£349 / stuff.tv/Spire
■ You’re a genius, aren’t you? Course you are. If only you had some way of getting down your brilliant, multi-layered ideas in hi-fi quality before you forget them. If only you had a mini mobile studio, complete with built-in condenser microphone, one-button recording and instant overdubbing…
■ There are already plenty of pocket audio interfaces and apps for mobile multitracking, but the Izotope Spire has a few secret weapons: that ‘studio-grade’ microphone, a clever soundcheck function for setting input levels, a pair of mic/instrument inputs for recording two tracks at once, and the ability to work with or without a smartphone.
■ Yep, the Spire will record as a standalone device. You could come up with a six-part barbershop masterpiece while abseiling down El Capitan and have it all recorded by the time you reach the bottom and get eaten by a bear.