A Look at Audio Technicas AT2020USB X Podcast Microphone
One of the key aspects to getting a quality podcast is how clearly your voice is being recorded. Recording through a tiny headset microphone will not give you the best results. While there are many podcast microphones available at various budgets, I am going to share with you some of the best USB-powered microphones.
Advantage of Having a USB microphone
One great thing about using a USB powered microphone is that you don't need to have an audio interface to start recording. USB microphones give you the flexibility of connecting them directly to your desktop or laptop USB port, and you can start recording right away!
Let us now look at some of the best USB Microphones with no particular order.
Audio-Technica AT2020USB-X [ Price $149 ]
The brand Audio Technica is an extremely reputable name when it comes to pro audio gear, especially microphones.
The Audio-Technica ATR2500x-USB is equipped with a condenser capsule. So, like any condensor microphone, they are a lot more sensitive compared to dynamic microphones and thus not suitable for noisy environments as they tend to pick up sounds from the environment a lot more, even though you use a cardioid polar pattern . This is something you should keep in mind if you decide to go for this. Great ! with that out of the way lets look at some of the features you get in this microphone.
Features :
The Audio Technica AT2020USB+ comes packed with a few great features. One It Comes with a built in Headphone Preamp and two it also has an option to blend your Microphone Signal and pre recorded audio with no delay. This will be handy when you are doing overdubs and doing punch in's. Another welcome option is a Mute Button the Mic Itself. Three it has Maximum Sample Rate of 24 Bit/ 96 Khz
Accessories :
The microphone comes supplied with a desk stand (picture) and a thread adapter, and a dedicated shock mount (AT8455) is available as an optional extra. Connection to a host computer is made via USB-C.
The Sound :
This large diaphragm condenser microphone has a great, natural air to its sound. There is plenty of low frequency captured too, so even if you’re just using it as a desk microphone for recording YouTube videos or podcasts, there are instant results. You’ll hear an improvement over your computer and smartphone microphones with some much-needed, and balanced, bottom end introduced to your voice.
Downside :
One Main Downside of this microphone is that it just has one Polar Pattern which is cardioid, so if you intend to do an interview, with this microphone it would not be possible.
AT2020USB-X also ships with a 3/8"-16 to 5/8"-27 threaded adapter, and it’s compatible with the optional AT8455 shock mount, which is available separately.
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