Portable music players like the iPod, Sansa and (insert name here) are extremely popular and offer the ability to take your music with you on the go, but no matter how good the player is it doesn’t really matter unless you have a good set of comfortable headphones to go with it. Let’s face it, the headphones that come with any of these MP3 players suck, the sound reproduction is sub-par and they really aren’t that comfortable for long periods of use, but most people just put up with it for whatever reason. Maybe they don’t know any better, maybe they’re young and just having that hot new media player is all that matters, whatever the reasoning if you’re going to spend the money on it then spend a little extra and get a decent pair of headphones to go with it… Today for review I’ve got the SteelSeries Siberia In:Ear Headset, yes it’s called a headset because it comes with a microphone as well that can be used for gaming, Skype or whatever you need it for, but what we need to focus on is the headphones or ear buds themselves. In my three weeks with this headset I got to test it out quite a bit, using my MP3 player on average six hours per day for the last two weeks, and I have to say these are the most comfortable set of ear buds I have ever owned, it is truly wonderful to have such a comfortable set of ear buds. The sound reproduction is very good, and the cord is nice and long, so continue on to learn a bit more about what has become my favorite pair of headphones…
Review: SteelSeriesSiberia In:Ear Headset
Reviewed by: Kristofer Brozio
Sponsor: Icemat
Tech Specs,Features or the Basic Info:
SteelSeries Siberia In:Ear Headset
Size doesn’t matter. Not always anyway.
In Ear Headset information:
The headset effectively blocks background noise, allowing for listening and IP-telephony in noisy locations.
SteelSeries Siberia In:Ear Headset consists of in-ear earphones and a unidirectional microphone.
The headset is specifically designed for a multitude of uses including MP3-players, laptops, the Sony PSP and other consoles (sound isolation allows for low volume settings) as well as IP-telephony (separate microphone).
The customizable earphones can easily be adjusted to fit all ear sizes by shaping the foam on each earpiece.
The microphone is uni-directional and can be attached to both cord and clothing.
Specifications:
Headphone:
Frequency response: 30 – 24.000 Hz
Impedance: 16 Ohm
SPL@1kHz, 1V rms: 90 dB
Cable length: 1.0 m + 1.8 m = 2.8 m / 9 ft.
Jack: 3.5 mm
Microphone:
Frequency response: 80 – 15.000 Hz
Impedance: 2K Ohm
Pick-up pattern: Uni-directional
Sensitivity (1V/P@1 kHz): -38 dB
A Better Look at Things
:
The SteelSeries Siberia In:Ear Headset comes packaged in a ‘cool’ wintery themed plastic and cardboard box. Through the front of the package you can plainly see the Ear Buds, the microphone and the extra set of ear pads. On the back of the box we can find all the specs and features listed along with a nice picture/diagram showing what each piece is that is inside the package.
What we can see through the front of the box is only part of the actual contents, included also is a cloth carrying pouch, another extra set of ear pads and a long extension cord. When you combine the extension cord and the headset cord it brings the total length to a whopping nine feet in length, more than enough to allow freedom of movement.
On thing I like about this headset is that the microphone is separate, it has it’s own cord so it can be left at home when not in use. It features an on/off switch, a spring clip to attach to your shirt or wherever and the wires have cool little clips on them to attach to the other wires to keep things nice and tidy and not tangled.
When you first get the SteelSeries Siberia Headset you’ll notice these odd looking ear pieces, they are made of a very soft silicone, but they’re kinda funky. I switched over to the smaller ones that also come in the package and like them much better. The right ear piece has the Icemat “i” logo and the left has the words “IcematAudio” on it. The divider between the ear pieces that separates the right from the left also has the Icemat “i” on it. Overall the headset seems very well made, it’s not solid and stiff either the ear pieces themselves are flexible as well. Another small thing to note is that he left cord is shorter than the right side, I guess for comfort purposes but that never seemed to bother me much with the two different length cords.
The extension cable is the last thing we’ll examine before we move on to the next section, it’s very long coming in at 1.8 meters or approximately 5.9 feet long. This gives the user the ability to move freely about without having to worry about getting stuck by the cord and having the earpieces pulled from your ears or pulling the jack out of the connection. The female connections have small pictures to indicate what gets plugged in where, and the male ends are color coded green and pink just like the jacks on your computer are.
Installation, Testing and Comparison
Since this is from SteelSeries and it’s basically a gamer oriented headset I had to get some gaming in with them, I played Bioshock, BF2142 and Halo2. The sound was very good overall in the games, the music was nice and clear as was the actual sound effects in the game, having the Siberia Ear Buds in while playing really adds more depth to the gaming experience, it’s like you’re there.
