DEFINITION January 2018

52 AUDIO SPECIAL SHURE MOTIV MV88 MIC

SHURE MOTIV MV88 IOS MICROPHONE Shure want to take advantage of the iPhone’s popularity with a pro microphone you can take anywhere WORDS ADAM GARSTONE

ur phones have replaced so many other gadgets in day- to-day life. We use them as cameras, video recorders, music players – and now Shure wants you to replace your field recorder with your iPhone and its new MOTIV MV88 stereo microphone. The MV88 comes in a nice protective case and plugs directly into the Lightning connector on your phone. That raises a couple of issues: firstly, some of the more rugged iPhone cases will prevent the MV88 from sitting in the connector properly; and you will need to use Bluetooth headphones to monitor your recording, as modern iPhones no longer have a headphone jack. (There are some latency issues with monitoring over Bluetooth.) These matters aside, however, the MV88 is a very capable unit. The microphone itself is very sturdily constructed, with solid castings and a strong, 90° hinge. The capsule bidirectional (figure eight) – enabling recording in adjustable width stereo, mono (bidirectional and cardioid) or native mid/side. Sample rates are up to 48kHz, 24-bit and frequency response is quoted at 20Hz to 20kHz. Sensitivity is a very passable -37dBFS/ Pa at 1kHz. There is a windjammer provided with the unit as well. Recording is best performed using Shure’s own MOTIV app, contains two 1cm-condenser diaphragms – a cardioid and a

available from the App Store. This has a nice meter display, and allows recording and playback. It also enables control of the microphone settings, gain (0 to +36dB) and stereo width (if recording decoded stereo). There are also some presets that enable five-band EQ, compression and limiting. File size is limited to 2GB – about two hours per recording. I found the recording quality to be excellent, given the ‘field recorder’ styling. The adjustable stereo pattern was particularly useful in recording interviews, with the unit set to bi- directional mono, and the interviewer

ABOVE The best recordings are achieved using

Shure’s MOTIV app. BELOW Interviews are enhanced by an adjustable stereo pattern.

and interviewee centred in opposite lobes of the figure of eight pattern. There is some noise, at high gains, and you have to be careful about handling noise, of course. For a unit that you can keep in your bag, and with which obtain good quality recordings whenever you need them, I really loved the MV88. We use our phones as cameras, not because they are better quality than a ‘real’ camera, but because they are always with us. In just the same way, the Shure MOTIV MV88 enables you to have an excellent field recorder with you at all times The VP83F is available for under £300 (including VAT). THE SHURE MOTIV MV88 ENABLES YOU TO HAVE AN EXCELLENT FIELD RECORDER WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES

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