Love the video but I do have a question, I'm using the LOGITECH PRO X GAMING HEADSET microphone and frankly its awesome, every person that I game with Discord loves the voice but here comes the problem, it can pickup all the sounds in the house! I tried to do noise reduction but still it picks up the sounds around the house, so what should I do? I tried to record my videos on my channel but I stopped because of this issue. Appreciate @senpaigaming if you have any suggestions to improve my situation and thank you.
Great Video Harris!! MousePads are amazing! For sure getting the largest one in all white with black lines for my white setup. Again thank you and all your team for an amazing content!
you know a lot about audio and a lot about mics why don't you make a mic it is like what bruse lee knew what was wrong with Martials arts and came up jeet ko do so do what he did except with a mic
@@ASDdoesgames I think I bring way more value to the market by working with these companies, giving feedback, and helping them fine tune features than I ever could by releasing my own mic myself. I don’t plan to commit the same sin that I’m calling these companies out for.
Not even 5 minutes into the video “this software is bad because I read a few comments that it sucks” holy shit what a worthless video. Yes, let’s please call these stupid audio products out, but we should do far better than how it’s done in this video. “Gaming” audio has always and probably will always be a joke. We shouldn’t need to cut corners to prove that… Big L
Basically any multipart mic setup will be significantly better than all-in-ones like the mics shown in the video. Always upgradable and can always get better. Plus parts can be resold on the used market and fund towards better gear.
I think Harris is absolutely correct here. There is sooo much in the way of companies releasing unfinished crap and then never fixing it. We need to tell them that it's not ok. Whatever happened to reporting to the netter business bureau.
@TheNerdArmory no I meant it in there's too many companies out there releasing crap. So much so that it's become the norm. My thoughts traveled faster than my thumbs.
They’re absolutely overloaded, along with any other regulatory body. Eastern (particularly chinese) import products through amazon, and to do so they need an american company, so all their cheap, trashy products become the problems of our regulatory bodies, who end up not protecting anyone or anything due to the sheer amount of things they need to do.
@@nottucksBBB Is useless too, only companies with a slight bit of care may entertain your complaints. Otherwise BBB will dock there rating and tell you sorry tell the guy not to call you bad names.😂
I went with the podmic and wave xlr combo, absolutely no problems AT ALL!! and the wavelink software makes routing audio soooooo easyyy. This channel is truly a gold mine for creators.
I’ve been looking at a lot of Mics a lot and I think the Podmic is what I’m going to go with. I plan to get the Podmic USB so I don’t need the wave xlr.
Wavelink is fantastic paired with a Stream Deck +. I am looking at the Wave XLR and getting rid of my GOXLR. What is the gain rating at on the Wave XLR?
@@amadmonstergaming the podmic usb doesnt have a gain button so if you plan to stream games or plug it into your game console that mic in usb form isnt the best to use without a computer with the rode software because otherwise you will not be loud enough for the game you're streaming so i will still recommend the wave xlr or another interface cause the podmic can be quite gain hungry
@@amadmonstergaming if I were you i would just spend the extra $50 and get the regular podmic ($99) plus the $150 for the wave xlr. And I dont think you get rode unify with the podmic usb, its only if you get an “X” product like de xdm-100, xcm-50 and streamer X
Nothing is ever gonna be worse than 99% of gaming headsets out there, especially back in the 2000s and 2010s. Holy shit... People paid big bucks for an audio experience miles behind what 15€ in ear sonys were offering...
He meant people using the same topography design, not as in the same style (topography) but as in the same design within that style. Imagine it like him saying "Everybody uses the red topography design, so you can buy my blue topography design". Makes sense?
Your video was very well-designed. It was meticulously put together and thought out. May I offer a critique, though? The title of your video is a little misleading, as you might already be aware. You listed companies to buy from that are either gaming companies or marketed towards gaming. To be less misleading, one might expect you to list microphones from companies that are not gaming-oriented and don't market to gamers, like Electro-voice, sE Electronics, etc.... Great video for RUclips. I'm happy for your success.
What's wild is that there are a ton of ~$50-~$100 USB/XLR mic options that are really solid mics. The Fifine AM8 (shown in the video), Fifine K688, Maono PD200X, etc., etc., etc. None of them are perfect, but they blow each of the gamer mic in this video out of the water.
I agree with you 100%. I own two of the mics you mentioned for voice-over work using a 6 channel sound mixer. I also have other mics by Maono as well. Great choices you made my friend. They sound amazing and you can't beat the price point at all.
Having worked in a recording studio I can agree, any time tested standard 'stage mic' will work and have superior sound. It boggles the mind how much people will spend on a Blue "Yeti" mic where an Audio-Technica AT2020 is clearly better and cheaper, even a RØDE PodMic😅 I get that some may be on a budget looking to start their 'career' as an influencer, but they could pick up a SM58 on ebay for like $20 or Behringer C-1 for $45 But, but.... RGB!!!! 🤑💸💸 $400 on 'gamer' mic just to sound like a kid in CoD shrieking when they should get a Shure SM7b. 🤦
You're 100% right, but as I'm not a streamer my main buying points were: I want a standalone mic, I want it to be better then what I have now, I want it to look good and the hyperx one checks all those boxes for me personally
the hyperx quadcast s is prolly the best "gaming" mic, its not GREAT but its still like you said good looking, and it works quite well (especially when you add in an eq to boost the bass and mids)
@@00Cubic personally have a quadcast (just the red one, not the s). i just use it for gaming VC, random recording projects, etc. everything sounds super clean through it. if you post process stuff it would do what anyone wants. hyperx has id say more experience than the other brands with their emphasis on headsets (i literally use cloud alphas for my go-to reference headphones. compared them to sennheiser hd600s one time and I couldn't tell the frickin difference) but yeah definitely not "audio brand" level of refinement in the mic department.
i rarely purchase gaming products these days; the only gaming-related product i have right now is a Logitech G Pro Superlight. instead of buying inferior quality gaming products, i have bought a Sure MV7 Mic, Moondrop Blessing 2 IEMs and a custom keyboard.
Me and you have the same setup lol. I’ve gotten a little more into the headphone game so I don’t use my blessing 2s as much anymore but we’re rocking almost the same everything
Yeah, same. My mic for years has been the Shure SM7B. Knew I wanted a tank of a mic. My headphones are HD650 and IEMs Xenns Mangird Top. My mouse is a Vaxee AX Outset to get away from failing "gaming" mice. My keyboard is the only Razer product I have. Never had a problem with their keyboard really BUT I also stopped using Synapse. I feel like for a while now "gaming peripherals" companies have gotten away from solid pieces and just slap their logo on everything they know people will buy. Because in a way it is new and shiny but also seeing a logo some don't think they won't make bad products.
@@darth_cheezus how are the xenns mangird top for you? i've been thinking of upgrading from my blessing 2 dusks and im not going to get the new dusks since they kinda suck imo they're only good on the dsp cable which is a shame like yea i can eq it with the normal cable but cmon and i feel like there are better iems anyway so instead of upgrading to something a little better i want to go full endgame this time and spend a bunch on a really good iem that i'll never want to replace and that will last
@@gyrotta They have been amazing for me. Stem size is a bit large and haven’t found a tip yet that is good for ear size. They are the first IEMs I got and blind bought from reviews. It was between them and the variations. Yeah I was looking at the new Dusk for a cheaper pair but it surprised me how “critical” the cable was. I am worried to go below my range because of sound quality but want a pair I can be a bit more comfortable taking outside. Gaming, streaming and listening to music in house is mainly Top or HD650 but mainly IEM.
@@darth_cheezus i see im asking since now im torn between the monarch mark 3's from thieaudio the shouer ej07m and the xenns top so im looking at these 3 since they have mostly what i want from an iem which is good imaging and separation and this one is more specific towards the shouer the blending in with the dac/amps i've seen a review on the shouers and apparently they blend in with the dac/amp that you are using which sounds really nice
This is the most enjoyable experience I have had watching a YT video in a while, although I am not into streaming or audio. From the clean video structure, editing, audio, lighting, to the description. Well done
Before content creation i watch a bunch of your videos and trusted your opinions. You spoke about budget mics and then when you could upgrade, however these 5 are exactly why i did so much reasearch before buying anything budget. Im glad to see someone holding companies accountable but in a fair way. Great info Senpai keep up the amazing work you do
I've been trying to fight this fight for years to prevent people over-spending on garbage equipment. I remember back when Razer first put out the Siren, years ago, the first review (ad, really) I saw of it included a portion where the reviewer talked about how much they loved the 'crisp' sound of the mic. It was clipping. Can't save everyone, I guess.
Reminds me of when I bought a USB mic that straight up didn't have gain settings, and the preset gain was so silent that it was way too close to the noise floor. Shit pissed me off so much I spent 263€ on an interface and XLR mic. I'm literally not gonna risk buying a USB mic ever again cuz a crapton of them seem to be made by people who don't care for people who don't know. Literally out here scamming people and I'm mad I fell for it.
