VOID Mic Boom Sensitivity Improvement

[Corsair Chris]

There has been a number of instances in which people have mentioned that our mic is too quiet. In most cases, this can be resolved by bending the microphone closer to the mouth and many users don’t know that the mic is bendable or are afraid of damaging the mic. The mic boom uses Thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) AKA thermoplastic rubbers, allowing it to be flexible and keep its structural integrity. And bending the microphone can increase mic gain by as much as 10dB.

We did some testing with multiple mic positions for their sensitivity.

P0: P1: P2: P3: P4:

Mic sensitivity chart


P0 (out of the box): -42.7dBr
P1 (15°): -40.8 dBr (2dB improvement)
P2 (30°): -37.8 dBr (5dB improvement, recommended)
P3 (45°): -34.5 dBr (8dB improvement)
P4 (90°): -31.5 dBr (11dB improvement)
We suggest adjusting the mic similar to P2 for the best performance.

[ScarredMecha]

Is there also going to be a software-based gain ceiling increase in the future?

[Corsair Chris]

I brought this up with the software team and the headset dev team, what they came back to me with was if we do bump up the sensitivity of the mic using software what would happen is that the mic will be more prone to pick up audio from additional sources. This ultimately defeats the purpose of the noise cancelling feature of the mic.

With that said, if users continue to have issues with the mic volumes we can implement a software fix to raise the sensitivity.

[Dr_Vodka]

Sorry, but I have purchased this headset and had it for 1 day only. The mic sensitivity is still terrible and before I was using an iphone headphones with built in microphone.
I updated the drivers as soon as I charged the headset and still even with this post being taken into consideration (I bent the mic arm round to be almost touching my mouth) My brother still can infrequently hear me across teamspeak or skype.
Any fix or do I just need to refund this headset?

[yuppicide]

I have only had the headset for a few hours now. I've used it in Teamspeak and Counter Strike Global Offensive with no complaints what so ever.

[MadIce]

It works fine for me too. At first I thought the microphone level was too low, but I found out how to set it properly. I'm using the USB version, but I don't think the wireless one will be much different. Maybe this is useful to someone.

I assume you've connected the headset and installed the CUE software. I've created a profile called "Desktop" and used the following settings:



Set both the Mic and Sidetone levels to the maximum. Also make sure that both are not muted. If the two icons above show different ones on your system then click them until they match the image.



Now we make sure that these settings are actually being used. To do that left click the hamburger menu next to the profile name. In my case the profile is called "Desktop" (but yours can differ). A menu appears. If the last option of that menu doesn't have a tag mark in front of it then click that option. That makes sure that the profile is being used when you exit the CUE software.



Go to the control panel and open "Sound". A dialog window appears like the one above. Click the second tab there ("Recording"). Find your headset. If that headset doesn't have a green tag mark in front of it then right click the headset. A menu appears like the one shown in the image. Click "Set as default device". After that click the "Apply" button.



In the same "Recording" tab in "Sound" right click the headset's microphone and select "Properties" from the popup menu. In the dialog window that appears, click the "Advanced" tab. Make sure to disable the "Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device", like shown above. If the option changed then click the "Apply" button.

The above makes sure that background applications cannot take over control of the microphone.



Make sure you are still in the "Recording" tab. Right click the headset's microphone and select "Properties" again from the popup menu. In the properties window use the second tab, called "Listen". If there is no tag mark in front of the "Listen to this device" option then click it, until one appears like shown in the image. Hit the "Apply" button.

The step above greatly improves the feedback you'll get: You will hear properly what is being recorded by the microphone. However, you don't need this option, because it doesn't actually change the microphone level. After you are done testing, you can switch it off.



Another way to test the microphone level is to use the Steam voice settings.



In the "Sound" dialog window mentioned above, click the "Communications" tab. Select the "Do nothing" option to make sure that Windows doesn't change any levels when it detects a phone call. Hit "Apply" when required.



Finally, in Windows 10 there is a privacy option which can prevent the microphone from being used. Open the "Settings" window (by typing Settings in the Windows search box near the start menu) and click "Privacy". Then click "Microphone" in the list on the left. Make sure the "Let apps use my microphone" option is set. You may see apps show up there. Here two of them have the microphone disabled. Enable those you feel are safe to use. Some applications, like games, may not show up here. Don't worry, they will use the first option ("Let apps use my microphone"), which we've just enabled.

[Medieval Nerd]

This information needs to be sent to the reviewers, they all seem to not know you can bend the boom, and complain about poor mic quality...

[Event Horizon]

I never knew you could bend the mic. Why didn't Corsair market this? Thank you!

[groundwire123]

I too did not know that the mic was bendable at all. Wish they would have mentioned this in there marketing somewhere. But yea bending it made a big difference and the rubber used is quite rigid and durable. Still feel we need to have the option to increase the gain through software. At least make it an option. We have mic monitor to know whether or not this is giving us undesired noises in the background.

