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geekhack Community => Input Devices => Topic started by: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:04:18

Title: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:04:18: Looking for a decent quality desktop microphone, tired of having to wear a headset when I want to use my microphone or talk to people so I'd like one on a stand or arm.
Don't know much about microphones so very open to suggestions and insight. My budget is somewhere between 50-70 USD (60-90 CAD).
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: ghostjuggernaut on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:08:37: I have a Blue Snowball that I am pretty happy with. Only drawback is that I have to keep it pretty close for good sound. Other than that, I have never had any complaints.

I have heard really good things about this (http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-Zm-Mic1-Sensitivity-Headphone-Microphone/dp/B00029MTMQ/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1461960436&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=zalman+microphone) also.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: Bucake on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:17:04: i also have a blue snowball and i'm told i sound very clear and that the sound is good quality. it's also plug-and-play, which is a plus in my opinion.
it does seem prone to pick up vibrations (typing) and a bit of background noise (PC case), though.
but i have very little experience with microphones so i don't know any better :-P

(and you'll still want to use headphones or earphones, otherwise your own sound's gonna go through and annoy whoever you're talking to?)
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:18:25: Quote from: ghostjuggernaut on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:08:37
I have a Blue Snowball that I am pretty happy with. Only drawback is that I have to keep it pretty close for good sound. Other than that, I have never had any complaints.

I have heard really good things about this (http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-Zm-Mic1-Sensitivity-Headphone-Microphone/dp/B00029MTMQ/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1461960436&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=zalman+microphone) also.

I was looking at little mics like that zalman just trying to stay away from anything I have to wear :)

I've looked at the blue ones a bit just was worried about the keeping it close part because I've seen how my friends have theirs setup to talk into it.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:20:56: Quote from: Bucake on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:17:04
i also have a blue snowball and i'm told i sound very clear and that the sound is good quality. it's also plug-and-play, which is a plus in my opinion.
it does seem prone to pick up vibrations (typing) and a bit of background noise (PC case), though.
but i have very little experience with microphones so i don't know any better :-P

(and you'll still want to use headphones or earphones, otherwise your own sound's gonna go through and annoy whoever you're talking to?)

Yea I wear headphones most of the time just not my headset, I've looked at a modmic for a pair of my headphones but I just don't like the look if it, also good to know its plug in play.. I see stuff about the yeti needing some setup in linux but maybe the snowball would work better.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: Bucake on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:22:29: Quote from: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:18:25
I've looked at the blue ones a bit just was worried about the keeping it close part because I've seen how my friends have theirs setup to talk into it.

mine actually picks my voice up quite well even though it's ~60cm / ~24" away from me. never had any complaints in CSGO or skype, everyone heard me fine :-)

edit: i don't know about linux, maybe it's different there. i use the snowball with win7 and didn't need to install anything, it uses drivers that come with windows.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: Elaeagnifolia on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:31:15: Quote from: Bucake on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:17:04
it does seem prone to pick up vibrations (typing) and a bit of background noise (PC case), though.

Have you tried placing some type of material under your mic to absorb the vibrations?

I have a Blue Yeti instead of Snowball, but it was picking up PC noise, vibrations etc. I read online that people were placing towels, foam, other materials under their mics to reduce that noise.

Being cheap, I just put my mic on top of a thick notebook I use for taking notes in class. It's not perfect, but the sound has definitely improved when I'm recording.

Also, back on-topic to OP, I love my Blue Yeti, but it probably isn't the best option (overkill) if you're only going to be using it for gaming and simple communication with others. I think Blue Microphones does a good job with their mics, so even though I haven't personally used a Snowball, I would recommend that similar to the other posts here.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: tp4tissue on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:41:16: I'm interested in this as well.. Is there one where it DOES NOT have to be very close to you ?

I've tried some alleged further away mics in the past, but they're very echo-ee..
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:47:49: Quote from: tp4tissue on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:41:16
I'm interested in this as well.. Is there one where it DOES NOT have to be very close to you ?

I've tried some alleged further away mics in the past, but they're very echo-ee..

reading right now it seems you'll always get best sound right close to your mouth but it'd be nice to also have something useable that I can have 1-2 feet to the side when I don't want something up in my grill
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: ghostjuggernaut on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:49:34: Quote from: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:47:49
Quote from: tp4tissue on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:41:16
I'm interested in this as well.. Is there one where it DOES NOT have to be very close to you ?

I've tried some alleged further away mics in the past, but they're very echo-ee..

reading right now it seems you'll always get best sound right close to your mouth but it'd be nice to also have something useable that I can have 1-2 feet to the side when I don't want something up in my grill

People I know that have used the Zalman have said they just sit it on their desk. It seems to pick up voice pretty well from what I have heard.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 16:43:31: Quote from: ghostjuggernaut on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:49:34
Quote from: kiwi99 on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:47:49
Quote from: tp4tissue on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:41:16
I'm interested in this as well.. Is there one where it DOES NOT have to be very close to you ?

