Today I am testing out a microphone that I have been dying to try out. The Rode Podcaster. This is a Dynamic USB Microphone designed for, you guessed it, podcasters.
If you are interested in this microphone, it will set you back $230 on Amazon.
What's In the Box
- Microphone
- 3-meter USB Cable
- Mic Mount
- 5/8" to 3/8" Mic Stand Adapter
- Documentation
- 10-Year Warranty
Performance / Features
The build of this microphone is AWESOME! It is an all metal body and has some really nice weight to it. The top of the microphone has an LED indicator so you know it is plugged in and receiving power. On the bottom of the microphone, it has a 3.5mm Headphone Port & Headphone Volume control. This allows for zero-latency monitoring.
The microphone has a 28mm Dynamic Capsule with a Cardioid polar pattern. It picked up audio a little bit farther off to the sides and a little farther back than I would have liked. This means it will pick up a bit of room noise or background noise, but this does have a benefit. It means it has a forgiving polar pattern, allowing you to move a few inches in each direction without the sound of your voice dropping too much which is GREAT when podcasting.
The frequency response is 40Hz - 14kHz. On the voice, I think it sounds great, but I should mention that I am partial towards broadcast microphones, and I like the tone of it. Some people may not like the sound. For acoustic & electric guitar, I don't think the mic performed that well. This is no surprise since the microphone is marketed as a PODCAST microphone, implying it is designed for voice, and not instruments.
It offers 18-bit and 8kHz - 48kHz recording resolution. Something else I need to mention is the amazing performance when it comes to noise generated by the microphone. Most USB mics develop excessive noise around 65-75% mic gain. I didn't begin to hear any excessive noise until I hit 90-95% on this mic.
Pros
- GREAT Voice Tone
- Built in Pop Filter
- Plug & Play
- Zero-Latency Monitoring
- Awesome Build Quality
- 10-YEAR WARRANTY!!!
Con
- Does not perform well on Instruments
- Lacks Mic Gain Control
Conclusion
This microphone is AMAZING, but as I stated in the video, it fulfills a very specific need. It was designed for podcasters, meaning it was fine tuned to sound good on voice, and that's exactly what it does. It sounds great on voice. When you try to expand the use and record instruments, it performs decently, but it lacks the shimmer required for acoustic, and doesn't accurately capture the electric.
That being said, if you are a solo podcaster who will be recording near your computer all the time, OR if you want to up your voice over game for YouTube, I would 100% recommend it. However, I would recommend getting the shockmount or a nice boom arm to avoid the mic picking up table bumps, or spring noise from your boom arm.
If you have any additional questions about this mics, leave them in the comments on this site or on the youtube channel, and I will try to reply ASAP.
Buy the Rode Podcaster
US: http://amzn.to/1rHo6kV
UK: http://amzn.to/1T5Pl1V
