- All right, you started a podcast. One of the big things you've gotta do is make sure you get the
right microphone, right? So in this video, we're gonna
go through a bunch of mics and we're gonna show you what the best podcast
microphone out there is for under 100 bucks. (upbeat rock music) Alright, so one of the first
criteria we're gonna use is I want you to get a dynamic microphone. So there's two main kinds of microphones. We've got dynamic mics and condenser mics. The thing about condenser mics is they're really, really good. They pick up a lot of
nuance in your voice. Unfortunately, that means
they pick up a lot of nuance of everything. So if you're not in a treated environment like I'm in right now, you actually will get a
lot of background noise. And most podcasters,
that's a really bad setup, because we're recording at home (motors rumbling) not the perfect environment. So we're gonna get all the
condenser mics outta here. This guy, wonderful mic,
(cat screeching) but it's not gonna make it. Blue Yeti, I'm tellin' you guys this isn't a mic for podcasters. I know it's kind of the de facto mic. A lot of people get it, but it's really not
the best setup for you, 'cause it's that kind
of condenser microphone. Alright so now we're
down to our dynamic mics. (upbeat rock music) So the title of this
video is "Under $100," and so some of you smart aleck's out there are lookin' around going, "I know some of these
cost more than 100 bucks." That's true. Some of these expensive
microphones are really great, but I don't think it's worth
tripling your investment, just to get a slightly better sound. So, no problem with any of these mics, they're just not perfect
for the beginner podcaster. So we're gonna eliminate a couple of these from the table. We're doin' a quick toss
challenge for the camera guy. Let's see how we do. And (throwing sound) Last thing is we actually,
this guy used to be under $100 but now it is an antique. It's been discontinued. So this one's going to
be out of here as well. Alright so now we're at,
down to three microphones, all of which cost less than $100 and are actually for sale right now. (upbeat rock music) So the third criteria is, we want one that's a really easy setup. If you're gonna start looking at these, we've actually got different connectors for each of these microphones. Both have XLR and USB connectors, so they could go right into the computer. Unfortunately the pod mic,
while it's a great mic and I actually love the build quality, it only is XLR and that means, is that I'd have to
buy an audio interface, I'd have to buy cables and I've
actually had to buy a stand. So we're looking at another
$100 to $130 to get this set up. Technically it's under $100 microphone. It would be a great for a beginner, except it's gonna take
a little bit more work, so I'm comfortable, knockin' this out of the running for now. So we're down to two great mics. They're dynamic under 100 bucks, they've got a lot of
accessories, good stuff. Samson Q2U verse the
Audio-Technica ATR2100X. (upbeat techno music) So, the first round, accessories. What came in the box when we've
actually bought these guys. ATR2100. Very nice, I like this a lot. They included two different USB cables. One's the USBC if you've
got a newer computer and USB-A cable, I like that. You've got both options. It's also got the XLR. If you ever upgrade to that
system, you're covered. The stand, it's cool. Fans of the movies Transformers
would like it, I guess, 'cause it folds up, but it's kind of cheap, man. And when I watched other videos, I actually saw some where it broke. I think this is not a great stand. Samson Q2U. Got the same XLR cable, so
those are kind of equivalent. They only have the one
cable in the box, USB-A, but that's fine. Nice they threw in a little foam cover. These cost three bucks on
Amazon, but nice little bonus. This stand, quite a bit better. So, I like that I can sit
up a little more straight. It's up higher, it's not as flimsy. I know it's not gonna
break as soon as this is. Let's look at the mics, maybe then we'll dive into
doing some audio tests before we pick our winner. (bells ringing) Alright so now we've got the two mics. Let's look at the actual
microphone itself. They're very similar. On the bottom, we've got headphone jacks, so we can listen to
ourselves in real time, we've got XLR plugs, the same. We've got USBC verse micro USB plugs, pretty much gonna do the
same thing either way. One of the differences, Q2U
has buttons for the audio, whereas we have a slider over here. So, if you're someone who
really appreciates sliders, pretty much, honestly,
I don't see either these being that different. They both feel really good. They both, honestly, very similar. If you prefer maybe the color of one, you might go with the one
you like the color more but I'm not seeing anything here that makes me really feel
like one is a clear winner. Now we've gotta go, we gotta
to see something different in the audio quality, 'cause remember this is $40 more. I'm holding this to a higher standard and haven't seen anything yet that makes me think this
is worth another 40 bucks. (bells ringing) Alright so now I'm talking
to you through the ATR2100X. We've set this up, we've
taken the shotgun mic off so everything you're hearing
is coming from this microphone. I went ahead and put
$3 foam cover on there. I didn't want this mic to be
at a disadvantage without it. I'm gonna just kind of
roll as if I was recording one of the podcasts I'm on. It's called Buzzcast, it's about the podcasting industry. Welcome back to Buzzcast. This is Alvin. I'm here with Kevin
and Travis like always. Today we're talking all things podcasting. All right, sounds pretty good. Let's compare it to the Q2U. All right, the Samson Q2U. So let's do that same
intro that we just did. We'll just do it for this mic. All right, welcome back to Buzzcast. This is Alvin, I'm here
with Kevin and Travis and we're gonna be talking
all things podcasting. All right. Similar sound, that sounded pretty good. I like it. One big difference, again,
I don't mean to harp so much on one bad stand, but being at a higher level, my chest does feel a
little bit more opened up, I don't feel as awkward. I like talking into this mic more. So now I'm going to go listen
to those recordings I just did really dive into how they sound different and then we'll be back with
our final recommendation. (bells ringing) Alright so, just listened
to those audio samples and I'm actually really surprised with how similar they sounded. I know with my voice, I want a little bit of a de-esser on there, just because I get those ess sounds, a little bit more nasally. I actually felt like the Q2U was doing a better job with that. Also sounded a little bit more full. They both are very good. If you personally like one
more, trust your ear for it, because both make you sound great. But when I start thinking about it, this is $100 plus the $3 foam ball. This was 60 bucks. And so we're looking at a $43
difference for what to my ear is inconsequential sound
quality differences. Both are build quality with good, accessories I actually lean to the Q2U. I don't see the justification
for another $43 for this one, especially when I'm already stressed out about that mic stand breaking. (video game sounds) Samson Q2U is the podcast
microphone for you. That is a terrible tagline. This, it was great. I think it would be an awesome microphone. You're gonna sound great. You're not gonna feel the
need to upgrade right away. And you're gonna do really
well with your podcast. If you enjoyed this video
give us a thumbs up. Let me know if you thought
a different microphone shoulda come out on top. But until next time, we wish
you the best with your podcast. And take care. (beeping) Party (punching sounds) (beeping) I'm just gonna start
taking some of these out. Again, all of 'em are great. (wheezing)
(beeping) They're not very strong. All right, we're doing the stress test. (chuckling)
(beeping) Probably not worth the price. Oh my gosh, you did not
hit the light both times. Short stop over here
is catching everything. (beeping) (laughing) So I'm not thinking
this stand is as good... (upbeat rock music)
Short version: the Samson Q2U is still awesome if you can find one and the Audio-TechnicaATR2100x's stealth price increase over the discontinued ATR2100 isn't worth it.
!
I just got my Q2U today! I'm really happy with how it performs.