Elgato Wave XLR - Audio Mixer and 75 db Preamp for XLR Mic to USB-C, Control Interface with 48V Phantom Power, Tap-to-Mute, Digital Mixing Software for Streaming, Recording, Podcasting on Mac and PC

I don’t usually take the time to write long reviews, but this purchase honestly surprised me in a good way. I went into it with fairly normal expectations and figured it would be “good enough,” but it turned out to be one of those items where you immediately think, “Why didn’t I buy this sooner?” From the moment I opened the box, the quality stood out. Nothing felt cheap or thrown together. The materials actually feel durable — the kind of durability that makes you think it’ll hold up for a long time instead of being something you replace every year. The instructions were clear, and the setup was way easier than I expected. Even the packaging was done well, which I always appreciate because it shows they pay attention to the small details. I’ve been using it for several days now, and it performs exactly the way you want a product to perform: consistently. No weird quirks, no having to “figure it out,” and no disappointment after the first use. It does what it’s supposed to do, and it does it well. One thing I really like is how the design balances simplicity with functionality. You don’t need to be an expert to get the most out of it. If you’re on the fence like I was, I’d say go for it. I’ve bought plenty of things online that look great in the photos but feel mediocre in person. This wasn’t one of them. It actually exceeded my expectations, which doesn’t happen often. I feel like I got more than my money’s worth, and that’s probably the best compliment I can give any product. Highly recommended.

As a basic package the wave xlr is a good audio interface for those looking to step out from usb mics. It provides a very clear signal between your computer and your mic while adding a decent amount of gain to power dynamic mics well it's got a simple to use design with capacitive touch mute buttons and a multifunction dial for controlling gain, and monitor mix it provides near zero latency monitoring but that said it's only useful for single input setups plus it's software while useful for management of audio inputs can cause software conflicts with some games that have issues dealing with virtual inputs

As someone who's only getting started audio related Elgato really made it easy and streamlined. Setting up was a breeze and the UI for the software was easy to navigate not to mention there are available eq presets to maks your mics sound better available through their marketplace for FREE. I'm currently using a Beyerdynamic M70 Pro X which to my knowledge is a gain hungry mic and this powers it up no problem. Build quality is okay, it's plastic so don't expect it to withstand being crushed. Setting it up was easy, install the software first, connect your mic and/or headphones in and hook it up to your pc and you're set. It is pretty pricey, however, I didn't want to get a cloudlifter in addition to an audio interface so this actually made me save quite a bit.

The Elgato Wave XLR has been a great audio interface for my Shure SM7B. It’s a bit pricey, but this is because of the preamp it has inside. With this audio interface, you don’t really need a cloudlifter, or any other gain booster. This audio interface has a preamp with max of 75dB. Granted, you wouldn’t want to ever use 75dB with this as it will max out the preamp and introduce lots of white noise. With my Shure SM7B, I keep it at 57dB, but anywhere from like 55-60dB should work. You can even use an external preamp if you have extra money and want to have your elgato’s preamp lower. The size is great as it’s very small. It won’t occupy much of your desk. The software, wave link, is amazing too. You can use VST’s in wave link to further tune your voice or audio recording. No need for other software. Just add your VST’s into wave link and use the monitoring to hear the difference. These effects can also be put into game chats if you select the FX input. Very helpful to introduce some noise suppression in game. You can also get some usage of higher impedance headphones with this. There has been one concern though. While using it, I have noticed some popping or crackling whenever I speak randomly. I’m not sure if it’s because of my PC, the audio interface, my microphone, or my XLR cable. It could be any of those factors, I believe. Just keep this in mind that this could happen to you as well. I’m not sure if others can hear this crackling/popping, or if it’s just me. I use monitoring always so it could be from that.

Overall I am satisfied with this, although I have had some issues with Elgato plugins in the Wave Link app that caused it not to boot properly when turning on the PC. I would constantly have to manually start the Wave Link app in order to get audio to work. After getting rid of the plugins (which are official Elgato ones) and reinstalling, it has fixed the issue. Otherwise, it works great for splitting up audio channels for videos, streaming, etc.

Got this after deciding I wanted to upgrade to an XLR microphone for the streaming setup, and I made the right choice. I wanted something simple, but still high quality like other Elgato products I have used. It is simple, looks very good, and it has given me no issues thus far with audio, sound, or anything like that. Plus, the dial is super fun to use and feels great.

I love having an interface for my sounds, it is great to have more control over the sound of my streams. BUT, the software is complicated and not very clearly written and provided. The online ‘manuals’ are made for ppl who know what this device. After using it for 2 weeks I am enjoying the device.

It’s actually a good product and good seller.

I got this more for the software than the actual interface; it's pretty good. Don't just get it because it's Elgato.

This is the ideal XLR interface for getting microphone audio on a PC for streaming, podcasting, voice overs, or just discord/skype/teams. Works great with an ElectroVoice RE20 even without a cloudlifter. Also works well with the AT2035 with phantom power. The most noteworthy features that set it apart from other audio interfaces are the Wave Link app and the capacitive mute button on top. Wave Link is incredibly useful for mixes, and close integrations with stream deck mean controlling it can be simple too. Adding VSTs directly to the audio to do compression, EQ, de-essing, and notably noise suppression is much simpler than with other apps like Voicemeeter, and having the effects apply to the output directly instead of through OBS let's apps like discord hear the same audio. The inbuilt Noise Suppression plugin is surprisingly good, while I would not recommend using it if avoidable as it does definitely affect audio quality, it works well to make noisy backgrounds (such as with an air conditioner or fan on) bearable for people on the receiving end of voip calls. I've tried a number of other audio interfaces like the Scarlett 2i2, Komplete Audio 2, and Line 6 UX2, and the WaveXLR is simply the best for a desktop mic. The others have its roots in recording instruments in addition to vocals and it shows. Out of those 3 the only one that comes close is the classic Line 6 UX2 which had a great selection of preamps and effects that were built in to the Pod Farm app, but the WaveXLR definitely has a cleaner interface and more features. Capacitive mute is a simple feature but is very convenient once you use it. It avoids having the loud 'pop' that using the phantom power switch as your mute button leads to, and is both quieter and easier to press than a virtual button. While it does not have the same mixing capabilities out of the box as the GoXLR (which I do not recommend as TC helicon has basically stopped software support for it), nor does it have the number of inputs that more instrument-minded interfaces have, the Wave XLR is designed simply to have one mic hooked up to it with a bunch of features available for that mic, and it does its job very well.