Blue yeti X didnt fail me at all.. also the previous version of the blue yeti before it was taken over by logitech worked as a charm. those are like hidden gems. You can control the gain on it and volume, mic/sound monitor. these are usb mics
ye, there is nothing wrong with it from a recording sound perspective. It is just for the price, it could do with a few more features. It sounds pretty good.
stop buying anything from companies who don't specialize in that item. don't buy a keyboard from corsair, they're a memory company. don't buy a headset from asus, they're a motherboard company. i've been burned one too many times fanboying and getting an all one brand setup and then it takes a shit piece by piece. get your stuff from people who know what the hell they're doing
This has been a thing in the gaming community for awhile, and even gaming purists have taken their content creation with a straighter edge. We don't go to gaming companies for streaming gear. We go to the guys who focus on that type of stuff, OR go into the professional world to make sure we don't mess up. We choose companies like Elgato and Logitech (for their cameras), because we know they're good with it. We choose companies like AudioTechnica, Sennheiser, Bose, and Shure, because we know they specialize in Audio. The second we hear about "HyperX came out with a microphone," that should be an immediate red flag, because they specialize in gaming gear. Great keyboards, good mice... but headphones and microphones? Big ol' red flag. There's a reason why the Shure SM7B micorphone is used by gamers...
Just bought the Fifine AM8 XLR mic and gonna get an XLR interface. Already sounds crisp through USB, it's gonna sound even better once I have it through XLR
On the contrary, in my humble opinion, the HyperX Quadcast is a decent microphone. It does need refinement on its "Extra Features & Gimmicks" and the price is on the high side but as a condenser microphone, it is a decent product overall.
I’m a horrible person cause I bought the new Quadcast S on Amazon and they set on my doorstep, it was under another package “hiding” in the picture, Amazon stated “your order should be there soon” I never said anything and they refunded me and I kept the mic 🫢lol .. oh well. It seems like a good mic but that bottom knob should have micro-lock clicks maybe 100 of them, and not a loose gain disc.
@@Jwebbplayz I bought a Quadcast (the OG one) like 2 days after it released. At the time, I don't think there were as many options? But yeah I also have issues with the gain knob. I just taped mine so it won't move. Without tape, I do bump into it a lot. Overall, it's a good mic especially if you could get it for like $50 (which seems like a **somewhat** common sale price).
I was going to comment just this. I have the Quadcast and I love it. My buddies say the quality is incredible, and I don't really mind the gain knob at all. I can slam my fists on my desk and it won't even move or change. Definitely don't think it should've been included in this video.
Thank you, I'm by no means an expert in anything audio related, so this was really helpful. I was really considering buying the SteelSeries microphone, as I'm a fan of some of the other stuff they make, but this made me change my mind.
This sort of thing makes me really concerned for Neat mics. Logitech bought Blue and then got rid of most of their mics except for these new ones that are... not as good. The original Worker Bee and King Bee were awesome and affordable; the 2nd versions were fine, but they seemed to have electrical issues. Now they're owned by Turtle Beach and I just cannot imagine this leading to anything other than a decrease in quality.
Sorry if this is a dumb question, but what's it called when a software (or maybe hardware does it?) auto levels your quiet moments to be louder, and peak moments to be lower? Basically to have the same average volume. I have a mixer with a compressor on it and all it does is completely mute during loud volumes, which isn't what I'm looking for. I believe Harris covered it in a previous video, but I can't find it.
I have the HyperX Quadcast, I got it years ago as my first ever microphone, it was quite a long time before Elgato popped up as competition, if I remember right, I was deciding between the Quadcast and a blue yeti, from my extremely basic knowledge of microphones, I am still very very happy with my microphone, I’ve managed to EQ it to sound better than default and with the help of Nvidia Broadcast, the issues of “condenser mic picks up everything” is much less, though I do really want to get myself a dynamic microphone and I have been eyeing the beacn mic since you first reviewed it.
Same, I have a hyperX quadcast and had zero problems with it (i dont know what he is talking about accidently changing gain.. its literally knob ). I'm always asked in cs2 or valo if im a streamer, cause my mic sounds so good lol. absolutly worth every penny
@@bruce_wayne I've used mine for 2 and a half years now, and I do bump into the gain knob (he was talking about the gain, not the mode knob) from time to time. It's not a big deal cause I always look if I'm peaking or not. But he is right, you can bump into it and it is indeed too loose. The mic is good if you really need the other modes (I used them for podcast and streams at a sofa full of people, so I wanted one mic that could do all that, only reason I got the quadcast S), but if you don't, there are way better mics out there for the same price or cheaper
I'm having issues with mine. My friend says my volume goes high and low suddenly and sometimes it doesn't recognize my voice. Any idea how to fix this?
Been using a Blue Yeti Nano for years. Originally, it was fantastic quality audio. Well, fantastic to my expectations lol. But for the past few years, I've had numerous software issues with it. Stuff like Logitech buying out Blue/Sherpa and not even realizing I needed to ditch the Sherpa software app for Logitech's G Hub to update the mic. Which solved some device driver issues I was having, and gave me back that audio quality I thought I lost forever. But since then, it's a game of roulette whether or not the Blue mic will actually work right when my PC starts up. Either it works great and my voice quality is clear and warm, or it comes through heavily distorted. No apparent reason why, no clue what part of my setup could be the culprit. (And I know there could be any of many parts that could be causing the issue. But troubleshooting the problem all sorts of different ways has left me exhausted.) So I came across your video, and I thank you! I'm getting that Rode Podmic soon! I just got the USB edition since I apparently refuse to do the whole XLR setup. But I'm sure I'll be glad I did.
alpha gaming helped me setup my twitch stream 3 years ago. you gave so much great information, I now understand audio much more because of your videos, and what to look out for. great call out. I've used the wave xlr and the submixes along w/ a samson q2u and it's a great combo. Elgato has me as a long term customer, they've been constantly updating both the wave xlr and stream deck for years after release.
When I started my channel, I had Razer everything. I quickly learned my mistake and got everything upgraded over time. I use the Elgato Wave ecosystem exclusively now. I also use a Mackie DLZ Creator XS too. My mic is the Blue Sona and the Elgato Wave DX. My webcam is the Logitech MX Brio and the Elgato FaceCam Pro, (currently saving for a mirrorless camera). Videos like yours have helped me so much! I appreciate it man!
What's pretty interesting, some gaming companies can make good microphones and headphones and other devices for streaming, recording or general use, most of my setup is from Genesis and what I'm using is a part of the older gen, which might be why they don't have any special software but it still does a good job for my video recording and general use needs
Thank you Harris! So happy to hear that Elgato has great audio as I am a few weeks away from buying the Wave XLR and Strean Deck Plus for my dual PC setup.
I hope so. Side note I spent most of the weekend wondering why the Wave Link software would not unlock with the Stream Deck +. The solution was to use 1.9.2 software as the newer version of Wave Link Software wouldn't. Now I'll be spending the next few days setting it all up. 😅
Loved the video, but I have one small suggestion. Use more audio samples from the microphone(s) to let us compare and have an opinion on the audio quality. Not saying I don't believe you, but we're just expected to take your word for it for the entirety of this video. You're telling us they're bad, but show us that they're bad!
I use a Razer Seiren Mini and it took a lot of tweaking and filtering with OBS to get it to sound the way it does. Thank you for the mic recommendations and for this video explaining everything!
I also have it, it's actually great value, it took me 15 min to configure it with VOICEMEETER Virtual Audio Mixer. I love how it sounds. My best Razer product yet.
it's probably one of the better product the razer produces because it doesn't require the crappy razer synapse. In my country it's now selling $30 which is a great deal, it's actually a pretty decent mic and easily configurable to make it sound better. Surprisingly, I think it's one of the only razer microphone that I would recommend if you are looking for a cheap decent mic for zoom, budget streams, voice over and online meetings. Though if you are on a higher budget like $100+ it is much better to put your money on "actual audio brands" rather than "gaming companies".
