A new start
Towards the end of 2024, I had the opportunity to start working on an IT project with a team based in Australia. Remote working has always been part of my professional life, from my very early days at Telecom NZ. I have participated in and benefited from the evolution of technology and software, which has improved my experience year after year. My new work environment is 100% Microsoft Teams or Zoom for communications, and good sound and comms are critical to my work.
One major change for me, though, was moving from using a headset or headphones, which are tiring to use over or in the ears and uncomfortable to wear continuously, to a microphone or speaker method for a more natural approach.
I was microphone shamed by a group of folks for my choice of a different mic – small, discrete but also looks a little weedy, and was given the opportunity to try a punchier approach. Enter the Maono PD300X Microphone and the Maono BA37 Microphone suspension boom arm. The PD300X is a new microphone from Maono that is being made available from 15 January 2025 and has started getting visibility from some influencers on TikTok.
In operation, I have found the sensitivity to be excellent, with no negative feedback from anyone I engage with. The distance from me to the microphone is about 90cm on a level plane, and it works well. Vibration and movement from the desk cause very little disturbance to the microphone, and the arm certainly has not moved from where it was set.
The BA37 Boom arm – 3.5/5
I feel for brands producing products for a market that is difficult to get good information on. In this case, the clamp and arm need to cater for as many possibilities as possible, including monitor clearance heights, possible mounting points for the desk clamp, and space to operate. Numerous vlogs I have watched all have the same features—limited space to operate, retrofitting into existing setups rather than straight-out fresh builds, and a requirement to force as little adaptation as possible.
In this description, the arm extends around 400mm comfortably from its mount point at a height of about 500mm. While these are not the extremes of where the arm can go, my assessment is of comfort and ease over maximum reach. It is a non-spring loaded single major joint design which is nice and uses friction to hold items in place. The arm is fine and sturdy, with a matt black finish and minimal branding. Bending it into your preferred setup feels like something you only want to do a few times and not something you want to constantly change, as the friction points will likely wear quickly. Once in place, it's secure and does not wobble about much.
I have a different view of the desk clamp, though. While very sturdy once tightened, it also has a very long, low clearance bottom to it:
This looks like it was built for tables only, not desks, which is a real shame. I use an ancient Ikea writing desk as my workhorse, first purchased in 2000, with a drawer under it. I need at least 120mm clearance to get the Maono bracket under, which it just does not have.
Maono has other arm products with a different clamp bottom. Everyone will have different setups and requirements, but it is something to bear in mind when purchasing. It may seem trivial, but it is immensely frustrating to have to solve the problem once a purchase has been made.
In my case, I was fortunate enough to have a table next to my desk with a monitor riser on it, and have mounted it there:
Notice how the microphone is offset and on my left—this keeps it clear of my cameras and the monitors' field of view.
In the box are two velcro ties, a silver-coloured screw adaptor for the mounting point and the arm, of course. The box branding is very Black and Green and would not look out of place in the gaming section of a computer retail store.
The PD300X – 4.9/5
The PD300X microphone is cool and professional, aimed at the podcaster market. It does not have any RGB that I can find (unlike its younger brother, the PD200X, which is all about the colours) and is focused on being an awesome-quality microphone.
The mic comes with a brass-coloured screw adapter, a USB-C to USB-C/A adapter cable that has a good length, the mic, of course, and minimal documentation directing you to the Maono website to download support software.
Inputs on the back include a USB-C port, a 3-pin XLR analog port and a 3.5mm headphone connector. On top of the mic is a multi-function rotating press knob for adjusting various settings (gain and volume, etc) and a mute button. A subtle ring of lights around the control knob is the only indication of active colour, and by default reacts to the loudness of voice input.
Sadly, the device has no direct visual cue to indicate that the mute is on, except that the ring of lights will stop responding. I am not so sure of this as a guide as the mic begs to be positioned at a distance out of the direct way—which is how I have been using it. The microphone is also not the most plug-and-play friendly, and the USB connection does not like being unplugged and plugged back into a running machine without a system restart.
The microphone is mounted on 4x double rubber hold points to absorb vibrations from desk bumps, etc. Rubber deteriorates over time, but these look thick and robust and should last for some time.
I have not tried the XLR analog ports as I do not have a mixing desk, but the USB-C works okay. Power is drawn from the computer (my monitor in this case), which also provides the digital audio stream. The microphone is not happiest without drivers and support software, and while the default Microsoft driver for microphones will enable operation, it's better to install the software first before plugging the microphone in.
Voice quality is awesome and rich. The pickup distance works well when set back about 0.5m from me. Sound dampening of ambient noise is great, and I have not had any complaints from those I work with about sound quality.
Maono Link software v3.3.5 for Windows (3.5/5)
Maono Link is the main software that provides drivers and customisation support for the microphone, as well as equalisation settings to simulate different experiences (e.g. Broadcast, vintage radio, warm, bright and so on). These just adjust the audio stream at various points on the range (between 300Hz and 12kHz) and remind me a little of the analog equalisers popular with hi-fi systems in the 80s and 90s.
Getting the software installed was a little more involved. My default machine is a Windows 11 tower desktop.
Version 3.3.5 works fine, but I recommend restarting the machine to ensure the software takes.
The software experience has left me thinking. While it completed ok, a new service called MaonoAIServices was installed alongside the driver for the MaonoPD300X, leaving me baffled as to the purpose.
I do not know what MaonoAIServices is meant to be or offer in terms of function or support. The installer script never advises the user that ‘I'm going to install this, this is why, and this is how it will interact with your system’.
IOS and Android software are available, but I have not reviewed them for this article.
Operationally, MaonoLink is fine and does its job adequately well, but the microphone is pretty good out of the box.
Conclusions
Ok, so here is my summary of the experience.
The arm is good, but note that it targets a table, not a desk. I like it because it's discrete but does not fit all situations, and final pricing will determine whether it is a good value. A good comparison is the LUMI MPS06 (LUMI-MPS06) or the RODE PSA1 (RODE PSA1), both of which are double-hinged better and have low-profile desk clamps that can more easily fit into a desk edge.
The microphone is excellent, and I like it. However, I wish the mute button turned red or something similar to indicate that it is on!
The Maono Link software does the job, and I suspect the microphone would be very happy paired with a mixing desk, like the Maono Audio (not reviewed here).
As a closing reference, the PD300X with a BA37 Boom Arm is approximately NZ$230 from Maono's website.
