NOT A LOT THERE
The box was rather large and impressive, that is for sure, but removing the Halo from its packaging you soon discover that there is not a lot of bulk in this fairly large reflection filter. It is certainly big enough to encapsulate your microphone and shock mount on the stand – taking care of all the angles for unwanted reflections – but the mass of the unit is quite sparse, as too is the weight. It almost feels like it is hollow; there is so little weight for the size of it. At the same time, it is still very solid and quite stable when attached to your microphone stand, and the inbuilt arm seats the microphone cradle right where it needs to be within the big purple room. The overall look of it almost reminds me of one of those egg chairs from the sixties, but designed to keep your microphone comfortable.
HAVE A LISTEN
The simplest way to understand just how good this reflection filter works is to not use a microphone at all. By setting it up on a stand and placing your head where the microphone would rest, you can instantly hear what the Halo does. Pull your head and ears away and you return to hearing all the noise in the room that you previously took for granted. All those subtle reflections that our mind naturally cancels out suddenly return and are very noticeable. So with this in mind it is very easy to understand how it improves your microphone’s performance, removing any unwanted environmental sounds from around the room and relieving the microphone’s capsule of reflections from any hard surfaces during the recording process. What’s more, for a limited time, you can score yourself a sweet Rycote USM shock mount for your microphone by redemption after you purchase a Halo reflection filter. Not only are these my favourite shock mounts, and possibly the most universal of all mounts on the market, it comes in a matching purple to suit your Halo!
For more details on the range of Aston products, head to linkaudio.com.au.
