By Brady Betzel
With the slower pace of summer upon us, it’s time to take an inventory of what gear you can upgrade to take your setup to the next level. From cleaner audio separation to precise video signal measurements, I am always looking at the latest and greatest production and post gear. While new plugins and software updates are great, peripherals, like a great stand-up desk or a high-quality/low-cost microphone, can make your workday a bit better.
If you’re hoping to travel this summer while continuing to work, we have a few suggestions that will support your mobile workstation:
Dark Matter Sentry Streaming Microphone by Monoprice
Whether you are on Zoom meetings for five hours a day or just want a quick and easy way to record a voiceover directly inside of Adobe Premiere Pro without complicated software installations, a high-quality microphone is the easiest way to impress.
Over the last few years, like you, I’ve found myself on Zoom meetings more than I would like. One constant is poor video and audio quality. Occasionally, you get someone crazy who has a spare Red camera around and has an incredible video essence to their Zoom, but more often than not, people use their laptop’s built-in hardware, which, to be fair, isn’t always terrible.
Apple includes very compelling cameras and microphones in their products, but for all the editors who don’t have a Yeti mic lying around, the Dark Matter Sentry Streaming Microphone by Monoprice rides the line between quality and cost. The Dark Matter Sentry retails for $99.99 but is currently selling for $74.98.
The Dark Matter Sentry is a hefty, well-designed, low-maintenance microphone that’s perfect for temp voiceover recordings or live Twitch streams. It offers four pickup/polar patterns: cardioid (directly in front of the mic), stereo (left/right side of the mic), bidirectional (front/back of the mic) and omnidirectional (360 recording). It even has a headphone jack below the mic gain and headphone volume knobs.
Installing the Dark Matter Sentry is as easy as plugging the USB-C to USB-A cable into your computer and choosing one of the five LED colors by pushing the button on the bottom of the mic. The spider-style mic stand included with the Dark Matter Sentry is surprisingly sturdy. You can also attach the mic to a mic boom via the ⅝-inch threaded mount point.
When comparing the Dark Matter Sentry against other popular streaming-style mics, the current $74.98 price tag is over half of similar but competing models, like the Shure MV7, which retails for $249.99. Check out the Dark Matter Sentry site because the price seems to change every day.
AJA Io|X3
With live streaming and small, home-studio-based multicam workflows gaining popularity, having reliable I/O hardware is a must. AJA has been around and producing top-quality I/O gear for a long time. The AJA Io X3 is a Thunderbolt 3-based, multi-channel 2K/HD/SD input/output hardware solution. Whether you are looking to switch/record four HD streams at once in OBS or simply stream your timeline to clients viewing remotely using the AJA Helo Plus, the Io X3 is a solid workhorse retailing for $1,759.
In addition to analog connections like four 3G bidirectional SDI ports with 16-channel embedded audio, the AJA Io X3 has HDMI I/O with eight-channel embedded audio, including HDR transfer characteristic recognition. The device supports and automatically detects PQ, HLG, HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision.
The AJA Io X3 is a great solution for most editing or color-grading software, except Blackmagic’s DaVinci Resolve. For Resolve you will want to grab something from the UltraStudio hardware line. But for apps like Adobe Premiere or Avid Media Composer, AJA hardware works well. With machine control for tape-based laybacks, Apple M1 chip support and even the ability to power the battery via the XLR 12V.
The Io X3 is very flexible unless you use Resolve.
Nobe OmniScope
One of the most under-used tools I see in the streamer and content-creator world is scopes. The ability to read and view luminance, saturation and color spaces in a technically accurate way is vital. Scope information is one of those skills that separates the hobbyists from the professionals.
Regardless of whether you work on streaming videos, wedding videos or the Super Bowl, you are a professional in my eyes. Nobe OmniScope has brought us professional-level scopes at consumer-level prices. The Video version of Nobe OmniScope retails for $235, while the Pro version retails for $399. Both give you one year of updates unless you renew at $70 per year for the Video version and $99 per year for the Pro version.
The Pro version has features like multiple input sources, 4:4:4 RGB 12-bit support through DeckLink and UltraStudio, Syphon and Spout (direct GPU memory-sharing), 3D Color Cube, min-max readings, error logger, multiple quality control features, OpenColorIO 2, native Stream Deck support, NDI source/scope output, HDR support, ACES color science, PQ ST 2084/HLG scales and two simultaneous licenses for one price.
You can run Nobe OmniScope with whatever software you are using or on a separate system with signal inputs. In the past, I’ve always been a fan of separate systems for running apps like this. However, these days it is not necessary. Newer systems with high-end GPUs can run Nobe OmniScope and Resolve concurrently with few slowdowns. But if you do have a spare Mac Mini or older Windows-based PC lying around, you might want to think about using it just for input/output of the Nobe OmniScope.
There is a great series of six instructional videos by Kevin P. McAuliffe that covers most of the Nobe OmniScope features. My favorite is blanking detection in the quality control features, which are part of the Pro version of Nobe OmniScope. In online editing, blanking is one of the trickiest errors to find.
Even using a professional output monitor, some blanking will get missed. But with Nobe OmniScope Pro, when QC tools are enabled, Nobe OmniScope will highlight any specified blanking areas in bright red if it thinks it’s an error. In the future, I hope Nobe OmniScope will add automated QC tools that will essentially export a preliminary QC report, including basic errors like blanking, illegal color values, black frames, etc. It would be an amazing feature to add to this extensive toolset that every colorist and online editor should own. Find out more at the Time in Pixels website.
