AVerMedia Live Streamer 311 Kit Review – A Competent YouTube Starter Pack

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    Avermedia Live Streamer 311 YouTube Starter Kit
    Avermedia Live Streamer 311 YouTube Starter Kit
    Avermedia Live Streamer 311 YouTube Starter Kit
    Avermedia Live Streamer 311 YouTube Starter Kit

    Live streaming can be a tricky thing to get into. Not only do you have to provide entertainment to your audience, but also focus on the technical problems that come with it. That’s where the AVerMedia Live Streamer 311 kit comes in. The ‘Youtube starter pack’ includes a Live Gamer MINI Capture card, AM310 USB Mic and an AVerMedia Cam 313. These make up all the basic accessories you’ll need for getting started with display and voice capture.

    We reviewed the AVerMedia Live Gamer Mini GC311 capture card recently, where we only used it independently. But when paired with the rest of the accessories in the kit, it starts showing the potential of a basic live streaming kit. So, let’s get on to the rest of the included accessories.

    AVerMedia AM310 USB Microphone

    Avermedia AM310 USB Microphone Front
    AVerMedia AM310 USB Microphone Front

    The AM310 is a USB condenser microphone, which means it only accepts input from one specific direction. This is useful as during streaming/recording you’ll only want your voice to be transmitted over any external noise around the room. The mic’s default input controls are fine, but you can further tweak them using software like OBS (streaming) or Audacity (recording).

    Here are the official specs of the mic:

    • Polar pattern: Cardioid
    • Sample rate: 48 kHz
    • Bit rate: 16-bit
    • Power required: USB (5V DC)
    • Sensitivity: -60 ± 5 dB (at 1 kHz, 0 dB = 1 V/u bar)
    • Frequency response: 20–20,000 Hz
    • Dimensions (mic) (W x D x H): 90 x 130 x 270 mm
    • Weight (mic): 468 g ± 5 g

    Now that we’re done with the numbers, let’s get to how the actual sound quality is like. I used both Audacity and OBS to test the mic in various situations like streaming and gameplay recording.

    Audacity Waveform
    Audacity Waveform

    There was no problem in installing the mic drivers as it was basically plug-and-play. One of the best features of the mic is the 3.5mm headphone jack at the back. With that, you get 2 modes –

    • Audio monitoring
    • Desktop Audio

    The audio monitoring support is a must-have for any podcaster, and the ability to switch between the 2 modes is quick and simple.

    AVerMedia Cam 313

    Avermedia Cam 313
    AVerMedia Cam 313

    The Cam 313 is a 1080p webcam which, surprisingly enough, is a pretty good value addition to the bundle. I use a Logitech C525 webcam personally, and the AVerMedia offering is of significantly higher quality. Here are the specs of the camera:

    • Image sensor – 1/2.7″ CMOS sensor, 2MP
    • Video mode – MJPEG and YUY2
    • F/NO (Aperture) – 2.0 mm
    • Working distance – 40 cm to 100 cm (1.31 ft to 3.28 ft)
    • Dual-mono

    The webcam can be easily moved about its axis in 360 degrees, and there’s a handy little shutter for privacy. You can use the Cam 313 with AVerMedia’s RECentral software for compositing your face cam into gameplay recording/streaming. The webcam uses a USB 2.0 connection. It can record up to 30fps at 1080p, which is just about enough for a face cam as you won’t be using it for anything else. The image quality out of the webcam is really clean, and 1080p is just enough for working as a face cam.

    Of course, if you want something higher like 4K, you could always switch to higher-end webcams or a fully-fledged DSLR, but those things cost way more.

    Value for Money

    Both the condenser mic and the webcam are crucial elements for setting up a decent streaming/recording session. Purely capturing gameplay is fine, but it won’t give you an advantage in terms of personality or uniqueness when uploading them to YouTube. Both are just tools, and it’ll take a lot of work on your end to fully make use of them.

    You could go and just buy the capture card and the other components individually, but put together it’s hard to beat the value that the whole kit brings. On Amazon, the mic costs INR 12000 alone, so combining it with the others in the kit makes sense. At just under Rs. 20,000 the AVerMedia Live Streamer 311 is a phenomenal value for beginners in the live streaming game.

    You can buy the AVerMedia Live Streamer 311 kit here from Amazon.

    REVIEW OVERVIEW
    Build Quality (of both)
    Ease of Use
    Value for money
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    avermedia-live-streamer-311-kit-review-a-competent-youtube-starter-packThe Avermedia Live Streamer 311 kit is the perfect set of tools one needs to set up a successful gameplay streaming/recording session. Both the mic and the webcam are of excellent quality when it comes to value for money, and the Live gamer mini capture card is one of the best in its price range.

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