The value I hold in these type of reviews is next to none. Truly appreciate the honest and work in making sure we the consumers, specifically streamers, have someone who gives it to us straight. ❤
same goes for " gaming headsets" get one of the mics you mentioned, plus some audiophile earphones like the 58x, audeze lcd2c...and it just makes the gaming and streaming experience a lot better.
i have hyperx cloud alphas and i thought they sounded pretty good with the custom eq i made for them. well my friend bought some beyerdynamic dt770 pros, i listened to them and i realized i wasted my money
I have the shure srd440 headset and it was SUCH a change for the same price of a arctis steel series headset, around 300 ron (can't remember which model the steel series headset was)
They slap "gaming" on it and people eat it right up. The costumers are being mislead. Not everyone is an audio nerd so they are just taking advantage of that fact, at least that what it seems like to me
Im an audio and recording engineer now, but in high school I was a huge gamer. This video went straight for my soul. The way my stomach dropped when you showed the polarity switches on the HyperX mic…. Why? That is such a niche tool? Like I cannot imagine a use case for any polar pattern other than cardioid aside from band recordings and room calibration!? 17:30 I also just want to make a moment to shoutout Røde for this software. It’s in collaboration with the APHEX Vintage series of audio processing units. I have worked with many artists big and small, in many studios, in many genres. I am not joking when I say the APHEX series (especially the Exciter) goes on EVERY song, and I’m not alone in this. It’s like a holy grail. To have that baked into the software in such an intuitive way… Wow. Just wow.
youre so good at being an engaging and non copy paste "host" in these vids man its engaging and i can tell you developed that on purpose and its appreciated
im running the shure mv7 USB/XLR mic and for half the price of the sm7b im absolutely loving it. The ones you have in the video are also amazing, ive run the rode one and i loved it
I bought a Beacn mic for streaming and creating (also because for some reason Beacn mic's sound is amazing on discord) and as soon as I got my sound profile etc right, my keyboard broke that had my OBS shortcut keys saved, making me unable to stream. But that lifestory being said, it's the best mic I've EVER bought, sure it's a bit tedious to set-up the perfect sound setting for your voice, office space, etc. But it sounds amazing. Hopefully I can get back into creating again soon. Your video about Beacn Mic made me buy it, and I don't regret it at all!
I currently have the Hyper X, had it for maybe a few years, and there are times where I would hit the mic accidentally. And because I'm no sound expert I never really heard the difference when I edit my videos. So when I look at the mics recommended, I'm looking at the Rode PodMic, mainly for cheap pricing. But when you said that the Rode more on the Pro Audio side that would be more familiar for people that have experience with audio mixing, I kinda hesitated. But can I still get it for streams and simple recordings? Edit: I just purchased the BEACN Mic maybe an hour after watching thsi.
I'm an audio engineer and a voice actor. I'm very snobby about sound and features. I tried a lot of different pro setups for my stream, and to be honest, the Wave XLR is just incredible. It's old and simple but damn it, it just works. It simplifies everything and sounds better than it should if you have a good microphone. And if you understand how to instantiate plugins onboard the Wave XLR then you can get incredible real time effects that can tweak your sound to near perfection. My only complaint is that I wish it had outputs for my audio monitors. I'd use it for everything then. But Elgato is smart and they build for a specific use case. And they just nailed the Wave XLR for that use case. Period. BUS powered, sounds great, tiny footprint, simple use, powerful features, low price.
Only complaint about Elgato mics is they all seem to have harsh high-mids, quite a yucky frequency range to have issues with. Can leave people with higher pitched or softer voices sounding nasally or whiney.
I remember using a Blue Yeti and had nothing but problems with my audio like background noise and peeking. Unnecessary stress. So I decided to get the shure mv7. Xlr mics are the way vs usb ones. haven't had to worry about my audio ever again after that. I like to actually be in control of my audio, is that too much to ask?
I have a sc425 here because i switched from using gaming headsets to dt770 + headphone amp years ago for general voice chat. I never properly thought about configuring the gain which made the microphone sound fine. Because you mentioned it now, i tried to properly configure the gain and volume and it sounds really fucking good now. Thanks.
gaming things that is supposed to be Mouse, Keyboard, Monitor (only for gaming usage), Mousepad, and PC Spareparts gaming things that is should not touch Audio, Recording things (elgato already done a good job), Chair (ergonomic problem), Lightings, Camera.
It's thanks to you that I went from a very basic mic to an elgato wave to a beacn mic. from cheap & basic to good to amazing. love the beacn mic, easy to use software once you do the research (or watch your video). sounds amazing!
The HyperX Quadcast is probably the best USB mics i've ever had. Plug and play with no extra software that you really don't need to use and the audio quality is second to none. Unless you're a full time streamer, you don't need an XLR setup. That dial isn't for gain, it's the mic monitoring dial.
Wrong. That dial IS for gain. It's literally listed as the gain dial in the materials that come with the mic. The mic monitoring is controlled in the HyperX software. How do I know this? I tested it months back. Also watched numerous reviews before I bought it. Great mic, I agree on that. But that dial IS the gain dial, and it IS sensitive (easy to move unintentionally). There is no physical dial on the mic that controls monitoring.
@@joemorganti895 If I had to guess, I would think maybe you are increasing the mic gain, thus making the output to your headphones louder. It is 1000% gain and if yours doesn't work that way, somebody royally screwed up at the factory, which I doubt. In fact, just to be sure, I''ll do a quick test recording into Audacity with mine, as it is always hooked up at my desk as my backup. They really are great sounding mics after you get them dialed in...Just verified to make sure I'm not crazy. It is Gain. I recorded into Audacity and saw the waveform grow and shrink as I turned the dial.
No offense but i feel like the HyperX is thrown in there unfairly - we can speculate as to why, but its a great mic and fits 90% of peoples needs. Sure, you might knock that dial and it might not be ticked out all the way, but thats intentional. Most people will be in that 5 dot range, and for plug and play and ease of use you just tweak it with the dial. And if you DO knock it you dont have to count/remember "was I 39 ticks or 42?" youre instead like "oh yeah middle dot" I have yet to see an actual BAD review of it. Sure, not top shelf, but to put it in a "these are 5 terrible mics" video - its suspicious
Here's a simple rule of thumb: If it says, 'Gaming', don't buy it. Look at the specs and find a better one for the same price or the same specs for cheaper. Marketing is psychological warfare. It doesn't work when you see it.
Hey ive watched the whole video and i think most of this is completely true. Ive had the HyperX QuadCast S for around 5 months and it's worked out really great for me and personally the quality sounds amazing, i haven't much with any settings or stuff like that since i only stream to my friends and don't find it very important. The first month of having it i was getting really frustrated about the gain at the bottom that you can rotate, since almost everytime i had to put the microphone elsewhere it would rotate the gain slightly, so eventually i got millimeter displays laser printed onto it. So in personally i would definitely recommend the HyperX QuadCast S if you have anything to put markers on it so you know where your preferred gain is, And if you don't need to move the microphone ever then it's definitely a good choice. Yes it doesn't really give you anything super advanced but it's a solid microphone with a nice build and weight and straight out of the box just plugged in it sounds great.
The fact that you can buy a usb mic from audio focused brand from 10 years ago and got a better sound quality speaks a lot about the gaming gear market.
Your "Big 3" didn't include Audio Technica or Shure. The AT2020 and the SM7B are the gold standard for content creation, but you didn't even mention these. The 2020 doesn't even need a mixer.
....ok so the hyper x and the logitech arent great because of the software (but you could download and use a different software) but you recommend 2 others where you have to do the exact same thing?
for a normie. . .downloading 3rd party software and configuring isnt a daily routine, when the other two come pre-configured, along with exponentially more features
I absolutely love my setup, that's cheap but extremely effective. I'm using a Samson Q2U, with Moondrop CHU II IEM's. Sub $100, incredible quality on both the sound and the mic.
@@Dragonyy-sb51So i should research half of the expected content on the video outside the video because he didnt put one of the most important things while comparing products? Straight to never recommend again
i dont remember anything about this lol, but eh, do what u have to. just saying that because either I deal with stuff or don't. if i don't feel like it then i don't do it, yknow. have a good day, i guess. idk man, it just is what it is i guess.
Sheesh! Nonsense. Sin 1 - Dissing microphone hardware because it does not come with fancy schmancy mixing software is irrelevant. How it sounds is all that matters. Moreover, dissing a truly cheap, budget mic because it is not as good or have as much software as an expensive model is comparing apples to kumquats. The lack of a headphone jack is totally immaterial. I don't want my MICROPHONE to be a SOUND CARD ... it is a microphone, for Peet's Sake. Sin 2 - The fact they do not add new features is a non-issue. I want a microphone - not a complicated studio on a stand. The fact it has similar features as other products in the same price bracket merely says it competes with those other products on a 1:1 basis. Failing to add new features is NOT a problem. Consider bicycles - they all work pretty much the same. Competition is usually a good thing and providing consumers visual and audible choices is good and keeps prices low by fostering competition. So what if Company A and Company B make similar products - that merely suggests there is a big market with room for more than one manufacturer, which is usually good for consumers. Frankly, we do not all need all the features the fancy products provide in the software. Sin 3 - You are totall wrong about gain staging and never needing to change it on the fly. Moreover, you diss some products for lacking controls you can use on the fly -and then claim one should set them and never change them. This inconsistency is a fatal flaw. Sin 4 - Microphone therory is hardly rocket science and not limited to audio equipment companies. Besides, these products are most likely made by highly skilled and engineered OEM manufacturers for the gaming equipment companies. Like there is no reason an audio equipment company knows more than other mic manufacturers. The fact one mic has poor gain staging, hardly indicts the whole field of microphones that have gain controls. Besides, your clipping demo fails to explain or prove whether the sound is actually peaking or whether there is a compression circuit doing that. The fact it clips flat at a lower level than your recording software clipping point proves the point. Software is not an issue - nobody worth his salt uses the software that comes with their microphone - they use a high quality package - rendering it immaterial. But the worst aspect of this video is the obvious condescension portraying the narrator as something special. The hair do tells me more than I want to know, and yes, visual appearance IS relevant to establishing a speaker's credibility - if a guy makes a fashion statement, he should not be heard to object when someone else makes a counter statement. Sorry, even if the narrator is correct about the quality of the microphones mentioned, this video does not prove the point. JT
hey @senpai want your opinion on what mic is best for my scenario. im wanting a cardioid mic to play with buddies on pc and looked at the hyperx and logitech ones you have in the video. ive looked at the elgato too but im mainly looking for simplicity and more along plug and play style so whats the best route. not sure how itd work but do microphones play nice with equalizers cause the headphones i have are the dt770s(no external dac just running through front 3.5mm jack) through peaceAPO and i dont know how having 2 different softwares running would work.