KRK’s GoAux 4 Portable Monitors
I’m a sucker for great speakers and headphones. As a teenager, I worked at Best Buy (pre-Geek Squad) as a computer repair technician and eventually a car stereo installer. That is when I realized I love great-quality speakers and components. Once I began working at a mix house as an online editor, it reaffirmed my love for ultrahigh-quality sound setups, even if that wasn’t my primary job responsibility.
So besides having amazing headphones like the Audeze MM-500, which I recently reviewed, how do you get studio-quality sound setups from portable speaker systems? KRK Systems has you covered with the GoAux 4 monitor kit, which offers some of the smallest, most portable, tunable, powered-nearfield monitors. The GoAux 4 monitors retail for $419 with free two-day shipping.
The GoAux 4 monitors ship in an awesome and protective nylon carrying bag that holds both monitors, stands, auto ARC microphone and room for cables. The carrying bag is one of my favorite parts — it’s compact and efficient.
The KRK Systems GoAux 4s are the upgrade from the GoAux 3s. The GoAux 4s carry 100W of RMS power (total system power) with a 4-inch woofer and a 1-inch tweeter. Realistically, each woofer will max out at 33W RMS and each tweeter at 17W RMS. The SPL (sound pressure level, aka how powerful the bass notes are) peak at 102dB and can sustain 98.5dBs. The subwoofer frequency response is between 55Hz and 22kHz. Compare that to the GoAux 3s, which have 60W RMS power and a 3-inch woofer and stop at 60Hz on the low end. The larger the woofer, the lower the notes the woofer can play.
The speakers themselves only need to be connected to one power source because they share power. They feature built-in low and high frequency EQ adjustments, USB, ⅛-inch aux, RCA and ¼-inch TRS balanced stereo inputs and a Bluetooth connection. You can even connect headphones to the ⅛-inch stereo headphone output on the front of the GoAux 4s, which will automatically mute the monitors.
Physically, the monitors are small for the power they produce. They measure 8.07 inches by 5.35 inched by 5.51 inches and weigh just under 10lbs, including both speakers, stands, carrying bag and included accessories. But what really got my attention was the Auto ARC microphone that is included with the GoAux 4s. The Auto ARC is an automatic room correction feature. Simply, it allows you to move the GoAux 4s to different physical mixing environments while keeping similar audio qualities. Think of traveling between a studio and a hotel room to mix audio. Of course, the rooms will have much different acoustic setups. The GoAux 4s Auto ARC mic will help to correct for these differences, leading to similar mixing environments. It won’t be perfect or a replacement for a true studio setup, but equalizing the environment is one step closer to being able to mix anywhere.
To run the Auto ARC, you need to attach the included Auto ARC mic to the front left speaker Auto ARC mic input, hold/place the mic at ear level where the user will be sitting, and hold the Auto ARC button on the rear left speaker. It will produce 25 tones and then repeat. This will go on for a couple of minutes, during which time the mic must remain still. Once it’s complete, a low-frequency tone sounds. I tested this between multiple locations, including a bedroom, a bathroom and a studio. While it isn’t perfect, the Auto ARC setup brought the many different sound environments closer together.
Grab a set for $419, including free two-day shipping.
FlexiSpot E5 Standing Desk
By Guest Reviewer Randi Altman, Editor-in-Chief postPerspective
Having worked at a computer my entire adult life, developing achy wrists, a stiff neck and hunchback (not Notre Dame-level, but my posture is not great), I have always wanted to try a stand-up desk. And thanks to FlexiSpot Dual Motor Standing Desk, I finally got my chance.
The desk arrived in different boxes over the course of a few days, so it was exciting to see what was coming next. Each box was clearly labeled, letting me know exactly what was in each before opening. I wonder if they break up the shipping on purpose so no one has all the parts of the desk at one time. (Yes, my New York Spidey senses are always on high alert.)
For the record, I don’t build stuff. I’ll spackle and paint whatever you need me to, but reading directions and putting stuff together is not my strength. Therefore, I recruited my husband, who started his furniture-building career on something called Skorük Mörk, our first bedroom set from IKEA. As I watched him from the couch while scrolling through my phone, he seemed to move along nicely… he describes it as “slow but steady,” and “easier than I thought it would be.” All told, his very casual build was probably just under an hour. Not too bad!
When complete, we were both sort of giddy. He with pride for a job well done, and me with the excitement of testing it out. I was immediately impressed with the quality hardware on the desk — from the moveable stand to the bamboo work surface that the company says can hold up to 287 pounds, the two-level workspace, and the ability to raise and lower it with a push of a button, depending on if I am feeling stand-y or sit-y.
The keypad panel has three height presets, and they are very easy to use. I stand at a towering 5 feet 3 inches tall, while my nephew who has been visiting is 6 feet 4 inches — genetics are weird. Both of us were able to find a comfortable height for working, whether sitting or standing. Oh, there is also a sit-stand reminder, that allows you to set a timer reminding you to switch working postures from time to time.
While working, most of my day is spent in Word and Photoshop with a little Resolve thrown in, and it has all been a breeze, standing or sitting. I also use an external keyboard and a pen/tablet, and there is plenty of room for all.
I have also come to really enjoy doing video calls while standing. I just feel healthier being able to move around a little bit from side to side, shifting my weight while chatting, especially after lunch. It’s my new normal.
The only negative I have relates to all the plugs/wires that hang under the desk while sitting – but I have to look deeper at this, because it could very well be user error.
For a more detailed review of the company’s similar but next-level E7 desk, give Cory Choy’s review a read.
Pricing can be found here.
Brady Betzel is an Emmy-nominated online editor at Margarita Mix in Hollywood, working on shows like Life Below Zero and Uninterrupted: The Shop . He is also a member of the Producers Guild of America. You can email Brady at bradybetzel@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @allbetzroff.