USB vs. XLR Microphones - Do USB Microphones Sound Good Enough For Recording Vocals?
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- Опубликовано: 26 сен 2022
- This video is focused on USB vs XLR microphones, and whether or not USB microphones are good enough for vocals.
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THE FAKE ACCENT IS CLASSIC
By any question how would you tell the key difference between clarity and crispy audio if they are really similar in sound?
Hey Edward do u recommend if I use an xlr to usb cable and plug it into my mac book do u think the audio will sound good yes or no pls respond
I'd offer a correction:
you CAN record with multiple USB mics. So many free digital audio interface programs have multiple mic inputs available, regardless of which mic is your main one in the computer settings. VoiceMeeter is a great program to get around that, even with the very slight latency
And pulsemeeter for Linux.
Your comment makes my day today. Thanks a lot!
How do you get around the latency with a usb mic
I was cancelling my purchase of 3 usb mics. Now I will not.
The owner seeing where his mic went
I found a broken usb mic under a couch of a house I was remodeling. Took it home and re soldered the input and....power. Turned out to be one of the best sounding mics I have for my voice. Don't even know the make/model off hand, never cared. Sound is all that matters. It's older now but it never struck me as a super cheap one. Nice free find
I actually checked a few weeks ago after I posted the comment, just out of curiosity. It says "producer usb". I think its a old m-audio model? I have tape from when I fixed it covering the capaule cover...where the make logo probably is. Idk 🤷♂️. Probably wasn't very expensive but I don't care if it was only $20. It sounds good (on my voice at least, and thats a pretty rare thing lol). It sounds nice as a acoustic guitar room mic too. I just gotta gain it carefully when I use it as a room mic tho or it gets a little self noise. Nothing major, amd it only ends up revealing itself after some thick compression and saturation. Surprise! Sneaky little prick 😆
Modern mics just aren't built as they were used to. I think the older or vintage ones just have better magnets and wiring?
Agree I love my usb condenser mic
@@XMGi00 Ah yes. Gotta love those ancient really old USB microphones from way back in good old days of 2005. Because nothing says vintage like the mid 2000s amirite?
@@spamspasm8183lmao
Xlr definitely sounded better to me but when mix I think majority cannot tell the difference haha! Love the content bro❤️🔥❤️🔥
Thank you so much for supporting the channel!!
the truth, is there is no difference between us if you don't have a mix table. Xlr is not to "upgrade" the quality
The XLR sounds a bit fuller to me but I've also been a musician for a majority of my life so my ear is trained to an extent. I don't think the average Joe would be able to tell at all
lot of griiiiii griiiii
No
Epic vocal peformance btw! Could not listen to microphone quality due to insane amount of feel you put into vocals! A+ man! A+.
Short, high quality, and straight to the point. Loved it
Two things… I appreciate how to the point and concise this review was. Secondly… I was not prepared for what a great voice you had. That song was awesome. Thanks for both.
Bro, I love the character of your voice in the song you’re singing!
Thanks for making this info available for beginners! BTW you've absolutely fine-tuned the fantastic range and make excellent use of your voice!
First time on your channel and second video about how to choose a mic. The X sounded good at first, then thick; the + sounded thin; the XLR was a nice middle ground and more subtle, but man, I was so stunned by your voice. It rarely makes me realize how much work it takes to ever get close to that quality of singing!
Loved the way you compared the audio! Made it easy to try and pick the differences
Thank you for this review - was super helpful. The comparison and showing people that used it and how they sound like was a brilliant idea. Thanks!
Thanks for watching!
Simple yet concise and straight to the point. Thanks man.
Thanks for watching!!
was NOT expecting u to hit them vocals! fire video family, Thank you
Thanks bro!!🙏🏻
@@EdwardSmithMusic absolutely, thank you for the knowledge
Simple, honest, to the point for the rest of us - thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
The difference is the initial cost. The USB mike one price one piece. The XLR needs many more components which will increase the cost to work correctly.
However when needing replacement, you won't need to replace the other components or equipment (like pre-amp or mixer) every time. Just need to pick for your purpose, I guess.
That's the problem. I can get a good entry level usb mic that sounds great for my current needs for around 70 euros. If I want to invest in equipment I'll be able to keep using and expand on in the form of an audio interface and a proper mic I'm spending more than 200 euros on good entry level equipment (because if I'm gonna go that route there's no point getting the absolute cheapest Behringer stuff) that will get me the same sound.
