Avoid fun to chat not to replaceJanuary 1, 2007 dave 19 out of 21 found this review helpful
I've been through 3 of these and my brother has gone through 2 it feels very cheap and it can only cost a fraction of the 15 price tag to make the only good thing is when it breaks you can ring up xbox 360 support line (0800 587 1102) complain and get sent a new one free of charge i've had 4 sent to the same address so doubt they log your details.
DO NOT BUY OFFICIAL HEADSETApril 24, 2006 Albino(UK) 17 out of 24 found this review helpful
I purchased the full 360 kit with Hard Drive and everything else that comes with it, including the offical 360 Headset.
My first Headset broke after about 3 months. I was in pregame lobbies (for any game). I could see people were speaking from their microphone symbols flashing but could hear nothing. Twiddling the wire of the headset produced a crackling and there was obviously some form of loose connection because it would make a connection and I could hear people. On asking people they could hear me but it was a case that I was not hearing people back. If I moved the wire about a bit I could get it so it was working properly but it meant having to keep my headset wire and controller deadly still otherwise I would loose the connection again. I thought at first I had broken it because I may have trod on the headset or wire. I decided to take apart the bit that connects the headset to the joypad. Nothing visibly broken in that bit and after fiddling with the wire some more it seemed the loose connection was related to the small, grey cylinder just down the wire from where it connects to the controller.
So I think. Fair enuf. Maybe I broke it, plus I've taken it apart so can't really complain.
I bought a brand new official headset from Game. With this new headset I have been extremely careful because as many will know they're fairly flimsy looking anyway. Well I have done nothing wrong. I have been extremely careful as explained not to pull on wire or physically abuse the headset.
Last night the same thing happened. The controller started crackling and I was hearing no-one in a lobby. Fiddle with wire and I'll gain / loose connection. Again it seems to be related to the Grey Cylinder area.
I originally used my Wireless controller but a few weeks after I got the 360 I bought a wired controller which I use all the time. Controller plugged in correctly. Mute button is in on position although that wouldn't have any affect on hearing people. Headset connected to controller properly. Basically everything is setup correctly. I'm blond but not that blond.
Some people get a problem when loading up a different game where there seems to be no connection for the headset at all (No from u or sound u can hear from others) but this is simply fixed by unplugging and plugging the headset back in. It is not this issue and I have tried everything else.
As person stated above there is little / No help on the NET and this is probably because the issue is related to shoddy workmanship. Also other people have the issue where there headset is playing up the other way round. e.g. They can hear people but people can't hear them.
These headsets look like they could have been created using Sticky Back Plastic and a Cardboard Eggbox ala Blue Peter. My biggest gripe with the 360 is this issue. WHY OH WHY have Microsoft pulled out the stops on this fancy new bit of Hardware and given us a cheap, tatty, fall apart headset. Just look at the connecting junction where it attaches to the controller. "Made in Taiwan" spring to mind? or what (sorry to be stereotypical and imply things made in Taiwan are Tat but its just a phrase).
I SUGGEST TO ANYBODY WHO WANTS A HEADSET OR WHO IS REPLACING A "Broken one" to wait until a third party headset is released. From looking at Amazon I can see there are a couple coming out at the beginning of May. I am gonna wait till then. Till then I am using my old Xbox headset which has not broken in over 2 years. Its a shame because using the old headset does not allow muting or volume control but I can live with that for a week or so just so I can hear my friends.
SUMMARY
DO NOT BUT OFFICIAL MICROSOFT HEADSET Unless you have 25 a month to spare! Albino
EDIT. NEW NOTE. Just adding this about 2 years on. Silly Internet Explorer just crashed on me and I had a load more waffle to add.
In summary I went through about 5 wired headsets. All the same problem. I put it down to over use. They cannot withstand too much use these things. Not built to last.
Cylinder on wire. That is now gone from them. Perhaps MS knew of a common problem. I still had them fail after having a couple of the newer style ones.
TBH the worst part of hardware IMHO now is the console itself (4 x repairs in 2 years). However thats a different story and I have to admit MS offer the best online experience, online service and experience in games available although again their customer services via phone leave a little to be desired. Should I say A LOT to be desired!
3rd party headsets last but are not as ergonomically sound.
Pay the extra for the wireless version. Mine has been going strong for over a year with little to no problems.
This comes from one sad individual who until recently was playing Xbox in excess of 50 hours a week. Yes INSANE. Sorting my life out now and Xbox is taking a back burner but as you can see I probably have given both the original Xbox and the 360 some real testing!
Personally I am assuming the good reviews of this product only relate to users who have either been extremely lucky, have owned a wireless headset for less than 3 months or do not play on the Xbox for more than say 10 hours a week. I have often known to be wrong though. Hope this helps people further in their decisions before wasting hard earned cash.
Albino
DO NOT BUYJanuary 4, 2007 Robert Witson(Seattle) 8 out of 13 found this review helpful
Do not buy the official 360 headset. It is of extremely poor quality and breaks for no apparent reason. Wait for a third party headset unless you want to be replacing your Microsoft one every three months (though my second didn't last that long)
The Microsoft headset has its negatives and its positives. Is it worth buying?August 14, 2006 Simon(England) 7 out of 7 found this review helpful
The xbox live headset is an essential piece of equiptment for any gamer who has a gold subscription for xbox live. Using a headset enables you to taunt other players, discuss strategies and more. It also provides ALOT of fun for just talking with friends. The headset improves xbox live gaming by about 5x. This headset unlike some others provides a muteing button and volume control. You can also adjust the speaker to where it feels comfortable. The headset provides clear speech to your ears. However, there are some problems.
There have been tons of cases of headsets breaking because of there weak structure. Wires come lose in and cause the headset to create a major crackling noise to other players and you will not be able to hear them. Other cases which hae happened have been more drastic. The headset will basicly cut of what people are saying to you meaning you will not be able to hear anyone, however they can hear you. This causes alot of annoyance. I am on my third headset.
The headset is definitly worth the buy, at least until some better headsets arive on the market.
Performs the job pretty wellMarch 7, 2006 Richykins(UK) 6 out of 8 found this review helpful
This is the headset currently provided with the premium bundled version of the Xbox 360 console. Designed for voice communication within Xbox Live (Microsoft's *EXCELLENT* subscription based multiplayer service) - it allows player communication within ALL games through the 'dashboard' interface.
Although the headset is not required in order to use Xbox Live (in fact, as a parent you can disable voice communication) it greatly enhances the multi-player experience. Key features:
*Communicate and work with other players as a team *Exchange friendly banter with opponents *Mute 'undesirable' players *Communicate with friends while you play different games *Setup a 'conference' style chat with a group of friends (a feature I use while watching sporting events on TV!)
The unit is light, can be worn on your left of right ear - it's reasonably comfortable, although the 'follicly challenged' larger headed individual may find it a bit 'snug'. Good quality, but loses a mark because I believe the RRP doesn't represent the greatest value. (I would imagine that there are good OEM versions available for less).
Note that the Xbox 360 headset is NOT backwardly compatible with the original Xbox console and vice versa.