One of the reasons I think gaming seems more immersive with the Siberia Headset on is the fact that they help to block outside sounds out from interfering with your gaming concentration, I was playing Halo2 and hours went by and I didn’t even realize it, with the headset on everything else but the game essentially disappears.
I mentioned in the intro that I have been using the Siberia Headphones for about two weeks, on average of six hours per day with my MP3 player, it’s an S.Beat Digital Audio Player from Swissbit if you’re wondering. A friend of mine asked me to take care of cleaning up his wood shop, he’s a professional wood craftsman and with everything else he does he just doesn’t have the time to do it himself right now. Of course I said no problem, it’ll be fun to do and get to work with industrial tools and such for a few weeks. One thing very nice about doing this job is the fact that I am alone and I can do it at my leisure, whenever I want and for how long I want to, so that means there is no one there to bother me and I can listen to my music the whole time I’m there.
One of the main things he needed cleaning up was his scrap wood pile, well this thing has been growing for about two years now and I’m not exaggerating when I say this thing was huge. This pile he had going was five feet high by three feet wide by about twelve feet long, it’s huge with just all sorts of long cut-off scrap. Well his shop is located in the city, on the ground level of one of his apartments, it’s not a real business so no dumpster or anything like that. City garbage men are picky, the cans can’t be too heavy or too full, meaning I couldn’t just throw a twelve foot long piece of scrap wood away. I had to get on the chop saw and cut all this wood down to about three foot lengths to fit into the garbage cans where the garbage men would be happy to take them away for us. It took me about two days to get this done, and I filled seven garbage cans and three large boxes with cut-off scraps.
If you’ve ever used a saw you’ll know it’s loud, and it even says you should use hearing protection while using it, well imagine using it for hours and hours, your ears will start to ring without any protection. So that’s where the Siberia Headset comes in, and the noise blocking abilities of it. The headset that came with the S.Beat works but it’s not very comfortable, and it doesn’t block out noise unless you crank the volume up, but the Siberia Headphones didn’t have to be cranked all the way up to block the noise of the saw, sure I had to turn it up a couple notches but no where near as loud as any other set I’ve owned. Very nice indeed…
Oh, and this is one of those ‘Don’t try this at home kids things’ as well, I would highly NOT recommend using an MP3 player of any kind while operating any type of machinery, especially those with very sharp spinning blades, for obvious safety reasons… I’ve got quite a bit of experience at working with tools, but technically I shouldn’t have been doing it either while listening to music…
The sound reproduction is nice and clear but I found that it’s not very crisp, and by that I mean it seems to miss the higher pitched notes or instruments, they seem muted a bit and not crisp and clear as they were meant to be. Considering they are only $49.95, and the fact that they are extremely comfortable I can forgive the lack of perfect sound reproduction, to me being comfortable is very important and is almost equal to sound reproduction quality when using a set of ear buds.
The microphone seemed to work fine, I used it with Skype a few times and I was told I could be heard clearly through it. I like my gaming and all that but I’m not really into the whole chatting while playing, when I play I like to really get into it, it’s like my escape from the everyday things in life and I don’t want someone else’s voice popping off at me…
The other drawback with these is the carrying pouch, you really cannot fit everything inside of it nicely and neatly, you pretty much have to stuff the cords in there to get it all to fit. Personally I would have liked to have seen a hard case for better protection for the headset itself and more room for everything to fit nicely and not get tangled…
Summary:
I have to say I honestly love the Siberia In:Ear Headphones, they are just extremely comfortable to wear even after five or six hours you don’t notice they are in your ears. I would have to say that the second most important thing next to good sound reproduction is comfort, and these are the most comfortable I have ever owned.
The Siberia In:Ear Headphones effectively block out sound but not to the extent where you cannot hear anything, which is good actually, at least in my opinion it is, as I like my music but I still like to hear if someone is trying to talk to me or get my attention in some way.
DragonSteelMods gives the SteelSeries Siberia In:Ear Headset 4.5 out of 5 and our Recommended Award as well.
Pros:
-Very comfortable for extended periods of use
-Long cord
-Includes extra ear pieces and carrying pouch
-Excellent fitting
-Effectively block outside sounds to an extent
-Separate microphone and ear buds
-Very well made
-Good sound reproduction overall
-Low price point
Cons:
-Carrying case could be better/ or maybe use a hard case that fits everything
-Sound reproduction could be better for high notes
I would like to thank Icemat for the chance to review the SteelSeries Siberia In:Ear Headset and for their continued support of DSM.
review# 301