The G4 33: A Gaming Headset with Promise but Flawed Execution

I recently had the opportunity to test out the Logitech G4 33, a gaming headset that promised a lot but ultimately fell short of expectations. The first thing that struck me was the packaging itself, which seemed excessive and unnecessary. I appreciate the extra accessories that came with the headset, such as a carry pouch, an extra set of ear pads, and a removable microphone, but the price point of $99 felt like it could have been shaved off to invest in more substantial components.

The headset's design is where things take a turn for the worse. The material on the padding feels cheap and uncomfortable against my skin. I would gladly ditch all that fancy packaging for nice velour pads or maybe even pleather headbands that provide better comfort. The padding on top of the headset, in particular, is a major letdown. It's not comfortable at all, and I couldn't help but wonder if Logitech had compromised on quality to meet the price point.

One area where the G4 33 shines is in its customization options. The frame design can be changed through color options, which I appreciate as it gives users a sense of personalization. The comfort level is also good, with the headset staying securely in place during long gaming sessions. However, when it comes to the USB DAC and audio quality, things take a turn for the worse.

The USB DAC is subpar, producing very low volume mic output that feels underwhelming. This is particularly disappointing given Logitech's reputation for producing high-quality audio equipment. The only redeeming quality of the DAC is in stereo mode, where it performs adequately without any major issues. However, when enabled with surround sound through the gaming software, the experience becomes a mess. The powerful volume is nowhere to be found, and positional accuracy suffers as a result.

The audio itself is decent but not exceptional. I was pleased to find that it wasn't tinny or harsh, but lacked bass response that vibrates the drivers slightly. It's not a defect, per se, but rather a feature that some users may find more desirable than others. The soundstage is good, and the headset delivers clean detail without any major audio issues.

A major point of contention for me was the gaming software itself. When enabled with surround sound, the experience becomes distant and loses all positional accuracy. I couldn't help but feel like Logitech had compromised on quality to meet the price point. It's a shame, because when used in stereo mode, the DAC performs well with different EQ profiles.

In conclusion, my experience with the Logitech G4 33 was mixed. While it had some redeeming qualities, such as good design and decent audio performance, it ultimately fell short of expectations due to its poor materials, subpar USB DAC, and disappointing surround sound capabilities. If Logitech were to focus on improving these areas in future revisions, I would have no qualms about recommending the G4 33 to users looking for a gaming headset in this price range.

In hindsight, there are several compromises that made me question the value of the G4 33. While it has good packaging with accessories, the materials used feel cheap and uncomfortable. The packaging itself could be simplified, and resources invested into these components instead of fancy packaging would likely result in a better product overall.

As someone who values quality products over flashy packaging, I couldn't help but feel that Logitech had made some questionable design decisions to meet the price point. However, when it comes down to it, the G4 33 does deliver clean detail and a powerful signal without being harsh or tinny. It's not a perfect product by any means, but it's definitely worth considering for users who are on a budget.

My final remark would be to focus on good padding in their next revision of the headset. The implementation is just not there yet, and I couldn't help but feel that Logitech had compromised on quality to meet the price point. By prioritizing the materials and design of the headset, they could create a product that truly delivers on its promises without breaking the bank.

