looking for a mic for my PC

T

tadaska

New member
Hi guys,

I've been looking for a mic for my PC that can attach to the monitor so it takes up no space on the desk. Haven't found anything that fits the bill yet. I want it to be able to capture my voice from about 3-4 feet away even if I am talking quietly and in reasonable quality without interfearance. It will be mainly for gaming and Skype but you never know when I might need it to make a vid or something so don't want it to be a total cheapo. But mainly it has to be possible to attach it to the monitor (or maybe edge of desk?) and adjust it enough so it faces me.

Thanks in advance!

Tad
 
tadaska said:
I want it to be able to capture my voice from about 3-4 feet away even if I am talking quietly and in reasonable quality without interfearance.
Click to expand...

For that you may need to change the laws of physics. At that distance from the source it will pick up all sorts of other things.
 
bouldersoundguy said:
For that you may need to change the laws of physics. At that distance from the source it will pick up all sorts of other things.
Click to expand...

Indeed! Probably the best bet is to buy the best USB headset with a noise cancelling mic you can afford. The voice quality won't great (a bit Rubber Duck) but at least the S/N ratio should be acceptable.

Dave.
 
For my gaming machine, I bought a SoundBlaster Z card for the audio (hey, stop laughing...I needed the DTS and Dolby Digital encoding). It came with what they call a "beam forming microphone" that sits on top of my monitor. I have yet to actually use it, so I have no idea if it rejects sounds from outside its intended pickup area. The literature seems to suggest that's what it will do:

Creative Worldwide Support

Honestly though, a headset mic would be your best bet. It'll reject most of the noise in the room while picking up primarily your voice. It moves along with you, no need for stands or booms. Best of both worlds.
 
I was under impression that mics like Blue Yeti were good for that. What about something like Nady SGM-12 Shotgun Condenser Microphone? If I could just figure out how to fix it to the top or side of my monitor. And it's going to be more like 2-3 feet.
 
The problem with a cardioid condenser is that it's going to hear pretty much everything in the room, even though it's not omnidirectional. It'll pick up your game audio, and your keystrokes, and the clock on the wall, and the kids playing outside, etc.

I think that a shotgun mic would be too unwieldy for Skype, etc. I still think that a headset would be the way to go. Maybe a lavalier or bone conduction mic would work.

If you want to do narration or sound for video, I'd get a 2nd mic and use it for that purpose. I don't think that you're going to find the perfect mic that can do both.
 
Some chat cameras have mics built in and can mount on the monitor. Like the Microsoft Life Cam...
 
I'd support the suggestion of a headset or some kind of clip on lav mic rather than trying to work the impossible with a mic mounted too far away. Look at how many lavs you see on TV programmes even when shot in acoustically treated and quiet studios. A distant mic sounds distant no matter what you do.
 
I guess I'll have to by a headset again. I've had my eye on SteelSeries Siberia V3 for a while now.

The reason I am so reluctant is because I break them. I get angry when I am losing or having internet connection problems and either bite the mic and crush it with my teeth or sometime throw the headset to the floor and break it. I know, I'm a bad loser... My first three headset were rather expensive and then I tried some cheap ones but every one of them had horrible sound quality. So I found cheap headphones with good sound that so far have withstood the punishment and wanted a mic on the monitor so I can't eat it :P

Oh well, £60 for the Steelseries wont break the bank.

Thanks for the advice everyone.
 
tadaska said:
I guess I'll have to by a headset again. I've had my eye on SteelSeries Siberia V3 for a while now.

The reason I am so reluctant is because I break them. I get angry when I am losing or having internet connection problems and either bite the mic and crush it with my teeth or sometime throw the headset to the floor and break it. I know, I'm a bad loser... My first three headset were rather expensive and then I tried some cheap ones but every one of them had horrible sound quality. So I found cheap headphones with good sound that so far have withstood the punishment and wanted a mic on the monitor so I can't eat it :P

Oh well, £60 for the Steelseries wont break the bank.

Thanks for the advice everyone.
Click to expand...

star_trek_by_seekerarmada-d5mzwjp.jpg
 
tadaska said:
I guess I'll have to by a headset again. I've had my eye on SteelSeries Siberia V3 for a while now.

The reason I am so reluctant is because I break them. I get angry when I am losing or having internet connection problems and either bite the mic and crush it with my teeth or sometime throw the headset to the floor and break it. I know, I'm a bad loser... My first three headset were rather expensive and then I tried some cheap ones but every one of them had horrible sound quality. So I found cheap headphones with good sound that so far have withstood the punishment and wanted a mic on the monitor so I can't eat it :P

Oh well, £60 for the Steelseries wont break the bank.

Thanks for the advice everyone.
Click to expand...

Have you considered therapy?

Dave.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top