war mode off / on, etc. The range is wide, as is obvious.
The most curious thing? That we can create a macro with voice modulation and multiple sound effects at the same time. For example, we can create a macro that is the orc voice, the sound “For the horde!” and various background cannon sounds and spells. The software is really complete in this aspect and, as we can see, it is very focused on streaming video games and, more specifically, on ‘World of Warcraft’.
Yeti X World of Warcraft price and availability
The price of the original Yeti X is 179.99 euros, but if we want the version of ‘World of Warcraft’ we will have to pay 209.99 euros, 30 euros more. From Logitech they have confirmed that they do not plan to release a sound pack or anything like that, so the only way to access audio samples and voice modulation with World of Warcraft characters is to buy this special edition.
