“A $3,000 podcasting kit, in this economy?” That was my first thought once I realized about Nomono’s transportable recording setup final 12 months. Since then, the value has dropped barely to $2,490. But my most important concern stays: Who wants this factor when you will get a small audio recorder and lavalier mics for a lot much less? Still, I used to be intrigued.
Nomono’s kit contains 4 wireless lav mics, in addition to an area recorder for room tone and spatial knowledge, all of which cost in a conveyable carrying case. Your recordings are robotically uploaded to Nomono’s cloud service, the place you’ll be able to optimize their audio high quality (and ultimately edit them in your browser). As somebody who’s been podcasting usually since 2008, the notion of an all-in-one kit that may simply sort out native recordings sounds like an absolute dream. Nomono’s kit has the potential to be one thing the podcasting business has wanted for years, but can the corporate justify its extremely excessive worth?
Gallery: Nomono podcasting kit | 5 Photos
Gallery: Nomono podcasting kit | 5 Photos
Clearly, this is not a product aimed at everybody — it is actually not for rookies, and I’d argue it is past the scope of what most podcasters really want. But after testing Nomono’s kit for just a few weeks, I can see the way it could possibly be useful for recording studios and corporations that want versatile podcasting options. It would not require a lot coaching to make use of, it delivers prime quality recordings, and it may be deployed nearly anyplace. For these of us, spending $2,490 on Nomono’s kit might make extra sense than having an engineer dedicate time to each single recording. Add in a cloud subscription, which may value as a lot as $29 a month, and it positively would not appear to be one thing for mere podcasting mortals.
You can inform Nomono is striving for Apple-level design just by wanting at its {hardware}. Even although every part is made from plastic, nothing feels low cost. The egg-like charging case has a fabric deal with at the highest in addition to a USB-C port. Its two halves snap along with safe clasps — flip these open, take off the highest and also you’re introduced with 4 lavalier microphones across the area recorder. It’s like an lovely podcasting chicken nest.
The area recorder serves because the hub for your entire Nomono expertise: It’s an oblong system that includes omnidirectional microphones for capturing room tone with spatial data (it may inform the place everybody is situated throughout a dialog). There’s a small display at the highest displaying the battery ranges of all of the related lavs, in addition to outstanding recording and directional buttons. On the aspect, it incorporates a USB-C port and a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack. As you are capturing audio, the area recorder takes in knowledge from the lav mics and uploads it to Nomono’s cloud as soon as your session is accomplished.
The lavaliers aren’t almost as distinctive: They’re small, indiscrete sq. pucks that includes 4 LED colours (useful for distinguishing every observe). They grip onto your garments with small magnets — making them straightforward to placed on, but doubtlessly simply as straightforward to slide off. The lavs by no means fell off throughout my testing, but I consistently frightened about knocking one off and dropping the tiny magnet. (Nomono contains some extra magnets in its bundled accent kit, which additionally has windscreen sleeves for the lavs and area recorder.)
Setting up Nomono’s {hardware} was comparatively simple: After charging the case, I downloaded the Nomono Companion app, created an account, and paired the kit to my cellphone. The app exhibits battery ranges for the lav mics and area recorder. To seize audio, you simply must take away the area recorder and at least one lav, then hit document. That course of was surprisingly quick and dependable — I used to be sometimes in a position to get recordings began in below 30 seconds.
Wrapping up a session is principally dependent in your web connection. It took below 60 seconds for a 90-minute recording to get uploaded, after which I needed to wait just a few extra minutes for Nomono’s cloud to course of the add. It was far quicker for brief recording assessments, simply be ready to attend a bit when you’re planning to push a number of audio. Nomono’s {hardware} delivers 16-bit 48kHz WAV information for every lavalier, in addition to an ambisonic WAV file (with as much as 4 tracks) from the area recorder.
The high quality of these recordings are crisp and detailed even in barely noisy out of doors areas. The lavs do not sound almost as wealthy or nuanced as a premium dynamic or condenser microphone, but I did not actually count on them to. I’d take into account them on-par with different wireless lavaliers I’ve used throughout video manufacturing (our podcast editor, Ben Ellman, described the sound as being preferrred for video shoots). A dialog with my spouse additionally sounded surprisingly clear, with not one of the crosstalk points or echoes I’ve encountered with cheaper multi-mic options.
To give your recordings a bit extra polish, Nomono additionally gives three ranges of enhancement by way of its cloud platform: on the sunshine finish, it incorporates a high-pass filter, cross-talk discount, notch EQ filter, de-noising and de-essing (for eradicating harsh “S” sounds and different sibilants). Medium enhancement provides loudness normalization, a tone-shaping EQ and adaptive stage, whereas full enhancement goes even heavier on the latter two options. While you’ll be able to nonetheless obtain pure, unfiltered tracks, these enhancements are helpful for the much less audio savvy.
Eventually, you’ll be able to select to spatialize your recording by way of Nomono’s on-line platform, which makes every audio observe sound like they’re coming from totally different instructions (relying on the place the area recorder was positioned throughout the session). That characteristic wasn’t out there whereas I used to be testing the kit, and to be sincere, it is also not one thing I’d ever think about using in a podcast.
Nomono’s full audio enhancement did an honest job of slicing down freeway sounds and different avenue noise whereas I used to be recording in entrance of my native Starbucks (see above), but it additionally made my voice sound a bit tinny and compressed. Basically, do not count on any miracles. While It’s helpful to have easy methods to chop down background noise, you will nonetheless must discover a comparatively quiet recording area to seize the very best audio. (Otherwise, why even purchase such an costly podcasting kit?!)
The firm plans to launch its on-line editor by the top of 2023, which may additionally doubtlessly embrace the flexibility to edit spatial recordings. Since this isn’t precisely a client resolution, I’d wager that most individuals shopping for Nomono’s {hardware} have already got extra refined methods to edit audio.
Here’s a comparability of Nomono’s lavalier versus the Rode Procaster XLR microphone:
While Nomono’s {hardware} principally impressed me, its on-line platform made it powerful to cope with bigger information. It took over 5 minutes for it to arrange a 90 minute observe for obtain (together with its bundled spatial audio file). And that didn’t embrace the time it took to really seize the file, which might be dependent in your web connection. I perceive the enchantment of a seamless on-line audio resolution, but it’s annoying once I know it might be quicker to simply seize a file from a tool sitting proper on my desk.
The area recorder didn’t present up on my Mac or PC once I related to it, sadly. Nomono representatives say the corporate is planning to make offline options out there subsequent 12 months, but for now, it is centered on a cloud-based workflow as a result of they consider it is the “most convenient and time-efficient” resolution for customers. That additionally means livestreaming is out of the query with this kit, although it could present up in a future Nomono product, the corporate tells me.
I’d have a a lot simpler time justifying Nomono’s excessive worth if I knew I may use its {hardware} with out counting on a web site. This isn’t my first time at the gadget startup rodeo: What good is this $2,490 recording kit if the corporate goes out of enterprise in a 12 months or two?
It’s clear that Nomono has developed one thing particular, but it’s onerous to think about this recording kit being the one resolution for an audio-savvy firm. You’ll nonetheless must have a devoted podcasting area with hard-wired microphones. What Nomono gives is flexibility: What if it’s worthwhile to document in one other room, in another person’s workplace, or at a lodge? In these conditions, a self-contained $2,490 podcasting kit may not appear so wild.
…. to be continued
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