While most people wind down after the hectic Black Friday/Christmas period, the fun starts when January begins if you work in tech journalism. Many exciting announcements happen early on the year, like this one from JOBY, creator of the unique GorillaPod, who released a slew of exciting audio tech aimed at pro and mobile creators and streamers.
And when I say slew, I mean slew. The new additions to the already existing Wavo range from JOBY include the Wavo AIR, a wireless lavalier kit for expert content creators, the Wavo POD, a "gateway" streaming microphone, the Wavo PRO, a pro-level-yet-easy-to-use on-camera shotgun microphone, the Wavo PRO DS, the mid-range version of the POD and finally, the Wavo Lav PRO, a high-quality lavalier wearable mic.
Excited? I sure am! Let's discuss what JOBY has to offer in more detail below.
JOBY Wavo range: Price and availability
The entirely new Wavo lineup is available to buy from today 31 January 2022 directly from JOBY US, JOBY UK, JOBY AU and select third-party retailers.
Prices for the new products are:
Wavo AIR £214.95
Wavo AIR Expansion Kit £43.95
Wavo POD £85.95
Wavo POD 2nd Pop Filter £8.55
Wavo PRO £257.95
Wavo PRO DS £228.95 (available from 4 March 2022)
Wavo Lav PRO £68.95
US and AU prices TBC.
Watch the video of the new JOBY Wavo PRO
JOBY Wavo PRO: portable shotgun mic for pros
The new Wavo PRO is something different. The closest comparison I have for it is the big brother of the recently announced RODE VideoMic II, the VideoMic Pro, but as great as that mic is, it pales in comparison to the Wavo PRO when it comes to features.
While RODE's mic is excellent on its own terms (and certainly much cheaper), the Wavo PRO is an absolute monster of audio equipment that's equipped with a hybrid analogue/digital system to power onboard active noise reduction, a sound management app, and integrated second 3.5mm mic input.
That's right: the Wavo PRO has ANC that "leverages enhanced onboard Rycote technology to process and clear sounds", as JOBY puts it, "by removing self-generated structural noise."
One criticism of the RODE VideoMic Wireless GO is that it hasn't got any LED indicators. The Wavo PRO has two, one in the front and back, so you can always tell when the mic is active. Better still, the Wavo PRO supports secondary mic input for dual channel recording.
Not to mention, there is an auto power mode to switch the mic on/off automatically together with the camera.
JOBY Wavo PRO DS: a hassle-free mid-range shotgun mic
The mid-range Wavo PRO DS is for people who like the look of the PRO but don't want to splash out quite as much for a shotgun mic. The Wavo PRO DS is not massively cheaper than the flagship model but accessible and capable enough so semi-pro creators might consider it.
According to JOBY, the Wavo PRO DS shares most of the pro-grade components of the flagship Wavo PRO but is designed to "deliver high-quality audio with a more streamlined user experience". As in, you have fewer audio customisation options and features for less money.
What you'll miss out on, compared to the Wavo PRO, are the ANC, secondary mic input and audio control on the mic itself. Instead of ANC, you get a high-pass filter that cleans sound from unwanted low frequencies, an onboard safe track for mono or dual-channel recording and integrated LEDs indicating battery and audio levels.
Not bad!
JOBY Wavo AIR: wireless mic delight
I'm pretty sure the Wavo AIR is a response to RODE's mega-popular Wireless GO II. The Wavo AIR is an 'instant-pairing' wireless microphone kit that is said to deliver "tight, broadcast-quality sound" without cables connecting the transmitters to the camera or phone.
The Wavo AIR Kit comes standard with two transmitters, two lavalier mics and cable adapters for both cameras and phones and features high-quality, 2.4 GHz wireless audio capture technology in a compact form factor.
As a bit of a bonus, and because JOBY is clearly targeting Gen-Z content creators (very rightly so!), the Wavo AIR kit includes a unique mounting system that enables creators to clip the transmitter units to lanyards, belt clips or cold shoe mounts via the magnetic mount.
The range is up to 50m (164ft); mics can even be placed in different locations to record specific audio far from the camera to enrich the video content. Tight!
JOBY Wavo POD: a mic for streamers to shout at
As much as I love portable mics, I'm a massive sucker for streaming microphones, let it be Blue's Yeti range or RODE's NT mics, hence why I can't stop looking at the press images and specs of the new JOBY Wavo POD.
The Wavo POD is a large-diaphragm, USB condenser microphone for audio streamers that has both cardioid and omnidirectional pickup patterns with 24bit/48kHz high-res sampling rates.
It includes a zero-latency headphone monitoring 3.5mm jack along with a volume and gain knob with one-click integrated mute functionality and comes with a sexy red pop filter and a desk stand. A secondary filter is available as a separate purchase that shields the mic's backside for multiple or simultaneous recording angles.
The Wavo POD has a standard USB Type-C connection and two ¼-20 mounts on either side of the mic stand so you can attach accessories and position the mic using a boom arm (or GorillaPod, of course). It's also equipped with a detachable base and U bracket, native ⅜" female screw, and included ⅜" to ⅝" adapter to easily connect to any boom arm. Boom! Mic drop.
Wavo Lav PRO: pro-level lavalier mic
Of all the pro stuff JOBY announced, the Wavo Lav PRO is probably the pro-est as I doubt many non-pro people will consider shelling out so much money for a lav mic so that they can achieve premium sound quality.
That said, and looking at the specs of the Wavo Lav PRO, they really should. While all its functions are purpose-built to work in harmony with the Wavo PRO and other JOBY audio gear, this lav mic incorporates a pro-grade capsule and includes a foam windscreen to create "crisp, warm and true tone audio, and removes vocal plosives or soft wind."
The Wavo Lav PRO has a 2.5m-long, high-quality cable made from soft materials.
