INTRODUCTION

   Most (if not all) serious content creators like YouTubers and Twitchers all have but one thing in common, they use top of the line streaming microphones (regardless of connection type) in order to deliver crystal clear audio to their followers. Now for good or bad up until 3-4 years ago the microphone industry wasn't really that large, yes you had your typical microphone manufacturers like Blue Microphones, Shure and a few others but since then numerous PC peripherals manufacturers like Razer, Elgato (CORSAIR), HyperX and NZXT have also entered that segment of the market. Well as it turns out even our friends over at EPOS decided to enter and so today with me i have none other than their brand new B20 Streaming Microphone.

   ΕPOS is an audio company developing and selling devices for business professionals and the gaming community. Based on leading and advanced technologies, the newly established Danish company EPOS will deliver high-end audio solutions designed for Enterprise Solutions and Gaming headsets – with design, technology and performance as paramount parameters. EPOS derives from Latin and ancient Greek and is used to describe epic stories, speech and poetry. The name encapsulates our dedication to create solutions that enforce ways of communication and unleash human potential through the power of audio. EPOS operates in a global market with offices and partners in more than 30 countries and builds on more than 115 years of experience in sound and innovation. Find more information about EPOS at www.eposaudio.com.

   What makes the B20 Streaming Microphone by EPOS quite unique compared to many others in the market today is not only the ability to choose one of four pickup patterns (cardioid, omnidirectional, stereo and bidirectional) thus providing more flexibility (can be used both with solo and multi-person broadcast sessions) but also its recording specifications since it features a frequency response of 50-20.000Hz with -37dB sensitivity and has the ability to record 24bit audio at 48KHz with an SPL of 112dB and a THD of just 2.5%. Another unique feature is that thanks to a built-in 3.5mm headphone jack the B20 can be used as a USB passthrough for headphones with a maximum quality of 24bit at 96KHz allowing the user to monitor everything getting recorded. The EPOS B20 is also equipped with an activity LED, front and rear audio controls for volume, gain, mute and pickup patterns and also sports an 3/8" thread on an adjustable metal arm which allows it to be used with a boom arm and even a stand.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

At the front of the black box, we find a product picture and the company logo.

A product description is printed just over the bundle contents in 6 languages.

Another product picture is located at the rear of the box and is used to showcase its main features.

Packaging is excellent with the microphone placed inside a thick formed piece of foam.

Along with the B20 streaming microphone inside the box you'll also find a round base, large screw, 2.9 meter long USB type-C cable, safety guide and a compliance paper.

THE B20

The dark grey plastic and steel enclosure of the B20 measures 239mm in height and 112mm in diameter.

EPOS has placed their logo on top of the microphone.

Thanks to several condenser capsules (and an internal pop filter) located around the B20 it can be used with any of the four available pickup patterns (cardioid, omnidirectional, stereo and bidirectional).

The volume control knob is located at the front right beneath the mute button and activity LED.

EPOS has placed their logo on the side of the B20 streaming microphone.

The pickup pattern and gain control knobs are located at the rear (well depends how you see the microphone i guess).

Turning the microphone over we find the USB type-C and 3.5mm ports.

This metal arm features an 3/8" thread on the end which can be attached to a tripod or a boom arm.

The metal arm also allows for free adjustment regardless of with what it's attached to.

EPOS has placed a single activity LED on the B20 which is white when the microphone is operational and red when muted.

EPOS GAMING SUITE

The first tab of the EPOS Gaming Suite allows you to adjust the volume, choose one of the 4 available presets (esport/flat/movie/music), switch between stereo (2.0) and virtual surround sound (7.1), set the reverberation level and perform a sound test (all these for the headphone out).

From the microphone tab you can enhance your voice (warm/clear effects), mute the microphone and adjust the gain, side tone, noise gate and the noise cancellation feature (whenever you change the pickup pattern it will show in the software too).

The settings tab is where you can check the current software and firmware versions, enable notifications, report a bug and change the language of the software.

CONCLUSION

   Since I’m not into content creation (at least not when it comes to streaming or YouTube) i am not quite as enthusiastic for USB microphones as i am for other things/devices in the electronics industry. Yes, i do use them daily for Skype, Teams and even Viber calls but all those don't require having the best model available. Even so however the B20 was a pleasant surprise, not only because it looks a lot better than most USB microphones out there but also because it offers 4 different pickup patterns. Yes, other USB microphones offer them too but the EPOS B20 also looks the part and let's face it, looks do matter to many people (alas not as much for a microphone). That aside however the B20 also does a great job recording crystal clear audio and yes as with my past USB microphone reviews, I've used the famous line from Good Morning Vietnam to give you a rough idea of what you can expect (you can check cardioid, stereo, omnidirectional and bidirectional m4a recording samples here).

   The B20 Streaming Microphone by EPOS currently retails for no less than USD199 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 169Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) so it’s right up there with some of the most popular and expensive USB microphones in the market. The good news is that it’s also right up there with those models in terms of audio quality and features which is why it gets the Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Audio Clarity (24Bit / 48KHz)
- 4 Pickup Patterns (Cardioid/Omnidirectional/Stereo/Bidirectional)
- Headphone Output (24Bit / 96KHz)
- Internal Pop Filter
- EPOS Gaming Suite
- Mute Button
- Metal Arm With 3/8" thread

CONS

- Price (For Some)