I've tried some alleged further away mics in the past, but they're very echo-ee..

reading right now it seems you'll always get best sound right close to your mouth but it'd be nice to also have something useable that I can have 1-2 feet to the side when I don't want something up in my grill

People I know that have used the Zalman have said they just sit it on their desk. It seems to pick up voice pretty well from what I have heard.

hell its so cheap maybe I'll pick one up for travelling/try it out.
After looking around a bit more I found this which I think looks pretty good might consider getting it. http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-ATR2500-USB-Cardioid-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B004QJREXM/ref=sr_1_3?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1365212068&sr=1-3&keywords=Audio+Technica+Mic
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: Marizen on Thu, 05 May 2016, 11:31:38: I love my AT2020 USB, but it does have to be pretty close. Then again, I don't do audio stuff for a living, I just wanted a good quality mic. Maybe there's some settings I need to tweak or something. For now, I'm happy with it as a plug-and-play.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: klennkellon on Thu, 05 May 2016, 13:00:50: Quote from: ghostjuggernaut on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:08:37
I have a Blue Snowball that I am pretty happy with. Only drawback is that I have to keep it pretty close for good sound. Other than that, I have never had any complaints.

I have heard really good things about this (http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-Zm-Mic1-Sensitivity-Headphone-Microphone/dp/B00029MTMQ/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1461960436&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=zalman+microphone) also.
The Zalman is great. Only problem is that it only works well on headphones with thicker cables, otherwise it keeps falling off.

It's also tiny, I've lost 2.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: kiwi99 on Thu, 05 May 2016, 17:46:38: Quote from: klennkellon on Thu, 05 May 2016, 13:00:50
Quote from: ghostjuggernaut on Fri, 29 April 2016, 15:08:37
I have a Blue Snowball that I am pretty happy with. Only drawback is that I have to keep it pretty close for good sound. Other than that, I have never had any complaints.

I have heard really good things about this (http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-Zm-Mic1-Sensitivity-Headphone-Microphone/dp/B00029MTMQ/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1461960436&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=zalman+microphone) also.
The Zalman is great. Only problem is that it only works well on headphones with thicker cables, otherwise it keeps falling off.

It's also tiny, I've lost 2.

I ended up buying a $3 mic similar to the Zalman, Actually a great replacement mic as I have just sold my g430 headset and this thing is great haha.. but must be clipped onto my shirt which I dislike.

Quote from: Marizen on Thu, 05 May 2016, 11:31:38
I love my AT2020 USB, but it does have to be pretty close. Then again, I don't do audio stuff for a living, I just wanted a good quality mic. Maybe there's some settings I need to tweak or something. For now, I'm happy with it as a plug-and-play.

I am looking at this and the ATR2500 for sure right now just trying to find a decent deal in Canada since some places seem to just throw whatever price they want on stuff :p
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: zombiegristle on Fri, 03 June 2016, 21:24:13: I use one of these for work/skype/other forms of interacting with the humans, which you mentioned as your use case in the OP. It works really well positioned underneath my monitor about four feet from my face, is slightly cheaper than some of the other options, and it's designed for conference calls so while it may not be studio-quality I constantly get comments on how clear it is. The only downside is it picks up my clickety-clack MX Greens.

http://www.amazon.com/MXL-AC404-USB-Conference-Microphone/dp/B001TGTDFM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1465006770&sr=8-1&keywords=MXL+conference+mic (http://www.amazon.com/MXL-AC404-USB-Conference-Microphone/dp/B001TGTDFM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1465006770&sr=8-1&keywords=MXL+conference+mic)
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: kiwi99 on Sat, 04 June 2016, 00:11:32: Forgot about this thread! I ended up finding a AT2020 USB mic at a pawn shop and got it for like 60% off retail.

And damn this thing is sexy looking.

(http://i.imgur.com/AYVSg2M.jpg)

I also am getting an arm and shockmount/popfilter soon.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: Bucake on Sat, 04 June 2016, 00:21:15: 60% off?! you bastard..
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: xtrafrood on Sat, 04 June 2016, 00:36:54: I had the Zalman for a little while. I couldn't deal with the sensitivity so I sent it back. Plus there is no practical way to install a pop filter; it needs a pop filter imo :-X
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: MJL on Wed, 19 October 2016, 05:03:05: Go-mic by Samson, USB connection and has different settings. I use it to calibrate my sound system (foobar player and MathAudio room EQ).
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: Fictiouz on Wed, 19 October 2016, 05:17:44: I have a Blue Yeti and am in absolute love with it. so many different ways to use it! :thumb:
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: kiwi99 on Wed, 19 October 2016, 16:05:28: (http://imgur.com/xtRwoOF.jpg)

I ended up getting a boom arm shock mount and pop filter for it too, love the setup :)
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: katushkin on Wed, 19 October 2016, 22:52:48: Nice dude. I am tempted to get one of those with an arm to free up the space that my Yeti takes up on the desk.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: rabbitfire on Tue, 27 December 2016, 09:49:02: Blue Yeti USB Microphone for $107 on amazon
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: Jaymanlp on Fri, 21 April 2017, 10:09:59: Blue Snowball. $50 on Amazon and works great for VOIP and in-game chat. Pop filter of course needed.

Sent from my ASUS_Z00TD using Tapatalk
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: SBJ on Sat, 22 April 2017, 02:01:50: Quote from: kiwi99 on Wed, 19 October 2016, 16:05:28
Show Image
(http://imgur.com/xtRwoOF.jpg)

I ended up getting a boom arm shock mount and pop filter for it too, love the setup :)
Very nice!
And at 60% off you made a killer deal.
Title: Re: Looking for a desktop microphone, give me your recommendations!
Post by: Jaymanlp on Sat, 22 April 2017, 12:37:34: Quote from: kiwi99 on Wed, 19 October 2016, 16:05:28
Show Image
(http://imgur.com/xtRwoOF.jpg)

I ended up getting a boom arm shock mount and pop filter for it too, love the setup :)
Now to just get a second monitor so you can have a full screen to watch Scrubs on.