Austrian Audio will not be precisely a family identify. It was fashioned in 2017 following the closure of AKG's places of work in Vienna. And it's largely caught to higher-end microphones and headphones. Now the corporate is dipping its toes into extra consumer-friendly territory with the $199 MiCreator Studio, a mix condenser microphone and USB-C audio interface in an extremely transportable bundle.
At 155 x 60 x 37 mm the MiCreator Studio is sort of small, however I'd say a contact shy of pocketable. It's additionally surprisingly dense. 13 ounces isn't precisely heavy, nevertheless it's greater than I anticipated the MiCreator to weigh simply by taking a look at it. The heft makes it really feel like a sturdy and well-made gadget. The one exception to that is the swappable faceplates. My evaluation pattern got here with black and pink plates, they give the impression of being good however really feel a bit of flimsy. And the magnets that connect them to the edges are a bit of weak and I may see them simply coming off if tossed in bag. No less than it comes with a delicate pouch you’ll be able to put it in so every little thing will keep in a single place even when it does get jostled round.
There are a pair of rubber toes on the underside that enable the MiCreator to sit down comfortably on nearly any floor with little concern it'll get jostled round. And the mic capsule is suspended by rubber shock absorbers, so vibration shouldn't show an excessive amount of of a priority. If the tiltable head doesn't provide you with sufficient flexibility, there may be screw mount beneath for attaching to a mic stand.
Controls on the unit itself are comparatively spartan. On the entrance is a swap that modifications the mic from excessive acquire, to low acquire or mutes it. And there's a knob for controlling monitoring ranges or the stability between two sources when you could have one thing plugged into the three.5mm in/out jack on the again. Beneath that dual-purpose jack is a devoted 3.5mm headphone output, and above it’s a swap that means that you can set the enter degree of the extra enter.
The switches for altering the enter degree are in all probability my greatest gripe with the MiCreator. The distinction between the excessive and low settings are fairly huge. Sure, clearly you’ll be able to tweak the degrees in your DAW and most of the people can have no concern doing that. However personally I like getting my ranges as near proper as doable with out touching the acquire in my DAW for optimum flexibility.
I additionally discovered that the excessive acquire setting nonetheless required me to get fairly near the mic whereas talking which resulted in loads of breath and mouth noises. In all probability precisely what you need when recording some ASMR movies, nevertheless it wasn't perfect for podcasting. Once more, loads of that is simply rectified with an honest pop filter. However that's yet one more factor to hold and barely undercuts the portability issue.
These minor nitpicks apart, the mic sounds nice. They're extremely directional so, even if they're pretty delicate condenser mics, background noise is never an issue. And so they seize a wholesome quantity of midrange and low finish. That's important for micing up, say, a guitar amp, and it tends to deal with my decrease vocal register effectively. However many will need to toss a low reduce on their voice in submit manufacturing.
That lack of tweakability on the acquire is a matter once more while you plug an instrument immediately into the second enter. One thing like a synth with a grasp quantity that doesn't alter tone is okay. However going direct in with my guitar was a bit of hit and miss. Probably the most dependable means was to undergo my pedal board and one in all UA's amp sim pedals to provide me higher management over quantity and tone, relatively than counting on amp plugins in a DAW. Austrian Audio will get a ton of credit score although for together with an instrument cable within the field although that's customary 1/4-inch TS on one aspect and three.5mm TRRS on the opposite aspect for plugging into the MiCreator. It’d look like a small factor, nevertheless it saves you from having to trace down and order a relatively uncommon cable by yourself.
The corporate additionally despatched over one in all its MiCreator Satellites. It is a second mic, with out an interface, designed to pair with the MiCreator. It prices $99 however provides loads of flexibility. For one, it's the very same mic because the MiCreator, so you should utilize them as a stereo pair or for 2 folks in a simplified podcast setup. However the included cable can be lengthy sufficient so that you can put one mic proper up in opposition to an amp whereas capturing some room tone with the opposite. Or, you might mic an acoustic guitar with one and sing into the opposite. And the Satellite tv for pc is actually tiny. That is one in all, if not the, smallest full-fledged podcast studio you’ll be able to can get.
If there's one characteristic I’d have cherished to see, it's a standalone working mode. If the MiCreator had a small battery and a microSD card slot so it may double as a subject recorder, or seize an interview when hooking up your laptop computer or iPad will not be actually possible, I may see it carving out a everlasting spot in my day bag.
Nonetheless, for $199, or $299 when bundled with a Satellite tv for pc, the MiCreator provides a stunning quantity of worth. Frankly it's higher than it has any proper being at that value. It's a wonderful condenser USB microphone and a stable (if easy) audio interface in a small, rugged bundle. It may be a high-quality go-anywhere podcast studio. Or be the first means a band data new materials whereas they're out on tour.
This text initially appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/micreator-studio-hands-on-a-199-portable-recording-studio-worth-more-than-its-price-tag-180021292.html?src=rss