I am sorry to say that I like my Hyper X mic. I paid $78.99 on sale over 18 months ago.. on black Friday sale on Amazon. So for me it took about 30-45mins to set up in OBS for it sound good and it work great for me... is the best no but I loved to have Elgato wave 3 at the time it was over $160..vs $80 and money is not all ways easy for everyone... sorry but I disagreed with you on the Hyper X mic for this one, But thank you for the video...
Thanks for the real talk here, Harris. As a product lead for one of the "gaming" brands, and as a music producer myself, I can confidently say that we absolutely care about the quality of product and are taking steps to combat the "sins" you've listed being committed. Be in touch soon =)
Hi, Im looking for a new mic for around 80 euros. Ive been searching my opinions, im not a streamer or anything, and want to use it just for gaming and chatting. I dont know what to do, i like the looks of the hyperx quadcast/quadcast S, but dont know about the performance and was also considering a hyperx duocast as good option. After this video i dont know if i should still buy either of those, do you have any advice?
Senpai Gaming is one of the product reviewers I follow and trust. Without him, I woudn't have found the elgato wave 3 microphone in which I have been using constantly for the past 4 years, since release. So far, I'm so happy with the product I cound't find any alternative to it. The sound quality and the functionality brings VALUE to the consumers and content creators that's why I bought. It's been my best friend ever since. Keep it up!
This was a great video! I really appreciated your going over gain and how it works. If you could (if you've already done this, I must have missed it) would you consider make a video explaining how to discover the proper gain settings for a microphone? You have a great way of explaining things, and I feel like you going over it would be incredibly beneficial! *Edit - poor, distracted grammar*
This video is a REQUIREMENT. I've noticed this when going through audio samples and observing which mic streamers generally use.... alot of these companies generally don't care as long as it's being bought by consumers... they lack innovation and perfection which just brings down the value of the product imo.
I was very happy with my SteelSeries Alias mic after switching from a HyperX Quadcast... but I just recently bought the Wave:3 and there is no way I can go back to a gaming company microphone. Thanks for the video!
first time seeing your channel. the way you explain things and your speaking pattern is outstanding. if you were a salesperson, you would take all of my money!!
There's so much bad gamer gear out there Harris. I'm glad some content creators are coming out and actually saying something about it. Streamers aren't exactly AV experts. I work in AV and I laugh when I hear some recommendations on gear from people.
best person ive ever seen on this dogpoop website telling the truth and literaly not begging like everyone else for likes or subs. and he has a wonderfull vioce i can listen to him every secound
This gaming mics are $100 shees you can buy a AT2020 at that price and it will just kill all the mics. There are some brands like Moano specially makes such good quality mics for such a low price like there mic and Boom arm kit is perfect man.
Thanks for the video while I do have the hyperx quadcast I don’t think I’ll ever buy a different one for a while but I will be looking into mic gain more. I have mine set to 100 without thinking much about it. I’ll probably see what I can change on it
Thx!! It was VERY useful. I was just doubting about buying game mic for 80$ or elgato wave 3 for 1600$ and spend a few hours researching and your video have actually putted a final dot. Interesting that you've posted it right at my birthday)))) Thanks for the late gift, i guess😋. Also, maybe you can recommend something better for this price? I would appreciate it A LOT. I am newbie in mics, in audio in general, I need it to voice videos, mostly separate from recording, without studio environment
I bought the Beacn Mic after your review (and a few others, gotta be sure before buying something on a whim lol), and I gotta say, to this day, it is STILL one of the BEST purchases I've ever made. With that being said, I do have a single issue to this day with the mic, and that is the cable itself. There's nothing really wrong with the cable itself, it's a SOLID USB-C cable, but with it being on my Blue Mic Arm, and me moving it away from me when I'm not using it, it seems to randomly stop functioning after a while, or just unplugging and replugging. Of course, that's something to always keep in mind with USB-C, but for some reason this happens most of all with the included cable, as well as when buying others from them. I've noted that buying a really heavy duty 10FT USB-C cable works really well, but after changing the Beacn cable a few times, and then giving up and randomly grabbing an Anker one on amazon, I've had no problems for months. For context on the old USB-C, it would happen after just a few weeks (I'm very hands on and wild when I make content LUL), but switching the cable did finally make it better, just wish it didn't cost me making a $15 mistake everytime I had to change the cable. Weirdly enough, I have been even rougher lately and the braided Anker cable has been just fine LUL
I was looking at Steelseries' mic for a while because I liked the way it looked. It wasn't in stock for a long time period so I ultimately went for an Audio Technica AT2035 and Arturia Minifuse 2 as my mic setup. If I'm recording console games with others in discord, I use headphones plugged in to the Minifuse and monitor the game through OBS.
![Coheed and Cambria - Searching for Tomorrow [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/hDsYGLbmadg/mqdefault.jpg)
I hope you guys love this video, but I hope you love the mousepads even more. Let me know which design is your favorite ► reallygoodmousepads.com
Cartographer - Abyss looks so good! I would buy one but the size isn't a good fit for my desk.
Love the video but I do have a question, I'm using the LOGITECH PRO X GAMING HEADSET microphone and frankly its awesome, every person that I game with Discord loves the voice but here comes the problem, it can pickup all the sounds in the house! I tried to do noise reduction but still it picks up the sounds around the house, so what should I do? I tried to record my videos on my channel but I stopped because of this issue. Appreciate @senpaigaming if you have any suggestions to improve my situation and thank you.
Great Video Harris!! MousePads are amazing! For sure getting the largest one in all white with black lines for my white setup. Again thank you and all your team for an amazing content!
you know a lot about audio and a lot about mics why don't you make a mic it is like what bruse lee knew what was wrong with Martials arts and came up jeet ko do so do what he did except with a mic
@@ASDdoesgames I think I bring way more value to the market by working with these companies, giving feedback, and helping them fine tune features than I ever could by releasing my own mic myself. I don’t plan to commit the same sin that I’m calling these companies out for.
You can always trust a RUclipsr when they get told off by brands for calling them out, and then calling them out again.
Hahaha ok...Luke yourubers don't have interests in there competitors..god internet is so naive
Typo! “And then call them out again”
But then produce videos that 1/3 of it is ads lol
Not even 5 minutes into the video “this software is bad because I read a few comments that it sucks” holy shit what a worthless video. Yes, let’s please call these stupid audio products out, but we should do far better than how it’s done in this video. “Gaming” audio has always and probably will always be a joke. We shouldn’t need to cut corners to prove that…
Big L
Basically any multipart mic setup will be significantly better than all-in-ones like the mics shown in the video. Always upgradable and can always get better. Plus parts can be resold on the used market and fund towards better gear.
I think Harris is absolutely correct here. There is sooo much in the way of companies releasing unfinished crap and then never fixing it. We need to tell them that it's not ok. Whatever happened to reporting to the netter business bureau.
You mean there's nothing in the way for them to keep pushing out unfinished crap?
@TheNerdArmory no I meant it in there's too many companies out there releasing crap. So much so that it's become the norm. My thoughts traveled faster than my thumbs.
The BBB is for old fucks. Using that today just gives you instant Karen status and nobody gives a shit about better business bureau anyways.
They’re absolutely overloaded, along with any other regulatory body. Eastern (particularly chinese) import products through amazon, and to do so they need an american company, so all their cheap, trashy products become the problems of our regulatory bodies, who end up not protecting anyone or anything due to the sheer amount of things they need to do.
@@nottucksBBB Is useless too, only companies with a slight bit of care may entertain your complaints. Otherwise BBB will dock there rating and tell you sorry tell the guy not to call you bad names.😂
I went with the podmic and wave xlr combo, absolutely no problems AT ALL!! and the wavelink software makes routing audio soooooo easyyy. This channel is truly a gold mine for creators.
I’ve been looking at a lot of Mics a lot and I think the Podmic is what I’m going to go with. I plan to get the Podmic USB so I don’t need the wave xlr.
Wavelink is fantastic paired with a Stream Deck +. I am looking at the Wave XLR and getting rid of my GOXLR. What is the gain rating at on the Wave XLR?
