Blue Microphones EyeBall 2.0

The Blue Microphones EyeBall 2.0 is a unique condenser microphone and camera combination, designed to sit on the top of your computer monitor like a webcam. It’s a cool like device that enables you to always have a camera and microphone set up and ready to go for getting quick ideas and otherwise. The mic only records at a 44.1 kHz, 16 bit sample rate but this shouldn’t be a problem if you are using this properly. It’s got a cardioid pick up pattern and a frequency response from 35 Hz to 20 kHz. It’s got full HD video capabilities and a built in USB port to connect it to your computer.


OVERALL OPINION

The Blue Microphones EyeBall 2.0 is an inexpensive way to get a pretty decent mic and video camera combination. I’ve been told that the video camera is the same that is found on the iPhone 4, so it’s a pretty decent little camera and the microphone sounds pretty darn good considering the format that it comes in. It’s a simple USB device that makes it easy to quickly record video and/or audio. Don’t consider it to be a professional version of a microphone or camera but it’s still good enough to get basic ideas down in either medium. The best part of the Blue Microphones EyeBall 2.0 is going to have to be the price as you can get one of these for quite cheap. If I didn’t already have a webcam with my Mac Book Pro, I’d definitely consider adding it to my computer. Even so, it’s a better quality camera than my computer from what I can see so it’s possibly I’ll get one anyway at some point, even if just to have a decent sounding microphone set up at all times for quick recording of new song ideas. I’d check it out if any of the aforementioned applications sound like something you need!

I think Blue is the only brand to have created a webcam with a condenser microphone, and I must say that it changes everything


OVERALL OPINION

I use the Eyeball for 6 months. I plugged it and it worked directly with Skype.

The sound quality is great, you can be heard from far away (handy for conferences with several people in front of the microphone).

The microphone is cardioid and therefore it captures the sound which is in front, but not the one from the speakers behind him ... Practical, I never had any larsen effect even with the speakers at a pretty high level.

The con about this microphone is also its quality: it is super sensitive. My old PC keyboard is noisy and microphones usually keep its noise, and this happens even more with such a sensitive microphone.

About positioning, you have several choices: on the desktop, on the top of the screen, etc.. In practice it was a bit difficult to firmly attach the webcam on a thin flat panel displays.

Image wise, even if it is less important for musicians & sound engineers, I was nicely surprised as well. "HD" in 2 megapixel with sufficient sensitivity even without much light. And if you want to be sure that the camera it not in use, just press it and it stores the camera into the microphone.

In conclusion, after having struggled with a few 2-cents webcams whose drivers were not working, with bad quality image or average sound, I do not regret the purchase of the Eyeball!