Review: Audigo Wireless Microphone/App Turns an iPhone into a Mobile Studio

Making videos is a core part of just about every working musician’s life these days. Smartphones have put amazingly good cameras in our pockets, but their built-in mics are definitely limited for recording music. Enter Audigo ($249), a small wireless mic/iPhone app that aims to upgrade the audio side and help you make good-sounding videos (or audio tracks) anywhere, quickly and easily—no cables, computer, or even electricity required.

That’s a compelling promise for anyone creating music-related videos and trying to feed the beast of social media. Audigo carries you through the whole process: recording, syncing audio and video, using EQ and effects, and sharing the final product. It can even record up to four mics simultaneously and multitrack audio or video—again, all on your phone. 

To check out the creative possibilities, I received two Audigo mics for review and tried them out in video clips you can see and hear in the video above.

Courtesy of AudigoBasic FeaturesThe Audigo mic is a stereo mid-side condenser, capturing sound from front (cardioid) and side (figure eight) capsules. On the front is a power button you can also use to start and stop recording—a very handy feature for anyone who shoots selfie videos—and on the back is a USB-C port for battery charging with the supplied cable. The mic mounts on a clip with a magnet, so you can also stick the mic on anything metal (music stand, lamppost, etc.).

When you record, Audigo saves the audio (24-bit/48kHz wav format) on the mic itself, which has 32 GB of storage. When you stop recording, the app transfers the audio to your phone, where it syncs automatically with video.

In the app, you can then trim the audio/video, adjust the stereo width (i.e., the amount of side mic signal) and EQ (with presets for warmth, clarity, etc.), and add reverb—all using onscreen sliders. With a Studio ($7.99/month) or Pro plan ($15.99/month), you also have access to compression and delay plus multitrack video, cloud backup, remote collaboration, and more. 

Once you’ve got your mix, boom—share the file directly from the app to your social media, cloud drive, computer, or wherever you want.

Courtesy of AudigoCheck One TwoSetting up the mics was easy—I just installed the app, created an account, and paired the mics with my phone. I immediately tried recording a radio promo spot I needed to do; I got a good, clear track and emailed it to the station right from my phone. Very efficient.

Out in the backyard, I did some tests with my Manzer guitar and an iPhone 12 Pro on a tripod. For comparison, I recorded an instrumental take on “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” first using the iPhone’s mic and then with Audigo. While the iPhone got the basic outlines of the guitar sound, the Audigo mic captured far more depth and detail. I then moved the phone back for a wider view while still getting the close mic sound—that’s one of the big advantages of using an external wireless mic. 

Multitracking was straightforward—video features aside, Audigo is a very useful, streamlined audio multitracker. I checked out the new video multitracking feature, recording a dropped-D blues rhythm track and overdubbing a lead while listening on my wireless headphones. In the app’s video mixer, I made a quick edit, switching between tracks by tapping the track/view I wanted—a remarkably simple and powerful interface. 

I also made a few videos with my duo partner, Wendy Ramsay: a swing guitar/clarinet take on “Russian Lullaby” around one mic; and my own song “Dog for a Day,” with guitar and accordion, using two mics on stands facing each instrument. The single mic did a nice of job capturing the range of the two instruments and vocal. With two mics, of course, I had a lot more control over the mix as well as individual EQ/effects for each mic.

Courtesy of AudigoOn the GoAs an ultraportable studio, Audigo delivers the goods. I found the app elegantly simple to use, and the mic sound, while it can’t match a high-quality studio mic, is very good. I ran into a few issues with connections between the phone and mic (when Audigo was on my home WiFi but the signal was weak), but they were not too hard to sort out.

Audigo has advanced quite a bit since its launch in 2021—and since it is app based, new features become available to all users. The company plans to introduce an Android version in 2025 and says live streaming capability is on the horizon, which would be a fantastic application.

If you produce audio or video, of course you can do a lot more with a dedicated audio workstation and video editing software. But it is remarkable what you can create—in the park, on the road, wherever you are—with just one little mic and your phone. audigolabs.com