Review: Shure MV6

Audio enthusiasts and anyone who has ever spent time on a stage will instantly know Shure. The brand has spent decades building microphones that have recorded number-one hits and popular podcasts all over the world, and provided sound for basically every live event you've probably attended.

The new MV6 USB gaming microphone is a further foray into the world of digital mics from a brand mostly known for its traditional XLR models. It attempts to slim down on the features and ports of the more expensive MV7 and MV7+ models, giving regular folks at home a simple and budget-friendly option that still has the Shure name on the side and sound in the middle.

It’s sitting on shelves with microphones from gaming and streaming companies, the kind of brands that Shure doesn’t usually rub elbows with. Can the MV6 live up to its rich legacy, now that it’s competing for desk space instead of studio space? I think it can, as long as you're an aesthetic person with basic enough audio needs.

Photograph: Brad Bourque

Ready to Rock

Right out of the box the MV6, which looks like the brand's classic SM7B but with a neon strip down the middle, sounds great. There was basically zero setup. I screwed the pieces of the base together and plugged in the microphone, and it showed up as an input in my audio settings. I certainly can’t say that of setting up an interface and XLR microphone. I’m not a huge fan of extraneous software, so I’m glad to report that the Shure MV6 works just fine without any. You can plug it into any PC and it should just work as a microphone, no downloads required.

Anyone who has worked with professional audio gear will feel at home putting together the Shure’s stand. It has a heavy metal, lightly textured base with a short stand and a standard ⅝-27 thread attached to the microphone itself. There’s a ring of silicone underneath too, which I prefer to the feet that some stands use, since it won’t leave dents in my desk mat.

While the cable is nice and sturdy, it’s also fairly short at just 1 meter. Not the end of the world, but something to keep in mind if your PC isn’t that close to your face. There aren’t any cable tie points to speak of, so you’re stuck wrapping it around the base.

Photograph: Brad Bourque

Getting started is as simple as plug and play, but you'll need software to deep dive into any settings. I’m not a huge fan of the Motiv Mix software recommended on the box. Before I could download it, Shure required my full name, city and state, postal code, and email address for updates regarding the software, which seemed unnecessary.

The software gives you the option to switch to manual gain, adjust a tone slider from Dark to Bright, with Natural in the middle, and turn on or off the denoiser and plosive reducer, as well as adjust a high pass filter for background noise. There are also settings for the monitor and mute if you choose to record with Motiv Mix. Nothing groundbreaking here, but there doesn’t seem to be any way to access these settings otherwise. I wish there were just knobs on the mic.

Can You Hear Me?

As far as I can tell, the settings you change will stick even if the software isn’t open, so feel free to make adjustments, then close it and go back to whatever you were doing. I ran a few comparison tests with the different settings while recording myself, and after listening back I generally felt the default settings worked well enough. There’s nothing here I’d think of as out of the ordinary or goofy in any way. The plosive reducer works well enough to not need a pop filter for my Ps. I didn’t notice a particularly strong change from disabling the denoiser, although that’s probably helped by the mic’s rear rejection, which helps keep out my keyboard noise.

Auto-level did cause me to peak a bit if I suddenly yelled after whispering, but it adjusted quickly enough, and brought me up just as quickly when I spoke quietly. It’s nice to not have to worry too much about levels, since there’s no interface for a quick check, and the MV6 lacks any onboard controls or feedback.

People who listened to recordings or chatted with me in Discord noted that my voice sounded clear and crisp, a noticeable improvement over my usual gaming headset. I think you could easily use this microphone for occasional streaming or podcasting, and you wouldn’t get any complaints. I don’t feel like I’m missing anything sound-wise if I use this instead of my Audio-Technica AT2035, at least when it comes to regular speaking quality. Professional audio engineers might feel differently, but if you aren’t inspecting waveforms or recording audiobooks, you probably won’t.

Photograph: Brad Bourque

One of the first nights with the MV6, I was playing World of Warcraft in a large group. I noticed early on that something felt off. People were seemingly interrupting me and not hearing my callouts, but most telling, they weren’t laughing at my surely hilarious jokes. It was only when someone asked me a question directly, and then wondered why I wasn’t answering, that I discovered the problem.

The cause of this strife was a mute button that's inconveniently located on top of the microphone. Because it’s a capacitive touch button, there’s no feedback when you press it, and the red light indicating you’re muted isn’t nearly bright enough to see over the top of the mic. It’s sensitive enough to accidentally bump it while adjusting the microphone, and this has continued happening to me sporadically.

Not Necessarily Shure

Speaking of onboard controls, the Shure’s biggest competitor is the HyperX Quadcast 2 S (9/10, WIRED Recommends) and it isn’t really a fair fight when it comes to adjusting things manually. All the controls are right on the microphone, and there are a ton of extra settings designed for folks going straight into their computer. Some versions even have selectable polar patterns for different use cases. The Shure is at least a bit more demure, with no LEDs to speak of, but it feels like it leaves some key functionality on the table. As soon as you start spending more, it’s time to start considering an XLR microphone and USB interface instead.

Photograph: Brad Bourque

The MV6 feels like a Shure product in its audio and build quality, and the fact that it works so well right out of the box is a huge point in its favor. I have trouble imagining myself reaching for this microphone on a regular basis, largely because of the lack of interface and clunky software. I find the inability to adjust gain manually and the tough-to-see mute button annoying; if my friends say I'm too quiet, I have to check if I'm muted, then just talk louder.

It feels like Shure is trying to offer a more budget-friendly version of the super popular MV7 here, which is an admirable goal, but it’s possible that too many compromises were made to get the price this low. For audiophiles who want the Shure SM7B look but who don't want to spent double the money for it, I think you'll appreciate the MV6's simplicity and aesthetic. If you’re just hunting for basic USB microphone, it’s probably better to keep looking.