Tt eSports Level 10 M Gaming Headset Review

TteSports Level 10 M Gaming Headset Review

Introduction

The gaming peripheral market is extremely saturated and unfortunately many of those products are not very high quality. Gaming-oriented headsets would definitely be one of the worst categories as far as cheap knock-offs go. Wimpy plastic construction, uncomfortable design, gaudy colors and LEDs, and poor sound and mic quality are fairly common in the gaming headset arena. However, some companies are dedicated to producing quality gaming products that stand out from the cheap impersonators.

Today we are taking a look at Tt eSPORTS’ high-end gaming headset, the Level 10 M. For those who perhaps don’t know already, Tt eSPORTS is the gaming division of Thermaltake and is known for making affordable, high-quality peripherals with the Level 10 brand being their top-tier lineup. With aluminum construction throughout the frame, an adjustable, locking headband, detachable, bi-lateral cable, and folding noise-canceling microphone this gaming headset seems to have a lot of promise. Read on to see how well it actually performs.

Features

• Aluminum Base – Aluminum base employed throughout the frame, offering benefits of superior durability, heat dissipation, and ergonomics by keeping the headset lightweight (at under 300 grams).
• Bi-Lateral USB Connectivity – The removable headphone cable can be connected from either the left or right earcup, offering flexibility to better complement each users’ setup.
• Sleek Noise-Canceling Microphone – Noise-canceling microphone blends into styling of the frame when not in use. When needed moves in a mic-axis design; it can be lowered vertically and then adjusted horizontally to the right position.
• Adjustable, Locking Headband – Adjustable headband can also be locked into position once the right size has been set. Users no longer have to worry about the sizing moving out of place as they take the headphone off/on.

Specifications

Colors	Diamond Black, Iron White, Blazing Red
Cable Length	3 meters
Connector	3.5mm plug (PC side) Mini USB 8-pin (Headset side)
Driver Unit	40mm Neodymium Magnet
Channel	Stereo
Frequency Response	10Hz ~ 22kHz
Sensitivity	100db at 1kHz
Mic Directionality	Omni-directional
Mic Sensitivity	-35 ± 3db
Mic Frequency	300Hz ~ 10kHz
Mic Impedance	2.2 kOhm
Impedance	32 Ohm
Accessories	Carry Bag x 1 1 meter mobile device cable

 

Packaging and Accessories

Tt eSPORTS is known for awesome packaging, and the Level 10 M headset is no exception. Large, clear pictures of the entire headset and close-ups of some of the key features are on the front and back of the outer sleeve.

Removing the box from it’s sleeve and flipping open the front cover reveals the headset encased in formed plastic.
Aside from the headset itself, Tt eSPORTS also includes a 3 meter cable with inline volume/mic control, a 1 meter straight cable for mobile devices, and a carrying bag.

Closer Look

We’ll start with the absolute most critical part of any headset, the color. Our Level 10 M headset is the “Diamond Black” version with a black frame and earcups and red and silver highlights. The “Iron White” and “Blazing Red” versions are also available for those who would like to stand out even more.
The overall design of the headset is very industrial with an exposed, raw feel to it thanks to the blocky earcups, unpainted brushed aluminum, and exposed bolts and wires.

The overall build quality of this headset is quite good with a solid feel and weight to them. Although there is a lot of plastic in the construction the base is aluminum so nothing feels cheap or flimsy and I didn’t notice any areas that looked particularly weak that may cause problems down the road.
The adjustable headband has a smooth, solid action to it and the swiveling earcups move freely. I was a little worried when I read that the cord was detachable but quickly found out that it fits very snug and should not come out unless you specifically want it to.

The microphone boom flips down when you need it and up and out of the way when you don’t. The chunky square styling of the mic fits nicely with the aesthetics of the rest of the headset but not so much with the ergonomics of your face. It can be moved up and down and a little bit closer or further from your face but that’s it. Although I felt I couldn’t get it precisely where I wanted it, teammates all said my voice came through just fine. We’ll go over mic performance more on the next page.