[Inheritance]

Corsair Under Selling. Hiding advance features since 2015

[Precomplete]

Originally Posted by Corsair Chris

I brought this up with the software team and the headset dev team, what they came back to me with was if we do bump up the sensitivity of the mic using software what would happen is that the mic will be more prone to pick up audio from additional sources. This ultimately defeats the purpose of the noise cancelling feature of the mic.

With that said, if users continue to have issues with the mic volumes we can implement a software fix to raise the sensitivity.

In all honesty, if the mic is barely picking up sounds that are 4 inches away I doubt a system sensitivity boost would ruin the noise cancelling. But what do I know.

[~Daniel~]

Originally Posted by Corsair Chris

I brought this up with the software team and the headset dev team, what they came back to me with was if we do bump up the sensitivity of the mic using software what would happen is that the mic will be more prone to pick up audio from additional sources. This ultimately defeats the purpose of the noise cancelling feature of the mic.

With that said, if users continue to have issues with the mic volumes we can implement a software fix to raise the sensitivity.

I just bought a VOID USB headset yesterday (to go with my new K95 and M65 over the past few days) and swapped it for another one today after discovering a section in the cable that was mis-shaped under the rubberized coating of the USB cable. It almost looked like an internal wire that had its insulation/shielding rolled back a few millimeters and then shrink wrapped over top of it. Not normal anyway.

While I was seriously unimpressed by the strength of the mic of the first unit, it looks like the new headset is definitely better... so I suspect the wire condition was to blame in part.

Being a gamer and computer user/builder for years, I have some habits I typically always perform when I get a new headset... namely, instantly upping the mic boost to max (typically +30db). And of course mic boost is not an option on the VOID?!? Ggrrr, us creatures of habit (old dogs) need our mic boost sliders!!

So while I feel that my new VOID is not recording audio to the same levels of my other headsets of the past, I think it's fair to say that this judgement is made real because of the lack of the mic boost feature. I could reattach the old headset to run a comparison between them with mic boost disabled on my onboard realtek audio... but I'm enjoying the audio output of my VOID too much to want the old headset to touch my computer ever again :) Good Bye 3.5mm (stereo) Sennheiser, hello VOID!

Now I know this thread is focused on bending the mic to improve performance, but it looks like the both USB VOIDS I purchased over the last 2 days already had a significant (I'd say at least 45 degree) bend in them right out of the box.

So while all this positioning of the mic is very relevant, I still think it's important for Corsair to put an old staple / feature like mic boost into their product offering... whether that be within CUE or made available deeper within the Windows recording settings.

Did I mention mic boost? :)

[Mekc]

To use the microphone, rotate it down and adjust it so that it’s between
1–2 inches (2.5cm to 5cm) away from your mouth.

From Quick Start Guide =) (http://www.corsair.com/~/media/Corsa...ID_USB_QSG.pdf)

[layarion]

Originally Posted by Corsair Chris

There has been a number of instances in which people have mentioned that our mic is too quiet. In most cases, this can be resolved by bending the microphone closer to the mouth and many users don’t know that the mic is bendable or are afraid of damaging the mic. The mic boom uses Thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) AKA thermoplastic rubbers, allowing it to be flexible and keep its structural integrity. And bending the microphone can increase mic gain by as much as 10dB.

We did some testing with multiple mic positions for their sensitivity.

P0: P1: P2: P3: P4:

Mic sensitivity chart


P0 (out of the box): -42.7dBr
P1 (15°): -40.8 dBr (2dB improvement)
P2 (30°): -37.8 dBr (5dB improvement, recommended)
P3 (45°): -34.5 dBr (8dB improvement)
P4 (90°): -31.5 dBr (11dB improvement)
We suggest adjusting the mic similar to P2 for the best performance.

i'm a savy PC user, and know what settings need to be on, off, low or high. even at position 4 the microphone is too quiet. indeed 4 gets it to be "acceptible" but if you read my comment at the bottom i can't achieve that. i bought these for $90 at bestbuy, and i have until the 15th of january to return them. if i don't have software that lets me use the headset the way i want to for youtube videos at a decent recording volume i think i'll be obligated to return these because even my teamspeak friends say it's on the quiet side.

i want to like this headset because a 16 hour battery life is very appealing, but i'll march right in and exhange these for the G933's if that's what it takes to get a proper microphone

(which i can't achieve any of the positions without physically holding the microphone in place with my hand because my head is bigger than that maniken i guess)

and by the way, those pictures should be snapped at more than one angle becuase it's hard for me to tell the exact positioning from those

[MaelstromOC]

The mic is greatly improved if it's sitting basically on my mouth... I find this to be unacceptable honestly.

I don't understand how calling a microphone noise cancelling can be a truth if it's simply so insensitive that it CAN'T pick up any noise to actually cancel out... seems like a bit of a misdirection to me.

I don't understand why they wouldn't add a boost feature or even just increase the sensitivity of the mic as an OPTION to users who would like to use it. Those who don't want to use it can simply choose not to.

I'm hopeful some sort of boost will be added. I got the VOID wireless set as a replacement for my g930 because the g930 has so many issues with crackling audio to me, but the mic was superb. Now with the VOID, the mic is iffy at best, but the audio is superb lol. I feel like I can't win!