Four Decades of Recording Excellence
Mojave Audio founder David Royer, a Technical Grammy-winning microphone designer, is renowned in the audio world for the ribbon microphones bearing his name. Thanks to their smooth top end, Royer ribbon mics helped tame the brittle harshness of digital recording in the late 1990s, adding analog-style warmth to countless hits. But long before he revolutionized the ribbon, Royer was highly sought after by top-tier Los Angeles producers and engineers for his custom-built tube microphones, preamps, and compressors. Often taking long trips to deliver products on his motorcycle, including rides to the Rancho De La Luna recording studio in Joshua Tree, Royer perpetually found himself inspired by California’s Mojave Desert. That inspiration eventually became Mojave Audio’s namesake.
Return to Royer’s Roots
With the popularity of his ribbon mics exploding in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the non-ribbon designs that were the bedrock of Royer’s reputation temporarily took a back seat. That changed in 2005, when he officially launched Mojave Audio with legendary producer, engineer, and studio owner Dusty Wakeman at the helm. Offering a full line of condenser or dynamic models in choices of tube and FET, with and without transformers, Mojave Audio serves as testament to Royer’s never-ending passion for fine mics of all styles, not to mention the desert he loves.
Zero-Compromise Designs
The sublime sound Mojave Audio microphones are known for starts with David Royer’s exacting standards. They spec top-shelf components like military-grade tubes and custom-wound transformers from Lundahl and Coast Magnetics. Royer’s circuits are always elegantly structured, resulting in in mics that are as sonically musical as they are rugged. This dedication to quality reveals itself the moment you hold a Mojave mic in your hand.
Commitment to Quality
Mojave’s quality control is as thoughtful and meticulous as its design and engineering processes. Before leaving Mojave’s North Hollywood headquarters, each mic is rigorously tested to ensure it meets the standards that working professionals demand.
Gold Standard Studio Sound
Today, Mojave Audio studio mics feature prominently on platinum-selling records by artists spanning pop, rock, metal, country, hip-hop, and beyond. Offering the warmth, depth, and vintage-style character of decades-old tube mics, without the finicky upkeep, they’re truly a game changer for busy recording professionals, content creators, broadcasters, and anyone else who requires pristine audio capture.
Studio Sound on Stage
As studio-grade sound has become the standard in the concert world, more and more live mixing engineers and artists are turning to Mojave Audio. The MA-D – David Royer’s first handheld dynamic mic — deftly sidesteps harsh presence peaks, offering a full-range richness and musicality that handheld dynamics rarely achieve. As further testament to Mojave’s impressive performance and rugged designs, many Mojave mics originally developed for recording applications are finding their way into venues ranging from intimate clubs to massive stadiums.
