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Logitech Litra Beam LX review – dual functionality at a premium
6:00 pm | September 19, 2023
Author: admin | Category: Computers Consoles & PC Gadgets Gaming PC Gaming | Tags: | Comments: Off

The Logitech Litra Beam LX is the next iteration of the brand’s gaming light bar aimed at streamers. It builds on the foundations of the original model by adding ambient RGB lighting for a competitive price point. If you’re looking to step your streaming gear up, it’s a good choice to pair with some of the best webcams and one of the best green screens. 

It effectively doubles as both a ring light and RGB light strip in one, and the included stands mean you have a lot of different mounting options to suit your setup. However, if you’re solely interested in a light bar without this feature, then the original, far cheaper Litra Beam, may be a better choice. 

Price and availability

The Logitech Litra Beam LX launched on September 19 in countries such as the US and the UK and retails for $149 (approximately £120 / AU$230). For comparison, the original Litra Beam currently sells for $99 / £99 (around AU$150), so you’re paying about 50% for the added RGB ambient lighting.  

Design and features

Litra Beam LX Controls

(Image credit: Future)

As far as key lights go, the Logitech Litra Beam LX is among the best-designed models that I’ve used. Instead of the older Litra Glow, a small square-shaped light that attaches to the monitor, the Beam LX comes with its own stand and can be both horizontally and vertically mounted. 

Much like the original Litra Beam, the LX version is mains-powered and this has been done in order to make it considerably brighter than the previous USB-powered Glow model. The big difference here from the prior version is the RGB lighting as this is a dual-sided light. Essentially, it aims to be both mood-lighting and a ring light in one. You’re able to use it with Lightsync through Logitech’s G Hub, and there’s Bluetooth functionality to control the lighting wirelessly as well. 

The top of the Litra Beam LX houses all the controls if you just want to configure things without having to utilize a PC. You’ve got a power button, brightness control, and color temperature gauge, the latter of which doubles as an RGB color toggle when the switch is engaged. It’s all very intuitive and straightforward, meaning you can make quick adjustments if it's in reach, and then fine-tune in the software if needed. 

The stand that comes with the Litra Beam LX is excellent as you can either mount horizontally or vertically and adjust the height to several mounting points. This means you can have it under your monitor, above your displays, or stood up in between depending on how much space is available on your gaming setup. 

Performance

Logitech Litra Beam LX in a setup

(Image credit: Future)

The first thing that surprised me about the Logitech Litra Beam LX is just how bright it is when plugged in. As someone who has previously used the Litra Glow as a key light in the past, this one is a definitive upgrade in terms of its brightness. The company claims the 400-lumen LEDs are “TrueSoft for natural, radiant skin tones” and in my testing, I can confirm this. My setup is on the darker side of things usually due to an aging light bulb and lampshade, but this light bar made an immediate difference in illuminating my surroundings. 

The RGB lighting itself is vivid and the controls mean you can cycle through gradients, primary colors, and rainbow spectrums. It’s not quite as powerful as the front-facing beam in terms of raw brightness, with a softer ambiance, but it does a good job of reaching the wall behind my monitors. I found that the RGB was the most prominent with the room light turned off and relying on the light bar itself to keep me illuminated. For those darker times, a warmer color is a better option, though, as staring into harsh white light at all hours of the night wasn’t quite ideal. 

Fortunately, the temperature controls on the Litra Beam LX are easy to cycle through as swapping from a colder blue hue to a warmer orange tint only takes around a second or two. The overall temperature range of 2700-6500K is balanced, as even the most intense setting was easy on the eyes. If you’re someone who’s in need of a more powerful light than what USB ports on your PC can handle then you’re in good hands here. 

Ultimately, the Logitech Litra Beam LX is a great key light that features decent RGB lighting. However, you’re paying a premium on this added feature over the original, so if RGB is something you can live without then you’re better off going for the standard variant instead. 

Logitech Litra Beam LX vertical

(Image credit: Future)

Verdict

Buy it if…  

You want a powerful desktop key light 

The Litra Beam LX is one of the brightest and most powerful key lights I have ever used. 

You want RGB lighting in your setup

The RGB on the reverse of the Litra Beam is bright and adds a soft ambiance to the setup without being overkill.
 

Don’t buy it if…  

You don't need or want RGB lighting

You’re better off buying the standard Litra Beam if you want to get the best value for money as it is considerably cheaper.

You want a USB-powered ring light 

The Litra Beam LX requires mains power to function, so if you just want something to plug into the USB port of your PC then the Litra Glow is the better choice here. 

Complete your setup with one of the best gaming monitors and pair it with one of the best PC controllers. 

