USB Condenser Microphone that picks less Background nOISe...

fuzkabir

New member
Hello there.

I'm going to buy a USB condenser for my tutorials. Which of the following eliminates background noise (or picks a little) and picks barre-toned male voice better? Anything else you can suggest below $300.

1. Blue Yeti/ Yeti Pro
2. Rode NT-USB
3. Audio Technica AT2020USB/(+)

Thanks
 
None of those.

By definition, condenser mics are very sensitive which is great if you want a detailed, accurate recording but less so if background noise is a problem because you're working in a space without proper acoustic treatment.

Instead try a RODE PODCASTER--it's a nice largeish diaphragm dynamic mic designed so you can work up close to the mic. Unusual for USB mics, it also has a headphone jack so you can monitor what you're recording without the mess of trying to use your inbuilt sound card for monitoring and a USB device for recording.

The price should be nicely within your budget from most suppliers...use the spare money to buy a pop filter and a mic stand.
 
thanks @Bobbsy
I guess the voice quality suffers a bit with Podcaster as it's frequency range is lower than 20KHz. Alright I will manage the noise issue but I want to stick to Condenser Microphone. Please suggest me the best among those three for voice, a voice like almost real.
Regarding the noise it's some nature sound at night.

Thanks again.
 
You're podcasting which means you're distributing a heavily compressed format. Depending on how you do it, I doubt you're feeding out any frequencies about 16kHz...and chances are it's rather less than that. Beyond that, your voice is unlikely to go much about 12kHz with the fundamental frequencies in a far smaller band than that.

Basically, I think you're worrying about the wrong thing. If background noise is an issue I wouldn't worry about not getting frequencies above 15k or so since you're doing voice recording only. (My advice would be different for music.)

Of the mics you list, my favourite would be the Rode NT but none of them will be what you want for stand alone voice in an untreated room. If you're that concerned about perfect sound, I wouldn't buy a USB mic at all. I go for an XLR mic and separate interface.
 
It's not podcasting in one sense, cause I will join those raw audios with videos and output to HD. Maybe there will be some loss in compression, but my idea was to record as best. I know what information you have provided as per your experience is authentic, I respect that. Maybe there's misconception I received over times, as you know I'm not a audio guy. I read online articles and videos, that tends to think me, condenser mic receives more crystal clear voice than the dynamics( those are for live performance, not sensitive enough to pick all the sound). USB Mic is easy to plug and play and almost like the XLRs, even they have less noise(as there's no interface). And a better mic but cheap interface may hamper the quality a lot. Even when you suggested Podcaster I checked several videos on youtube comparing Rode NT and Podcaster. To my ear the sound of the Rode Podcaster was a bit Radio type. These are experience by surfing the net, maybe I'm wrong. :p

Concerning noise I plan to put some DIY things around my window and purchase a sound booth. Again the noise is from cricket (insect) outside.

Whatever. If XLR condenser mics sounds better then please suggest which models of mic and interface is better for this situation.

I hope there's a lot to learn from you. Thanks
 
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I have all three. The Blue Yeti picks up background noise as subtle as a distant barking dog. As a result, I almost never use it. As was suggested above, the RODE Podcaster picks up far less noise. Of the 3 you list, the RODE NT-USB sounds best to me. If you pick up the combined shock mount/pop screen, you get much closer and use less gain.

I would also look at a Shure PG42 with a Shure Popper Stopper filter. The Shure comes with a compact shock mount included.
 
If you want to record "at best" then avoid USB mics. They're convenience tools, and just have design limits. The idea is that novices who know little about recording can buy one, plug in and record. No setting preamp gains, eq's, and working distances. Most buyers plug them in, move in till the meter nearly goes into the red, and that is that. People interested in quality and technique tend to want these features!
 
thanks @Bobbsy
I guess the voice quality suffers a bit with Podcaster as it's frequency range is lower than 20KHz. Alright I will manage the noise issue but I want to stick to Condenser Microphone. Please suggest me the best among those three for voice, a voice like almost real.
Regarding the noise it's some nature sound at night.

Thanks again.
Exactly how much 20k do you expect there is in a baritone voice? Sibilance is normally between 5k and 8k. "Air" is about 10k.

The upper limit to most FM radio transmissions, including television audio is 15k.

With the giant bump between 8k and 10k on that thing, it's bound to be a bright sounding mic, compared to higher end voiceover mics like the SM7b and the RE20.
 
Okay. You started off making the ability to reject background noise your main priority but when a USB mic that would actually do this was suggested, you were then worried about frequency response (even though this is for voice recording/podcasting).

So...my suggestion:

First off, buy the sE X1 BUNDLE which includes a Reflexion filter which will go along way to curing room noise problems, a shock mount, a pop filter and a mic cable. The X1 has a natural, detailed sound on voice recordings and works very well for the money. The Reflexion filter, by my reckoning, gives you about 80% the quality of a fully treated studio but without the treatment. I once used one to record an audio book for an author who couldn't leave her home due to health issues...her study with the Reflexion filter gave a decent quality recording.