Thanks for conducting this comparison. Recently I have been testing mics for our nonprofit using a variety of XLR to USB converters, which has proven to be an interesting exercise. I have a future project in mind where I want to record a band using nothing but USB mics to see what the results might be. There are some nice USB mics being made today, for sure. BTW, I found the USB mic in this shootout to be more sibilant and while it sounded pretty good, the XLR produced a more full range of frequencies and knocked the edge of the top end. Cheers.
This comparison is misleading and he left out a lot of information. The AT2020 usb and xlr mics share the same internals so you are going to get the same audio the usb connection is irrelevant. If he had compared a different usb mic it would've sounded different. Same with shures sm7b and their usb version share the same internals so theyll sound similar too. You can make any mic sound amazing with software these days but quality parts do make for a better mic, and the mics need to be tested and put in correct phase.
What's a good convertor? I just got a audio interface for Christmas but I have a usb mic. I don't want to buy another mic if I don't have to.
@@5kdaking334 The converters/signal adapters are used to take a XLR mic, plug it into adapter, which can then be plugged into a USB port. If you have a USB mic, you are plug and play ready, so you don't need a converter.
ruclips.net/video/4cLjVDBCAyk/видео.html
Audio interfaces are typically used with XLR mics, so in order to use the audio interface you will need to purchase a XLR mic. If you would like some ideas of where to start with XLR mics, I am happy to offer my opinion. Questions in forming an opinion would include price limit, what environment it would be used in, what do you want to record with it, how will the recording be used, what audio interface are you plugging into?
@@theglobalzrecordingproject good to know. I got a scarlet audio interface. I just do general music recording. I got a 40 dollar Amazon mic that does me pretty well. I just got studio monitors and an interface for Christmas so I don’t mind upgrading the mic as well.
Great microphones with great and crisp and sounding quality
dope content as usual
Appreciate it!
Nice singing! And, appreciated the confirmation about xlr:)
i got here trying to find out if i got a suiting microphone for recording vocals, but i got an amazing performance on top of it. absolutely beautiful voice! thank you!
Not really a commenter but I came for a mic comparison for podcasting purposes for my son, wasn't watching the video, but when you started singing 😳 my man, incredible sounding vocal!
Nice comparison. I ended up getting several USB microphones before realising that only one could be used at a time. And obviously a USB microphone really needs a computer to use it. XLR microphones can be used with other kit (plugged into a Zoom or Tascam recorder, or into a mixing desk or even a powered PA speaker for example) and if you want to record singing and guitar at the same time (or a duo or whatever else) then having multiple microphones makes a difference.
Another point is that different microphones are good for different things, a fantastic microphone for recording the kick drum may not be the same one you'd use for a piccolo. A great microphone for a choir may not be the same as the one for a single male (or female) voice. It's one of the reasons that many recording engineers use two different microphones on a guitar cabinet (usually a Shure SM57 and a ribbon microphone) and then mix the signals to get the best sound.
So a great podcasting microphone isn't necessarily the best instrument for recording your trumpet solo ...
And you've really made it clear here, thanks!
Well usb mic can work directly to a smartphone
@@justsammir I've not tried it, but it's not surprising as smartphones are basically small tablet computers with a phone app.
You definitely can use multiple USB mics at a time with something like VoiceMeeter
@@Zeromaus Thank you! I'd heard of it, but assumed it mixed them all to a stereo signal and that was all that I could then feed into Cubase/Reaper etc. but I now see it can output up to 8 ASIO channels, which is plenty. Again, many thanks
@@makingmusiconline2309 Happy to help! Best tool I've had in years
the best part of the video. Listening to him singing like an angel, gosh loved it!!
Thank you so much!! 🙏🏻
man everything aside, I just really can't help but notice how much of an AMAZING singer you are
Thank you so much 🙏🏻
I found your videos looking for an easy budget mic but I'm subscribing for your voice
Came here looking for mics. Damn, your voice is fantastic. My wife and daughter loved it too. Great job!
Thank you so much!! 🙏🏻
your voice is amazing!
Thank you 🙏🏻
bro I clicked on this video to learn something and got left in awe when u started singing
Thank you!!
