Elgato Wave 3 Microphone Revealed: Features, Price, And More
Elgato revealed its first-ever microphones, and they boast some pretty impressive hardware and software.
Elgato revealed its first-ever microphones last week--the Wave 1 and Wave 3. Both microphones are now available for purchase and feature some pretty impressive hardware and software. The Wave 3 is the company's new premium microphone, boasting double the max sample rate of the Wave 1 at 96kHz. Both microphones also come with digital mixing software, headphone monitoring, a USB-C connection, and more. The Wave 1 costs $130, while the Wave 3 costs $160. Both are available through Elgato's website.
Elgato Wave microphones
The Elgato Wave series features the company's proprietary Clipguard technology, which prevents your input levels from peaking. This helps if you're playing a game like Fortnite and start screaming when you clutch a Victory Royale--your audio levels jump when you raise your voice, causing most microphones to peak and the audio to become distorted.
There are two key differences between the Wave 1 and Wave 3. Firstly, the sample rate is higher with the Wave 3. This means that it should be able to capture better-quality audio, though not everyone may be able to tell the difference. The Wave 1 boasts a 48kHz max sample rate, which is still perfectly fine--48kHz is the standard sample rate for audio in most recorded video. The Wave 3 also boasts a capacitive mute button as well as levels built right into the microphone and the ability to cross-fade your microphone and PC audio monitor.
Both microphones also come with the Wave Link mixing software, which lets you mix nine different audio sources at once. This can include your Wave microphone, music, game audio, and any other available source. It also lets you create two different outputs, allowing you to hear things your chat doesn't and vice-versa.
If you're looking for more microphone recommendations, be sure to check out our guide to the best streaming accessories. There are quite a few microphones built with Twitch, YouTube, and Mixer in mind, and while the Elgato Wave series sounds quite impressive, it's worth considering all of your options before making a decision.
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