INTRODUCTION

   With the much awaited continuation of the classic FPS Thief released a few days back, the Elder Scrolls online Beta alive and kicking for a few hours already and the highly anticipated Titanfall heading for our hard drives on March 11th (along with its massive 48GB installation) the time has come for us to once again focus in testing all the latest game peripherals to hit the market by most manufacturers. However before we do that we all decided to bring over some of the products pointed out by many of you as being the most interesting ones to get released lately. The list of course was quite long and thus it was impossible for us to get everything but we handpicked what we think are the top ones and so today we will start with the latest and quite unique headset released by our friends over at Plantronics the RIG Stereo Headset & Mixer for PC/MAC/XBOX 360/PS3/MOBILE.

   From the day two airline pilots working in a garage set out to invent a new kind of aviation headset until today, we have considered breakthroughs in audio technology as our daily business. We pioneered the lightweight headset, the mobile headset, noise-canceling technology and the personal speakerphone, always driven by a single obsession: remove the barriers to simply smarter communications. The result? Our products are used by everyone from pilots, astronauts, and 911 emergency workers to 100% of the Fortune 100. From friends conversing across the globe, to mobile professionals doing business on the road, to contact centers and executive offices, Plantronics is the choice for everyone united by digital technology and the human need to communicate. Plantronics is a publicly held company (NYSE: PLT) headquartered in Santa Cruz, California with offices in 20 countries, including major facilities in China, England, Mexico, and the Netherlands. Our products are sold and supported through a worldwide network of Plantronics partners, including resellers, systems integrators, retailers and mobile carriers. And a half a century later, we are striving every day to deliver simply smarter communications with innovative design and technology.

   Plantronics really knows how to design unique looking products that will undoubtedly draw consumer attention and the RIG is certainly one of them mainly thanks to the very useful mixer it comes bundled with which allows the user to receive phone calls during gaming sessions by connecting it both with a smartphone and a PC/Console (we all know how annoying and even frustrating having to answer the phone can be especially while playing online games). That's not all however and so you can also take the headset with you on the road since it comes with two swappable microphones (boom microphone for gaming sessions and an in-line one for use with portable devices). For the headset Plantronics chose to go with a stereo solution (two 40mm drivers featuring a frequency response of 20Hz–20kHz) and although we happen to know that virtual surround headsets are usually better when used normally in stereo mode still this decision may be enough to make casual consumers and gamers look elsewhere for the ideal headset. We however care very little about such things and since Plantronics has been manufacturing very good headsets for quite a few years now we can't wait to try out the RIG.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The RIG is sold inside a black box with a picture of the product at the front along with its main features.

On the left side of the box Plantronics talks about the two available modes and also lists the product specifications.

Moving on the right side we see all the product features listed right above a picture of the exterior of the right earcup.

A picture of the complete bundle is placed at the rear beneath a few words about the product written in 7 languages.

The bundle contents along with the warranty period are placed at the bottom of the box.

Once again the front of the box opens up like a book to reveal the headset behind a clear plastic window and the "designed in Santa Cruz, California" statement.

The bundle is extremely rich and so aside the headset and the mixer you will also receive a quickstart guide, warranty information paper, boom microphone, 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable with in-line microphone, 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable and all the cables needed to connect it with PS3/4s and Xbox 360s.

THE RIG HEADSET

Unlike what Plantronics has gotten us used to over the years in terms of size the RIG headset is actually quite small and lightweight.

To make our point we placed it right next to the compact REVO Wireless Headset by Jabra.

The exterior of both earcups is covered with what looks like carbon fiber (it's actually plastic).

Plantronics has placed the RIG logo on the lower end of the left earcups exterior.

The 3.5mm port used to plug the headset to the mixer (and/or directly to a PC/portable device) is placed behind the RIG logo.

The boom microphone is flexible but unfortunately it doesn't stay where you bend it.

A nice cloth is used to dress the largest part of the headband and on one side we see the company name while on the other we see the R (right) indication.

Thanks to their size and foam padding both earcups are extremely comfortable and are dressed with black and orange cloth.

The headpad is placed behind the cloth cover and although not as thick as we'd like it to be still Plantronics had to take into consideration the size of the headset since it can also be used on the road with mobile devices.

As expected the headband extends on both sides (35mm on each) but this time over instead of visible increments Plantronics has used three rather funny head drawings.

To save space inside your backpack or your desk both earcups can pivot inwards as seen above.

THE RIG MIXER

The mixer is perhaps the most important part of the RIG since thanks to it you can connect the headset with both your PC or console and your smartphone.

You can switch between the two available modes (Game Mode/Mobile Mode) and adjust their volume levels at will from the large button at the center and the two sliders placed at the two sides of the interior.

At the front from the left to right we have the answer/end call button, microphone mute button and the equalizer button.

On the exterior of the mixer we see the master volume dial which also doubles as the power on/off switch (when turned all the way down the mixer is off).

Thanks to 3 rather large rubber feet the mixer stays in place at all times.

Right beneath the RIG logo at the front of the mixer we find the 3.5mm port used to plug in the headset and a smaller 2.5mm port used to connect an Xbox 360 controller.

For the 3.5mm mini-jack cable used to connect a smartphone with the mixer Plantronics opted for a flat cable (the other two are normal however).

Here we see all of the connectors of the RIG and excluding the USB port the rest are all gold plated.

The in-line microphone comes with a answer/end call button at the center and a mute switch at the left side.

Once you connect the mixer with your PC via USB the two LEDs placed under the interior sliders light up (would be nice if the illumination was connected to the sliders but we can't have everything).

Since the mixer doesn't need any drivers in order to be functional the only thing you need to do is set it as the default device in the audio settings.

CONCLUSION

   Plantronics has always liked to release high quality and innovative products but the RIG seems to take things to a whole different level since it's perhaps the only headset in the market currently that can be connected both to your PC/Console and your smartphone at the same time saving you from all the unnecessary annoyance of having to stop playing your favorite game in order to answer your calls (doesn't happen that often to me but don't you hate it when your online character gets fragged by the enemy just because you had to answer your phone?). Of course audio quality is far more important than features but luckily enough the 40mm drivers offer a good soundstage especially when the headset is plugged into the Mixer since you can use the 3 equalizer presets (pure/intense/explosive) to boost either clarity or the volume/bass levels. Overall the RIG produces good and crisp mids/highs but it's quite obvious even after several hours that it's not as good as some of the more "dedicated" audio headsets we've reviewed over the years. Thanks to the size, design and weight of the headset you can wear it for long periods of time without having to worry about getting a neck pain. The two microphones also work quite well but we liked the clarity and volume levels of the boom one more although its size makes it quite hard to wear it while on the road.

   The RIG Stereo Headset & Mixer for PC/MAC/XBOX 360/PS3/MOBILE has been in the market for just slightly over 3 months but that was enough for Plantronics to cut its price down to a tempting USD99.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 85Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). Of course if you care not about the mixer and the ability to connect both your PC/MAC/Console and smartphone at the same time then there are many interesting offers at around the same price ment for gamers and even audiophiles. However if you do happen to care about its innovative features the RIG is quite unique (some may even argue that it’s in a class of its own) and that's why we give it our Golden Award.

PROS

- Innovation
- Audio Quality (Good Bass Levels, Crisp Mids/Highs)
- Bundled Mixer (Connects To 2 Input Devices)
- Two Interchangeable Microphones (Boom/In-Line)
- Driverless Installation
- Comfortable

CONS

- Build Quality Could Be Better
- Not Really Ment For Hardcore Gamers