I came here for the review but your voice is just ... amazing.
Thank you so much!! 🙏🏻
You're an amazing singer btw , great vid fam!
The Shure MV51 is probably the best USB mic I've ever seen/used, bought it when it came out, and nobody talks about it. Highly recommend
Damn, you have some awesome local range.. I forgot that I’m looking for a microphone. Very good vocals. I appreciate it.
Thank you! I appreciate your comment 🙏🏻
I heard somewhere that regardless of the hardware you use; if you have the talent, you will still shine. btw, great voice my man!
Wow, thank you!
Holy smokes. Came here to see microphone comparison and fell in love with your singing. Incredible.
man, you have an amazing voice
and that's me saying this (= very rare to say compliments like this)
Thank you so much 😀
woah.. you’re amazing with your vocals 🤩
Your singing was beautiful!
Thank you very much 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Your voice is awesome in the microphone! I love it!
To be honest, I closed my eyes entire time while playing this video twice and I didn't notice any differences at all
Seeing this comparison, though there is a distinct difference when played back to back like that, it makes me realize that I wouldn't realistically be able to tell if someone was using a USB mic for vocals. At least, not with how good they've gotten lately.
At the same time, listening to this comparison as a music producer, I can tell the USB mic's vocals are a bit more... Fragile. Though that lower quality would be fine on its own, any sort of heavy processing would only make those blemishes even worse where the xlr mic would still sound just fine.
Reguardless it really is just a case of knowing your needs, your use cases, and your budget.
Speaking of uses. Just curious your opinion. If someone wanted to do voice-over and ASMR, would it be best to get 2 seperate microphones for 2 differing subjects? Or world it all be dependent on getting enough experience to make 1 microphone work?
Your vdo and sound quality is so good. What is the camera and sound system do you use?
at2020 was my first xlr and I used it for everything from vocals, to horn sections and drum overheads in a two mic setup even! Really is affordable pro stuff.
Nice vocals bro, came for the mic but thoroughly impressed by the vocals.
Thank you!! 🙏🏻
🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷👏🏻, However, there are some high-end USB microphones that can offer sound quality comparable to entry-level XLR microphones. It's important to note that the sound quality of any microphone will depend on many factors beyond just its type of connection, such as its frequency response, polar pattern, and sensitivity.
Do you have a long version of this song ?? I loved it :)
I like the USB-X and XLR, unfortunately not the money for all the stuff beside with an XLR so I will go for the USB-X for recording songs & playing games. Even tho XLR is better for vocals but I don't have much money right now! I hope it's still gonna be good that I go with the USB-X
The song is called bonfire heart by James blunt
Very informative and well produced. I'm trying to UP my game for recording my intros and voice-overs.
Thanks man!! All the best 👌🏻
@@EdwardSmithMusichow can I learn to sing if your not reading this no worries!;
Relaxing video and very important subject
Glad you think so!
amazing voice bro!!
Thanks a ton!
usb mics generally simply have a worse digital converter and amplifier than an audio interface for a xlr mic and you cannot upgrade them without ditching the mic, you also cannot add some additional hardware effects too
I wish you could make a full cover on this song, your voice is amazing 🥵
which song is it?
Sooo where do we download the full version of you singing this song because that was incredible.
Unfortunately I don't have a full version, but thank you so much for the kind comment!
When you started singing James Blunt's song, I forgot I was supposed to be listening to the microphones (I couldn't tell the difference if I'm honest), but I didn't expect you to sound so much like James. That threw me off. 😂 Nice one!
Awesome vid, man. I lve the way you sang at the end I just forget to watch which mic you were testeing . Whats the name of the song? BTW What do you mean by record video audio? Like filmmaking or like takjnghead vids for youtube or what? I´m an actor so I sing too. I was just thinking to buy me the 2020 xlr but I want to start game streaming and making youtube vids too so I´m confised now =( which one you recommend me in the long term to do all of the above?
Great vocals!
i cant understand what you are saying when you sing but dayummm, you sound so good
Haha... I'll take that! 🤣
best microphone... or phones that I have came from an unbranded semi-pro wireless audio setup from a goodwill. Luckily, it had swappable mic ends for lapelle, handheld, or head mounted use, which means 3 spares. Honestly absurdly nice quality considering the kit was 5 bucks, and thats before the no-latency wireless option. Since the 3 mics are identical, just mounted in different ways, I could easily run them off a splitter to record from 3 points at once, or a stereo separator to get 2 channels - passive cables only.
