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Second-generation Blue Microphones Mikey announced, uses free app

by Steven Sande Jan 5th 2010 at 6:30PM

The audio wizards at Blue Microphones have wowed Mac and iPod fans with their Snowball, Snowflake, and Mikey microphones. Now, just before the start of CES 2010, Blue has announced the US$99.99 second generation Mikey Portable Recorder for iPod and iPhone.

While the new Mikey hasn't yet achieved iPhone certification, it promises to be a powerful professional recording solution for iPhone owners when it arrives in the spring. Mikey still features two Blue mic capsules for pro-quality stereo recording, but now has improved acoustic circuitry for better recordings of loud events such as concerts.

The new Mikey also has a 3.5mm line input for those times that you want to plug in a sound source like a guitar or mixer. There's also a USB pass-through connection for charging and syncing. A newly designed case makes Mikey usable with most iPhone cases, and the mic can be adjusted to seven fixed positions within a 230-degree range for optimum positioning. But wait, there's more! Blue is also throwing in a soft carrying pouch for Mikey, along with a headphone extension cable for playback monitoring with the iPod touch and nano.

Blue has also put a high-fidelity field recording app for iPhone and iPod touch into the App Store. Blue FiRe [Free, iTunes Link] has been out for a few months and is optimized for the second generation Mikey. The combination of the high-quality mic and free software produces a complete mobile recording experience.

Expect to see the new Mikey at Apple Stores, Guitar Center, and Amazon.com this spring.

[via Engadget]

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The audio wizards at Blue Microphones have wowed Mac and iPod fans with their Snowball, Snowflake, and Mikey microphones. Now, just before...
 

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kenkneeb

You Mikey is a sonic sweetie, however, it took me all of 2 minutes after using it with my iPhone 3Gs to realize that:

1.) Your designers put the mic capsules on the 'wrong side' of the mic.

OR

2.) A 180 degree swivelling doc connector is required when using the mic for Videoing with the iPhone so the mic faces the direction of the subject.

3.) Due to the mic's extreme sensitivity to wind, Blue should be providing (even as a option) a 'Dead Cat'/fur style windscreen < http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/595005-REG/Rycote_055368_Mini_Windjammer_for_Olympus.html > to reduce or eliminate wind noise.

4. The mic should have come with a padded carrying case. I understand the 2G now does. I sent my 1G in for a no-cost upgrade.

5. Also, even though I love the mic, the Blue FiRe app's VU meters do not accurately reflect audio levels before distortion occurs in the recordings. Also the 3 'Wave' icons, to me are meaningless. I would have preferred a db reading like, 30- 70dB, 70 - 100dB, 100 - 130dB (C, A, or whichever, weighing,).

6. A live monitoring output would have been phenomenal so we can actually hear what the software is hearing.

Otherwise, Blue folks!!!, THANKS FOR A GOOD START!!! Keep it up!!!

Ken

Thanks.

January 19 2010 at 3:19 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Ned

An overpriced gimmick product. Don't be suckered into an ipod/iphone-specific mic for high quality portable audio recording. Spend your $100 getting a nice XLR mic and either using the headphone's mic input, or use a stereo dock audio input adapter. You can even get cases that will hold both the iphone and the mic, so you can hold the setup in one hand with no cord getting in the way.

January 07 2010 at 7:32 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
bnaro

This probably renders my H2 useless. Want.

January 06 2010 at 10:14 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
frank.lowney

I was surprised to discover that my old Belkin TuneTalk works just fine with my 2G iPod touch and Voice Recorder. This device was originally designed for the classic iPod and has all of the features of this new Mikey. Belkin doesn't advertise this fact so I suppose that it is little known.

January 06 2010 at 8:14 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
DJGNice

Anyone Notice the Phone is backwards ? lol

January 06 2010 at 5:19 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to DJGNice's comment
x23

upside-down you mean?

most iPhone recording apps do this... you know... so you can hold the mic end (or in this case the dock connector end) closer to the thing you are trying to record and have the controls and interface "correct" vs. upside-down. holding it in a natural mic-holding position... mic "up" means the iPhone has to be pointed "down"... meaning the app needs to rotate.

i can't think of a single situation (when recording) that having the iPhone facing "right side up" would be useful with the mic and dock on the bottom. luckily most apps will autorotate 180 degrees though...

but if you do (for some reason) have a burning desire to interview your own stomach vs. the interviewees face... it will certainly be possible for you to do so.

non-lol.

January 06 2010 at 6:22 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
iphone

Yes. It looks like you need to have your back to the sound source in order to see the screen. Is this just because the photo is a mock-up? Or does the mic really face the user rather than the sound source?

January 06 2010 at 8:43 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
x23

i wish someone made something similar to this... but with two XLR jacks on it. or two of those XLR & 1/4" combo jacks. heck... even just dual RCA would be nice.

that would be excellent.

January 06 2010 at 4:38 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
kindakrazy

I wish this thing worked with the 1st generation iPod touch... But evidently, Apple actually disabled audio input via the dock connector in iPhone OS 3.0 [as other devices did work with iPhone OS 2.2].

January 05 2010 at 6:42 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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