MOVO VSM-7 Microphone

The modern home studio, whether you may be a professional musician, voice over / voice actor, pod caster or video creator has a need for equipment that is long lasting, built to do the job and meet budget needs. The market for audio technologies and recording equipment is filled with many great names that have been developing equipment for a long time, and new yet innovative companies that have brought existing concepts into the new digital age. One such new company is MOVO Photo, based in Los Angeles, MOVO designs and creates equipment for filmmakers, photographers, musicians, and artists and look to empower creators of all levels. Everything MOVO does is based around and continually inspired by creativity.

MOVO has developed many nice products for the new media genre, mobile recording units, light weight and portable journalism tools and gear for the creative elements that capture the new media scene. But they have also taken time to support and innovate technologies for the established music artist as well, a recent and superior unit in their catalog is then new MOVO VSM-7 Microphone

Review Summary

In our review of the MOVO VSM-7 Microphone we found it to be a sturdy and intelligently designed Microphone, solid metal construction yet not overly bulky, it can be free standing on the stand of your choice or from a desk mounted aperture such as the MOVO ASM-5 Articulating Microphone Suspension Boom Scissor Arm with Desk Clamp. The VSM-7 is like having 3 microphones in 1, giving the user the convenience to select between Cardioid, bi-directional, and omnidirectional microphone polar patterns for more audio control. A highly versatile unit, this microphone provide full studio quality sound like no other. the VSM-7 is a large diaphragm condenser microphone captures rich, vibrant sound for recording high quality audio. the VSM-7 has proven itself to be a true multi-purpose condenser mic that is excellent for recording ASMR, singing / vocals, podcast audio, YouTube content, music and any other applications that can be though of. The VSM-7 can be tailored to get the perfect sound for your recording. Also included with the VSM-7 are an XLR cable, a shock mount for reducing vibrations and handling noise, and a pop filter that eliminates plosives from your voice.

We now use the MOVO VSM-7 in our video and podcast production, replacing one of our previous “go to” microphones, finding it really suited our needs with far superior results. We have a chart here of comparisons between other top selling microphones in the similar category of Microphones, but, as you will see, “dollar for dollar” MOVO has come up with a far more affordable and technologically advanced option.

AS you can see, The VSM-7 offers more power and versatility for a fraction of the cost of equipment in the same range of products.

Tech Detail and Notes:

The all-black metal design of MOVO VSM-7 is very solid in the hand. It comes cradled in its black metal shock mount with a plosives filter connected to it. Just beneath the grill, there are three sets of switches located around the circumference of the microphone. One is a low pass filter switch, the other is for selecting the polar pattern, and the third switch is a 0dB to 10dB Pad (attenuator) that allows you to quickly lower the output for louder talkers or singers. On the side of each switch are white colored indication symbols for your adjustments.

Our considerations of the three polar patterns that are selectable via the switch near the center of the VSM-7 unit allowed us to choose from a cardioid, which is best for a single user, bi-directional worked excellently while interview conversation with immense clarity, and the omnidirectional microphone polar pattern worked well while recording group interaction and instrument play. 

While recording, we tested the low-pass filter and the pad switch both of which functioned excellently, shaping the audio by increasing or lowering frequency sensitivity and response to ensure there was no distortion. The low-pass filter focused on our voices while keeping background noise to a minimum and, in combination with the 0dB pad switch 0dB and 10dB pad switch, helped to shape the audio to our liking and needs. 

Conflicting Opinions on the web

One thing we do is, and without naming names, is compare our notes with other journalists, blogs and Tech Pages about products we review, just to keep it real. We found that many , if not every review of the MOVO VSM-7 Large Diaphragm Multi-Pattern Studio XLR Condenser Microphone were very much like our and with a resounding “Yes ! get this now” response, with only a few drawbacks… the Negatives were, at best negligible and did not speak to the product really.. some of the “Cons”

1. “Does not come with a stand”… Well, no pro audio company gives free stands, we found that this comment was from those that compared the VSM-7 with USB Mics like the “Yeti” which is not even in this class of Microphone, the MOVO UM700 USB Desktop Studio Microphone with Adjustable Polar Patterns is more in that realm of products.

2. “Needs Outside Power Source”.. The VSM-7 does require what is referred to as “Phantom Power”, which may be provioded by a mixing console, a unit such as a Microphone Preamp or mini mixer… which can be obtained at very reasonable prices and most musicians have one or two of these already.

3. “Could Be more Portable”.. The VSM-7 is a STUDIO MICROPHONE for STUDIO APPLICATIONS, so I would think that answers the question of portability, however if you need a portable option, MOVO has many portable microphones for every application as found on their website.

What the Pros use..

“One of Us” from the Angeline EP, written and performed by Taylor John Williams features Audio captured on Movo VSM-7 studio condenser microphone. Singer-songwriter @Taylor John Williams​ presents “One of Us” from his new EP, Angeline. The Oregon native released his first EP, Proverbial Elephant, independently in 2009, and reached the national spotlight in 2014 when he competed on Season 7 of NBC’s The Voice with Team Gwen. His mellow acoustics and soothing lyrical style were further explored in the EPs Song of a Deadman (2015) and Hiraeth (2016), as well as his studio album El Dorado (2017). As one of the many upcoming musical artists of our generation, he would only trust his creativity to a product designed just for this use.

This Video is featured on MOVO’s YouTube channel as one of the MOVO Sessions,a monthly series that offers a platform for some of the hottest up and coming musicians and shines a spotlight on their work. This recurring segment seeks to inspire both new artists and veteran creators to explore music production by demonstrating the power of sound and the effect the right gear can have on your craft.

In Summary

We at IndiePulse Music Magazine highly recommend The MOVO VSM-7 Large Diaphragm Multi-Pattern Studio XLR Condenser Microphone, for its versatility, innovative design and durability, it was a joy to use, easy to record with and really shows what is possible in any studio environment possible.

Visit MOVO Photo’s website to learn more about and to obtain what will be one of the most appreciated microphones in the New Music / New Media and top creative fields.