Your voice is amazing 👏
Thank you so much!!
thank you because i’am having trouble getting my micphoneing on the iPad to record
They both sound rly good, and I think the average listener could hear either/or and not notice any real flaws. Not even I would really care. XLR was definitely better, though! Cool video.
Altyd interessant om na jou kanaal te kyk... Is jy in SA, VSA of erens anders? Groetnis
Hi! I wanna know, is the AT2020 USB+ a better choice than a Behringer C1 + Uphoria UM2 overall? In terms of noise and trustness on Windows 10, I can't decide for one of them, there's a lot of criticism on Behringer C1, and I see that you've reviewed both of them on the channel and also the UM2
u have nice sound dude- if u had option now between kali 5 in and yamaha hs7 which one u choose for mix and mastering
dude, i would like to do a cover with you, nice voice! epic
The have the akg lyra and it sounds really good, I was deciding between rode,akg, sennheiser, and neumann mics. I decided to get the akg lyra mic since it works with my android phones from the usb c port but i mainly use it for my pc when in gaming online, and it works with my external dac/amp schiit hel 2 since the schiit hel 2 has an on/off switch, mic input to adjust the mic volume, 2 usb c ports, low/high gain switch, 1/4 headphone output, a volume knob to adjust the volume when you are using headphones or a pair of speakers and a 3.5 mm output for speakers/studio monitors. The schiit hel 2 dac/amp also works with android phones plus it has better sound quality than any of the audio interfaces. I use it on my pc when I'm gaming online since schiit is an audiophile company that prioritizes sound quality at an affordable prices. The akg lyra usb mic has a gain switch with a headphone jack for 0 latency monitoring and a mute switch, I use my sennheiser hd 600 for gaming.
Great voice!
Wow you are a great singer!
Good video! XLR sounds better to my ears!
after watching this video I've come to the conclusion that its my voice that's been fking up my tracks, thanks!
🤣
usb can do multiple at a time you just need an external application like voicemeter and a little bit of config/setup
That's a very cute pop filter, never seen anything like it...
Your voice absolutely good ❤❤❤
XRL gives some kinda "really opened" voice from you, but I can not hear this voice from USB micrafon, the best content ever bro👍
came here looking to make my screams sound better. left here crying after that beautiful song.
ive been using a usb mic. just learned about interfaced and i think i know i need an xlr mic. thank you so much for making this video
Thanks for Bonfire Hearts by James blunt!
For USB mic, will you try Apogee HypeMic. For AT I am worrying about it’s AD/DA part. If you don’t mind, please try the Apogee one🙇🏻♂️
your voice is Incredible
That was a great video. Acapella showed the difference
Glad you liked it!
@@EdwardSmithMusic I was enthralled by it and it really helped me. Great video again. Does rhe XLR come woth the mic clip or is that a separate purchase other then the stand? I can't find where rhe clip would be and rhe stand says clip sold separately
I was thinking about getting the at2020 usbx for my home studio, you think it would preform good?
well, we also have to take into account all audio is destroyed by social media platforms that will use lossy formats optimized for streaming, unless you are in some fancy streaming platform that transmits lossless audio or in some hi-fi player with the dac & amp & headphones up to the task.
I own the usb2020+ and did a vocal comparison test with the XLR that I borrowed from a friend. NO DIFFERENCES IN SOUND AT ALL.
That’s nice tho, I just ordered one now. My fear is latency tho
Especially cuz my last mic gave me that, but I’ll also kinda blame that on pc specs
UPDATE: it actually had no latency, that’s when recording into the playlist directly, but recording with Edison does give latency
@dekaf5983 wow, good troubleshooting..... * 0 *
Is Edison a software or a brand of microphone? 🤔
@@maylin1986 Edison is a recording/editing plugin within FL Studio
saw a comparison some time ago between the usb version and the xlr one, the diference was almost imperceptible, I really needed to focus to tell and even then at least for me the convenience and easyness to pack and travel with is a must for me, also the durability of it, any other mic I don't think it would resist some hits in the box when I travel, this is an all metal body tested for many years as one of the most durable mics there is.
nice singing bro!