I hope this article has provided you with a comprehensive understanding of my experience with the Logitech G4 33 gaming headset. If you have any questions or comments about the review, I'd be happy to hear them in the comments section below.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhow exciting can gaming headphones get throw it slightly lighter how exciting can gaming headphones get the Logitech seems to have added some spice to the game with a G 433 no but let's check it out choose be quiet to join the silent revolution designed and tested in Germany they're meticulous passion for quiet PC components ranges from premium power supplies CPU coolers and fans and innovative PC cases all of which aim to achieve one thing is this thing even on that's right totally quiet power supplies even under load silent winks fans a little bit awesome airflow with noise that doesn't reach your ears all enclosed in the package designed to be quiet so the g4 33 comes in at the very appealing price point at $99 which for a surround sound headset in this very crowded market space is pretty good and large thing is trying to impress us from all the angles and one of the most notable changes here is the fabric cover on the headset that is available in red blue blue camo and this boring black and I think it's a very good approach to cover up the crappy feeling plastic so it's a good way to introduce a good feeling headset because our perception of quality is usually derived from handling a product and feeling it and how it sounds and it was there any creaking plastic because the quality on the g2 33 was terrible because of the plastic so have they succeeded with the g4 33 well the size adjustment is good it doesn't crack and it certainly looks good but it still feels like a bathing suit material it's very harsh it doesn't have the softness that I expect and unfortunately the ear cups feel the same and if you have dandruff I'm sorry as all the little crevasses pick up dry skin very well it's very visible the hair gets stuck a dark gray color as default would have worked much better they're not irritating to where but they sound like sandpaper when the headset moves on your head it's very unappealing and the replacement ear cups are therefore appreciated I swapped mine right away and because the large rectangular shape of the ear cups you have to be kind of rough when removing and installing the ear pads and because of this different material on the replacement ear cups the headset doesn't look so good anymore having these two types of visible fabric in terms of shape they're not particularly bulky they're a bit wider than my sign Heiser game one but I love the ability to fold them on your neck with no restriction to head movement but unfortunately even the headband padding has the same harsh feeling and that is not very comfortable the material choice here is very poor and it's upsetting because everything else around the headset is excellent in terms of comfort there's no large clamping force they're light enough so you can wear them they breathe and so that you know the actual ear cup size is large enough so there's no clamping force even if you have large ears they expand so all those elements are excellent but why do you go with such subpar and just terrible padding I don't understand but hey you are paying for something and packaging here is incredible so we got dual layered box fantastic print job but who is this guy plus the hidden keep playing slogan yeah I appreciate it but it's way over the top and you could have easily shaved off a lot of the cost on the packaging and invest those resources into things that matter on the headset when will they learn quality products first before quality packaging please but we do get plenty of accessories so there's a carry pouch that is good to store extra cables an extra set of ear pads that I mentioned earlier then a removable microphone that is flexible and there's only one way to insert it into a headset so that's good and if it's not populated the input jack seems kind of lonely and exposed so this is what the microphone sounds like it's plugged in directly into the USB sound card there's not enough power and it to drive to my kernel properly that is this very quiet and you have to boost it either in post or ad gain which introduces hiss but yeah this is what the quality is like then there's the main USB sound card for surround sound audio there are no LED indicators here it's simple plug-and-play and controlled through the gaming logitech software then we have the main pc cable with a mic mute function and volume control plus a shirt clip all of which feel excellent so nice feedback on the button and the firm volume wheel plus different ends so you cannot confuse what plugs and where then there's the mobile cable with a mic built in and a multi-function button and finally mic / headphone jack splitter for the pc if you want to plug this into your sound card so I do appreciate the very modular nature of the g4 33 with all the possible cables that you would need but I feel there's your compromise in order to meet that $99 price point with good packaging and good accessories they're too cheap out on some things like very important padding on the headset come on Logitech and also a subpar USB DAC that has very low volume mic output and the only thing left to cover is the audio I was pretty satisfied for $99 to get the clean detail and a powerful signal that is not harsh it's not tinny and you get a nice bass boost that actually vibrates the drivers a little bit I don't think that's a defect that's it felt very powerful without destroying any other frequencies so that's pretty good to hear so from an audio perspective I would use this as my main gaming headset if it wasn't of course for the really terrible padding on the top the replacement cups are fine though but as soon as you enable surround sound through the you know the large the gaming software you lose the powerful volume everything becomes distant mess and you lose all the positional accuracy that you normally get with stereo so just the experience and the surround sound through the DAC is terrible so I would just leave it at stereo and the flat profile is very good but of course you can't play around with the EQ settings and those different profiles that are built in which all have their nice quirks and they don't destroy the audio frequency so there you have it another example on how a gaming headset that tries to do it all have good packaging with accessories good customization options for color as in terms of the frame design comfort level is good but there's so many things that are wrong starting with the material on the padding it's not comfortable I would gladly ditch all that fancy packaging for nice velour paths that you see on you know other quality headsets or maybe even like give me a pleather headband that doesn't feel like sandpaper on my skin please but when it comes to the USB DAC in stereo mode it's excellent with different EQ profiles but in surround sound mode which is what you're trying to sell us for this headset it's not a good experience the powerful volume is not there and the detail is not there and that's unfortunately because we've heard good surround sound from Logitech in the past with their g6 33 so you know these compromises here just really downgrade the whole experience with a $99 price point that is so appealing but all these little drawbacks that kind of chip away at the value and it makes me difficult to recommend the G's 433 and so my final remark for launch that would be to focus on good padding in their next revision of the headset because I think that really destroys this product which is quality and perhaps if you're trying to be fancy with packaging have the fancy packaging sleeve but the rest of the packaging to be simplified and those resources to be invested into the product itself and I wish that more gaming companies would recognize that and really invest everything into here and not into here so guys I hope you enjoyed this review I love the material direction but the implementation is just not there yet but let me know what you think of the g4 33 and