Antlion Audio ModMic 5 Review

1. Introduction2. Unboxing and First Look3. Performance and Closing Thoughts4. View All Pages

A lot of gamers now use dedicated gaming headsets to communicate with friends while playing. However, many audiophiles are simply not happy with the audio quality of a typical gaming headset, and would rather use a pair of headphones. That solution, however, means gamers still need a mic – and that is where Antlion Audio's ModMic 5 comes in. Designed to attach to any pair of headphones, the ModMic 5 is essentially a stand-alone mic which should offer high-quality audio transmission.

Thanks to the Antlion Audio ModMic 5, gamers should now be able to use any set of headphones they desire, while still being able to communicate effectively with teammates or friends. It does cost £67.99 here in the UK, though – which is actually more than some gaming headsets cost in total. Still, if you are considering the ModMic 5, you likely already have an expensive pair of headphones anyway, so the extra cost probably won't be an issue. In this review we go over how the ModMic 5 works in practice and offer an analysis of the audio quality of the mic itself.

Specification

General:

• Jack: 3.5mm plated TRS for use with PCs
• Head unit: Microphone boom + 20mm of cable to male TRS 3.5mm tip. Single-conductor coaxially shielded.
• Cable: 2.5mm diameter rubberized TPE jacket, kevlar reinforced, coaxially shielded. One 1m dual-conductor coaxially shielded. One 2m dual-conductor coaxially shielded.
• Mute switch: 3.5mm male/female ends. Low ESR tantalum capacitor in mute circuit. Length: ~8mm
• Clasps: Plated Neodymium N45 strength magnets

Microphone Capsule Specs: Uni-directional pattern

• Sensitivity: -38 ± 3 dB
• Response: 100 Hz–10 kHz
• SNR: >50+ dB
• Impedance: 2.2 KO
• Operating Voltage: 1 to 10V
• Max current at 2.0V: 500 µA
• Max input SPL: 110 dB

Microphone Capsule Specs: Omni-directional pattern

• Sensitivity: -26 ± 3 dB
• Response: 30 Hz–17.5 kHz
• SNR: 58+ dB
• Impedance: 2.2 KO
• Operating Voltage: 1 to 10V
• Max current at 2.0V: 500 µA
• Max input SPL: 110 dB

The Antlion Audio ModMic 5 arrives in a small, white box. On the front there is an image of the mic as well as a few key features of the product.

On the back, there is more detail about how the ModMic 5 works, as well as a list of the box contents.

Inside, everything is packaged neatly into a sturdy carry case – a great feature if you are going to a LAN party and want to take the ModMic with you.

Separate from the carry case is also 2m of cable sleeving. This is designed to go over the wires from both the ModMic and your headphones, effectively combining them into one cable to prevent things getting messy.

Alternatively, inside the carry case, Antlion Audio also include 10 cable-clips. These allow you to clip the ModMic's cabling to your headphones' wire – another way to reduce cable clutter.

Also included is a small quick-start guide which goes over some ‘dos and donts' when using the ModMic.

Helpfully, Antlion also include 2 different lengths of cabling for the ModMic. One is 1m long, the other is 2m long – this allows you to choose the length which would best suit you.

There is also a mute switch included which can be attached to function like an in-line controller. However, this is optional so you can choose to leave it out.

Here we take a look at the mic itself. The boom measures approximately 15cm end-to-end, and is actually flexible – it is quite stiff, though, so you do have to apply some force to bend it.

Pictured above and on the right is the adhesive clasp which you attach to your headphones. The rest of the boom is attached to this adhesive clasp using a strong magnet – so you can actually remove the mic from the headphones with ease. The adhesive clasp will stay on the headphones, but it is easy to simply snap off the mic itself thanks to the magnetic connection. Antlion also include an extra magnetic clasp if you lose one, while there is also a spare adhesive pad.

Lastly, here we get a closer look at the mic itself with the foam guard removed. The ModMic 5 is actually pretty unique in that you can choose between having an omni-directional or uni-directional pattern mic by moving the small switch next to the mic head. On the next page I will assess the differences in sound made by adjusting this switch.To test the ModMic 5 I used it as a gaming mic while playing online, and I also recorded myself talking with the ModMic to give you a demonstration of the audio quality.

