Parrott TalkPro Headset: VXI USB 7.0
reviewed by Robert Pritchett
VXI Corporation, Inc. One Front Street. Rollinsford, NH 03869. 1-603-742-2888 or 1-800-742-8588 FAX: 603-742-5065 Released: August 23, 2003 Certified for use with Mac Speech iListen April 4, 2006. $99 USD Requirements: Mac or Windows system with audio or USB ports. Comes with: headset and 2-way USB Pod ($60 USD if purchased separately). Strengths: Noise cancellation. Gentex microphone. 2-year warranty. Cross-platform. Incredibly comfortable headset. Extra-long cable. Weaknesses: Even with the batteries in the Parrott Translator, the Skype feedback made it sound “muffled”. FAQs: http://www.vxicorp.com/support/faq_parrott.asp Other Reviews: Also discussed in the Mac ReviewCast, episode #60 at http://www.macreviewcast.com |
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The Parrott TalkPro has a Gentex mic http://www.derry.gentexcorp.com/ that
is specially designed for speech recognition accuracy and audio fidelity. This
is why it is offered by MacSpeech for use with iListen.
The unit I have also has a flexible mic boom that rotates/swivels 270 degrees, so it can go to the right or left. The headband can be racheted to fit whatever head size we might have (within reason).
The monaural (one ear) TalkPro uses noise cancellation and VXI Translator technology that handles the band response (older sound cards built prior to 2000 apparently cause problems that the Translator corrects). It also adjusts for flat frequency response, limiting high frequency output, high immunity breath pops and low distortion at all levels. By the way, it also has a jack for adding external speakers on the Translator.
Costas Papadopolous wrote a paper on microphone enhancement for speech recognition posted at http://www.vxicorp.com/support/faq_parrott_translator.asp
The headset is designed for non-Mac systems with the typical green and orange audio jacks and soundcards. The unit sells by itself for $94 USD. It also has a battery compartment for systems that can’t handle the mic alone and need a power boost from 2 AA batteries. If you have a computer built later than 2000, than the Parrot TalkPro Express can save you about $20 USD, without the Translator.
I first tried using the mic without the 2-way USB Pod in the iMac and found that I could hear fine, but the mic wasn’t recognized as being an Inline mic. I suppose I could have added batteries to find out if the mic needed the signal boosted, but instead, I used the included TalkPro 2-way USB Pod, which worked just fine, thank you very much. The 2-way USB Pod by itself sells for $60 USD and converts the links from the audio plugs to USB input. It has an LED on it that is always on so that helps with not needing a set of batteries for the mic because it uses the USB power. It does not require being plugged into a Powered USB hub to operate either.
Now I can use the TalkPro as a Skype phone. I can also use it with iListen. Both of these units came in a package from MacSpeech that I purchased. If you want superior audio quality for use with iListen, the VXI Corporation puts out some good stuff.