everything we discussed in this video I'm Dimitri with our architects make sure to subscribe for more similar content and we'll see you in emacs mehow exciting can gaming headphones get throw it slightly lighter how exciting can gaming headphones get the Logitech seems to have added some spice to the game with a G 433 no but let's check it out choose be quiet to join the silent revolution designed and tested in Germany they're meticulous passion for quiet PC components ranges from premium power supplies CPU coolers and fans and innovative PC cases all of which aim to achieve one thing is this thing even on that's right totally quiet power supplies even under load silent winks fans a little bit awesome airflow with noise that doesn't reach your ears all enclosed in the package designed to be quiet so the g4 33 comes in at the very appealing price point at $99 which for a surround sound headset in this very crowded market space is pretty good and large thing is trying to impress us from all the angles and one of the most notable changes here is the fabric cover on the headset that is available in red blue blue camo and this boring black and I think it's a very good approach to cover up the crappy feeling plastic so it's a good way to introduce a good feeling headset because our perception of quality is usually derived from handling a product and feeling it and how it sounds and it was there any creaking plastic because the quality on the g2 33 was terrible because of the plastic so have they succeeded with the g4 33 well the size adjustment is good it doesn't crack and it certainly looks good but it still feels like a bathing suit material it's very harsh it doesn't have the softness that I expect and unfortunately the ear cups feel the same and if you have dandruff I'm sorry as all the little crevasses pick up dry skin very well it's very visible the hair gets stuck a dark gray color as default would have worked much better they're not irritating to where but they sound like sandpaper when the headset moves on your head it's very unappealing and the replacement ear cups are therefore appreciated I swapped mine right away and because the large rectangular shape of the ear cups you have to be kind of rough when removing and installing the ear pads and because of this different material on the replacement ear cups the headset doesn't look so good anymore having these two types of visible fabric in terms of shape they're not particularly bulky they're a bit wider than my sign Heiser game one but I love the ability to fold them on your neck with no restriction to head movement but unfortunately even the headband padding has the same harsh feeling and that is not very comfortable the material choice here is very poor and it's upsetting because everything else around the headset is excellent in terms of comfort there's no large clamping force they're light enough so you can wear them they breathe and so that you know the actual ear cup size is large enough so there's no clamping force even if you have large ears they expand so all those elements are excellent but why do you go with such subpar and just terrible padding I don't understand but hey you are paying for something and packaging here is incredible so we got dual layered box fantastic print job but who is this guy plus the hidden keep playing slogan yeah I appreciate it but it's way over the top and you could have easily shaved off a lot of the cost on the packaging and invest those resources into things that matter on the headset when will they learn quality products first before quality packaging please but we do get plenty of accessories so there's a carry pouch that is good to store extra cables an extra set of ear pads that I mentioned earlier then a removable microphone that is flexible and there's only one way to insert it into a headset so that's good and if it's not populated the input jack seems kind of lonely and exposed so this is what the microphone sounds like it's plugged in directly into the USB sound card there's not enough power and it to drive to my kernel properly that is this very quiet and you have to boost it either in post or ad gain which introduces hiss but yeah this is what the quality is like then there's the main USB sound card for surround sound audio there are no LED indicators here it's simple plug-and-play and controlled through the gaming logitech software then we have the main pc cable with a mic mute function and volume control plus a shirt clip all of which feel excellent so nice feedback on the button and the firm volume wheel plus different ends so you cannot confuse what plugs and where then there's the mobile cable with a mic built in and a multi-function button and finally mic / headphone jack splitter for the pc if you want to plug this into your sound card so I do appreciate the very modular nature of the g4 33 with all the possible cables that you would need but I feel there's your compromise in order to meet that $99 price point with good packaging and good accessories they're too cheap out on some things like very important padding on the headset come on Logitech and also a subpar USB DAC that has very low volume mic output and the only thing left to cover is the audio I was pretty satisfied for $99 to get the clean detail and a powerful signal that is not harsh it's not tinny and you get a nice bass boost that actually vibrates the drivers a little bit I don't think that's a defect that's it felt very powerful without destroying any other frequencies so that's pretty good to hear so from an audio perspective I would use this as my main gaming headset if it wasn't of course for the really terrible padding on the top the replacement cups are fine though but as soon as you enable surround sound through the you know the large the gaming software you lose the powerful volume everything becomes distant mess and you lose all the positional accuracy that you normally get with stereo so just the experience and the surround sound through the DAC is terrible so I would just leave it at stereo and the flat profile is very good but of course you can't play around with the EQ settings and those different profiles that are built in which all have their nice quirks and they don't destroy the audio frequency so there you have it another example on how a gaming headset that tries to do it all have good packaging with accessories good customization options for color as in terms of the frame design comfort level is good but there's so many things that are wrong starting with the material on the padding it's not comfortable I would gladly ditch all that fancy packaging for nice velour paths that you see on you know other quality headsets or maybe even like give me a pleather headband that doesn't feel like sandpaper on my skin please but when it comes to the USB DAC in stereo mode it's excellent with different EQ profiles but in surround sound mode which is what you're trying to sell us for this headset it's not a good experience the powerful volume is not there and the detail is not there and that's unfortunately because we've heard good surround sound from Logitech in the past with their g6 33 so you know these compromises here just really downgrade the whole experience with a $99 price point that is so appealing but all these little drawbacks that kind of chip away at the value and it makes me difficult to recommend the G's 433 and so my final remark for launch that would be to focus on good padding in their next revision of the headset because I think that really destroys this product which is quality and perhaps if you're trying to be fancy with packaging have the fancy packaging sleeve but the rest of the packaging to be simplified and those resources to be invested into the product itself and I wish that more gaming companies would recognize that and really invest everything into here and not into here so guys I hope you enjoyed this review I love the material direction but the implementation is just not there yet but let me know what you think of the g4 33 and everything we discussed in this video I'm Dimitri with our architects make sure to subscribe for more similar content and we'll see you in emacs me\n"