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Anyone here using the iZotope Spire?

#2
WestyBassBob said:
Came across this on GC the other day. Looks like an excellent package for a hobbyist like myself that would like to make some simple demo tracks/recordings.

Just curious if anyone here has experience with it and what their thoughts are.

iZotope Spire Studio Portable Wireless Recorder
Click to expand...
seems like a cool little device and I know that iZotope is a solid player for recording add-ons of various kinds. I still use iZotope iDrum as my simple drum track VST.

OTOH, $299 seems a bit high for a 2 input device, even if it has a built in mic. For reference, Focusrite and PreSonus sell 2 input devices for about 1/2 this price and add on a lot of stuff to enable recording.

If you get one, you should report back here on how it worked out for you. I don't see mention of this device much at all.
 
#3
pfschim said:
seems like a cool little device and I know that iZotope is a solid player for recording add-ons of various kinds. I still use iZotope iDrum as my simple drum track VST.

OTOH, $299 seems a bit high for a 2 input device, even if it has a built in mic. For reference, Focusrite and PreSonus sell 2 input devices for about 1/2 this price and add on a lot of stuff to enable recording.

If you get one, you should report back here on how it worked out for you. I don't see mention of this device much at all.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the info. The Focusrite looks pretty comparable is definitely a better price. But I do think the portability of the Spire will make it more useful to me. I'm going to try it out and see how it is. I can always return it and I'll definitely report back on it. If I'm not satisfied I'll give the Focusrite a go.

The whole world of recording equipment is bewildering to a noob like myself and unfortunately I can't just go down to GC and check stuff out in person these days.
 
#4
yeah, I get your frustration. I just re-setup my old home recording gear (Focusrite 18i6 gen2) due to the pandemic stay at home rules ...like many ... and was reminded of how "not-simple" it can be. I had all of it setup and working fine about 10 years ago when I spent a year living/working in Europe and wanted to have a way to collaborate with musician friends back in the states.

cool thing is that once you jump through a few hoops, this stuff tends to work pretty well and produces some very decent sounding tracks.

you know, the small 2 input Focusrite and PreSonus boxes are quite modestly sized and very portable right ? they won't be much, if any, larger than the iZotope Spire.
I have no skin in this game, choose the device that grabs your attention and see how it goes.

good luck
 
#5
pfschim said:
yeah, I get your frustration. I just re-setup my old home recording gear (Focusrite 18i6 gen2) due to the pandemic stay at home rules ...like many ... and was reminded of how "not-simple" it can be. I had all of it setup and working fine about 10 years ago when I spent a year living/working in Europe and wanted to have a way to collaborate with musician friends back in the states.

cool thing is that once you jump through a few hoops, this stuff tends to work pretty well and produces some very decent sounding tracks.

you know, the small 2 input Focusrite and PreSonus boxes are quite modestly sized and very portable right ? they won't be much, if any, larger than the iZotope Spire.
I have no skin in this game, choose the device that grabs your attention and see how it goes.

good luck
Click to expand...
They are battery powered?
 
#7
seamonkey said:
My concern would be the WiFI - hope nobody doesn't any 4k streaming at the same time. Or turns on a noisy microwave that clobbers the wifi

The Mesh network devices slow things down.

I'd like to see them use a licensed radio band with less chance of random interference.
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I’m not worried about that. My internet is plenty strong. I’m more concerned that I’ll reach its limitations and end up going back for more equipment but I have a feeling that’s how the recording rabbit hole works.
 
#8
I’d view the spire as an accessory for recording, and not a main player. Think of it as a way to capture ideas impromptu. For recording anything other than jams, noodling around for ideas, or casual live performances you will most likely want at minimum a dedicated/wired audio interface hooked up to a computer running a DAW.

PS - your internet connection has no bearing on how local WiFi performs.
 
#9
DigitalMan said:
I’d view the spire as an accessory for recording, and not a main player. Think of it as a way to capture ideas impromptu. For recording anything other than jams, noodling around for ideas, or casual live performances you will most likely want at minimum a dedicated/wired audio interface hooked up to a computer running a DAW.

PS - your internet connection has no bearing on how local WiFi performs.
Click to expand...
Ok fine, my wifi is totally up to the task.
 
#10
seamonkey said:
My concern would be the WiFI - hope nobody doesn't any 4k streaming at the same time. Or turns on a noisy microwave that clobbers the wifi.

The Mesh network devices slow things down.

I'd like to see them use a licensed radio band with less chance of random interference.
Click to expand...
So the issue of wifi is moot. The spire creates its own wifi network to interface with. I figured it would use my existing wifi.

So yeah, probably not a good idea to try to connect while standing in front of the microwave. But I haven't seen any issue with it.
 
#11
WestyBassBob said:
So the issue of wifi is moot. The spire creates its own wifi network to interface with. I figured it would use my existing wifi.

So yeah, probably not a good idea to try to connect while standing in front of the microwave. But I haven't seen any issue with it.
Click to expand...

I don't believe this is a good use of WiFi

You're still using the same WiFi bands, and the same WiFi channels

WiFI works good for buffering apps like streaming, but for realtime it is subjective to other devices transmitting at the same time. CSMA/CA

If you have the right kind of PC WiFi interface you can download WiFi monitoring software. It will show you what all is using the same WiFi bands, and channels, including your neighbors. Stats like collisions.

They should just use a cable.
 
#12
seamonkey said:
I don't believe this is a good use of WiFi

You're still using the same WiFi bands, and the same WiFi channels

WiFI works good for buffering apps like streaming, but for realtime it is subjective to other devices transmitting at the same time. CSMA/CA

If you have the right kind of PC WiFi interface you can download WiFi monitoring software. It will show you what all is using the same WiFi bands, and channels, including your neighbors. Stats like collisions.

They should just use a cable.
Click to expand...
That's not how it works. It records the sounds on the spire then uses wifi to upload it to your device for mixing. There is very little streaming going on.
 
#13
Hi all,

So I've played around with the Spire now and I have to say I really like it. I looked at some of the other audio interfaces people mentioned in this thread, but they don't come with mics, and once you add that cost in the Spire is right there, price-wise. So after using it a bit I decided that I really like the fact that the mic is built into the recorder. Since I'm recording with my kids in the basement I think building the mic into the recorder makes it much more durable. But you can plug in your own mic if you prefer. I also really like the wireless feature. Even though I have yet to take it outside to record, I like how I can easily move it around while I practice and play.

As far as the quality of the mic I think it's pretty good. I'm sure there's better mics out there for not a lot more money, but given the form factor it works and I'm happy with it.

The software was easy to use and intuitive. It includes a lot of effects you can to play around with when you record whether you're using the mic or plugging in.

When you're done it's very easy to share the tracks through Soundcloud, Drive or whatever common cloud storage you might prefer. It offers many different ways to upload the recordings, as a mix, as tracks and in different qualities.

Given that my band mates are my two tween sons and I'm a bassist with less than a year I think it's perfect for my needs and I think even a serious musician would find it's a great tool for songwriting even if they only used it to record demos, which is what it's marketed as.
 

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