The headband is adjustable of course but one neat feature of the Level 10 M headset is that once you find that perfect setting for your head you can lock it in to place using the little red tabs seen above. This means that it won’t shift and require you to readjust when you set it down or pull it on.

Comfort

For comfort I’m taking two main areas in to account, overall fit and ear comfort. As far as the overall fit goes, I felt like the Level 10 M did alright. I have an average sized head and I found my ideal band setting was near the middle, allowing for plenty of room for people with larger or smaller heads to adjust. The foam pad at the headband sat comfortably on my head as well. Despite its blocky and uncomfortable appearance, because the earcups swivel they apply an even pressure all the way around the ear when adjusted to the correct height.

The earcups themselves are made of pleather which I am not a big fan of as it doesn’t breath like a felt/velvet style cup. These are an over-ear style headphone which means the earcups completely surround your ear. I found them to be reasonably comfortable up to about the 1.5 hour mark when my ears starting getting sore from rubbing inside the cups and hot from the pleather material combined with the fully-enclosed design.

Sound and Voice Quality

Starting with sound quality, I was pleasantly surprised by the Level 10 headset. These cans get plenty loud and stay crystal clear all the way to 100% with no distortion even on complex, bass-heavy songs. The highs are clear and concise without being too sharp and the midrange was excellent as well. The bass however was lacking, especially considering the closed-back design of this headset. It never gets muddy but it also never hits those really low notes. You can “hear” the bass but you never “feel” it which I think is important for a gaming headset. Separation between different notes was very good and I was able to easily tell which direction a certain sound was coming from even with a lot of background noises happening.

Voice quality overall was pretty good with my voice coming through clear and strong and background noises such as ceiling fans and mouse clicks being cut out. Unfortunately, the microphone is a little too quite, requiring me to max out the volume and increase the microphone boost to +20dB. After recording some test clips and listening back to them I can hear a very slight whine in the background which went away when the mic boost was dropped to +10dB. However, it was just too hard to hear without the boost set high so the whine stayed, though it wasn’t excessive.

General Use

In general, living with the Tt eSPORTS Level 10 M headset day-to-day was pretty good. The headband was simple to adjust and lock in to place and the microphone flipped out of the way when it wasn’t needed. The removable wire is nice for those who tend to step on their cord as they stand up as it will just pull out rather than yank your head or damage the cord. The fact that you can switch which side the wire plugs in to is also a very cool feature as you can use the side that your tower sits on so the cable doesn’t run across your lap.
I found the braided 3m cable to be plenty long enough and the inline controller to work flawlessly for adjusting volume and muting the mic. The included 1m straight cable also works great with mobile devices which had no problem pushing these headphones to uncomfortably loud levels while maintaining clarity.
One thing that you have to keep in mind is that because these are a closed back design they have a lot of sound isolation. This means that you probably won’t hear someone knocking on your door or calling your name especially when you bring the volume up.

Final Thoughts

Pros:

• High build quality
• Crystal clear sound quality
• Great highs and midrange
• No distortion even at max volume
• Locking headband
• Inline controller

Cons:

• Weak bass
• Earcups hot/uncomfortable after extended use
• Microphone not loud enough

Overall, the Tt eSPORTS Level 10 M is a pretty good gaming headset. The metal and plastic construction is very stout and should hold up to some abuse during intense gaming sessions or LAN parties. The sound quality is excellent and stays distortion-free all the way to max volume. Although the mids and highs were very good, the wimpy bass was a definite let-down considering how important that is for a really immersive gaming/movie/music experience. The headband was easy to adjust and the locking feature was great, but the pleather closed-back earcups got uncomfortable rather quickly. Lastly, the inline controller is a nice little feature allowing for quick access to volume and mic controls, but the built-in microphone had issues with not getting loud enough and a slight whine when the boost was turned up high.

Although there are some definite issues I had with this headset there are also many features that Tt eSPORTS did very well. At around $80 on various websites, if you are in the market for a high quality all-in-one gaming headset that can still deliver decent sound, this Level 10 headset would be a good buy.