Earthworks Audio is a winner of this year’s iF DESIGN AWARD, the world-renowned design competition. ETHOS, Earthworks’ winning broadcasting microphone, won in the Audio category for Products.
ETHOS was chosen by the 133-member jury —made up of independent experts from all over the world — because of its differentiation, impact and cultural value. The competition was intense; almost 11,000 entries were submitted from 56 countries in hopes of receiving the seal of quality. Other winners in the Audio category include Apple, Google, and Sonos.
“I believe that ETHOS won because it represents the future of entertainment and of how we all connect and interact,” said Mike Dias, VP of Sales for Earthworks Audio. “The iF Design team recognizes that streaming and content creation are central to how we all consume and produce media and to how we engage and contribute to the larger cultural conversations. ETHOS was the first microphone that was designed and intended to be on camera with you — to compliment how you look equally to how you sound.”
When people talk about traditional broadcasting microphones, they often refer to the golden days of radio. The microphones that that still dominate that segment of the industry were designed over 50 years ago to meet the needs and demands and challenges of the day. And they were used and operated by trained technicians in top studio productions.
Times and platforms have changed and so have expectations from the audience. People now value realism and authenticity and want to feel that one-to-one human connection when they watch and interact their favorite creator. The microphones from the past were not built to deliver the expected experiences of today.
The all-stainless-steel construction of ETHOS combined with its ease-of-use generous sweet spot means that anyone can use it without any special training or background in audio engineering. It looks and sounds great no matter where or how it is used. This makes ETHOS an ideal microphone for content creators who already have millions of subscribers or for anyone just starting out and wanting to be part of the sharing economy.
ETHOS was designed to meet the advanced needs for gamers who stream live on Twitch, for YouTube creators who actively engage their audiences, for podcasters seeking to build and deepen connections, while still performing like a powerhouse for traditional broadcasting radio stations.
