Rode, the Australian company best known for its high-quality microphones, has released a new version of its NTH-100 studio headphones that comes equipped with a boom mic for gaming — or any other voice-based activities. The NTH-100M is priced at $189, a $40 premium on the price of the $149 NTH-100. The NTH-100M is available starting February 1, 2023.
Cleverly, the NTH-100M are actually just the original NTH-100 but packaged with the additional boom mic. Existing NTH-100 owners can convert their headphones into a set of NTH-100M by buying the NTH-Mic separately, which costs $59.
You can credit the design of the original NTH-100 for this flexibility. Each earcup has a cable port, giving you the choice of which side to run your wired connection, which in this case means you can plug the microphone into the right earcup and use the left earcup’s connection for the audio cable.
Rode says the NTH-Mic uses a miniature condenser capsule that delivers highly detailed voice reproduction and is positioned for optimal plosive rejection with any head shape. It uses the same locking bayonet design as the audio cable. Rode claims that as a “broadcast-grade” headset microphone, it’s ideal for media and broadcast, podcasting, streaming and gaming, conference calls, and other business applications. Given Rode’s reputation, we expect the audio quality of the mic to be excellent.
Unfortunately, there’s no mic muting function and no inline volume controls, which gamers may find an unacceptable omission.
When we reviewed the NTH-100, we found them to be a superb set of studio cans, with clear and balanced sound. Despite being a bit heavy, the plushly cushioned earcups proved very comfortable for long listening sessions, which should make them a very good gaming headset when equipped with the NTH-Mic.
In October 2022, Rode announced the creation of a new streaming and gaming division, called Rode X, demonstrating the company’s commitment to the gaming community. We’re a bit surprised that the NTH-100M weren’t debuted as a Rode X product, but it’s nonetheless clear that Rode wants the new headset to be a top choice for those who need voice functionality.
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