SPEEDLINK SL-8796 Medusa 5.1 Home Edition Specifications, Tests and Review

The SPEEDLINK SL-8796 Medusa 5.1 Home Edition are wired headphones. In the case of studio and professional DJ headphones, a wired connection is a standard and a necessity. In this case, connecting via cable reduces audio transmission delays and prevents unwanted battery drain as it would be in case of wireless headphones. The same is de facto true for gaming headsets. In case of headphones for normal music listening, the cable is rather a relic, although it still has its fans. However, the wireless option is much more popular for everyday use in today’s world.

The design of the headphones is around the ears. Because of this design, the headphone envelops the entire ear and isolates the ear better from surrounding noise when listening compared to for example on-ear headphones. With that, they offer high-quality listening without interference. However, they are most likely heavier by design and less practical for frequent carrying.

The sound quality can be affected by many factors. When it comes to frequency range, the wider it is, the more detail you will hear when listening. However, the range a person can perceive is highly individual. The average person is able to perceive frequencies in the range of 16 to 20 000 Hz. So the most common frequency range you will see on the market is 20 to 20,000 Hz. Lower frequencies up to approximately 256 Hz are considered bass frequencies. Therefore, the lower the bottom value is, the better the headphones will reproduce bass. Conversely, values from approximately 2 048 Hz upwards are treble. That is why headphones with a high upper value will provide a much more accurate reproduction of high notes. SPEEDLINK SL-8796 Medusa 5.1 Home Edition offers a frequency range of 20 - 120000 Hz. To control the optimum playback volume you can use the manual control directly on the cable.

SPEEDLINK SL-8796 Medusa 5.1 Home Edition has a boom–type microphone. The microphone sensitivity is -60 dB. A lower microphone sensitivity will generally ensure that even quieter sounds are caught. On the other hand, in noisier environments, distortion of the recording may occur. With a higher sensitivity, the microphone will not distort the recording even in noisy environments. On the other hand, the microphone will not pick up quieter sounds. So it depends on the environment and the purposes you plan to use the headphones for.