@@amadmonstergaming the podmic usb doesnt have a gain button so if you plan to stream games or plug it into your game console that mic in usb form isnt the best to use without a computer with the rode software because otherwise you will not be loud enough for the game you're streaming so i will still recommend the wave xlr or another interface cause the podmic can be quite gain hungry
@@theoutsiderjess1869 I play on pc and pretend to make content lol. The rode software comes with the mic when you buy it right?
@@amadmonstergaming if I were you i would just spend the extra $50 and get the regular podmic ($99) plus the $150 for the wave xlr. And I dont think you get rode unify with the podmic usb, its only if you get an “X” product like de xdm-100, xcm-50 and streamer X
Nothing is ever gonna be worse than 99% of gaming headsets out there, especially back in the 2000s and 2010s. Holy shit... People paid big bucks for an audio experience miles behind what 15€ in ear sonys were offering...
it's mostly bc kids and people that don't do research are stupid
Very true, even the old astros that people paid hundreds for, now sound like absolute garbage.
"if you're sick of everyone using topography design on mouse pads, get this mouse pad with a topography design on it" huh?
I noticed that too lol
If you can't beat them, join them! :D
The one at his setup is kinda different because it's not one color. But the black and white ones are legit just topoghraphy zoomed in
XD yeah.
He meant people using the same topography design, not as in the same style (topography) but as in the same design within that style.
Imagine it like him saying "Everybody uses the red topography design, so you can buy my blue topography design".
Makes sense?
Your video was very well-designed. It was meticulously put together and thought out. May I offer a critique, though? The title of your video is a little misleading, as you might already be aware. You listed companies to buy from that are either gaming companies or marketed towards gaming. To be less misleading, one might expect you to list microphones from companies that are not gaming-oriented and don't market to gamers, like Electro-voice, sE Electronics, etc.... Great video for RUclips. I'm happy for your success.
What's wild is that there are a ton of ~$50-~$100 USB/XLR mic options that are really solid mics. The Fifine AM8 (shown in the video), Fifine K688, Maono PD200X, etc., etc., etc. None of them are perfect, but they blow each of the gamer mic in this video out of the water.
I agree with you 100%. I own two of the mics you mentioned for voice-over work using a 6 channel sound mixer. I also have other mics by Maono as well. Great choices you made my friend. They sound amazing and you can't beat the price point at all.
Agreed, those are great mics. Even the TONOR TD510 XLR/USB mic is great.
also for a budget option in xlr: the mpm 1000 is pretty good imo
Having worked in a recording studio I can agree, any time tested standard 'stage mic' will work and have superior sound.
It boggles the mind how much people will spend on a Blue "Yeti" mic where an Audio-Technica AT2020 is clearly better and cheaper, even a RØDE PodMic😅
I get that some may be on a budget looking to start their 'career' as an influencer, but they could pick up a SM58 on ebay for like $20 or Behringer C-1 for $45
But, but.... RGB!!!! 🤑💸💸 $400 on 'gamer' mic just to sound like a kid in CoD shrieking when they should get a Shure SM7b. 🤦
Same with gaming mouses, most of them are cr@p, logitech only one that is consistently good
You're 100% right, but as I'm not a streamer my main buying points were: I want a standalone mic, I want it to be better then what I have now, I want it to look good and the hyperx one checks all those boxes for me personally
the hyperx quadcast s is prolly the best "gaming" mic, its not GREAT but its still like you said good looking, and it works quite well (especially when you add in an eq to boost the bass and mids)
@@00Cubic personally have a quadcast (just the red one, not the s). i just use it for gaming VC, random recording projects, etc. everything sounds super clean through it. if you post process stuff it would do what anyone wants. hyperx has id say more experience than the other brands with their emphasis on headsets (i literally use cloud alphas for my go-to reference headphones. compared them to sennheiser hd600s one time and I couldn't tell the frickin difference) but yeah definitely not "audio brand" level of refinement in the mic department.
@@illuminate4 exactly
AND, it has RGB which is a free 10% performance boost
i rarely purchase gaming products these days; the only gaming-related product i have right now is a Logitech G Pro Superlight. instead of buying inferior quality gaming products, i have bought a Sure MV7 Mic, Moondrop Blessing 2 IEMs and a custom keyboard.
Me and you have the same setup lol. I’ve gotten a little more into the headphone game so I don’t use my blessing 2s as much anymore but we’re rocking almost the same everything
Yeah, same. My mic for years has been the Shure SM7B. Knew I wanted a tank of a mic. My headphones are HD650 and IEMs Xenns Mangird Top. My mouse is a Vaxee AX Outset to get away from failing "gaming" mice. My keyboard is the only Razer product I have. Never had a problem with their keyboard really BUT I also stopped using Synapse. I feel like for a while now "gaming peripherals" companies have gotten away from solid pieces and just slap their logo on everything they know people will buy. Because in a way it is new and shiny but also seeing a logo some don't think they won't make bad products.
@@darth_cheezus how are the xenns mangird top for you? i've been thinking of upgrading from my blessing 2 dusks and im not going to get the new dusks since they kinda suck imo they're only good on the dsp cable which is a shame like yea i can eq it with the normal cable but cmon and i feel like there are better iems anyway so instead of upgrading to something a little better i want to go full endgame this time and spend a bunch on a really good iem that i'll never want to replace and that will last
@@gyrotta They have been amazing for me. Stem size is a bit large and haven’t found a tip yet that is good for ear size. They are the first IEMs I got and blind bought from reviews. It was between them and the variations.
Yeah I was looking at the new Dusk for a cheaper pair but it surprised me how “critical” the cable was.
I am worried to go below my range because of sound quality but want a pair I can be a bit more comfortable taking outside.
Gaming, streaming and listening to music in house is mainly Top or HD650 but mainly IEM.
@@darth_cheezus i see im asking since now im torn between the monarch mark 3's from thieaudio the shouer ej07m and the xenns top so im looking at these 3 since they have mostly what i want from an iem which is good imaging and separation and this one is more specific towards the shouer the blending in with the dac/amps i've seen a review on the shouers and apparently they blend in with the dac/amp that you are using which sounds really nice
This is the most enjoyable experience I have had watching a YT video in a while, although I am not into streaming or audio. From the clean video structure, editing, audio, lighting, to the description. Well done
Before content creation i watch a bunch of your videos and trusted your opinions. You spoke about budget mics and then when you could upgrade, however these 5 are exactly why i did so much reasearch before buying anything budget. Im glad to see someone holding companies accountable but in a fair way. Great info Senpai keep up the amazing work you do
I've been trying to fight this fight for years to prevent people over-spending on garbage equipment. I remember back when Razer first put out the Siren, years ago, the first review (ad, really) I saw of it included a portion where the reviewer talked about how much they loved the 'crisp' sound of the mic. It was clipping. Can't save everyone, I guess.
Reminds me of when I bought a USB mic that straight up didn't have gain settings, and the preset gain was so silent that it was way too close to the noise floor. Shit pissed me off so much I spent 263€ on an interface and XLR mic. I'm literally not gonna risk buying a USB mic ever again cuz a crapton of them seem to be made by people who don't care for people who don't know. Literally out here scamming people and I'm mad I fell for it.
Blue yeti X didnt fail me at all.. also the previous version of the blue yeti before it was taken over by logitech worked as a charm. those are like hidden gems. You can control the gain on it and volume, mic/sound monitor. these are usb mics
Been using m Quadcast S for 2 years... so far it does what it needs to do. But I like this video. 👌🏾
ye, there is nothing wrong with it from a recording sound perspective. It is just for the price, it could do with a few more features. It sounds pretty good.
i agree, ive had mine for about a year and i havent had any issues with it apart from the fact that its a bit overpriced for the lack of features
stop buying anything from companies who don't specialize in that item. don't buy a keyboard from corsair, they're a memory company. don't buy a headset from asus, they're a motherboard company. i've been burned one too many times fanboying and getting an all one brand setup and then it takes a shit piece by piece. get your stuff from people who know what the hell they're doing
I agree but disagree with the corsair statement. They overall make good keyboards
Congratulations on your new endeavor!🎉 I like the new clean black and white wave one😍
This has been a thing in the gaming community for awhile, and even gaming purists have taken their content creation with a straighter edge. We don't go to gaming companies for streaming gear. We go to the guys who focus on that type of stuff, OR go into the professional world to make sure we don't mess up. We choose companies like Elgato and Logitech (for their cameras), because we know they're good with it. We choose companies like AudioTechnica, Sennheiser, Bose, and Shure, because we know they specialize in Audio. The second we hear about "HyperX came out with a microphone," that should be an immediate red flag, because they specialize in gaming gear. Great keyboards, good mice... but headphones and microphones? Big ol' red flag. There's a reason why the Shure SM7B micorphone is used by gamers...
Just bought the Fifine AM8 XLR mic and gonna get an XLR interface. Already sounds crisp through USB, it's gonna sound even better once I have it through XLR
I myself wanna try and get the Elgato Wave DX if I can
I have the Fifine am8 with the goxlr regular and it sound amazing if you set it right!
