Logitech G933 Artemis Spectrum Wireless Gaming Headset Review and Mic Test!
The G933 first launched in 2015, and brought with it Logitech's new Pro-G speaker driver which has since expanded to other models. Of all the weird gimmicky things I've listened to over years of headphone reviews, Logitech's mesh material driver is one of the only weird improvements I've liked. It delivers a lot of sound quality in a cheap package.
Overview
The Logitech G933 is a wireless and wired, surround and stereo gaming headset with an integrated boom microphone. Its MSRP is still $199, but it is almost always on sale for less. I've seen it as low as $99, and it usually hovers around $149.
Its multi-platform compatible, but its full feature set is only available on PC. There, you can use the wireless dongle, choose between DTS Headphone: X and Dolby Audio surround technologies, and fully customize the RGB lighting. You can also connect the nice, braided, long USB cable to recharge the battery and keep listening through the dongle while you do so.
On PS4, you can plug the USB dongle in and get wireless stereo. On any platform with a 3.5mm connection, you can plug in the included cable. There's also a little port on the USB dongle that allows you to attach an analog cable to anything, and then stream that audio wirelessly through the dongle to your headset. I don't think I'll ever use that, but it's neat!
I've actually owned this headset once before, briefly, after it launched...but my pair had some headband issues and software glitches and so I returned them. I was also trying to get through a million other reviews at that time. The software is now exceptional and my current model has a great headband, so fear not, this is a great purchase!
SOUND QUALITY
Sound performance is quite simply fantastic across all of Logitech's modern gaming headset lineup, and being the flagship, the 933 is no exception.
When Logitech first showed off the "Pro-G" driver, they let the games press compare it to Sennheiser's iconic HD650 headphones. Sure, they weren't in a dead silent room, but I think the comparison is still impressive and gutsy. The 600 series Sennheiser headphones are known for their incredibly accurate and balanced sound.
And Logitech delivers that sort of signature here. Bass extends deep, with a powerful kick down in the sub-bass region that's perfect for big explosions in games and movies. Midrange is perfectly balanced and natural, similar to the mid-tones in studio pairs like the Sony MDR-7506. Highs are right in that perfect sweet spot between fatiguing and absent. They're a little rolled off, but still crisp and detailed.
This Logitech man is holding up a standard piece of plastic driver material (left) and the Pro-G mesh material (right). The mesh is more fabric-y and durable. I've ripped off a pad and looked at it. It's pretty cool.
I believe all of Logitech's claims about their mesh driver material. Like the 433 and 533, this is a very clean and fun-sounding headset whether used wireless or wired. Soundstage is decent even without the surround effects turned on. There's very little that separates the sound quality between the different headset models using this driver...but if I had to point to something, I'd say that the bass is a little more satisfyingly thumpy and the treble is just a touch more aggressive in the 933 compared to the others.
COMFORT
Comfort is great, and more than adequate for long gaming sessions. The wireless battery will probably die before you start to have wearing fatigue.
The 933 is the heaviest of Logitech's modern headset models, but it also has the nicest headband padding. The headband pad is a plush memory foam and the large ear pads use a more standard foam. Like the other current Logitech headsets, the ear cup openings are huge and as a result your ears can kind of float inside them. The ear cup covering is a nice athletic mesh fabric, and although my ears heat up a little bit during use, they don't get super sweaty.
Now that I've tried most of their line-up, I can confidently assert that you should get a comfy fit no matter what Logitech headset you go with. Logitech and HyperX are now the only two gaming companies I can say that about.
DESIGN/BUILD
These are really big.
Unlike the G433, these have no ambitions about resembling "standard" headphones. They're just one step shy of being too bulky. They have RGB lighting. They have a boxy aesthetic. They are covered in buttons along the back.
Make no mistake, these are a gaming product. So of course I wore them in the coffee shop.
I imagine this is the biggest hurdle standing between you and your enjoyment of this headset. You'll either love or hate the design here. I wouldn't be shocked if Logitech eventually put their wireless tech into the shell of the 433 down the road, as that's a much more stylish headset.
Build is good. There's some glossy plastic and a few too many exposed screws, but nothing feels overtly cheap or crappy. The headband is reinforced with metal. The ear cup backs are magnetically attached and easy to remove. One side has a removable battery (yay!) and the other side has a little port to stow your USB dongle (yay again!).
They fold flat to rest against your neck, and they stick out far enough that they are comfy in this position, which is nice.
MICROPHONE TEST
Here's an unedited, unprocessed clip of what the mic sounds like in wireless mode:
There's a little bit of external noise, so it's not perfect, but tonality is very good and natural, without being overly nasal or tinny, I like the way it sounds, and although it's not quite as good in raw audio quality as the wired mic on the G433, it's less sensitive to position and it still sounds great.
