We’ve received another great review of our new flagship headphones, the M1000s. Have a read of this:

The Studiospares M1000s are a great set of headphones. At first glance they look very professional and sturdy with a very slick and smooth finish. The detachable cable is an added bonus meaning it can be easily replaced and the pair come with an additional set of ear cups for good measure. Not that these would be necessary as the pair seems extremely strong and robust, perfect for the studio environment. The set was primarily a strong plastic with some metal parts such as the headband and the cable was a good thickness and seemed like it would take quite a beating before it took any damage. In addition the provided foam case would make transportation easy and would avoid any unnecessary pressures when moving about.

I personally am a drummer and was especially excited to see how they would fair as a studio set of headphones to play too as the majority of studio headphones often provided are below standards especially in terms of Noise cancellation and can prove to be uncomfortable. I can say therefore that one of the best things with these headphones was the easy use when drumming. When put on they provided an unmatched level of contort even compared to some of my more expensive Sennheiser over ear headphones. They cut off the majority of the top end of the drums as well as a large general amount of noise cancelation meaning that the track i was playing in my ears was extremely clear and I could concentrate on my drumming rather than slowly being battered with overly loud music, which often happens. In addition the cable was more than long enough and allowed my movement to be as free as possible. In terms of sound quality, all the ranges were covered. Perhaps the top end wasn’t quite as crisp as some more upmarket headphones and perhaps the stereo field didn’t seem as pronounced at times but for the price of these you can’t complain. They certainly live up to other headphones in their price range and there was a nice clear and punchy bass. Therefore, overall I was pleasantly surprised and would definitely recommend them to any musicians with a low/medium budget for general use and they won’t disappoint.

Peter Carr (Producer and Musician)

Review -  MicW iOS Microphones – i436, i456, i266

MicW was born from origins as a manufacturer of affordable measurement microphones for industrial use, so it’s no surprise that their first offering for the pro audio iOS market is a Class 2 omni measurement microphone. Since I do a fair amount of studio construction and treatment, I was intrigued by the idea of using your phone or tablet as a low-cost audio analyser. A look at the frequency response graph of the i436 reveals it is almost perfectly flat down to 0 Hz, with just a small boost at around 15kHz (the resonant frequency of the diaphragm), which can perhaps be adjusted for in software. This makes it a pretty effective analyser, dependent on the app you use with it. I ran some tests in my own live room, and was quite impressed to see the mic identified all of the major room modes. I also did some SPL measurements with it, comparing with a dedicated SPL meter, and found it to be accurate there too. Considering handheld analysers can run into hundreds and even thousands of pounds, this could be a great choice for most analysis applications.

That’s all well and good you say, but I’m only interested in a mic to record my song ideas or band practises. Well the i436 still deserves some serious consideration. I tried recording an acoustic guitar and voice with it, placing the mic midway between both sources, and was impressed by the open, expansive sound and low noise. The omni polar response will be useful in a variety of musical situations, but the obvious example would be recording a rehearsal of some sort. Simply place the mic in the center of the performers and rest assured that it will pick everyone up equally.

That said, MicW have since released two more offerings for iOS devices that may be better suited to musical applications. There’s the i456 – with a cardioid response offering greater directionality and the i266, with its larger diaphragm built to deliver a fuller, more flattering sound. Each one is also available with a kit of useful accessories including splitter and extension cables, stand adapters, a hard case and lapel-style clip.

Of all the new microphones aimed at the emerging iOS pro audio market, in my opinion the MicW ones look the best. We all know it shouldn’t matter yet we all know it does! The build quality seems very good and since each microphone is individually calibrated prior to leaving the factory, you can be assured that yours will perform just as well as my review unit.

VERDICT

Classy design and impressive sound quality make the MicW iOS mics stand out from the crowd. They might not be the cheapest in their class, but after working with them I’m surprised they’re not more expensive. Highly recommended for iOS musicians and audio professionals.

Joel Elwar

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