I love Fifine stuff. It’s amazing for the price.
@@Senpai except their SC3 ;)
I appreciated the insights!
(I got absolutely no idea about audio stuff in general, but I think you made a really good case.)
I love youuu !! Always glad I got the things you actually like 😂 I have rode podmic usb ; just got it too !
I love how you put these companies in place. We deserve value in what we buy, thanks for spreading useful info and prevent people from getting scammed
On the contrary, in my humble opinion, the HyperX Quadcast is a decent microphone. It does need refinement on its "Extra Features & Gimmicks" and the price is on the high side but as a condenser microphone, it is a decent product overall.
yeah i have a friend who streams using it, and she always sounds more than good enough. It's more than enough audio quality for a stream or video.
I’m a horrible person cause I bought the new Quadcast S on Amazon and they set on my doorstep, it was under another package “hiding” in the picture, Amazon stated “your order should be there soon” I never said anything and they refunded me and I kept the mic 🫢lol .. oh well. It seems like a good mic but that bottom knob should have micro-lock clicks maybe 100 of them, and not a loose gain disc.
@@Jwebbplayz I bought a Quadcast (the OG one) like 2 days after it released. At the time, I don't think there were as many options? But yeah I also have issues with the gain knob. I just taped mine so it won't move. Without tape, I do bump into it a lot. Overall, it's a good mic especially if you could get it for like $50 (which seems like a **somewhat** common sale price).
@@SirDonald good deal
I was going to comment just this. I have the Quadcast and I love it. My buddies say the quality is incredible, and I don't really mind the gain knob at all. I can slam my fists on my desk and it won't even move or change. Definitely don't think it should've been included in this video.
Thank you, I'm by no means an expert in anything audio related, so this was really helpful. I was really considering buying the SteelSeries microphone, as I'm a fan of some of the other stuff they make, but this made me change my mind.
i’m so glad you talked about this, i feel like it’s been getting bad especially these past few years
This sort of thing makes me really concerned for Neat mics. Logitech bought Blue and then got rid of most of their mics except for these new ones that are... not as good. The original Worker Bee and King Bee were awesome and affordable; the 2nd versions were fine, but they seemed to have electrical issues. Now they're owned by Turtle Beach and I just cannot imagine this leading to anything other than a decrease in quality.
Sorry if this is a dumb question, but what's it called when a software (or maybe hardware does it?) auto levels your quiet moments to be louder, and peak moments to be lower? Basically to have the same average volume. I have a mixer with a compressor on it and all it does is completely mute during loud volumes, which isn't what I'm looking for. I believe Harris covered it in a previous video, but I can't find it.
A compressor is what you’re describing. You either have your settings wrong or it’s a really bad compressor.
Also, this is absolutely not a dumb question. This is how you learn. Thanks for asking, homie ✌🏼
Awesome info, good to see a video of someone that actually knows about audio. Subbed!
Hey Harris I got a copyright notice from a few of your songs on my last stream. What can I do to get those removed?
If you go to the streambeats website, linked in his description, you can submit a false claim ticket.
@@Eagle10021 gigachad
Harris I'm wondering how the Blue Yeti X holds up against the big three? What are your thoughts? :)
I have the HyperX Quadcast, I got it years ago as my first ever microphone, it was quite a long time before Elgato popped up as competition, if I remember right, I was deciding between the Quadcast and a blue yeti, from my extremely basic knowledge of microphones, I am still very very happy with my microphone, I’ve managed to EQ it to sound better than default and with the help of Nvidia Broadcast, the issues of “condenser mic picks up everything” is much less, though I do really want to get myself a dynamic microphone and I have been eyeing the beacn mic since you first reviewed it.
Since I have the same mic, do you mind sharing what EQ and Nvidia Broadcast settings you have?
Same, I have a hyperX quadcast and had zero problems with it (i dont know what he is talking about accidently changing gain.. its literally knob ). I'm always asked in cs2 or valo if im a streamer, cause my mic sounds so good lol. absolutly worth every penny
@@cherry_bomb3817 EQ isn't something you'd want to copy, it totally depends on your voice and how you want it to sound
@@bruce_wayne I've used mine for 2 and a half years now, and I do bump into the gain knob (he was talking about the gain, not the mode knob) from time to time. It's not a big deal cause I always look if I'm peaking or not. But he is right, you can bump into it and it is indeed too loose.
The mic is good if you really need the other modes (I used them for podcast and streams at a sofa full of people, so I wanted one mic that could do all that, only reason I got the quadcast S), but if you don't, there are way better mics out there for the same price or cheaper
I'm having issues with mine. My friend says my volume goes high and low suddenly and sometimes it doesn't recognize my voice. Any idea how to fix this?
For streaming purpose I am quite happy with the SM7B. For voiceovers I got an old blue spark which does a really good job.
Been using a Blue Yeti Nano for years. Originally, it was fantastic quality audio. Well, fantastic to my expectations lol. But for the past few years, I've had numerous software issues with it. Stuff like Logitech buying out Blue/Sherpa and not even realizing I needed to ditch the Sherpa software app for Logitech's G Hub to update the mic. Which solved some device driver issues I was having, and gave me back that audio quality I thought I lost forever. But since then, it's a game of roulette whether or not the Blue mic will actually work right when my PC starts up. Either it works great and my voice quality is clear and warm, or it comes through heavily distorted. No apparent reason why, no clue what part of my setup could be the culprit. (And I know there could be any of many parts that could be causing the issue. But troubleshooting the problem all sorts of different ways has left me exhausted.)
So I came across your video, and I thank you! I'm getting that Rode Podmic soon! I just got the USB edition since I apparently refuse to do the whole XLR setup. But I'm sure I'll be glad I did.
alpha gaming helped me setup my twitch stream 3 years ago. you gave so much great information, I now understand audio much more because of your videos, and what to look out for. great call out. I've used the wave xlr and the submixes along w/ a samson q2u and it's a great combo.
Elgato has me as a long term customer, they've been constantly updating both the wave xlr and stream deck for years after release.
You'll never know how awful Razer headphones are until you try something that isn't a "gaming headset"
When I started my channel, I had Razer everything. I quickly learned my mistake and got everything upgraded over time. I use the Elgato Wave ecosystem exclusively now. I also use a Mackie DLZ Creator XS too. My mic is the Blue Sona and the Elgato Wave DX. My webcam is the Logitech MX Brio and the Elgato FaceCam Pro, (currently saving for a mirrorless camera). Videos like yours have helped me so much! I appreciate it man!
What's pretty interesting, some gaming companies can make good microphones and headphones and other devices for streaming, recording or general use, most of my setup is from Genesis and what I'm using is a part of the older gen, which might be why they don't have any special software but it still does a good job for my video recording and general use needs
Thank you Harris! So happy to hear that Elgato has great audio as I am a few weeks away from buying the Wave XLR and Strean Deck Plus for my dual PC setup.
That's an excellent XLR setup!
I hope so. Side note I spent most of the weekend wondering why the Wave Link software would not unlock with the Stream Deck +. The solution was to use 1.9.2 software as the newer version of Wave Link Software wouldn't. Now I'll be spending the next few days setting it all up. 😅
@@MNKOGaming its actually a huge waste of money.
Loved the video, but I have one small suggestion. Use more audio samples from the microphone(s) to let us compare and have an opinion on the audio quality. Not saying I don't believe you, but we're just expected to take your word for it for the entirety of this video. You're telling us they're bad, but show us that they're bad!
I use a Razer Seiren Mini and it took a lot of tweaking and filtering with OBS to get it to sound the way it does. Thank you for the mic recommendations and for this video explaining everything!
I also have it, it's actually great value, it took me 15 min to configure it with VOICEMEETER Virtual Audio Mixer. I love how it sounds. My best Razer product yet.
it's probably one of the better product the razer produces because it doesn't require the crappy razer synapse. In my country it's now selling $30 which is a great deal, it's actually a pretty decent mic and easily configurable to make it sound better. Surprisingly, I think it's one of the only razer microphone that I would recommend if you are looking for a cheap decent mic for zoom, budget streams, voice over and online meetings. Though if you are on a higher budget like $100+ it is much better to put your money on "actual audio brands" rather than "gaming companies".
The value I hold in these type of reviews is next to none. Truly appreciate the honest and work in making sure we the consumers, specifically streamers, have someone who gives it to us straight. ❤
same goes for " gaming headsets" get one of the mics you mentioned, plus some audiophile earphones like the 58x, audeze lcd2c...and it just makes the gaming and streaming experience a lot better.
i have hyperx cloud alphas and i thought they sounded pretty good with the custom eq i made for them. well my friend bought some beyerdynamic dt770 pros, i listened to them and i realized i wasted my money
I looked at 770 pro but i ended up getting dt 700 pro x. I really like them. The treble is not as harsh and the mids are less recessed.
