CORSAIR VOXARA vs Elgato Wave:3 MK.2: What's the Difference?

VOXARA is CORSAIR's first and only microphone, marking the brand's entry into the premium USB condenser microphone category. Elgato, a sister brand under CORSAIR, has its own longer-running USB condenser microphone line, most recently updated with the Wave:3 MK.2. Both are cardioid condenser microphones designed to sit on a desk or mic arm and improve on a headset mic, but they take different approaches to hardware, software, and control. Here's a breakdown of how they compare.

The most fundamental difference between the two microphones is the capsule itself. VOXARA uses a 25mm electret condenser capsule, while Wave:3 MK.2 uses a 16mm condenser capsule with an integrated JFET. Capsule size affects more than just tone, and a few other characteristics typically shift along with it:

• Tonal character: A larger diaphragm, like VOXARA's 25mm capsule, moves with more surface area per sound wave, which generally produces a warmer tone with more low-end body and finer detail than smaller capsules.
• Self-noise: A larger diaphragm generally captures a stronger signal relative to the microphone's own internal electronic noise, which typically results in a lower self-noise floor and a cleaner signal in quieter recording environments. Smaller capsules can require more gain to reach the same output level, which can bring more of that self-noise along with it.
• Proximity effect: Large-diaphragm condensers, like VOXARA's, tend to exhibit a more pronounced proximity effect, where bass response increases as a speaker moves closer to the capsule. Smaller-diaphragm capsules, like Wave:3 MK.2's, generally exhibit less of this effect, giving a more consistent tonal balance regardless of distance from the mic.
• Transient response: A smaller, lighter diaphragm has less mass to move, which can allow it to react slightly faster to sharp, sudden changes in sound. This is one reason small-diaphragm capsules are common in situations where fast transient detail matters.

That capsule difference also carries into each microphone's overall audio engine. VOXARA records at 32-bit depth and samples at 192kHz, while Wave:3 MK.2 records at 24-bit depth and samples at 48kHz. In practice, higher bit depth gives a recording more headroom, meaning a sudden loud moment is less likely to clip, while quieter sounds retain more usable detail. A higher sample rate captures more snapshots of the sound wave per second, which preserves finer detail across the frequency response and can leave more room to work with a recording afterward.

Where the two microphones diverge most in design philosophy is how they process audio. Wave:3 MK.2 includes a dedicated Wave FX Processor, an onboard chip that handles audio processing directly in the microphone rather than on the connected computer. That chip powers onboard DSP (digital signal processing), which applies real-time effects like EQ or compression to the digital audio signal. As well as Clipguard 2.0, a multi-stage anti-distortion system that intervenes at multiple points in the signal path to keep sudden loud moments from clipping the recording. The same chip also enables VST inserts, letting Wave:3 MK.2 route third-party VST effects into its signal chain with low monitoring latency.

VOXARA does not have an onboard DSP chip; instead, its advanced audio processing happens through its companion software, Elgato Wave Link 3.0, running on the connected computer. This includes AI-powered Voice Focus, a real-time noise suppression and voice isolation effect built on ai-coustics' audio processing technology, along with additional effects available through the Elgato Marketplace, such as EQ and compression plugins. Because VOXARA's effects run in software rather than on a dedicated chip, they rely on the host computer's processing resources.

Both microphones connect to the Elgato Wave Link 3.0 app, Elgato's audio routing and mixing software. In both cases, Wave Link sits between the physical microphone and whatever software is capturing audio, letting a person route each audio source into its own channel and build separate mixes for different destinations. Both microphones also include Voice Focus, a feature in Wave Link, using a slider to reduce background noise in a person’s voice.

VOXARA's Wave Link 3.0 integration also extends to RGB lighting customization, along with additional Elgato Marketplace effects for further audio processing. Wave:3 MK.2's Wave Link integration is centered more on device configuration, onboard DSP effect settings such as toggling Clipguard 2.0, and VST routing, reflecting its onboard-processing approach versus VOXARA's software-processing approach.

VOXARA includes a built-in OLED display that shows mic gain, sidetone balance, playback volume, and mute status at all times. A front-facing multi-function scroll wheel cycles between those three modes for adjustment, a separate rear dial cycles through RGB lighting categories directly on the hardware, and a dedicated tap-to-mute sensor handles muting. RGB lighting is built into VOXARA's body and ring, with Multi-Color, Solid Color, and Level Meter modes selectable directly via that rear dial or in Wave Link 3.0, and can sync with a broader setup through iCUE Murals.

Wave:3 MK.2 uses a front-facing multifunction dial in place of a screen: turning it adjusts whichever setting is active, pushing it switches between settings like input gain and headphone volume, and a long press triggers an Auto Gain wizard. Status is shown through a small set of front-facing LEDs, which are a trio of star-shaped Voice Tune LEDs, and a LED status ring for at-a-glance levels. Muting is handled separately from the dial, through a dedicated tap-to-mute sensor on the top of the microphone. Wave:3 MK.2 does not include customizable RGB lighting; its LEDs are used for real-time level and status feedback rather than lighting effects.

VOXARA, CORSAIR's own microphone, and Wave:3 MK.2, from Elgato, are both cardioid USB condenser microphones designed to bring higher-quality vocal capture to any desk setup. VOXARA leans on a larger capsule, a higher-resolution 32-bit/192kHz audio engine, an OLED display, and RGB lighting, with its advanced processing running through Elgato Wave Link 3.0 and Elgato Marketplace. Wave:3 MK.2 uses a smaller capsule paired with an onboard Wave FX Processor that handles DSP effects, Clipguard 2.0, and VST inserts directly on the hardware, with a higher max SPL ceiling and an Auto Gain wizard for quickly setting levels. Both microphones also share a Voice Focus feature in Wave Link for reducing background noise and reverb.

Overall, both are great options for upgrading a desk setup with clearer, more capable vocal capture; check out our pages to pick up either VOXARA or Wave:3 MK.2.