Shure MV6 review: A clean-looking gaming microphone
Getting started is as easy as plug and play, but you’ll need software to dive deep into all the settings. I’m not a big fan of it Reason Mix software recommended on the box. Before I could download it, Shure required my full name, city and state, zip code, and email address to update the software, which seemed unnecessary.
The software gives you the ability to switch to manual gain, adjust a tone control from dark to light with “Natural” in the middle, turn the noise reduction and plosive reducer on or off, and adjust a high-pass filter for background noise. There are also monitor and mute settings if you choose to shoot with Motiv Mix. There’s nothing groundbreaking here, but there doesn’t appear to be any other way to access these settings. I wish there were just buttons on the microphone.
Can you hear me?
As far as I can tell, the settings you change are retained even if the software is not open. So feel free to make adjustments, then close it and go back to what you were doing. I did some comparison testing with the different settings while recording myself, and after listening, I generally felt like the default settings worked well enough. There is nothing here that I would describe as unusual or silly in any way. The plosive reducer works so well that I don’t need a pop filter for my Ps. I didn’t notice a particularly big change from disabling the denoiser, although this is probably helped by the microphone’s back cancellation, which helps keep my keyboard noise out.
The auto-level feature did cause me to jump up a bit if I suddenly screamed after whispering, but it adjusted quickly enough to get me up just as quickly when I spoke quietly. It’s nice not to have to worry too much about levels, as there’s no interface for quick checking and the MV6 lacks any onboard controls or feedback.
People who listened to recordings or chatted with me on Discord noted that my voice sounded crisp and clear, a noticeable improvement compared to others my usual gaming headset. I think you could easily use this microphone for casual streaming or podcasting and there would be no complaints. I don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything sonically by using this instead of mine Audio Technica AT2035at least when it comes to normal speech quality. Professional audio engineers may think otherwise, but if you don’t check waveforms or record audiobooks, you probably won’t.
Photo: Brad Bourque