I have the shure srd440 headset and it was SUCH a change for the same price of a arctis steel series headset, around 300 ron (can't remember which model the steel series headset was)
They slap "gaming" on it and people eat it right up. The costumers are being mislead. Not everyone is an audio nerd so they are just taking advantage of that fact, at least that what it seems like to me
A lot of costumers this time of year lol
Fifine is underrated ✨
Maono as well
these r the most underrated comments on this video...
fr
Im an audio and recording engineer now, but in high school I was a huge gamer. This video went straight for my soul.
The way my stomach dropped when you showed the polarity switches on the HyperX mic…. Why? That is such a niche tool? Like I cannot imagine a use case for any polar pattern other than cardioid aside from band recordings and room calibration!?
17:30 I also just want to make a moment to shoutout Røde for this software. It’s in collaboration with the APHEX Vintage series of audio processing units. I have worked with many artists big and small, in many studios, in many genres. I am not joking when I say the APHEX series (especially the Exciter) goes on EVERY song, and I’m not alone in this. It’s like a holy grail. To have that baked into the software in such an intuitive way… Wow. Just wow.
#4 applies to headphones/headsets too. STOP BUYING GAMING BRANDED AUDIO PRODUCTS.
this is so true i went from a gaming headset to the beyerdynamic dt770 pros and i could never go back
youre so good at being an engaging and non copy paste "host" in these vids man its engaging and i can tell you developed that on purpose and its appreciated
im running the shure mv7 USB/XLR mic and for half the price of the sm7b im absolutely loving it. The ones you have in the video are also amazing, ive run the rode one and i loved it
I bought a Beacn mic for streaming and creating (also because for some reason Beacn mic's sound is amazing on discord) and as soon as I got my sound profile etc right, my keyboard broke that had my OBS shortcut keys saved, making me unable to stream. But that lifestory being said, it's the best mic I've EVER bought, sure it's a bit tedious to set-up the perfect sound setting for your voice, office space, etc. But it sounds amazing.
Hopefully I can get back into creating again soon. Your video about Beacn Mic made me buy it, and I don't regret it at all!
I currently have the Hyper X, had it for maybe a few years, and there are times where I would hit the mic accidentally. And because I'm no sound expert I never really heard the difference when I edit my videos. So when I look at the mics recommended, I'm looking at the Rode PodMic, mainly for cheap pricing. But when you said that the Rode more on the Pro Audio side that would be more familiar for people that have experience with audio mixing, I kinda hesitated. But can I still get it for streams and simple recordings?
Edit: I just purchased the BEACN Mic maybe an hour after watching thsi.
Thank you for the insight. This has been an eye-opening video.
Cheers to more genuine reviews like this one.
You do Mics a lot. I would love to hear your points on headphones. I'm always stuck buying things like Razer because I'm scared of branching out.
deadass anything is better than razer in terms of headphones, the reddit headphones guide is pretty good unironically
@@6athory858whats a good headphones for 100-150$
I'm an audio engineer and a voice actor. I'm very snobby about sound and features. I tried a lot of different pro setups for my stream, and to be honest, the Wave XLR is just incredible.
It's old and simple but damn it, it just works.
It simplifies everything and sounds better than it should if you have a good microphone.
And if you understand how to instantiate plugins onboard the Wave XLR then you can get incredible real time effects that can tweak your sound to near perfection.
My only complaint is that I wish it had outputs for my audio monitors. I'd use it for everything then.
But Elgato is smart and they build for a specific use case. And they just nailed the Wave XLR for that use case. Period.
BUS powered, sounds great, tiny footprint, simple use, powerful features, low price.
Only complaint about Elgato mics is they all seem to have harsh high-mids, quite a yucky frequency range to have issues with. Can leave people with higher pitched or softer voices sounding nasally or whiney.
@@TCmadethisI agree. I’m not a fan of their mics. That’s why I got the Wave XLR. I already owned 20+ mics.
I remember using a Blue Yeti and had nothing but problems with my audio like background noise and peeking. Unnecessary stress. So I decided to get the shure mv7. Xlr mics are the way vs usb ones. haven't had to worry about my audio ever again after that. I like to actually be in control of my audio, is that too much to ask?
I have a sc425 here because i switched from using gaming headsets to dt770 + headphone amp years ago for general voice chat. I never properly thought about configuring the gain which made the microphone sound fine. Because you mentioned it now, i tried to properly configure the gain and volume and it sounds really fucking good now. Thanks.
"So what kind of microphone are you looking for?"
"I want one that has lots of rgb lights"
"Just gtfo please"
gaming things that is supposed to be
Mouse, Keyboard, Monitor (only for gaming usage), Mousepad, and PC Spareparts
gaming things that is should not touch
Audio, Recording things (elgato already done a good job), Chair (ergonomic problem), Lightings, Camera.
God tier video as always, I never knew a company could be smoothbrain enough to combine those three settings into one but here we are! :D
It's thanks to you that I went from a very basic mic to an elgato wave to a beacn mic. from cheap & basic to good to amazing. love the beacn mic, easy to use software once you do the research (or watch your video). sounds amazing!
any thoughts about the FIFINE XLR AM8 mic ? very budget looking mic but looks better than like a hyperx duocast, which I previously wanted.
I had the AM8 mic before, it’s a great mic for its price. It may pick up some P’s at times so i recommend a pop filter to go with it.
This video has been of great help. You are really good at what you are doing. Keep at it!
The HyperX Quadcast is probably the best USB mics i've ever had. Plug and play with no extra software that you really don't need to use and the audio quality is second to none. Unless you're a full time streamer, you don't need an XLR setup. That dial isn't for gain, it's the mic monitoring dial.
Wrong. That dial IS for gain. It's literally listed as the gain dial in the materials that come with the mic. The mic monitoring is controlled in the HyperX software.
How do I know this? I tested it months back. Also watched numerous reviews before I bought it. Great mic, I agree on that. But that dial IS the gain dial, and it IS sensitive (easy to move unintentionally).
There is no physical dial on the mic that controls monitoring.
@@WarriorVII How I described it is how mine works. I don't use any hyper x software.
@@joemorganti895 If I had to guess, I would think maybe you are increasing the mic gain, thus making the output to your headphones louder. It is 1000% gain and if yours doesn't work that way, somebody royally screwed up at the factory, which I doubt. In fact, just to be sure, I''ll do a quick test recording into Audacity with mine, as it is always hooked up at my desk as my backup. They really are great sounding mics after you get them dialed in...Just verified to make sure I'm not crazy. It is Gain. I recorded into Audacity and saw the waveform grow and shrink as I turned the dial.
@@The_Chad_ Depending on which direction I turn the dial I hear my voice less or more.
@@joemorganti895which is exactly what increasing and decreasing gain would do.
Bro audio is so complicated. It might be the worst thing to have to deal with on a PC. You're out here doing God's work Harris so thank you lol
No offense but i feel like the HyperX is thrown in there unfairly - we can speculate as to why, but its a great mic and fits 90% of peoples needs.
Sure, you might knock that dial and it might not be ticked out all the way, but thats intentional. Most people will be in that 5 dot range, and for plug and play and ease of use you just tweak it with the dial. And if you DO knock it you dont have to count/remember "was I 39 ticks or 42?" youre instead like "oh yeah middle dot"
I have yet to see an actual BAD review of it. Sure, not top shelf, but to put it in a "these are 5 terrible mics" video - its suspicious
Here's a simple rule of thumb: If it says, 'Gaming', don't buy it. Look at the specs and find a better one for the same price or the same specs for cheaper. Marketing is psychological warfare. It doesn't work when you see it.
i bought a $20 bm800 from ebay that sounds better than those trash gaming mics
Hey ive watched the whole video and i think most of this is completely true. Ive had the HyperX QuadCast S for around 5 months and it's worked out really great for me and personally the quality sounds amazing, i haven't much with any settings or stuff like that since i only stream to my friends and don't find it very important. The first month of having it i was getting really frustrated about the gain at the bottom that you can rotate, since almost everytime i had to put the microphone elsewhere it would rotate the gain slightly, so eventually i got millimeter displays laser printed onto it. So in personally i would definitely recommend the HyperX QuadCast S if you have anything to put markers on it so you know where your preferred gain is, And if you don't need to move the microphone ever then it's definitely a good choice. Yes it doesn't really give you anything super advanced but it's a solid microphone with a nice build and weight and straight out of the box just plugged in it sounds great.
no shure?
if someone has money for a shure or even knows about the company this video isn’t for them
@@rahil4750 ok i guess my comment was just stupid
you're right
Thank you as always for your incredible commitment to the details of audio. Absolutely love your content.
Bro did a 20min vid complaining about gaming mics, and didnt even shown the sound quality of any of them.
Trust me, its bad.
There’s plenty of videos on them. Do your research
The fact that you can buy a usb mic from audio focused brand from 10 years ago and got a better sound quality speaks a lot about the gaming gear market.
I Like Your Name.
Your "Big 3" didn't include Audio Technica or Shure. The AT2020 and the SM7B are the gold standard for content creation, but you didn't even mention these. The 2020 doesn't even need a mixer.
