Endgame Gear XSTRM USB Microphone Review

Endgame Gear burst onto the scene in 2019 with the XM1 gaming mouse and has gone on to build a solid reputation in the gaming peripheral market. Today, however, we are looking at something brand-new from the company – a USB microphone. With a big focus on high quality audio recording, and some fancy RGB lighting, the Endgame Gear XSTRM promises premium audio at an affordable price.

Timestamps:

00:00 Start
01:01 Unboxing / Panels
02:01 The Microphone and Stand
03:08 Design of the microphone
04:09 Ports and switches
04:25 It has RGB ! / Gain meter
05:17 SQ / Noise Cancellation
07:38 Pop Filter
08:15 With boom arm
08:49 Audio effects
09:26 Worth buying?

Specifications:

• 20mm real gold-plated electret condenser capsule
• Cardioid pattern
• 192 kHz/24-bit studio-grade sampling rate
• RGB illumination with 12 modes
• Gain & level indicator with G sensor
• Touch-sensitive mute button
• AI noise cancellation
• Magnetic pop filter
• Hot-swappable PCB
• Shock mount with 3/8 inch thread for arm & tripod mounting
• Zero-latency 3.5mm headphone jack
• Plug-and-Play for Windows®10/11 and Mac OS X® (or higher)
• Weight with/without table-stand: 820g/475g

The Endgame Gear XSTRM retails for £109.99 (on offer from £119.99) and is available from Overclockers UK HERE.

Discuss on our Facebook page HERE.

Pros:

• All-metal body.
• Shock mount and pop filter included.
• Angle adjustment built into the stand.
• AI noise cancellation.
• 24 bit/192KHz recording.
• The shock mount has a ⅜ mount and can be used with boom arms.
• Pop filter does a great job of blocking out plosives.

Cons:

• RGB on a mic will prove divisive.
• RGB gain doesn’t have visible marked levels.
• 192KHz sample rate is wasted on OBS / streaming platforms.
• Acoustic foam panelling is a nice extra but has potential for excess waste.
• AI noise reduction switch is very fiddly and hard to use.

KitGuru says: I wasn't sure what to expect with the Endgame Gear XSTRM, particularly because of its slightly ‘out there' design – but the sound quality was surprisingly good and my voice sounded natural. The AI noise cancellation is a feature I'd probably ignore though as it cheapens the overall audio quality. That aside, for the price the XSTRM is certainly worth buying.

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