Logitech Yeti GX review – a great-sounding microphone for streamers
2:00 pm |
Author: admin | Category: Computers Consoles & PC Gadgets Gaming PC Gaming | Tags: | Comments: Off

The Logitech Yeti GX is the latest microphone aimed at gamers and streamers from the company as the next iteration of the tried-and-true Blue Yeti before it. With its compact design, stellar stand, decent RGB lighting, and intuitive controls, it can easily be considered one of the best microphones for streaming and one of the best USB microphones, however, there’s little new here to blow anyone away. 

Few USB microphones are as well established as the Blue Yeti and this new take carries the torch toward with the signature sound profile, ease of use, and metal construction. If you’re after something plug-and-play that sounds decent then the Logitech Yeti GX could be the microphone for you. 

Price and availability

The Logitech Yeti GX launched on September 19 in territories such as the US and the UK for $149 (around £119 / AU$230) placing it in the mid-range of USB microphone offerings. For context, that’s around the same price as the standard Blue Yeti before it, and comparable to the Logitech Yeti Nano. It also comes in a little cheaper than the similarly-sized USB-powered Rode X XCM-50.  

Design and features

Stand of the Logitech Yeti GX

(Image credit: Future)

The Logitech Yeti GX is a compact USB microphone with a small footprint built to take up minimal space on your gaming desk. The condenser itself measures at less than 5 inches / 12cm tall and is suspended on the metal desktop stand with a large rounded dial on the right-hand side. The USB-C cable feeds in at the bottom, and the microphone itself can be angled upwards or away from you. As with other Yeti microphones, this one is a side-address model, which means you speak into it from the side instead of angling it at the top for the best results. 

New to the Logitech Yeti GX is RGB lighting which can be customized in the Logitech G Hub. The bottom of the microphone features an RGB light strap with the Logitech G emblem also lighting up. It’s not the brightest display, but it adds a good touch of color to what would otherwise be a plain black mic setup. 

The Logitech Yeti GX is about convenience and this can evidenced with the simple controls on offer. There’s a gain dial and a mute button but that’s your lot. What’s handy, though, is that a red light will come on when muted, and even appear when the audio starts spiking when recording or streaming, which is appreciated shorthand. A neat touch is that the scroll wheel is actually one that you would find on some of the company’s best gaming mice with a satisfying click and scroll. 

Performance

Logitech Yeti GX muted

(Image credit: Future)

The Logitech Yeti GX is one of the better-sounding USB microphones that I’ve used in my years of testing, with a pleasing flat sound profile that’s ideal for game streaming. Within seconds of plugging it into my PC’s front I/O, it was instantly detected, and Windows had balanced the input at 100%. I didn’t have to install any new drivers or mess around in settings, it was good to go straight out of the box. 

While testing the pickup pattern, I noticed that the custom dynamic capsule did a solid job of picking up everything from a whisper to a normal speaking voice, and even singing as well as harsh metal vocals. You aren’t going to get the depth and clarity of something like the far larger and more expensive Rode X XDM-100 here, but for something this straightforward, the overall audio quality impresses, even though it doesn’t wow. 

During my time with the Yeti GX, I was using it as my main microphone when chatting with friends playing Mortal Kombat 11 online, and going through Starfield. These are quite noisy games at the best of times, especially when the action gets intense, and I noticed that the sounds of my gaming keyboard, Victrix Pro BFG, and mouse were rarely picked up despite only being a few inches away. The pickup itself isn’t super sensitive, and that’s for the best as you won’t necessarily have to be recording in a studio where you can hear a pin drop. 

What I did notice is that the audio can peak quite aggressively even from a moderate shout or scream with the gain dial reduced and the recording volume lowered. It’s not a massive problem, and something I encountered rarely, but if you happen to speak louder or more animated than most then you will need to bear this in mind. Popping words and tongue clicks can also appear if you’re close up, but it wasn’t something that plagued me much in my testing. 

Overall the Logitech Yeti GX is a great microphone for gamers and streamers that marries up good design, ease of use, attractive lighting, and solid overall performance, but it isn’t going to win over any audiophiles. If you’re after bleeding-edge audio then you’re going to have to look elsewhere, but there’s very little you can fault this model on for what it offers for its price. 

Rear of the Logitech Yeti GX

(Image credit: Future)

Verdict

Buy it if…  

You want a decent-performing, easy-to-use microphone for streaming 

The Logitech Yeti GX is about as plug-and-play as they come working straight out of the box with minimal messing around, and it happens to sound good, too. 

You’re after a compact microphone for streaming 

The compact size of the Logitech Yeti GX makes it ideal for those with limited desk space for their setup, and the custom pickup pattern means you don’t have to be too close either. 

Don’t buy it if…  

You don’t care about RGB 

You can find the Yeti Nano cheaper than the Yeti GX, which doesn’t add much aside from the lighting and a newer visual design. 

You want the absolute best audio quality for streaming 

While the Logitech Yeti GX sounds solid, you aren’t going to be getting the same level of quality as you were from a dedicated XLR microphone setup. 

The Logitech Yeti GX should pair great with one of the best green screens and the best webcams for a top-tier streaming setup.