The included 3.5mm cable also includes a mic for mobile calls or gaming use, and has a little switch to allow you to choose if you want to use the boom mic or the cable mic. This is overkill but still a nice touch.
FEATURES/EXTRAS/SURROUND SOUND
In the box, you get a 3.5mm cable with remote and mic, a USB charging cable, and some RCA cables in case you want to hook an older audio source up to the USB dongle's little extra port. The USB charging cable is really long, and you can charge and listen simultaneously.
The wireless dongle is small and has a decent range. I made it about 30 feet before I had connection issues.
The 3.5mm cable has a toggle switch that allows you to switch between the in-line mic and the boom mic...but the boom mic will only work with the cable if the headset power is switched on.
The RGB lighting looks nice. It comes through four zones: two strips of lighting and the two G logos. You don't have full control over these individual zones in the software, but the options present are still impressive and easy to customize.
Battery life is...okay look, this is where it falls down, just a little bit. Without the lights on, you'll get about 12 hours, and with them on, you'll get like...7. Maybe less, depending on the effect you've got turned on.
In a world where competing headsets are shooting for a minimum of 15 hours, 7 hours is not amazing. Logitech's own G533 has better battery life, but it doesn't have the lighting or some of the other extras. If battery life is a top priority, you might be a little bummed with the performance here...but everything else is so good.
The included 3.5mm cable has decent-feeling buttons on its little control box thing...though that box is rather large. The port on the headphones is not proprietary, and only a tiny bit recessed, and so it'll work with most other 3.5mm cables. I tried a G433 cable without issue, and in fact it was a touch louder, so the whole big control box on the 933 cable must be reducing the volume a bit.
The left ear cup houses the flip-down boom mic. It also has a bunch of buttons on the back. There's a mic mute, three customizable G buttons, and the power switch, and also a volume wheel. No wonder these are so big, they put a billion buttons on them.
The G-buttons are really handy and can be assigned to whatever you want on PC. They can turn headset features on and off, control your music...or replace your game controls if you're a really crazy/fun sort of person.
The volume wheel is nicely stepped and easy to find.
Surround sound options are exclusive to PC, and are perhaps the most robust of any current PC headset. You can choose from Dolby Audio or DTS Headphone: X. With Dolby Audio, you just get the choice of on or off...but it sounds really good. It supports 7.1 channel audio quite well, and has a natural, crisp sound to it.
DTS Headphone: X is a little more amped up and obvious. You get a similar implementation to the 433 and 533, with 3 different virtual rooms to choose from. The "Logitech Signature Studio" preset was designed specifically for this headset, and is my favorite. It's a little more obvious and ridiculous than any of the other surround modes.
Both surround options are really well done, and it's so cool that Logitech licensed both major technologies for the 933 and 633. No one else has done that before or since. If you're a virtual surround nut like me, you'll be really pleased with the positional audio here.
There's a full graphical EQ in the software if you're into that sort of thing, and it comes with a bunch of easy presets. I actually love the tuning of these headphones so I just leave it on the default flat setting. You can save your EQ to the headset directly, and it'll stick that way in wireless operation on different devices.
So. These cost more than the G433, and don't include as many extras, but they are wireless. They cost more than the 533...but they will connect to game consoles and other analog devices, and they have more features. You'll have to decide which features package is best for you.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The G933 is a great all-in-one gaming headset. It starts with brilliantly-tuned drivers, and adds a feature package that checks most of the boxes gamers will want right now: wireless, RGB lighting, decent mic, virtual surround, customizable buttons and audio modes. The battery life is its only major shortcoming. And, depending on the deal you're getting, you might get more personal value out of the cheaper G533 or G433, if their feature sets will work for your needs.
Every current Logitech headset in the "33" range is a safe and smart buy. They all feature a fantastic driver with great tuning. They all feature great comfort. And they all have different collections of features that will meet different levels of need. The only one I haven't tried is the G233, but as that's just a 433 without the surround sound card and a different aesthetic, I still feel safe making this proclamation.
At its MSRP of $199, the G933 is a solid choice...but at its typical street price of ~$149 it's tough to beat.
"But wait, what about that article where you loved the Arctis 7?"
Good question! That's still a good headset, in theory. But a recent software update broke surround sound entirely for me. Not cool! I'm sure they'll fix it, someday, but it's a bummer that can even happen.
The Logitech G933 is great and you should go ahead and buy it, if you want. As always, I funded this and all of my other headphone purchases by myself. I bought this unit at Best Buy. I was not paid for this review, and I was not sent this headset by Logitech.
