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RIG M2 Streamstar: One-minute review
The RIG M2 Streamstar is a baffling product. Despite being billed as a premium microphone for streamers and more general gaming, it’s about as simple as they come with plug-and-play functionality and no included software.
You just need to slot the included cable into a free USB port, select it as your preferred recording device in the likes of OBS or Audacity, and you’re ready to go in a matter of seconds.
This, on top of its impressively compact size, could make it a decent pick if you’re looking for a portable microphone that you can easily use with a gaming laptop to keep up with your streams when on the move.
Sadly, its actual feature set is highly limited with just a basic gain dial, mute functionality, and sidetone to play around with. On top of a standard 3.5mm headphone jack it does offer the option of Bluetooth 5.4 connectivity for that side tone monitoring, with Qualcomm aptX HD codec compatibility for 24-bit hi-res audio.
This is quite innovative, and the world’s first in a wired microphone according to Nacon, but ultimately doesn’t seem like the most useful thing to have. It works very well and is extremely responsive overall with no noticeable delay, but I can’t imagine that most streamers wouldn’t already have a decent pair of wired gaming earbuds, or similar, on hand for microphone monitoring.
With a unique angular appearance, the design of the microphone is quite striking and refreshingly subtle for a gaming product and this helps set it apart. Unfortunately, though, the materials used feel disappointingly cheap for the price.
It’s plasticky in the hands, with flimsy dials that even wobble slightly while being turned. This is hard to stomach when you’re dealing with a $129.99 product and when countless other options all the way from the cheaper Blue Yeti and HyperX DuoCast to more expensive SteelSeries Alias are considerably more premium and better built.
As for the performance, it’s decent but nothing to write home about. The microphone offers a 24-bit resolution with sample rates of up to 192kHz, so is proper studio quality, but can sound rather muffled and is hard to position properly without a boom arm.
The lack of software also means nothing in the way of any substantial noise cancellation, so avoid this model unless you already have a quiet recording space or software solution in place.
RIG M2 Streamstar: Price and availability
- Priced at $129.99
- Available via Amazon
- Value is questionable
The RIG M2 Streamstar costs $129.99 and is available via Amazon in the US. This price puts it towards the more premium end of the market, but, beyond its 24-bit audio and 192kHz sample rate, it really doesn’t have much to show for it. The HyperX DuoCast is just one example of a cheaper competitor that benefits from a robust set of included software, great audio performance, and a more premium design.
As for more expensive options, the JBL Quantum Stream Studio and SteelSeries Alias offer significantly more features. Thnd play compatibility, plus more strong optioe JBL Quantum Stream Studio has a variety of pickup patterns to choose from, making it a better fit for many setups, and, again, some great software. As for the SteelSeries Alias, you get a comparatively luxurious design, equally good plug and play software.
The sample rate of the RIG M2 Streamstar is considerably higher than the competition though (with most models capping out at 48 or 96kHz), so might make that high cost a little easier to stomach if that’s important to you. There’s also the unique Bluetooth side tone functionality which, depending on your peripherals and setup, could prove useful and perhaps worth the price of admission.
RIG M2 Streamstar: Specs
|
Price |
$129.99 |
|
Polar pattern |
Cardioid |
|
Sample rate |
48/96/192kHz |
|
Bit rate |
24-bit |
|
Frequency range |
20 Hz – 20 kHz |
|
Connectivity |
USB Type-C, 3.5mm, Bluetooth 5.4 |
RIG M2 Streamstar: Design and features
- Unique look, but feels cheap
- Very basic set of features
- No included software
The RIG M2 Streamstar has quite an attractive design. The capsule has an angular shape, with a distinct blend of smooth rectangles and trapezoids. It looks almost futuristic and is very compact to boot, coming in at roughly 6.5in / 165mm tall when using its included stand.
The front of the microphone is dominated by a large metallic grille, which sits just above two dials. The top dial controls your headphone settings when a compatible pair is connected via the 3.5mm jack or Bluetooth. Twisting the dial increases or decreases the overall headphone volume, while pressing it once mutes the headset. Holding the button enables Bluetooth paring mode, indicated by a flashing ring light around the base of the button.
The other dial controls the microphone gain, though it’s a little tricky to adjust. It’s hard to tell your current level unless you’re using the side tone. Normally, I would simply boot up a microphone’s software to change my current settings to the precise level that I wanted – but as there isn’t any of that here you just need to do it by ear.
