Kit Review: ExtremeMac MicroMemo
![[Blog Photo] iPod Nano with XtremeMac MicroMemo](http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1075/1135181095_ac97e5ed01.jpg)
Tuesday saw me head up to London for the Defective by Design protest outside BBC Television Centre. Download Squad had comprehensive coverage of the protests, however one issue that nearly made the day a whole lot more troublesome was the fact that the Griffin iTalk I bought this time last year was being (ever more) iffy with the 4th Gen iPod I love so much. Instead of choosing to write a long list of notes, I chose to hit the Apple Store on Regent Street to pick up a new microphone. My day-to-day music listening is done on the iPod Nano, so I chose a mike for that, given that I'd more than likely want the mobility of a Nano (plus the 4th Gen is nearly 3 years old). So I picked up an ExtremeMac MicroMemo. It's not as cheap as the Griffin iTalk Pro, but it does offer a directional microphone which helps when you're perhaps stood by the side of a busy road talking to the Executive Director of the Free Software Foundation....!
So why would you want to buy this over an original iTalk? Simple. The iTalk is mono, whilst the iTalk Pro and MicroMemo are stereo addons. The addition of the mini-boom is a neat one, and something that the Griffin iTalk Pro lacks, but the Griffin beats the MicroMemo on price. It was a tough call with the iTalk Pro and MicroMemo, but my experiences of the MicroMemo are far more pleasant than my early experiences with the iTalk (original). Highly recommended.
Verdict: Whilst a little more pricey, the directional abilities of the mike make it far more usable - for example it could be rested on top of a notepad, with the microphone pointed at the subject. The quality is excellent (at 'High' - a mode I'd highly recommend you always record in). For a sample file take a listen to the Download Squad interview. The MicroMemo is available for 5th Generation iPods (Black and White) and Nanos.
Kit Review: Shure E2Cs
Of course, the first thing that was needed was a suite of music files to test the headphones with. So, I combed my library for a variety of tracks. If you're wondering what they were, it consisted of the Pirates of the Caribbean 3 soundtrack, some Fratellis, Jools Holland a recording of John Adam's Short Ride in a Fast Machine, and a couple of assorted classical works (Rite of Spring and Beethoven 9). It should also be noted that a variety of formats too were used for the test: MP3s, MP4s and iTunes purchased tracks. iTunes purchases were at 128kbps, MP3s and MP4s at 128kbps and 256kbps. Each track does have an Equaliser setting attached to it in iTunes. The results, unsurprisingly are that the E2Cs are a fantastic piece of kit. The details they bring out (once you've fitted them to your ear with one of the dozen included fits) are truly awesome. In fact, it brings out details that to this day I'd simply never heard. Bass frequencies are heard (finally!!) and the soundstage was impressive, with a real sense of depth. The one track that really noticed the difference was a certain track from POTC:3 which just sounded so much crisper.
So. To summarise:
Pros:
1. Brilliant sound
2. Reasonable price (particularly on Amazon - half what you'd pay at the Apple store)
3. Plenty of cable to run it down the back of your top
4. It creeps people out to see a Secret Service-like ear-piece like earphone. In each ear.
Cons:
1. You will become an audio snob. If you hear the difference between 128kbps and 256kbps tracks, it'll make you cringe.
2. The expense. Not in buying the headphones. But the fact that you'll want to ensure you have 256kbps tracks. And seriously, you'll want them. Badly.
3. You will look like a dazed moron as they're noise isolating, and you'll appear arrogant and rude when people you're on a train, with your back to the carriage (you're about to get off) and after 4 attempts of "May I see your ticket please, Sir", the guard decides to grab your attention by some kind of hit / punch / attention grabber.