Sorry for my late reply. New year pulled me away from home + my PC!

I have to ask you why you don't want to overclock? Are you afraid of this? I can highly recommend to actually overclock the one CPU that I suggested. It's not difficult at all anymore to do and you'll notice some very big improvements in a lot of the software you'll use.
I can even come over to your place if you don't live to far away to do it with you or else use Skype or any other chat tool to assist you with it.
You can even consider to just let your motherboard do the overclocking for you. They recently started adding this in the BIOS/EUFI. But it's not recommended at all since it will set the voltage always too high, as a safety measure. Which won't kill the CPU, but it just means that it will run hotter and draw a bit more power from the wall.

I absolutely recommend to have a look at the video above under guides. It really will hopefully help you feel a bit better with overclocking. As you can see that it is not too difficult. Of course, the motherboard that they used is a extreme, expensive monster. Where overclocking is very simple.
Our MSI motherboard got a different BIOS, so the places for some of these settings, can be on different places. You'll just have to look a little bit. The names are in general all the same, but sometimes they differ slightly.

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Mouse:

There are a few different ones that would very likely work for you.

• Logitech G502 ||| Review
  
• Mionix Castor ||| Review
  
• Zowie FK1/2 ||| Review
  
  I guess the G502 is probably the winner for you as well, but the castor should for sure be something to maybe consider.
  The Zowie mouse is one I just have to include because of the insane quality that Zowie provides. It's not the fastest mouse on the planet, but 3200 DPI is more than enough, I hope? I personally use 500 myself.. But I have a very light mouse (68gr) that I easily lift up even when I am in Windows dragging from my left to the right monitor.
  The Zowie mouse is also great for claw grip, but I am just a fan boy! Zowie mice get used by a lot of CS professional gamers! Which really makes me want to get one.. I just don't have the budget as of right now.
  
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  ---
  
  Mousepad:
  
  Yes, you need one! This makes using a mouse so much more enjoyable. The one that I selected is a very awesome option, considering the price. It's probably big enough, since you stated that you used a high sensitivity. The quality really is awesome. I do not have it yet, but I did test it out at a game convention that I went too a couple of months ago. The softness was really awesome. My mouse really glided very well honestly. I have been recommending these mousepads for a while now and have had no complaints about it just yet. In the end it is all personal preference, but I feel like that this mousepad will work very well for your use. Since the stopping speeds are very important for high sensitivity especially and it felt just right when I tested it.
  Kingston HyperX
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  ---
  
  
  Keyboard:
  
  There is really only one that I instantly thought of:
  
  
• Logitech G710+ ||| Review
  
  But I also found this one:
  
  
• CM Storm Trigger Z ||| Review note; because of video cameras the LEDs look every so slightly blue; but it is just completely white in real life.
  
  This one got pretty much the same layout as the G710+. But it's a bit cleaner. I personally really prefer the look of the Trigger Z over the G710+.
  The only small gripe I have at it, is the small key in between the shift + Z on the left. I hate that one, since I always press it in games when I want to use the shift. I had a keyboard like that once. Hated this a fair bit and had to work around it. Took me a while.
  There are more options if you want; I can suggest more if you don't really like neither of these.
  
  ---
  ---
  
  Headphones:
  
  Honestly, there are other options out there. But for the main part; Sennheiser really dominates the classical rock & orchestral/thematic video game music. Could you provide me with any songs of orchestral/thematic video game music? I would be very interested!
  I persoally listen to classical, metal & trailer music very often. I have Sennheisers and love them to death.
  
  
• Sennheiser HD518 ||| Review & General user reviews
  
  These headphones are absolutely amazing considering the price. It might sound fairly expensive, but if you want quality sound. You have to start paying a fair amount. But do not worry, once you have them on your head and listen to them.. You will be blown away! The MSI motherboard does not boost the most amazing quality audio, but it will be more than good enough to make you go absolutely "wow". I can absolutely guarantee this! I have the bigger brother, the HD598 myself and have been using this for well over a year now, still absolutely love the quality of the sound that I hear.
  
  You can increase the quality a step further by getting a dedicated AMP+DAC. But those start to really hit on your budget very quickly. A DAC = Digital to Analog Convertor. Which basically makes from 0's and 1's that your PC puts out an analog signal that your speakers can produce to make the sound. An AMP stands for amplifier. This not only makes the sound "louder" but also more clear.
  I personally want to get the Schiit Stack! Yes, the company is really called Schiit! The Stack will cost you a bit over €200. So that's a good chunk of money. I will very likely, eventually get myself the Fulla Schiit instead, which is something that you rather avoid, a mixed AMP/DAC. But to hit this price point and for simplicity. It's a very awesome device. It's €99 instead so a bit more affordable. Where you only need a USB cable and that's it.
  The quality is also for sure going to be more than acceptable for my use anyway.
  
