What is the best headset microphone for my purposes?
Submitted by snsd on Fri, 12/09/2005 - 12:55.
Hi:
I am a newbie in the voice recognition world. I currently own a Toshiba Portege M200 tablet PC with Windows XP Tablet Edition 2005.
The specifications for the computer are as follows:
Intel® Pentium® M @ 1.6GHz (Centrino)
512MB DDR PC2700 Module
Sound Card: AD1981B Codec Chip
Which microphone would you recommend that I use. I’m very mobile so durability would be a high priority.
From research on KnowBrainer and eMicrophones, I’m looking at:
Andrea ANC 700
Andrea NC 7100 USB
Parrott XVI Talkpro Xpress
Radio Shack Sennheiser Knockoff RSME3KO
They’re all in my price range – so just want the best. (Please note that I have a separate post asking about USB adapters. I made them separate as I thought they were distinct issues. Please let me know if I have erred in that assumption.)
Thank you in advance for any help you might be able to give
Dave
I now use the original
I now use the original Sennheiser almost exclusively, although I think the TalkPro is virtually as good for me except in noisy contexts. Andreas have good reputations too, although I don't have any experience with the two you mention. Frankly, I don't think there's an inherently superior choice amongst the candidates you mention, although one may perform better than another for a particular user. The original Sennheiser is probably the preferred instrument for the most profficient SR headset users today.
The original Sennheiser is a superb noise-rejection instrument -- first time I used it was trash day and a truck pulled up outside my open window and proceeded to compact its load as I was in mid-sentence. I couldn't hear myself talk but my dictation popped out on the screen with nary a hitch!
I haven't tried the RadioShack version, but SR users I respect report it works well for them.
Bruce
Bruce: Thanks for the prompt
Bruce:
Thanks for the prompt and thorough response. I was "hoping" you wouldn't mention the Sennheiser because of its expense!
Anyhow, one needs to pay for quality. When you say the "original", is there a specific model number so I don't look at the wrong one? Would you recommend a USB adapter given my mentioned PC configuration, and, if so, any comments on which is best? And, finally, any advice as to where to buy one? (I'm in Toronto, Canada.)
Dave
I'll defer to Martin and/or
I'll defer to Martin and/or any Canadian vendor. I think Martin sells all these products and certainly knows them better than I do. I think he sells the RadioShack model, too, and if money is a consideration, that's where you might start. My understanding is that it has the same microphone element as the Sennheiser ME3 headset, so it should provide the same performance. I think the latter has a better warranty.
Good luck,
Bruce
PS: Elsewhere Martin recommends 1GB, and I would second that. If buying the RadioShack version facilitates getting more memory, I think that's a valid trade-off. You can get by with 512MB, but even 768MB would prove useful.
As usual, I recommend getting good quality, brand name memory, like Corsair, Crucial, Kingston, etc. My experience suggests that buying cheap, generic memory is a false economy. I just had a 128MB strip fail in our guest PC -- I violated my own rule and bought cheap because, I rationalized, it wouldn't be used enough to make a difference. I was wrong. True, it isn't used very much, but to have it fail at a time like this, with the person who is using it, is embarrassing.
BruceCyr wrote:I'll defer to
I'll defer to Martin.
The Radio Shack Headset does not use the same microphone element as the Sennheiser. However, it does perform as well in terms of the microphone element. Having said that, is extremely uncomfortable for most people. The headband is not as adjustable (when you bend the Sennheiser it stays in position you bend it for your own personal comfort), and the microphone element at the end of the too long boom is darned annoying and practically inadjustable.
The way I explain the Radio Shack microphone is to think of purchasing a BMW touring car at a great price and having a wooden box as a seat for a 200 mile trip.
Marty
Martin Markoe wrote:think of
think of purchasing a BMW touring car at a great price and having a wooden box as a seat for a 200 mile trip.
What's wrong with that???
I stand corrected. To extend
I stand corrected.
To extend your analogy, I consider the TalkPro to be the four cylinder Honda Accord of the headset microphone world
As I noted, it works just as well for me as the Sennheiser ME3 except under noisy conditions. And you're certainly right about the ergonomic superiority of the Sennheiser ME3 -- its the lightest, most comfortable headset I've ever worn, which may be why I use it exclusively these days.
If the Sennheiser falls within budget, including memory boost, then that's what I would go for. But if not, then the TalkPro is a great starter unit. Not sure about the Andreas.
Of course its not a do or die situation. You can buy the TalkPro or something similar today, confident you're giving yourself a high quality start to SR, and upgrade next year when you've capitalized on your new SR skills.
