Tuesday, October 13, 2020
Prepare for Shadowlands by upgrading your gear.
The World of Warcraft: Shadowlands pre-patch drops today, bringing a new leveling system and character customization options to the game ahead of the release of the MMORPG's next big expansion. As players of all levels, including streamers, jump back into the game to check out the new content, Blue and Blizzard Entertainment have teamed up to introduce a powerful new tool in the form of the Yeti X World of Warcraft Edition microphone.
The Blue Yeti X, which first released in Sept. 2019, was already one of the best microphones for streamers, and the new version includes all of the same features, plus themed voice modulation and a huge collection of HD audio samples. While it's obviously geared towards high-end WoW players, the high quality audio and library of fantasy sound effects also makes it an excellent choice for anyone running remote tabletop RPGs, particularly if you're recording an actual play podcast.
What you'll love about the Yeti X World of Warcraft Edition
Blue has been making high-end studio mics for 25 years and premium USB mics for 15 years, and this veteran brand doesn't disappoint when it comes to quality. There are four capsules within the microphone that give it excellent clarity and it can be set to different modes depending on your needs.
Streaming with a partner or interviewing someone for your podcast? Set the mic to bi-directional. Doing a group podcast or broadcasting a tabletop game? Switch it to stereo or omnidirectional. While the $200 price tag might seem high, this device will let you record content that would normally require multiple mics to deliver the same quality.
This is fun for streamers to play with, but it's also an exceptionally powerful tool for raiders looking to alert their guild.
Of course it's also excellent if you're just sitting at your desk yourself, helping you to input exceptionally high quality audio. An 11-segment LED meter in front, which can be swapped between Alliance blue, Horde red, or numerous other colors, gives you a clear indicator of your levels as you're talking and you can adjust your sound with just the twist of a knob. The knob also lets you control your sound balance between what's coming out of the computer and what the mic itself is picking up so you can avoiding hearing the noises of your clicks.
The signature feature of the Yeti World of Warcraft Edition is its sound library, which includes hundreds of clips from the games history, with an emphasis on content from the upcoming World of Warcraft: Shadowlands expansion. Using the Logitech G Hub, you can play quotes from iconic characters including Jaina Proudmoore and Sylvanas Windrunner, ambient sounds from numerous zones, spell effects, creature noises, and sound effects associated with in-game events like receiving raid loot.
Obviously this is fun for streamers to play with, but it's also an exceptionally powerful tool for raiders looking to alert their guild with sounds they're primed to listen to, and for tabletop RPG podcasters or remote GMs looking to add ambience. If you have a Logitech G device like the Logitech G915 Lightspeed or the Logitech G915 TKL, you can use the G Hub software to drag and drop audio samples onto slots on your keyboard.
This functionality lets you queue up audio like the sound of a character being resurrected with the press of a button. You can even tie events together with macros. You can also decide whether to play the sound once, loop it so long as you've got your finger on the button, or have it just keep playing until you tell it to stop. Every second counts when you're raiding, and anything that will let you get your team's attention quickly and in a fun way is sure to be a useful tool as high-end players start tackling the toughest fights of Shadowlands.
The same software lets you create your own sound effects and share them with the community, so expect the library to grow post-launch. Some of these effects are already perfect for a game of Dungeons & Dragons or Pathfinder, but I look forward to hearing more of what creative users come up with.
What you'll dislike about the Yeti X World of Warcraft Edition
Like the standard Yeti X, the Yeti X World of Warcraft Edition is powered by a Micro-USB connector at the base. It's a little sensitive so you need to be careful not to jostle it while recording, lest it come unplugged. Luckily the recording quality is high enough that it doesn't need to be too near to your face, so you shouldn't hit it by accident when reaching for a drink.
I wasn't overly impressed with the voice modulation, which is meant to emulate various Warcraft races like orcs and gnomes. It just feels like pretty generic pitch shifting, something that's made clear by the fact that the software includes some non-themed effects such as the ultra-high pitched helium chipmunk. Also, if you're ultra spoiler adverse you might want to avoid scrolling through all the Shadowlands samples as they'll give you a hint at some of the conflicts ahead.
I also wish that Blue had a little more fun with the design of the Yeti World of Warcraft Edition. The themed elements are pretty subtle, with runes around the base to represent the magic used by the Death Knights that will be very important in the new expansion, and a World of Warcraft insignia on the back. WoW fans are notoriously proud of their faction and class allegiances and it seems like a missed opportunity to not let them choose a side with separate designs or even swappable decals.
Should you buy the Yeti X World of Warcraft Edition?
The Yeti X World of Warcraft Edition is pricey, but if you're a World of Warcraft of even fantasy tabletop fan looking to upgrade the quality of your streams, podcasts, or remote tabletop sessions, this is a great tool. Its high-quality audio will help capture the voices of everyone at your table, while the sound library will let you full immerse them in another world.
The mic is at its best when you're using additional Logitech G devices, though if you're willing to sink more money into upgrading your gaming accessories you won't be disappointed with the power that they put at your fingertips. If you're as excited about the release of World of Warcraft: Shadowlands as I am, and want to share your passion with the world, the Yeti X World of Warcraft Edition will give you all the power and control you need.
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