  ---
  ---
  
  Microphone:
  
  Because I went for a headphone, you'll need a dedicated microphone. I personally use the Samson Meteor and everyone that I talked with noticed how clean and great my voice sounds, compared to my webcam that I used previously. If you want, I can have a talk with you on Skype or TS to show you the quality.
  I did buy a pop filter as well, but according to my friends it made no difference at all, so I stopped using it.
  
  
• Samson Meteor ||| Review
  
• Samson Meteorite ||| Review
  
  Note: Now I did notice that the Meteor microphone is not in stock or with fast delivery in the 4 stores that it's been sold at. So I have been looking at other shops. But I did notice that at Bax-Shop.nl they have the microphone in their local stores. I can make a call to them to ask if they can send the microphone or if you have to go buy it locally. I did also find the Microphone on Amazon UK but it's again, not in stock! :(
  If you don't want to wait or drive to that store, you can opt for the less expensive Meteorite. Which is not a terrible microphone at all either. It's slightly less in clarity compared to the Meteor. But should do just fine for normal use.
  
  
  ---
  ---
  
  Speakers:
  
  I really am not an expert here. I personally used some Edifier 2.1 speakers for a couple of months. But the left speaker broke fairly soon. I never bothered to send it back for an RMA, because of my Sennheiser headphones. I might eventually buy some 2.0 Speakers again. You don't really need a subwoofer for our style of music. I didn't do a whole lot of research into my purchase. I just went for "best 2.1 speakers for under $50" and those were highly rated and affordable at the time of purchasing.
  So I again did a quick search for some speakers and did manage to find this set:
  
  
• Genius SP-HF800A ||| Review
  
  I didn't look for the most insane speakers, since you'll very likely just like me, mostly use your headphones. But these seems to be alright according to the review. Nothing special, but good enough. I also personally really like the look on these.
  
  

  Hopefully you like my suggestions, again if you have any question, ask!
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

If I were you, I might do it a little differently.

Steelseries makes good keyboards and they're very customizable. r/mechanicalkeyboards might throw a hissy fit at me for saying that, but they're good all around boards. Every key can be customized with macros and stuff if he so chooses, right in the Steelseries software. No need to mess around with AHK.

Mice are a very personal thing. Does he know you're getting him PC peripherals for Christmas? If so, knowing the size of his hand, and if possible, how he grips a mouse would be super helpful. I spend a shameful amount of time on r/mousereview and would love to help you out! The Xtrfy M4 is very popular at the moment if he has medium or small hands. Right here you can see how to measure hand size properly.

If you can't get a precise measurement or grip style that's fine - could you maybe compare his hand to yours (a simple "Hey, which one of us has bigger hands?" should do), measure yours, and estimate roughly how different they are.

If he's got the space for a setup, he'd be much better off with a dedicated set of headphones and a dedicated microphone than with a headset, and it'd be cheaper too! I personally recommend the Superlux 668B headphones with a set of replacement earpads (these ones are amazing, but these ones are still very good while being much cheaper). Then grab yourself a Fifine microphone and something cheap to hold it and you've saved yourself a lot of money while getting him a much better product!

Oh, those headphones will let in a fair amount of background noise, and they'll leak a bit of the sound playing through them. If your house/apartment is often loud or you share a space and don't want to hear his games, these Takstars are shockingly good for the price. If you wanna save a few bucks and not go for a separate microphone, this CM headset is based off them but has an attached mic!

Good luck and I hope he enjoys his gift! Feel free to ask any questions you've got, PM if you want :)

Mic or headset?

🔊 MICROPHONES

• Antlion ModMic 4
  
  Attaches to headphones using a clasp system and is easy to attach and remove. Is compatible with all headphones. Comes with and without a mute switch.
  
  
• Massdrop Minimic
  
  Attaches to headphones using a clasp system and is easy to attach and remove. Is compatible with all headphones. Has a mute switch and is modular. Is only available via drops on Massdrop.com. I recommend requesting it if you want to wait for it.
  
  
• V-MODA BoomPro
  
  Connects to the headphone's jack, replacing the headphone cable. Is compatible with Philips SHP9500 and Status Audio CB-1. Has a mute switch and a volume control.
  
  
• Neewer 3.5mm Clip on Mini Lapel Microphone
  
  Clips onto your clothing. Has no in-line controls.
  
