Logitech Yeti 2. (Image: Joshua Boyles)
Back in the early days of gaming YouTube and streaming, the Blue Yeti was the microphone to get. If you wanted a USB mic that sounded good and looked great while doing it, there were few better options out there on the market.
As YouTube and streaming have boomed in the last decade, creators have stepped up their game to bigger and better setups, opting for XLR inputs and all sorts of fancy audio equipment that cost more than some house deposits.
With the Yeti 2, Logitech isn’t targeting those big streamers. Instead, it’s coming for those with a passing interest in streaming, and have added a bunch of new features that make getting great audio out of this microphone easier than ever.
That’s largely down to a couple of new technologies that Logitech has packed into the Yeti 2. An AI denoiser is now present on the device, which has three levels to cut out background noise completely.
I found level 1 to be ideal for most quiet rooms, cutting out that background fizz that you normally get when running a mic without a noise gate. Level 2 steps things up a notch, although I did find this to slightly cut out the start of some words when speaking after long gaps of silence.
Level 3 is mightily impressive, cutting out the likes of dogs barking in the background while letting your voice cut through. Audio quality is diminished here, but it’s a great option as a last resort.
Logitech Yeti 2. (Image: Joshua Boyles)
Other smart features include an auto-gain function, which dials the microphone up and down to maintain a constant volume no matter how loud you get. Of course, getting close to the microphone will always yield the best quality, but it’s ideal for those intense gaming moments when emotions run high.
There’s also a new auto-tracking feature, which uses a sensor on the front of the microphone to figure out where you are in 3D space. This is extremely useful for those new to streaming, as it helps to adjust the pick-up pattern without you having to think about positioning all that much.
All of these new features are controlled using a small screen on the front of the Yeti 2, which is plenty bright and detailed enough to see and adjust all of the key settings. That’s done with a control dial, as well as a touch sensitive mute button that lights up red when the mic is toggled off.
The dial itself has excellent feeling notches that make scrolling through settings a breeze, and pressing it in delivers a satisfying click to confirm options. However, this click can be heard through the microphone itself while recording, so it should be used as a last resort if you’re trying to keep things professional.
That small screen also displays a little avatar which lets you know when your levels are low, high, peaking and muted. There’s a bunch of cute characters to choose from, or you can upload your own images if you prefer.
This is a cute feature, and again speaks to the beginner-friendly nature of the Yeti 2. It could be argued that it’s a little superfluous since your stream viewers are never actually going to see the front of your mic, but it’s a harmless addition all the same.
Logitech Yeti 2 software. (Image: Logitech)
Using the automatic settings out of the box, I found that I was able to get extremely clean audio out of the Yeti 2 with very little tinkering. If you do decide to go in-depth, the Logitech G Hub software is great for adjusting pick-up patterns as well as EQ with a bunch of presets for vocals, interviews, and even instruments already available to choose from.
I found it super helpful that you can pre-load these presets onto the microphone itself, so it saves everything if you need to swap it over to another device for travel.
When sat on the desk, the Yeti 2 feels remarkably stable in the weighty, metal desk mount it comes with. It can also be mounted on a boom arm, should you prefer.
In terms of audio quality, you’ll most certainly get a better sound out of an XLR condenser microphone. That said, those will set you back a helluva lot more than Logitech is selling the Yeti 2 for.
I was surprised to learn that Logitech is pricing this device at £139.99, a £40 premium over its original model. Given how much tech is packed into this mic, I do feel that’s a more than fair price for a microphone in this category.
It’s great to see the device priced in a way that’s affordable for the market it’s targeting. I’d easily recommend this to someone who wants to get into content creation and doesn’t know the ins and outs of audio mastering. The Yeti 2 is welcoming to newcomers, while giving them space to grow with the numerous in-depth settings to tweak.
