There’s a plethora of quality condenser microphones in the market today, and it can be tough to choose one to fit all your needs. You’d have to consider a lot of things, like sound quality, ease of installation, and of course, price. One of the latest mics to have won a CES Innovation Award 2023 is the Maono DM30 USB condenser microphone.
Maono has been around since 2014, and is now one of the fastest-growing makers of audio equipment in the world. Microphones – condenser, dynamic, USB, wireless. etc – are the company’s main products, and it stands out in the market for its value for money and ease of use (we’ve also tested out its podcast mic: review here).
The Technicalities of DM30
The Maono DM30 USB has a 24-bit/48kHz specification, which for a condenser microphone is considered to be a very good standard for recording audio. A 24-bit is a common and widely used bit depth in professional audio recording. For speech recordings, podcasts, gaming, Zoom meetings or many everyday listening scenarios, 48kHz or even lower sampling rates may suffice. Many professional recordings are done at 48kHz – higher bit depths can capture a wider range of subtle details, but result in larger file sizes.
It also designed with a cardioid pattern – this means it only picks up sound primarily from the front while minimising unwanted background noise and off-axis sounds. This is particularly useful in studio recordings and other scenarios where isolating the desired sound source is important. The minor complaint with this is that you do have to be a bit closer to the mic to produce an adequate volume (especially if you’re not a loud talker).
If you’re recording in a room with a lot of low-frequency noise – like a noisy aircon, or a loud computer – the DM30’s high-pass filter can help minimise rumble and other unwanted low-frequency sounds.
If you don’t like your sound quality, you can even adjust the sound in real time through the Maono Link control software (available on PC and iOS). Pump up the bass level in your voice, increase the audio gain, or make your voice sound more ‘natural’ – it’s all easily done on the simple software.
For anyone who’s fussy about sound quality, the Maono DM30 does a superb job at capturing audio clearly and cleanly with zero audible frequency noises nor distortion.
Ease of Use
One of the benefits of the Maono DM30 is its size and weight: for something that performs at this level, it’s incredibly lightweight. The mic comes with a sturdy table base which reduces vibrations and structure-borne sounds thanks to the high-density polyurethane pad between the arm and the microphone unit.
What makes this mic very easy to use is its USB-C connectivity – simply plug and play! It even has a 3.5mm headphone jack so there’s real-time output (handy for all those gaming and Zoom sessions). Both ports are at the bottom of the mic. There’s even a volume control dial built into the mic itself so you can adjust the gain, and also mute by pressing it.
The Maono DM30 has been marketed for gamers because it has an RGB feature. The mic produces 9 modes of RGB lighting specially designed for game scenes. You can set it to rainbow, or a single colour.
The DM30 comes in a variety of colours – purple, black, white, and pink – so whatever your desk theme is, there’s a good selection of colours to choose from. This is Maono’s first real plug-and-play programmable USB microphone specially designed for gamers. It’s very easy to use, has a great sound sensitivity, and is very affordable.
Maono’s DM30 Programmable USB Condenser Microphone is available at S$69.
