Closer Examination

The first thing that surprised me is the compact size of the Elgato Wave:3 microphone. Compared to my "main" microphone, the Rode NT-USB, but also to models like the Blue Yeti X, it's noticeably smaller and lighter. While it doesn't offer the same "heavy duty" feel we usually associate with high quality in the world of audio, its size actually has some benefits. First and foremost, it won't get in your way as much while you're streaming. Secondly, it's much easier to lug around should you want to use it as a portable solution for high-quality on-the-go recording or broadcasting.


Here's the Elgato Wave:3 microphone next to the Rode NT-USB. The size difference is obvious.


One potential problem of a light(er) microphone is that certain boom arms may have too much spring tension for the microphone to stay in place. I had this happen back when testing the ASUS ROG Strix Magnus microphone (reviewed here) with the Rode PSA1, one of the most popular higher-quality boom arms on the market. The Magnus would launch up as soon as I let go of the boom arm. With that in mind, I'm happy to report that the Elgato Wave:3 doesn't suffer from the issue. It's not too light for the Rode PSA1 boom arm to stay wherever you put it.


Elgato kindly supplied a boom arm adapter, which you'll have to use to mount the microphone in this manner.


In case you're not ready to invest in a boom arm, though that should be the ultimate goal for any serious Twitch/YouTube streamer, you'll be happy to find out that the Elgato Wave:3 comes with a solid metal table stand. The stand is heavier than the microphone (305 grams; the microphone weights 280 grams on its own) and does a good job of keeping it in place. The microphone can swivel freely, which is good as you'll want to face it towards your mouth to get the best performance out of the built-in condenser capsule. The table stand has a padded base, which is a nice touch as well because it will absorb noise potentially caused by your table.


When designing the Wave:3, Elgato opted for a very unassuming aesthetic. The color scheme is black on black, and the only thing disrupting the sleek design is the company logo on the steel grille, and a multipurpose dial on the lower plastic half of the microphone. The entire contraption is very smudge-resistant and generally feels extremely robust. What it doesn't offer in raw weight, the Wave:3 compensates for with excellent build quality.


The multipurpose dial has three functions, indicated by three white LEDs and pictograms above it. The black pictograms, placed on a black background, are impossible to see in the dark, so you had better remember which one is which by the position of their LEDs. When the LED is in the leftmost position, the dial adjusts input gain—the "loudness" of the microphone. When it's in the middle, the dial increases and decreases the volume of the headphones connected to the rear 3.5-mm headphone jack. The rightmost position lets you crossfade between the mix of real-time microphone monitoring and audio played through the headphone output. In other words, if you're outputting sound through the microphone's 3.5-mm audio output and want to hear yourself rather than whatever is playing on your PC louder, turn the dial counterclockwise. You'll do the opposite if you'd rather hear the sound from your PC over whatever is picked up by the microphone better. To switch between all three aforementioned modes, the multi-function dial has to be pressed like a button, which makes it feel a bit cheap.


Both ports on the Elgato Wave:3 are located on the back. First, we have the 3.5-mm headphone output. The purpose of this port isn't to replace your sound card's headphone output, but, rather, direct microphone monitoring. This is where you'll plug in your headphones if you want to hear whatever is being picked up by the microphone in real time without any perceivable delay. Next to the microphone monitoring port is a USB-C port to connect the microphone to your computer.


On the top of the microphone, you'll find a capacitive mute button. It detects even very light touches and promptly mutes the microphone without causing any audible pops. Having an option to mute the microphone so quickly and efficiently is nice, but button positioning isn't the greatest. I accidentally muted the microphone whenever I'd reposition it, whether it was sitting on the supplied table stand or attached to my boom arm. That's why I'd rather have a physical mute button instead of a capacitive one. At least it is easy to figure out when the microphone has been muted, as the glowing ring around its multipurpose dial turns red.


The supplied USB cable is rubberized but not too rigid. I had no issues using it with the boom arm or table stand. It's 2.5 meters long, which should be enough for most streaming setups. Should you need a longer cable, replacing the supplied one with any other USB-C cable will do the trick. Elgato didn't experiment with the implementation of the connector, so just about any aftermarket USB-C cable will work just fine.