How much ambient noise does this mike pick up? For example if there are other people in the room moving around or talking while recording? I record video game commentaries and have a 3 week old son so it won't be studio quality quiet ever... Also how much of a range does it have?

canyadigit wrote:One of the Amazon reviews said that it was not ideal for singing. It didn't accurately capture the resonance of the voice and harmonic partials.

Anyone think this unit is good for singing? Someone near to me needs to hear his singing voice reproduced accurately.

Second that request for a version number. Says SE, so I'm assuming it's not current.

I ownz this.

I just ordered another.


For anyone not experienced with recording, this is a USB mic, with built in preamp and a headset jack 1/8" on the mic body, for using headphones as monitors.

It will not plug into your dj rack, your karaoke system, or your PA. It has to plug into a pc USB and ONLY USB. I has the recording interface built into the mic body. It weighs about 2 lbs.

As for the quality, it's an excellent vocal mic, and mic for pod casting etc. I have used it to have my daughter lay down vocals to overdub into pre recorded guitar. I have used audacity and protools as well, but the SE protools is very vanilla compared to cubase, acid, or any of the other consumer grade suites.


I can also HIGHLY recommend MixCraft 6, which is a great recording suite, for the novice and intermediate audio engineer. Protools is complicated, and the SE version only allows 4 tracks. (Vocal, guitar 1, bass, and drum track, for instance). So if you have a complex piece with more than 4 tracks, you'll need a more full featured suite.

But if you're just laying down a video with voice overs, and maybe doubling the vocals or adding background music, this is perfect.

I want to also add that this mic is somewhat directional, although it's marketed as an Omni,

sublime-1 wrote:I ownz this.

I just ordered another.


For anyone not experienced with recording, this is a USB mic, with built in preamp and a headset jack 1/8" on the mic body, for using headphones as monitors.

I will not plug into your dj rack, your karaoke system, or your PA. It has to plug into a pc USB and ONLY USB.

As for the quality, it's an excellent vocal mic, and mic for pod casting etc. I have used it to have my daughter lay down vocals to overdub into pre recorded guitar. I have used audacity and protools.


I can also recommend MixCraft 6, which is a great recording quite for the novice and intermediate audio engineer. Protools is complicated, and the SE version not allows 4 tracks. (Vocal, guitar 1, bass, and drum track, for instance).

But if you're just laying down a video with voice overs, and maybe doubling the vocals or adding background music, this is perfect.

I would like to get a mic someday to record female vocals, but from what everyone is saying, this is really only good for podcasting. Can anyone recommend a decent mic for female vocals that is not too expensive?

bstokes wrote:Anyone know what the version number of the software is?

Protools SE 8. It will upgrade when you install it to whatever the minor release is now.

Note. Protools SE will not work unless the pre-amp / recording interface is hooked up

Castlevania wrote:I would like to get a mic someday to record female vocals, but from what everyone is saying, this is really only good for podcasting. Can anyone recommend a decent mic for female vocals that is not too expensive?

Not true AT ALL !

This is an excellent vocal mic. It's not noisy at all, and it does an excellent job.

My 13 year old is an Alto, and she uses this for vocal recording for auditions, etc.


The only other option for PC recording is to buy an actual studio style condensor mic, which you'll need to also buy a pre-amp for (the record'y bit that translates your analog recorded voice into digitized computer files.)

Or, buy something like a Blueberry, or MXR that, just like this mic, has a built in recording interface.

It's under $50 shipped for this, and I paid $100 in the store less than a year ago.

Get this mic, and download audacity for free, and you'll be very pleased.

tunkamerica wrote:(regarding the iPad question) If you have a USB port.

Hmm... My MS Surface does! I wonder though if the mic will require drivers... not really any quality recording apps for the Surface either (RT anyway)... I wonder if there is for iPad? Anyone?

bigguy1989 wrote:How much ambient noise does this mike pick up? For example if there are other people in the room moving around or talking while recording? I record video game commentaries and have a 3 week old son so it won't be studio quality quiet ever... Also how much of a range does it have?

It picks up everything. It will not cancel out the sounds a 3 week old makes, unless they are sweet whispers of breath as they sleep. Now my question for you is WHY THE HECK ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT MAKING VG COMMENTARIES WHEN YOU HAVE A BRAND NEW BABY?!

I bought this mic the last time it was up. I thought it was subpar. I did pay more that $40. The refurb quality was crummy. The light in it stopped working within a week. The audio quality was so-so. Not excellent by any means. No better than my Blue Snowball. I never ran the software because I already own protools.

kkrathi wrote:I wonder if this can be used with DJ audio controller for making announcements while DJing. Does anyone know?

You may run into two different problems with that. Firstly, since it is it's own audio interface, you'll most likely have to use this as the audio out to take advantage of the audio in (mic).

Also - it's a condenser mic, which means that it's super sensitive to feedback. If you're wanting to use a mic in a live environment (ie: club), you're better off with a dynamic Mic like a good ol' SM58.

bigguy1989 wrote:How much ambient noise does this mike pick up? For example if there are other people in the room moving around or talking while recording? I record video game commentaries and have a 3 week old son so it won't be studio quality quiet ever... Also how much of a range does it have?

I'm not kidding when I say this, it's a mic...it's job is to pick up sounds. You need a noise cancelling headset or some place much more quiet.

PhilCarr wrote:Hmm... My MS Surface does! I wonder though if the mic will require drivers... not really any quality recording apps for the Surface either (RT anyway)... I wonder if there is for iPad? Anyone?