Very talented
Thank you!! 🙏🏻
Thank you for the excellent Demo! The USB version to me sounded more compressed, and with some clipping and scintillation that I've heard with other USB microphones, in your case could it be that the XLR microphone recording was using 24-bit and a higher sampling rate than the USB microphone?
Damn great voice !
What a great voice! wow
i actually preferred the AT2020+ over the 2020X, it sounds closer to the xlr version.
Best listened with earbuds/headphones. I can tell the USB ones sound a little "farther away" but the XLR one sounds closer as if he is standing next to u. Best way I can describe it. Tho, Industry standard or not, I can tell it won't matter what u select unless ur recording with multiple instruments at same time, cuz even with the USB (has more latency tho), there r plenty of audio effects u can use to get the sound pretty close to an XLR. But XLR does sound fuller n has the least amount of latency which means u can use even more audio effects than possible without worrying about too high of latency in the end... so it's no wonder why XLR is the Industry standard
XLR sounds better to me. Now I'm curious about how some popular XLRs (recording mics) would compare to a popular live vocal mike such as an SM58 in a recording situation. I'm thinking about recording my 4-man acapella group. Rather than record each vocalist separately I'm considering using 4 SM58s and recording it all at the same time (with some space between each vocalist).
if live/vocal only is the vibe you're going for, using a room mic would work better. a live recording sounds best for a capella, if you wanted to do effects, then doing it individually would work the best
you have two options.
1. buy a condenser microphone to record your vocalist in individual sessions. the reason is because, condenser microphones are sensitive to detail if that is your concern.
2. your option is alright as well, buying 2 to 4 dynamic microphones to record all your vocalist in one room can be a nice option. though, you could definitely find cheaper alternatives than the SM58 if budget is an issue.
Samson 2qu is pretty good!
beyonce used sm57 as her studio mic iirc
large diaphragm condenser mics just suit more people
anyway neither sm59 nor sm57 are usb, don't use usb mics
@@Etsa yes but also quite noisy over usb. I have two of them and their usb noise levels are different too.
Can you do a review of the ,[live the sound card]
Which interface did you use with the xlr one? Great video love your content (:
I used an Audient iD4 - amzn.to/3SyB6Gs
@@EdwardSmithMusic Thanks for your response. I also use that one for my music, it’s a decent one for this test.
You sing awesome. Enough said.
I like your voice, i like your singing, i like the song. It's still in my head. Well done 🙂👍🏻
Thank you so much!! 🙏🏻
holy FUK i did not expect dreamy vocals out of a mic review lol 👍
Thank you so much!! 🙏🏻
You should make blind test for us as when info is displayed I had some impression that xls is a bit better but it might be just self suggestion.
man, when i heard the song, i forgot everything about the microphone))) your voice excellent and song as well. what is the name of that song? can i listen to it on spotify ?
hey man I just got the at 2020x usb and it's my first ever audio technica mic. However, I'm having a bit of a tough time trying to figure out on how to use it right. I tried looking for some reviews and there aren't that many videos on it and the ones who do cover it doesn't dig deep on it. Idk if you still use it or not since you review plenty of different mics, but would you know how to use the at2020x properly? I know there's not a gain knob on the mic so I know I would have to use the input volume in my windows sound settings, but could I use any software for this mic? Right now, I'm using OBS and CakeWalk. Also, what input level should I have for the mic? when I record on audacity the levels seem very low and I would usually have the input around 60%-80%. it definitely does get louder when I get a bit close to the mic but since this is a condenser mic, I thought I would have to be more than a fist length away. I really like the mic and want to avoid returning it so I'm trying to figure this mic out but ofc if I possibly have a faulty one then I have no choice. I'm really new to the mic world lol so I've been spending a lot of time learning lol.
how do you combat the latency that comes with the USB microphones when recording and what software do you use?
The problem with USB mic is probably that if the internal ADC breaks, it breaks, increasing the likelihood of the whole thing breaking.
That being said, I don't know anyone with a broken USB mic so maybe this is not a big deal.
Thanks for this tutorial!
I'd like to ask you if you have any Audio Interface rather than you mentioned because I've noted it is expensive for me.
Remember, I need to use it with at2020 XLR.
Thanks again!
I would recommend you the Behringer Uphoria UMC22, or in the lower end, UM2