....ok so the hyper x and the logitech arent great because of the software (but you could download and use a different software) but you recommend 2 others where you have to do the exact same thing?
for a normie. . .downloading 3rd party software and configuring isnt a daily routine, when the other two come pre-configured, along with exponentially more features
I absolutely love my setup, that's cheap but extremely effective. I'm using a Samson Q2U, with Moondrop CHU II IEM's. Sub $100, incredible quality on both the sound and the mic.
Ok, nice 20min rant, what about an actual comparison? Genius....
He pointed out the issues, if u need a comparison find a few videos and look for the problems he mentioned, dude. no pressure.
@@Dragonyy-sb51So i should research half of the expected content on the video outside the video because he didnt put one of the most important things while comparing products? Straight to never recommend again
i dont remember anything about this lol, but eh, do what u have to. just saying that because either I deal with stuff or don't. if i don't feel like it then i don't do it, yknow.
have a good day, i guess. idk man, it just is what it is i guess.
Proves none of you are actually paying attention 😂
@@randsimpson5326 hey this is bad, use this instead
Why?
Its bad
But why? Show me hows bad
But, Its bad...
"Is this a joke?"
"no, it is called THE CLIPPY"
Sheesh! Nonsense. Sin 1 - Dissing microphone hardware because it does not come with fancy schmancy mixing software is irrelevant. How it sounds is all that matters. Moreover, dissing a truly cheap, budget mic because it is not as good or have as much software as an expensive model is comparing apples to kumquats. The lack of a headphone jack is totally immaterial. I don't want my MICROPHONE to be a SOUND CARD ... it is a microphone, for Peet's Sake. Sin 2 - The fact they do not add new features is a non-issue. I want a microphone - not a complicated studio on a stand. The fact it has similar features as other products in the same price bracket merely says it competes with those other products on a 1:1 basis. Failing to add new features is NOT a problem. Consider bicycles - they all work pretty much the same. Competition is usually a good thing and providing consumers visual and audible choices is good and keeps prices low by fostering competition. So what if Company A and
Company B make similar products - that merely suggests there is a big market with room for more than one manufacturer, which is usually good for consumers. Frankly, we do not all need all the features the fancy products provide in the software. Sin 3 - You are totall wrong about gain staging and never needing to change it on the fly. Moreover, you diss some products for lacking controls you can use on the fly -and then claim one should set them and never change them. This inconsistency is a fatal flaw. Sin 4 - Microphone therory is hardly rocket science and not limited to audio equipment companies. Besides, these products are most likely made by highly skilled and engineered OEM manufacturers for the gaming equipment companies. Like there is no reason an audio equipment company knows more than other mic manufacturers. The fact one mic has poor gain staging, hardly indicts the whole field of microphones that have gain controls. Besides, your clipping demo fails to explain or prove whether the sound is actually peaking or whether there is a compression circuit doing that. The fact it clips flat at a lower level than your recording software clipping point proves the point. Software is not an issue - nobody worth his salt uses the software that comes with their microphone - they use a high quality package - rendering it immaterial. But the worst aspect of this video is the obvious condescension portraying the narrator as something special. The hair do tells me more than I want to know, and yes, visual appearance IS relevant to establishing a speaker's credibility - if a guy makes a fashion statement, he should not be heard to object when someone else makes a counter statement. Sorry, even if the narrator is correct about the quality of the microphones mentioned, this video does not prove the point. JT
hey @senpai want your opinion on what mic is best for my scenario. im wanting a cardioid mic to play with buddies on pc and looked at the hyperx and logitech ones you have in the video. ive looked at the elgato too but im mainly looking for simplicity and more along plug and play style so whats the best route. not sure how itd work but do microphones play nice with equalizers cause the headphones i have are the dt770s(no external dac just running through front 3.5mm jack) through peaceAPO and i dont know how having 2 different softwares running would work.
I am sorry to say that I like my Hyper X mic. I paid $78.99 on sale over 18 months ago.. on black Friday sale on Amazon. So for me it took about 30-45mins to set up in OBS for it sound good and it work great for me... is the best no but I loved to have Elgato wave 3 at the time it was over $160..vs $80 and money is not all ways easy for everyone... sorry but I disagreed with you on the Hyper X mic for this one, But thank you for the video...
Thanks for the real talk here, Harris. As a product lead for one of the "gaming" brands, and as a music producer myself, I can confidently say that we absolutely care about the quality of product and are taking steps to combat the "sins" you've listed being committed. Be in touch soon =)
Hi,
Im looking for a new mic for around 80 euros. Ive been searching my opinions, im not a streamer or anything, and want to use it just for gaming and chatting. I dont know what to do, i like the looks of the hyperx quadcast/quadcast S, but dont know about the performance and was also considering a hyperx duocast as good option. After this video i dont know if i should still buy either of those, do you have any advice?
Senpai Gaming is one of the product reviewers I follow and trust. Without him, I woudn't have found the elgato wave 3 microphone in which I have been using constantly for the past 4 years, since release. So far, I'm so happy with the product I cound't find any alternative to it. The sound quality and the functionality brings VALUE to the consumers and content creators that's why I bought. It's been my best friend ever since. Keep it up!
This was a great video! I really appreciated your going over gain and how it works. If you could (if you've already done this, I must have missed it) would you consider make a video explaining how to discover the proper gain settings for a microphone? You have a great way of explaining things, and I feel like you going over it would be incredibly beneficial!
*Edit - poor, distracted grammar*
This video is a REQUIREMENT. I've noticed this when going through audio samples and observing which mic streamers generally use.... alot of these companies generally don't care as long as it's being bought by consumers... they lack innovation and perfection which just brings down the value of the product imo.
I still have my Blue Yeti from idk when. It still sounds super great. I'm hesitant to get a new one. This video helped me decide
I was very happy with my SteelSeries Alias mic after switching from a HyperX Quadcast... but I just recently bought the Wave:3 and there is no way I can go back to a gaming company microphone. Thanks for the video!
first time seeing your channel. the way you explain things and your speaking pattern is outstanding. if you were a salesperson, you would take all of my money!!
There's so much bad gamer gear out there Harris. I'm glad some content creators are coming out and actually saying something about it. Streamers aren't exactly AV experts. I work in AV and I laugh when I hear some recommendations on gear from people.
Been using HyperX SoloCast with Nvidia Broadcast for years and it's been good so far
best person ive ever seen on this dogpoop website telling the truth and literaly not begging like everyone else for likes or subs. and he has a wonderfull vioce i can listen to him every secound
what camera and mic would you recommend for streaming on twitch? for someone on a budget
So tired of these damn corporations preying on ignorant folks. Thanks for the great info as always, Harris!
This gaming mics are $100 shees you can buy a AT2020 at that price and it will just kill all the mics. There are some brands like Moano specially makes such good quality mics for such a low price like there mic and Boom arm kit is perfect man.
For budget just get a HyperX solocast and set filters through OBS
Easy to do, very good results and cheap as hell
Thanks for the video while I do have the hyperx quadcast I don’t think I’ll ever buy a different one for a while but I will be looking into mic gain more. I have mine set to 100 without thinking much about it. I’ll probably see what I can change on it
Thx!! It was VERY useful. I was just doubting about buying game mic for 80$ or elgato wave 3 for 1600$ and spend a few hours researching and your video have actually putted a final dot. Interesting that you've posted it right at my birthday)))) Thanks for the late gift, i guess😋. Also, maybe you can recommend something better for this price? I would appreciate it A LOT. I am newbie in mics, in audio in general, I need it to voice videos, mostly separate from recording, without studio environment
I bought the Beacn Mic after your review (and a few others, gotta be sure before buying something on a whim lol), and I gotta say, to this day, it is STILL one of the BEST purchases I've ever made.
With that being said, I do have a single issue to this day with the mic, and that is the cable itself. There's nothing really wrong with the cable itself, it's a SOLID USB-C cable, but with it being on my Blue Mic Arm, and me moving it away from me when I'm not using it, it seems to randomly stop functioning after a while, or just unplugging and replugging. Of course, that's something to always keep in mind with USB-C, but for some reason this happens most of all with the included cable, as well as when buying others from them. I've noted that buying a really heavy duty 10FT USB-C cable works really well, but after changing the Beacn cable a few times, and then giving up and randomly grabbing an Anker one on amazon, I've had no problems for months.
For context on the old USB-C, it would happen after just a few weeks (I'm very hands on and wild when I make content LUL), but switching the cable did finally make it better, just wish it didn't cost me making a $15 mistake everytime I had to change the cable. Weirdly enough, I have been even rougher lately and the braided Anker cable has been just fine LUL
Compare $60 razer mic to $200 elgoto mic I wonder why they’re different
I was looking at Steelseries' mic for a while because I liked the way it looked. It wasn't in stock for a long time period so I ultimately went for an Audio Technica AT2035 and Arturia Minifuse 2 as my mic setup. If I'm recording console games with others in discord, I use headphones plugged in to the Minifuse and monitor the game through OBS.
Awesome video. Great research as always