First, though, I want to touch upon the practicality of the ModMic 5. Antlion Audio are clearly aware that having an extra cable could cause some issues which is why they have included two methods of combining the mic's cable with the wire from your headphones.

The first method is to use the included 2m cable sleeve – you can wrap this sleeve around both the wires to combine all the cabling into one neat package. However, this is easier said than done – the sleeving itself is quite stiff, and you are unlikely to want to have sleeve and unsleeve the cables very regularly. This makes using the sleeve a bit difficult if you have a single pair of headphones you want to take on-the-go, as well as use at home for your gaming sessions.

The second way to combat the cabling mess is to use the included cable clips. Antlion include 10 of these which more than enough to clip your cabling together in a neat fashion. However, this way of doing things is still a faff – nobody wants to have to clip and unclip their headphones every time they want to game.

The ideal solution would be to have a dedicated set of headphones to use for gaming, so you can leave the cabling permanently tied together. However, this is obviously a large extra outlay, which may not be practical.

Elsewhere, however, the ModMic proves to be very adjustable. It is great to have the choice of 1 or 2m cables, while the flexible boom is another feature I greatly appreciate. You can even flick the boom out of the way thanks to the magnetic attachment of the boom to the adhesive clasp – the magnets are strong enough to prevent the boom from falling off, while there are grooves on the clasp which lock the boom into its new position.

Audio Sample from the microphones below. Note: there is a small amount of EMI (background interference) noticeable. This is because I plugged the ModMic directly into my microphone jack. Antlion Audio recommend using a USB DAC which should eliminate the noise. Sadly, I did not have one to hand for testing today.

Moving on to sound quality, then. I actually took 3 recordings to present here – to allow you to hear the ModMic for yourself. The first recording was made by using the ThunderX3 TH40 headset's supplied mic (review HERE). This acts as a baseline to allow us to compare the ModMic 5's quality with a conventional gaming headset. I then recorded myself using the uni-directional mic mode, followed by the omni-directional mode.

As you can hear for yourselves, the ModMic 5 is much better all-round when compared with the TH40's mic. For one, it is much crisper, but at the same time, the sound is well-balanced – less tinny. Switching to the omni-directional pattern mode also made noticeable differences. In this mode, I found the ModMic 5 to sound fuller and richer – there is slightly more depth when compared the uni-directional mode, while the sound is light years ahead of the TH40's mic.

I also used the ModMic 5 while Skyping my brother-in-law to get his feedback. He mentioned some similar points, noting how the the ModMic is ‘clearer' and and the sound is ‘crisp and detailed' with ‘greater depth' when compared with the TH40. He also pointed out how the uni-directional mic pattern may not sound as good, but it is very effective at cancelling out background noise. We tested this by playing music in the background while talking, and switching between the omni-directional and uni-directional patterns to hear the difference. As such, we can conclude that the omni-directional mode allows for the best quality audio transmission, and while the uni-directional mode may not sound as good, it has effective noise-cancelling properties.

All-in-all then, the Antlion ModMic 5 is a good product. Its biggest issue is how to tidy the cabling – neither solution presented by Antlion is perfect. However, this is only a real issue if you frequently move your headphones around.

The sound quality is excellent, too, with the ability to choose between omni-directional and uni-directional mic patterns being a big plus. There are also lots of user-friendly features – such as the flexible boom and different lengths of cable extensions. The ModMic 5 is thus a great way to still use your high-quality headphones while gaming, without losing the ability to communicate with your teammates.

You can buy one from OverclockersUK for £67.99 inc. VAT HERE.

Pros

• Great sound quality.
• Magnetic clasp means the mic is not stuck to your headphones forever.
• Options included to prevent cable clutter.
• Omni-directional and uni-directional modes each have their benefits.
• Flexible boom.

Cons

• No perfect solution to having an extra cable coming from your headphones.

KitGuru says: If you want to use your high-quality headphones while gaming, the ModMic 5 lets you do that in style. Sound quality is great, while there a lot of options made available to the end-user. The only issue is the extra cable – for which there is no perfect solution.

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