Then blow your budget and add an ALESIS iO2 USB interface. Despite being cheap this has decent pre amps, direct monitoring and the ability to expand to 2 inputs, etc. when/if you find it necessary.

Yes, this blows your budget but it'll go much farther into ticking the two rather opposite boxes you've thrown at us!
 
Sorry if it seems to you like people are piling on here, I assure you that's not their intention.Everything that has been said to you is, imo, correct, and by people who know what they're talking about.

If you have read something that leads you to believe that a condensor will be better for a podcast, I assure you that is incorrect. Condensors are primarily used for recording in studios that have the proper sound treatment to isolate what is being recorded, and to usually intentionally pick up the ambient sound of the room they're in, because they've gone to great trouble and expense to create a good sounding space.

You do not have the requisite 'good sounding space', and therefor want something that rejects backround noise. That would be a cardioid (or hyper-cardioid) dynamic mic.

If you're doing a voice-over for a podcast, you want essentially what a radio announcer uses. By far and away, the most common professional radio mics are the RE20 and SM7b, as suggested by Farview. I would also throw the MD421 out there as a possibility. For far less money, you could go with an SM57 or 58 (I would try a 57 if you're a baritone, to cut out some of the boominess. Another good possiblity would be an Audix i5.
 
If my short responses seemed rude, it was simply because I was on my phone and didn't feel like typing a book on it.

Even though it would be nice to have a mic that picks up everything people could possibly hear, it normally isn't necessary because not every source will contain sound that covers the entire spectrum. Most popular playback systems use mp3, which cuts off everything above 12k. Like I said before, anything you've heard on the radio has never had anything above 15k in it. Quite frankly, a very large segment of your audience can't hear anything above 15k anyway, most people over 30 can't.
 
I bought and Ev dynamic vocal/VoiceOver mic on advice from American members on video and audio forums. Not something seen often over here, but it does a great job for voice overs, radio and speech of all types as you can move in and move out without tonal change. For my usual music recording, I use a large diaphragm condenser. All the extra top end this has really doesn't make any difference to how speech sounds, especially for me with age related top end roll off creeping in. The EV is warmer, the condenser brighter. To be honest, for speech, the dynamic sounds nicer.
 
I bought and Ev dynamic vocal/VoiceOver mic on advice from American members on video and audio forums. Not something seen often over here, but it does a great job for voice overs, radio and speech of all types as you can move in and move out without tonal change. For my usual music recording, I use a large diaphragm condenser. All the extra top end this has really doesn't make any difference to how speech sounds, especially for me with age related top end roll off creeping in. The EV is warmer, the condenser brighter. To be honest, for speech, the dynamic sounds nicer.

I tend to describe it as the "American sound" vs the "European sound". if you listen, particularly to radio, there is a general difference which I put down to the frequent use of large dynamics there vs LDCs in Europe. The dynamic gives a "warmer" sound with the classic radio voice while dynamics tend to give a bit more detail.

Beyond the mic though it also depends on the voice and I've used both for recording voice overs depending on who was in the studio. One compromise that can work sometimes is an LDC with a gentle HF roll off and maybe some bass boost (or maybe just use the proximity effect and have them work up close and personal.

In the end, either can work--it's down to preference, the voice you're recording and what you want it to sound like. In the dynamic world, the Rode podcaster has most of the advantages of the RE20/SM7B sort of thing.

Weirdest voice over I've recorded was a guy who wanted the silly-deep "Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the studio" sort of cinema trailer voice. He insisted we use a short shotgun (Sennheiser 416 to be exact) with him up close to the mic for dramatic proximity effect.
 
I think if yer doing voice-over (which is what it sounds like yer doing), I would stay away from condensor mics (both large and small diaphragm) and use a super-dynamic mic like an Electro-Voice RE20 or a Shure SM7/SM7B. And DEFINITELY heed the advice provided earlier: get a reflection filter. The SE one suggested by an earlier user is a good one, but I find most of them to be overpriced. I use one from Monoprice.com. It's built just as solidly as the SE filter, using very similar thickness/type of acoustic foam, but it's about 1/3rd the cost. Here's a link for ya.

Using a super-dynamic alone will help a little bit with the background noise issue. Using it with a reflection filter like the one I linked above will help a lot. If you still are getting high-end noise/bleed/etc., I would suggest checking your input settings to ensure you have the proper gain stages setup (just Google "gain stage"). If that's not the issue, find a moving blanket of some sort and hang it on the wall BEHIND you when yer recording the voice-overs. That will help even more.
 
Just for the record, the sE is more expensive because it's a much more elaborate (and patented) construction than most of the others which are just a backing covered in the dreaded acoustic foam.

The sE Pro version actually has nine layers of treatment, the top foam only being one of them--it also has wool absorbers, several kinds of diffusers, etc. etc. The home version in the package above is a bit simpler but still more than just foam on a backing...and you can hear the difference.

(No, I don't work for sE...but, before I moved to Australia I lived in the same town as their UK distributor and got to know some of the guys in the pub and play with a lot of their stuff.)
 
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