Welcome to a Laptop Ac Adapter specialist of the Dell Ac Adapter
It's no secret that a few of us here at Engadget HQ have an affinity for mobile recording tech. Perhaps you could blame some of our fledgling amateur music careers, but at any rate, we love to get our hands on tech that allows us to lay down tracks on-the-go. It's also no surprise that Apogee would offer up another product that would look to do just that. As a complement to the outfit's Jam guitar adapter, the Apogee MiC is the latest foray into mobile recording. Much like its guitar specific counterpart, the MiC is both iDevice and Mac compatible and its compact stature won't take up precious real estate in your travel pack. But, as you may expect, staying mobile comes at a premium. So, is the $249 price tag a deal breaker for the MiC? Is it a small price to pay for adding a solid microphone to your mobile recording setup? Journey on past the break to find out.
The first thing we noticed about the MiC is how well built this piece of kit is. We were pleasantly surprised to find a durable, all-metal housing instead of a plastic frame like we encountered a few months back with the Jam. The same three-color LED adapter like Dell Latitude D820 Ac Adapter
, Dell Latitude D500 Ac Adapter
, Dell Inspiron E1505 Ac Adapter
, Dell Inspiron E1405 Ac Adapter
, Dell Inspiron 600M Ac Adapter
, Dell Inspiron E1705 Ac Adapter
, Dell Latitude X200 Ac Adapter
, Dell Inspiron 2650 Ac Adapter
, Dell Inspiron 2600 Ac Adapter
, Dell Inspiron 2500 Ac Adapter
, Dell Inspiron 7500 Ac Adapter
, Dell Latitude CS Ac Adapter
status indicator makes its home on the face of the mic, telling us when the tech was connected but not quite ready, go-to-go or that the input level was too darn high. Aside from that, there weren't any other discoveries, as the peripheral is pretty straightforward in terms of design. On the microphone's right side, lies the lone on-board control: a gain dial for monitoring input levels and a feature also present on the guitar tech. While the left side is bare of any added controls, the USB / iOS connector finds its home on the base and is the sole output.
Naturally, inside the sturdy metal exterior is the real heart of the matter. The MiC is of the studio-grade, cardioid condenser sort and features 24-bit analog-to-digital conversion at 44.1 / 48kHz. It also makes use of a PureDIGITAL connection tech to cut down on unwanted noise when capturing either vocals or acoustic instruments. This ended up being a nice touch, as we never encountered any unwanted sounds in the captured tracks (more on that later). You won't find a battery compartment either, as the device is powered by either your iPad / iPhone or via the USB of your computer. Yeah, we know. Marathon recording sessions won't happen with iDevices, since charging-while-tracking isn't an option. However, you're sure to get a solid couple of hours in which will be ample time for most tasks.
While the gain control is definitely a useful feature, we would have loved to see a built-in mute switch as well. Sure, we're aware that this is a device meant to be as lean as possible without sacrificing audio quality, but the inclusion of a small button for such said purpose wouldn't have completely thrown a wrench in things. Let's be honest, the inevitable coughing
If you're worried about toting around a microphone on top of everything else in your bag, that should be the least of your concerns here. The Apogee MiC hits the tape at about 1.5 x 4.5 inches (38.1 x 114.3mm) and it's only about an inch and a half thick but still packs quite a punch. Not too shabby for a well-built mic capable of tracking vocals and your acoustic axe. Included in the box is a small tripod stand for desktop / tabletop use and both iOS and USB compatible cables. None of these items will take up too much space in the ol' backpack either -- honestly, the entire package could fit inside an acoustic guitar case. It rested nicely in ours, anyway.
Think you may need some extra tools to get the job done? Well, the outfit also has a MiC Stand Adapter for use with any stand that you may have lying around. If the 0.5m cables are just too short for your comfort, a duo of 3m cables are available for purchase as well for an extra $20. We made use of both the longer cables and the clip during our tests and found them quite useful in some scenarios -- like using a mic stand to record vocals while standing. And if you just have to have a dedicated carrying case for the entire kit, one will soon be available. No exact arrival date or pricing has been announced for the case or the stand adapter as of yet, though. (Update: Apogee has just told us that the clip, longer cables and case will be available as part of a "Pro Kit" for $249, MiC included).
As with the Jam, Apogee recommends that you use GarageBand when recording on your iPad or iPhone. We weren't in too much of a hurry to venture elsewhere, as the plug-and-play (er, record) type setup that we encountered with the guitar adapter was the experience here as well. Sure, GarageBand will work just fine on the desktop (or laptop for that matter) side and that's what we used for review purposes. However, Apogee promises that Logic Pro, MainStage, Pro Tools (version 9 or higher) or any other Core Audio software will play nice with the MiC. Chances are, if you're recording in your studio or office, you may already have invested in one or more of these trusty applications. This will of course make the initial investment a bit easier on your piggy bank.