miniDSP, UMIK-2 USB Reference Measurement Microphone

Even though I ended up not needing it for my Samsung Q990D (the soundbar's own calibration was more than enough), I still tested the miniDSP UMIK-2 out of curiosity...and wow, this thing is dialed in. Setup was instant with the USB connection, and the calibration file made measurements super accurate. I used it with REW and found it to be incredibly consistent and reliable across the frequency range. Build quality is solid, the included tripod is handy, and the whole experience just screams "professional-grade." If you're into room correction, EQ tuning, or just like seeing your sound system’s performance visualized, this mic is a no-brainer.

Bought this mic to replace the mic that came with my EMotiva processor because I was getting some errors while trying to run the Dirac Live room correction, I would have gotten the regular UMIK mic but this one was available for faster shipping. The improvements over my EMotiva mic are huge! I usually have to make more corrections to the room correction results but with this mic the changes are minimal, the default results were actually really good as they were and sounds great but I still made just a few tweaks to the sub channels and the highs to give the end sound results a bit more sparkle and boom. This mic has great build quality but is a bit expensive and you might be ok with the regular UMIK1 and get the same results I believe. I am very impressed on how easy it is to use and integrate with my processor. I might get the mini DSP one day to EQ my subs if I think it’s worth it but for now the Dirac Live program has great results that I don’t think I can make much more improvements to.

I started with standard Arcam microphone, and it did not work very well for my system. Then I purchase umik-2 downloaded 2 files for multichannel and stereo, and both have me in believably good results, both for movies and stereo music, + sub. Highly recommend.

Robust construction. Higher fidelity than the UMIK-1. 24bit 192kps capable.

I used it very successfully to measure the performance of my speakers and the room acoustics. The tripod included is defective and the USB cable is very poor quality. Oddly, you apparently have to buy software upgrades to the firmware of the device and drivers for the device. Very useful for audio professionals, audiophiles, etc. REW automatically recognizes the device and requests a calibration file which can be downloaded for free from miniDSP.