It might seem unusual to dedicate an entire review to a single cable, but a) it fulfils a very specific need and b) it's only a short review! The cable in question is the USBXLR 3m cable from British mic manufacturers Sontronics.
The cable is designed to provide a single connection from a dynamic microphone to any device with a USB input, without having to connect the mic to an audio interface. This means that any dynamic microphone (or potentially a battery powered condenser) can become a USB mic without having to invest in a specialist version (such as the Yeti reviewed last month).
This is particularly useful if you have lots of mics available for concerts or recording, but you need something quickly to live stream a lesson and don't want to buy yet another microphone.
On first impressions, the cable is a sturdy piece of equipment and isn't likely to be destroyed very easily or bend too much. The only weakish point is the USB connector end which might break if someone puts a chair leg on it in a classroom – but hopefully this isn't too likely to happen!
The cable is self-explanatory – plug a mic in at one end and connect to the computer at the other. Once I opened my DAW to test it out, it appeared as an unnamed USB Audio device – I set this as the input and started recording. Because this is such a basic piece of equipment there are no controls, so the gain is pre-set and can't be boosted.
Once I'd recorded something, I discovered that the level is quite quiet, so, depending on how you're using it, it might require significant amplification. This is presumably a safety precaution for any microphone that might have a higher output gain than the SM58 I used.
The purpose of this product is to allow easy connection of mics for people who might not traditionally be audio engineers but want to acquire a higher quality mic than the built-in one on their phone or laptop.
What Sontronics couldn't predict was the rise of remote teaching and the sudden need for everyone to be broadcasting from home or from classrooms. The cable means that I can use a higher-quality mic wherever I am.
This is a great little accessory to allow the use of a proper mic, avoiding the poor quality of internal laptop microphones. Definitely worth investigating.
The USB-XLR retails at £19.95 and is available from www.sontronics.com
