Speedlink Medusa NX Core (X360 & PS3) Gaming Headset Review

1. Introducion2. Packaging and Bundle3. The Headset4. Comfort and Performance5. Closing Thoughts6. View All Pages

This year there are a vast number of gaming headsets on the market, making it much harder for the consumer to find the perfect model to suit their own tastes.  Companies such as Razer and SteelSeries only produce gaming peripherals whereas others like Logitech produce a larger range of products which cover many niches.

Today we are going to look at a gaming headset called the Medusa NX from a company called Speedlink.  You might not have heard of Speedlink but they are a long established company who produce a comprehensive range of peripherals for the mainstream and gaming markets.

The Medusa NX is available in both PS3 and Xbox 360 flavours and we have both here to test today.

Features

The headset is supplied in a sizeable cardboard box which features a large window in the front, this gives us a sneak-peek of the headset within the box before opening.

The front of the box features a large image of the headset alongside some details of the key features.

It' will be easy to tell the difference between the Xbox 360 and PS3 boxes on the retail shelves as the former features a green colour scheme while the latter is red.  Turning the box around reveals some more detailed information about the headset which is repeated in a number of languages.

Inside the box, the bundle is quite limited and only consists of a concise user guide and the required cables for hooking the headset up to a Xbox 360 or PS3 depending on which version of the headset you go for.  Other than the connecting cables, the two versions are identical.

There isn't anything ground breaking about the design of the Medusa NX as it uses a simple over the head design.  The earcups are fairly large and fit over your ears, pressing against the head.

Many manufacturers try and differentiate their gaming headsets from the crowd by painting them bright colours but Speedlink has chosen to use matte black to finish the whole of the headset.  This gives it an understated appearance that will be favoured by some gamers.  We can't help but feel it's a little bland, though.

The plastics used in construction feel reasonably durable and are well put together.  This gives the headset a quality feeling overall and makes it feel like it's built to last.  The only slightly suspect aspect of the headset in terms of build quality is the cable which feels a little flimsy and thin for our liking.

We would prefer to see Speedlink using a braided shielding like SteelSeries do with some of their headsets.

As we mentioned earlier in the review, the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of the headset are identical apart from the cables used for connection.  Both feature dual 3.5mm connectors about 50cm down the cable from the headset.  These can either be used to plug the headset into your PC or into the in line controls supplied for PS3 and Xbox 360.

The in line control supplied with the Xbox 360 version of the headset is easily identifiable by the trademark green and black colour scheme.  It features independent controls for game and chat volume as well as a microphone mute button.

On the rear of the control there is a clip for attaching it to your clothes if required.  There are four cables attached to the bottom of the control which must all be connected to enable full functionality.

These are a USB cable for power, red and black RCA connectors and a 2.5mm cable which plugs into the bottom of your controller for chat.

The PS3 in line control is very similar to the Xbox 360 version.  The controls are identical and the only aesthetic difference is the red and black colour scheme.  The cables protruding from the bottom of the control are also different as the chat functionality is handled via USB rather than a separate connector.  It also features two RCA connectors for game audio.

It would be fair to say that the Speedlink Medusa NX isn't one of the most comfortable headsets we've ever tested.  It's not totally uncomfortable but it does suffer from a lack of padding.

The ear pads are quite hard and don't seem to squash to fit the shape of your head as much as they should.  The material used to cover the earpads isn't a soft as leatherette and can become a little irritating after a few hours use.

The headband features a small amount of padding but the shape of the headset means that a lot of the headband doesn't actually come into contact with your head.  This means that the weight of the headset is concentrated on a smaller area.

There is a lot of adjustment in the headband, though, so it should fit people with large heads without causing issue or discomfort.

In our tests we used the Medusa NX in a number of gaming scenarios, both with a console and PC.  The sound balance is pretty good and is well suited to most types of game.  In Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3, gunshots and explosions didn't overshadow footsteps too much but there was a noticeable lack of sound panning which made it more difficult to work out where enemies were located.

We weren't overwhelmed by the sound quality of the Medusa NX in our tests either.  Again, it's not bad but it's not better than other Xbox 360 and PS3 headsets we've tested in the past like the two Sharkoon X-Tatic models.  We found the Medusa NX was slightly more prominent in the lower registers than the SteelSeries Spectrum 5XB but lacked sound clarity when comparing the two side by side.

The microphone isn't amazing but is perfectly adequate for chatting with your team mates.

Overall we are left with mixed, but mainly negative impressions of the Speedlink Medusa NX.  While it isn't a shockingly bad headset, there are very few key areas which stand out and the whole package seems rather run of the mill, especially when up against quality products from other companies in this specific sector.

We are reasonably impressed with the build quality of the headset as the materials are high grade and the construction appears to be robust and able to withstand rough handling. The appearance is rather bland for a gaming headset although we imagine that a select audience will warm to the understated styling.

The sound quality is reasonably impressive but the headset is slightly uncomfortable compared to other models we had available for comparison from Steelseries. This was primarily due to the hard earpads which don't squash to fit the shape of the head.

The in line control positioning is not ideal, as it is much more difficult to adjust the volumes and mute the microphone than with the SteelSeries Spectrum 5XB, which simply attaches to the bottom of the controller.

The Speedlink Medusa NX is on sale for £40 from Amazon for both Xbox 360 and PS3 versions.  The SteelSeries Spectrum 5XB can be yours for £33 from Amazon and we think it's a much superior headset.  It offers a higher level of comfort, better build and has more logically laid out controls. Therefore, we don't feel we could recommend this headset unless the price drops to around £25.

Pros

• Good sound quality.
• Generally solid build quality.

Cons

• Uncomfortable.
• Expensive.
• Uninspiring design.

KitGuru says: Not a bad headset but there is better out there for the money.

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