The Joby Wavo POD is a quality microphone that, at just under £90, isn’t going to break the bank.
Admittedly, the £89.99 asknig price might seem a lot if you’ve been sticking with a gaming headset floating around the £50 mark. But if you’re going to get into Twitch streaming, making your own YouTube videos or starting your own podcast, the Joby Wavo POD fits the bill nicely.
The build quality of the Wavo POD is superb, as is the flexibility of its mounting options. It sports 1/4”, 3/8″ and 5/8′ universal mounts including two 1/4 inch JOBY Link connectors on either side of the stand arms, one on the back of the microphone itself and a mount on the stand.
What’s particularly handy, function-wise, is that it supports cardioid and omnidirectional pick-up, which can be flicked between with the touch of a button. Basically, if you’re talking on your own, you want cardioid. And if you’re trying to pick up other people around the mic, omnidirectional is the one to go for.
Cardoid does a good job of blocking outer noise. Given that the microphone was, until I moved it, right next to my PC, it was picking up the background hum of the computer but relocating it put paid to most of that. It was the built-in headphone socket that, when I plugged my headphones in, clued me into the faint whine. It seems like a minor feature but a godsend if you’re starting out.
Recording quality is superb close up, giving me near-crystal clear audio at a distance of about 25cm and good quality recordings when just resting on the desk. The latter may seem more convenient and I’ve heard plenty of podcasts where it sounds like the broadcaster is hiding in a bin, but I’m definitely going to invest in a microphone arm, just to bring it up to my level.
Connecting via USB-C, it sports a USB-C to USB-C and USB-C to standard microphone cable. A few years back I would have resented the lack of a microphone jack but now it’s a non-issue. Mounted on the base of the microphone, the cable avoids getting tangled though, lazy bugger that I am, I plan on getting a tiny, tiny 10cm male to female cable so I don’t even have to flip the microphone over when putting it in.
So what’s the catch? As Alice Cooper sang, “It’s just the little things…” and in this case there’s just one little control that lets it down. There’s a knob that lets you alter volume, and mute the microphone with a press of the button. However, instead of having a separate gain button, the same acts as the gain control if you hold it down for a few seconds minutes, which is a bit fiddly. On top of that, there’s no resistance when you rotate the button – unlike most dials, which stop at either end, the knob just goes round and round.
Is that a deal breaker? No, not really, just an annoying oversight. The Joby Wavo POD still delivers excellent quality sound and while its shape suggests it’s intended for solo use, having the option to go omnidirectional is great. On top of that, you’ve got the the freedom to mount it as you see fit.
In short, if you want a great microphone that punches above its double digit price, the Joby Wavo POD is a must-have.
A unit was kindly provided for the purposes of this review.