There are tons of free and not-free recording apps for iPad and Touch. I use Hokusai, but there are simpler ones as well. It's important to check on HOW they export (email? Dropbox?) and WHAT they export (WAV? MP3? AIFF?)

For now, Apple still has the edge for tablet recording quality...for now. It's just good clean sound.

"Award-winning Pro Tools® composing, recording, editing, and mixing features
Mix up to 24 tracks (16 audio tracks, 8 virtual instrument tracks)"

This is great for musicians, but try to find an old Adobe Audition 1.5 for basic recording of voicework.

Looking for some advice. I've been interested in purchasing an inexpensive mic to record various sound effects for some creative projects (I'm sure I could download pre-made sounds, but I'd rather have fun making my own).

Recording voices is just icing on the cake, but I'd be more interested in the mic picking up a wide variety of various sounds, from high pitched sounds like breaking glass to lows like a dull thud of a thick textbook closing together.

I'm not a sound engineer, nor will I be using this professionally. Again, just for personal creative projects. So, would this mic be suitable for my needs? Since I'm not wanting this for voice alone (this one seems known best for voicework), perhaps there are better options?

$40-60 is about what I'd be willing to spend, unless there's a worthwhile reason to splurge.

Thanks!

Just recently picked up a Blue Yeti. I wonder how this compares.

PhilCarr wrote:It picks up everything. It will not cancel out the sounds a 3 week old makes, unless they are sweet whispers of breath as they sleep. Now my question for you is WHY THE HECK ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT MAKING VG COMMENTARIES WHEN YOU HAVE A BRAND NEW BABY?!

Well I'm really not making much right now, but I didn't figure that I would just quit doing things that I enjoy because I have a kid. Would rather keep it up in moderation and eventually share my hobbies with him. For now, I would like to play around with some better equipment to learn a little more about professional sound editing, etc...

radi0j0hn wrote:I'm not kidding when I say this, it's a mic...it's job is to pick up sounds. You need a noise cancelling headset or some place much more quiet.

Thanks for the information, so this microphone would be considered directional or something to pick up everything in the room?

I'm progressing in my voiceover career (commercials and cartoons) and I'm ready to buy my own basic setup for home. Would this mic work well for that application?

mlschwartz wrote:I'm progressing in my voiceover career (commercials and cartoons) and I'm ready to buy my own basic setup for home. Would this mic work well for that application?

Seriously, get a better MIC. You will competing with those who have better MICs. You wouldn't enter the Indy 500 with a skate board, would you?

bigguy1989 wrote:Thanks for the information, so this microphone would be considered directional or something to pick up everything in the room?

I have a similar, but better MIC and if my cat makes a noise,it picks it up. Room acoustics play a big part as well.

radi0j0hn wrote:Search MCA SP1 or

http://www.amazon.com/MCA-SP1-Small-Diaphragm-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B003VP9VI8

I own two and used them professionally, as in I make a living with them.

While I think this is a decent looking mic, I am not sure everyone here is familiar with XLR and Phantom Power..

Any idea how this mic compares to the Snowball mics? I know I've seen those on Woot before too.

I was wondering how this would work with hard rock/metal singing. I'm looking to do some covers of metal bands(such as Stone Sour, Metallica, Papa Roach) for my own personal use, and want to know if this would do the job? Would really appreciate some help on this.

"Search MCA SP1 or http://www.amazon.com/MCA-SP1-Small-Diaphragm-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B003VP9VI8

I own two and used them professionally, as in I make a living with them.

The Logitech and Belkin adapter for iPod Touch/iPad accept 3 prong MIC plugs and also provide the extra "phantom" power needed to fire up the unit. There's also a volume control on the adapter. For those interested in voice-over work from home (and I hope you didn't fall for some "seminar") you need better gear and a nice room to work it. VO jobs are tough, and the bigger the city the more tough it gets. But, if you have a special voice, it can be a money maker. Just beware of demo and marketing schemes. It's as bad as fake book agents.

jxkoepk wrote:While I think this is a decent looking mic, I am not sure everyone here is familiar with XLR and Phantom Power..

That same 3 prong MIC (above) can be used with a USB port when you buy a "Blue Icicle."

It's amazing how much easier recording had become, but watch out for room noise.

I bought one of these mics but I'm having problems. When I try to plug in the mic, it is either not being detected, or I get a tooltip coming up about there being a power surge in the usb port. However, I can still plug in any other usb devices that I have with no problem.

I was able to plug it in when I first received it, but once I restarted after installing the driver, I started experiencing these problems.

This mic is nice but i cant adjust the latency within win7. im gonna return it and stay away from USB mics. I think a regular input mic works just as good

no the latency will become a factor

I bought this mike because of the price and great reviews. My PC won't recognize it and I've tried re-installing the software several times. Don't know what else to try, but unless the PC recognizes the mike, the software won't work so it's just a big waste of money. Don't waste your time and money on this product. You've been warned!!!!

baz2012 wrote:I bought one of these mics but I'm having problems. When I try to plug in the mic, it is either not being detected, or I get a tooltip coming up about there being a power surge in the usb port. However, I can still plug in any other usb devices that I have with no problem.

I was able to plug it in when I first received it, but once I restarted after installing the driver, I started experiencing these problems.

I kind of solved my problem. I had ordered 3 mics so I could use these for podcasting, but it seems one of the mics and the cable that came with it doesn't work. I had to buy a USB hub to fix the power surge tooltip from showing up and causing my computer to then reset.