I received my iRig Acoutic Stage sound hole mic about one week ago. I was going to do a lengthy review with numerous sounds sample using multiple instruments. But to be honest I am not thrilled enough with it for the effort. This is not a knock on the product as a whole. It is well thought out, designed and made. The use of it and the end results are acceptable to good.
The mic is well designed and I tried it on 4 different instruments. Some of the sound boards were too thin and the fit was loose. A couple layers of tape applied to the back solves those issues. This mic clips onto the edge of the sound hole and plugs into a preamp that clips onto your belt or instrument strap if you use one. It can then plug into an amplifier. My main intention was to use this live on stage
The sound quality for the most part is good with a natural sound. It did sound a little boomy and bassy on baritones and my LfdM tenor. You can adjust your amp for this of course. The different tone settings work and work well. There is natural, warm and bright in both steel string and nylon mode. It does give distinct tones for each setting which is very helpful when switching from one instrument to another.
There is a blend feature that allows you to plug your pick up equipped instrument into the preamp. You can then blend the amount of sound from the pick up and the mic to tailor the sound. I was less than thrilled with the blend feature for a couple of reasons. First and foremost was the decrease in volume while in pick up mode. Next was the lack of accuracy while sweeping. It seemed to go from pick up into mic mode too quickly. It still worked just not as I would have liked. There were feedback issues that were very annoying. In the basement facing the amp from 15 ft away I was fine. In my dining room sitting beside or even behind the amp feedback was an issue. Enough so that I abandoned my recording attempts.
I seem to be bashing this a bit and that is not my intention. Here is the rub, on the 4 instruments that I have LR Baggs pickups installed they all sounded better played with the pick up then using the iRig. I have a Fishman loudbox mini and I know how to adjust the tone settings for each instrument to get the best sound.
Maybe as I spend more time with the iRig I will appreciate it more. I will say one thing that might sound obvious.....if your ukes don't have pick ups this unit is great. It gives a nice natural sound, you can tailor the tone to each instrument. It is easy and convient to go from one instrument to another. I just got a used Kamaka super concert without pick up and the iRig worked great and the uke sounded very natural through the amp. Again if your instruments don't have pick up this is a good solution.
The mic is well designed and I tried it on 4 different instruments. Some of the sound boards were too thin and the fit was loose. A couple layers of tape applied to the back solves those issues. This mic clips onto the edge of the sound hole and plugs into a preamp that clips onto your belt or instrument strap if you use one. It can then plug into an amplifier. My main intention was to use this live on stage
The sound quality for the most part is good with a natural sound. It did sound a little boomy and bassy on baritones and my LfdM tenor. You can adjust your amp for this of course. The different tone settings work and work well. There is natural, warm and bright in both steel string and nylon mode. It does give distinct tones for each setting which is very helpful when switching from one instrument to another.
There is a blend feature that allows you to plug your pick up equipped instrument into the preamp. You can then blend the amount of sound from the pick up and the mic to tailor the sound. I was less than thrilled with the blend feature for a couple of reasons. First and foremost was the decrease in volume while in pick up mode. Next was the lack of accuracy while sweeping. It seemed to go from pick up into mic mode too quickly. It still worked just not as I would have liked. There were feedback issues that were very annoying. In the basement facing the amp from 15 ft away I was fine. In my dining room sitting beside or even behind the amp feedback was an issue. Enough so that I abandoned my recording attempts.
I seem to be bashing this a bit and that is not my intention. Here is the rub, on the 4 instruments that I have LR Baggs pickups installed they all sounded better played with the pick up then using the iRig. I have a Fishman loudbox mini and I know how to adjust the tone settings for each instrument to get the best sound.
Maybe as I spend more time with the iRig I will appreciate it more. I will say one thing that might sound obvious.....if your ukes don't have pick ups this unit is great. It gives a nice natural sound, you can tailor the tone to each instrument. It is easy and convient to go from one instrument to another. I just got a used Kamaka super concert without pick up and the iRig worked great and the uke sounded very natural through the amp. Again if your instruments don't have pick up this is a good solution.
Last edited: