Visual inspection
The Maono GamerWave microphone has a good design that is inspired by the new RGB gaming themes present on many modern products. This being a modern microphone that is aimed at everyone in the consumer market means that it has RGB LEDs by default. However, these LEDs are not obnoxious and can easily be disabled if you want them off.
The Maono GamerWave has a preinstalled stand and pop filter as well as a shock mount. Even with all these pre-installed, the microphone has a small footprint.
The Maono GamerWave uses a USB Type-C cable to connect to your device. Speaking of devices, this microphone is compatible with both consoles and desktop systems. The cable uses a USB Type-C connector on both ends, however, one of them has a USB type A adapter attached.
The top of the microphone has two touch buttons. One will cycle through the RGB colors and pattern and the other will activate and deactivate the noise canceling system of the microphone.
These buttons are large and can easily be activated.
The pop filter is integrated into the shock mount and cannot be adjusted or removed. It has a soft mesh that will do the indented job. The manufacturers logo is painted on the mesh in a dark white.
The mesh used on this microphone is made from metal and has a glossy black texture. While many microphones use a woven mesh, the Maono GamerWave has a round pattern acting as its mesh.
The input and output ports of this microphone are located on the lower part. For output, we have a single 3.5” audio jack. This is used to connect a pair of headsets directly to the microphone and hear the sound it records.
The lower part of the microphone body is in fact a rotating knob. This will lower or increase the gain level of the microphone. Thankfully, this adjusting dial has dots painted on its side to indicate the gain level of the microphone.
The included shock mount is unfortunately not removable. As is the case with many budget microphones, the shock mount is integrated into the body of the microphone. It works as it should but you cannot remove it. And the worst thing about this is that if the mount breaks, you are out of luck replacing it.
The stand of the GamerWave is simple in design and made from thick plastic. The interesting thing about this stand is that it has a cutout right in front of the USB Type C connector. This means that you can easily thread in the cable through the stand and into the microphone.
The mount that holds the microphone attached to its stand and also has the angle adjustment is made from plastic. Fortunately, this mount can be removed and replaced with the included threaded mount that allows the microphone to be attached to a microphone arm.