The lack of software also means that simple actions like enabling the side tone or changing the sample rate are convoluted and require you to fiddle around in your system settings. The included Quick Start Guide is filled with screenshots of an older version of the Windows sound settings tab, which makes it unhelpful for those on Windows 11. Simplicity is a good thing and I generally love plug-and-play functionality, but there comes a point where not having quick access to important settings is just annoying.
Pressing the gain dial quickly mutes the microphone, which is standard at this price but nevertheless a handy feature to have. Both dials are constructed from plastic and feel very cheap, even wobbling slightly when they’re being adjusted. The action of rotating the dial also leads to a lot of audible feedback, which is going to be a problem if you’re used to using a model where you can quickly adjust your settings on stream.
The included stand is basic and underwhelming, effectively a two-part lump of plastic with a rubberized underside that doesn’t feel particularly sturdy and is held together by cheap screws. The microphone is compatible with most boom arms via a standard 5/8 thread though, which is good and gives you more options to work with.
One little detail I do appreciate is the fact that the microphone has a small plastic panel on its rear that is held in place by magnets and can be removed easily. This is intended to be a place where you can display your own branding, which is a cute and novel idea.
RIG M2 Streamstar: Performance
- Easy to get set up
- Sounds good when properly positioned
- Prone to background noise
The setup process is very easy, but I quickly found that the RIG M2 Streamstar tends to sound quite muffled unless you’re careful about positioning. I’m used to testing lots of different cardioid mics, but my usual spot just didn’t seem to work this time around. Instead, the microphone needed to be right below mouth in order to pick up speech reliably so it’s definitely worth investing in a boom arm if you don’t already have one.
Everything that I did manage to record once I found that position sounded good, at least. The high-fidelity recordings I produced in Audacity were very detailed and captured my voice well – at least when there wasn’t any background noise. On that note, the RIG M2 Streamstar picks up background noise easily, with everything from the click of my mouse to passing cars coming across in life-like detail.
This wouldn’t be an issue in a studio environment, but if you’re a streamer or content creator you’re going to need a separate software solution for noise cancellation in the likes of OBS. This isn’t the end of the world, but almost every gaming model from major brands at this price comes with its own noise-cancellation features out of the box.
The side tone features perform well when the microphone is connected to either a wired or wireless audio device. There’s no noticeable latency at all over Bluetooth, which is very impressive. I tested the microphone with a few different pairs of wireless headphones (both gaming and more general consumer models) and every model paired easily. As connected headphones can be used as audio output devices, this could double as a way to enable Bluetooth 5.4 audio on your PC if it doesn’t support it.
Should I buy the RIG M2 Streamstar?
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
Also consider…
After some other options? These two models give the RIG M2 Streamstar a run for its money.
| Row 0 – Cell 0 |
RIG M2 Streamstar |
HyperX DuoCast |
JBL Quantum Stream Studio |
|
Price |
$129.99 |
$99 / £65 |
$149.99 / £129.99 / AU$199.95 |
|
Polar pattern |
Cardioid |
Cardioid, omnidirectional |
Cardioid, bidirectional, omnidirectional, stereo |
|
Sample rate |
48/96/192kHz |
96kHz |
44.1 kHz / 48 kHz / 96 kHz / 192 kHz |
|
Bit rate |
24-bit |
16 / 24 bit |
16 / 24-bit |
|
Frequency range |
20 Hz – 20 kHz |
20Hz – 20kHz |
50Hz – 16kHz |
|
Connectivity |
USB Type-C, 3.5mm, Bluetooth 5.4 |
USB Type-C, 3.5mm |
USB Type-C, 3.5mm |
How I tested the RIG M2 Streamstar
- Tested for a week
- Compared to other gaming microphones
- Used in a variety of scenarios and use cases
I tested the RIG M2 Streamstar for a week, putting it through its paces in a number of scenarios using my home PC with an RTX 3060, I5-11400F, and 32GB of RAM. This time included a number of work meetings and gaming sessions with friends, in addition to testing its compatibility with popular streaming software OBS. I also evaluated its audio quality with a number of recording tests, most notably recording several samples in Audacity in a variety of different conditions.
Throughout my time with the microphone I compared my experience with my hands-on testing of countless other models ranging all the way from reliable budget options such as the Blue Snowball to more premium alternatives like the Blue Yeti and Steelseries Alias and SteelSeries Alias Pro.
First reviewed March 2025.
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dash.wood@futurenet.com (Dashiell Wood)
