Every once in a while a product comes along that offers a peek at the future. Let’s hope Lewitt’s RAY microphone is just such a thing.
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As a general rule, unless you’re a musician, in the business of audio content creation, or a member of the KGB, microphones aren’t products you should get excited about.
The newly unveiled RAY XLR microphone from Austrian audio equipment maker Lewitt should go down as the lone exception.
It offers so-called AURA technology that Lewitt generally describes as “autofocus” for your voice, as well as a potentially even more useful mute-by-distance feature. The new functionality makes so much sense that I’m genuinely dumbfounded about why it’s taken this long for someone to think of it.
Embedded sensors that constantly measure a user’s distance from the microphone are the key innovation. Like a car equipped with an adaptive cruise control system that leverages front-facing radar to monitor the distance of the vehicles ahead, the RAY uses proximity data to automatically mute or unmute the microphone based on a user’s preferences. Users can even customize the distances that are needed to trigger the feature. As a backup, there’s also a physical mute button right on the front of the mic.
The same distancing tracking tech also allows the microphone to adjust audio levels in real-time to ensure sound quality remains consistent. In other words, voices don’t get noticeably louder the closer a user is to the microphone. Nor do they audible fade out as users step away. The result is that anyone speaking into the RAY can move about more freely without anyone listening having a clue.
Words don’t really do these capabilities justice though. Just watch the product video below, and it’ll all make total sense.
While the microphone will be on sale for $300 soon, most people who learn about this genius device still won’t buy it, including me.
Still, I fully expect to see similar distance-sensing capabilities in other mics and webcams soon. Further down the road, these features could be even be directly integrated into laptops and monitors.
Until then, let’s all get back to reminding our coworkers that they’re still on mute.
Lewitt