Bruce
BruceCyr wrote:I consider
I consider the TalkPro to be the four cylinder Honda Accord of the headset microphone world
As I noted, it works just as well for me as the Sennheiser ME3 except under noisy conditions. And you're certainly right about the ergonomic superiority of the Sennheiser ME3 -- its the lightest, most comfortable headset I've ever worn, which may be why I use it exclusively these days.
VXI TalkPro Xpress is probably the best buy for the money in the speech recognition world. It is highly accurate and moderately noise canceling. However, in our long usage tests, over the course of the day, microphones that are more noise canceling (like the Sennheiser Headset) are also more accurate. This is because the noise levels change in minute ways that you might not consciously notice. A better noise canceling headset will always outperform in our experience.
Martin
Dave, Cost is always a
Dave,
Cost is always a factor, but sometimes you have to weigh results vs "cost".
if you're serious about SR, and intend to depend upon it to a good extent, take the "techie" approach, do a lot of homework.
Some things to consider:
Human speech ranges from about 100Hz to about 15khz. The "majority" of speech data is found between around 300-400Hz to around 9kHz; -but- recognizers don't have the capability of extrapolating (filling in what isn't there) like humans do.
e.g. - Without contextual support, if you hear "My cousin Freddy does a lot of sailing" from, say someone in the next room, our ear needs data from up around 14khz to decide whether or not that person said "My cousin Freddy does a lot of 'failing' or said 'sailing'. So do speech recognizers; they're not "smart" and they don't know if cousin Freddy owns a boat or just does a lousy job in school.
Ergo, you want a microphone with a broad frequency response... Units like RadioShack and run-of-the-mill counterparts use shabby components, "toll-quality" (telephone bandwidth) and don't last anyway.
Units like the GN Netcom UNC and the Andrea products are clear and crisp; however they use primarily telephone bandwidth microphone elements and only send to the recognizer a small "slice" of speech bandwidth. The Talk Pro is a step in the right direction; it captures up to about 6khz, has nice response in the lower frequencies, good noise rejection, but a little expensive.
Then you have products that are the next big step above "telephone quality", like the Smith Corona or Chameleon headsets that go all the way to about 8khz, cost around forty or fifty dollars, have decent noise rejection and do a very nice job for the price. They don't compete much in the SR marketplace, they're geared towards VoIP where networks don't have "telephone company" bandwidth limitations.
But if you want the BMW, like Marty Markoe uses for an example, you want the Sennheiser - it renders 10khz and has extremely good noise rejection.
If I may let me give one caveat; if you spend good money on a microphone, spend good money on a USB cord if you decide your soundcard isn't up to par. The Talk Pro's a good example of this - it takes a perfectly fine analog voice signal, but samples it at 11.5khz, trimming the voice signal down to about 5khz, and it's bitrate (aka "dynamic range") is even less so what actually gets to the CPU for the software to use is fairly degraded compared to what's leaving the microphone element. The InSync and Chameleon USB converters are about the best in the consumer markets; they sample at 16khz, use very good components and have "full" dynamic range.
However, all the above doesn't mean a whit if you're using DNS and a soundcard, or DNS and a USB cord.. DNS only samples at 11.5 khz so the very best you get is 5khz of speech bandwidth; it simply throws away the difference if it's getting a digital input from a USB cord or ignores the difference if it's getting analog input from a soundcard. And that brings you back to "what's good for the money?".. doesn't it?
Don't let that end your quest, however.. Windows Vista's recognizer uses all 16khz and will most likely make some very big changes in the Windows user experience and speech recognition in general.. so now you have to decide what you're going to use, and what you're going to use it with..!
Wow, and I was excited with
Wow, and I was excited with the results I'm getting from my $4.99 Labtec! Can't wait to see what happens with a quality microphone. Thank-you so much for all your insight. At least everyone's more or less agreeing on the same thing and it's unanimous that Sennheiser is in a league of its own. If I want to spend the big bucks, it's a no brainer. If I don't want to spend the big bucks, there's 2 or 3 good options. Hmmm. What to do...
Dropping some serious
Dropping some serious science - cool!
I am also looking for a good speech headset microphone so this is an awesome thread!
For a bit of a twist, I would like a wireless headset microphone that can be used for speech reco. Does this exist? (I am experimenting with trying to make speech reco and computer interactions ubiquitous in my living space)
Thanks!
edit: never mind. I found the specs and the Sennheiser comes with a wireless mini-pin adapter so it will plug into my transmitter pack.