  
• Sony ECMCS3
  
  
• Clips onto your clothing. Has no in-line controls.
  
  
• Zalman ZM-Mic1
  
  Clips onto your clothing. Has no in-line controls.
  
  
• Blue Snowball
  
  Has various placement options. Has no in-line controls.
  
  
• Samson Go
  
  Has various placement options. Has no in-line controls.
  
  

  
  

  
  You can use various audio controllers for volume control and mute toggle:
  
  

• Fosmon
  
• Insignia
  
• Lucid Sound AdjustR
  
  

  
  

  
  To connect the ModMic, Minimic, clip-on mics and other 3.5mm mics to DS4 or an audio controller, you need a TRRS / 4-pole Y-splitter (three black rings on the connector). The BoomPro doesn't require a Y-splitter. USB mics are plug-and-play.
  
   
  
  🎧 HEADPHONES
  
  

  
  

  
  

• AKG K52
  
  Sound: Has a wide and deep soundstage, good imaging, clarity and detail retrieval and decent separation. It doesn't over- or under-emphasize the bass or treble. The bass can sound a little muddy in e.g. blasts and explosions.
  
  Build: Is closed-back and over-ear. Durable and very lightweight. The cups tilt and pivot, so they should adjust to the shape of your head nicely. The earpads have decent quality and are soft and removable, but they're shallow.
  
  
  
• Philips SHP9500
  
  Sound: Has a soundstage with medium width and depth. It has good imaging, separation and detail retrieval and very good clarity. It doesn't over- or under-emphasize the bass or treble.
  
  Build: Is open-back and over-ear. Durable and lightweight. The cups tilt and pivot and the cable detaches. The earpads have good quality and they're soft and removable, but they're very shallow. Replacing them requires modification or buying/making 3D printed rings that the new earpads attach to. Modifying is very easy and quick to do and doesn't require special tools or extra parts. I've made a tutorial. 3D printed parts can be bought from Mod House Audio and Thingiverse. The clamping force is very light, so I don't recommend the headphone for children or if you frequently move your head down and have an average sized head. For aftermarket earpads, I recommend Shure HPAEC1840. These tighten the clamping force for a little, and personally, I love the comfort and fit with these.
  
  
• Superlux HD668B
  
  Sound: Has a wide and deep soundstage, I'd say 50% bigger than SHP9500. It has very good imaging, separation, clarity and detail retrieval. It has emphasized treble and a small boost in the mid-bass.
  
  Build: Is semi-open-back and over-ear. Sturdy and lightweight. The cups tilt and pivot. The cable and earpads are detachable. The earpads have bad quality and are shallow, so I recommend replacing them with earpads from HiFiMAN.
  
  
• Superlux HD681 EVO
  
  Sound: Has the same soundstage as HD668B. It has very good clarity and good detail retrieval, but has poor imaging and separation. It's warm sounding with deep bass.
  
  Build: Is semi-open-back and over-ear. The cups tilt and pivot. The cable and earpads are detachable. The earpads have decent quality and are soft and detachable, but they're shallow and the drivers stick out quite a bit, so I recommend taking out the loose felt inside the cups, unless you're sensitive to treble, and replacing the earpads with earpads from HiFiMAN, or earpads from Brainwavz if you want much more depth. These are expensive, but they have great quality, they are made of memory foam and are very soft and roomy, and the sound quality is absolutely worth it.
  
  

  
  

  
  I also compare to AKG Q701, Audio-Technica ATH-AD700x, Beyerdynamic DT990 (600 ohms), HiFiMAN HE400i, HyperX Cloud, Philips Fidelio X2 and Sennheiser HD700, which I got for gaming, except for HE400i, but it's great for gaming. I don't recommend HyperX Cloud / Cloud II / CloudX. I strongly advise against them if you don't need closed-back. My evaluations derive mostly if not only from gaming (so take it with a grain of salt for music entertainment listening). I can't emphasize enough that perceived performance in headphones is relative.
  
   
  
  Glossary | ℹ️
  ---|---
  Closed-back x | Cups with solid shells that largely isolate sound from passing in and out.
  Open-back / semi-open-back | Cups with perforations/grills that allow outside sound to freely pass in and sound from the drivers to freely pass out. How loud you hear outside sound and how loud people around you hear the sound from the headphones depend on the volume, of course. The sonic benefit to open-back is generally a big soundstage.
  Soundstage | Perceived space and environment of sound. It can be compared to virtual surround sound; both attempt to produce the same spacious, three-dimensional effect. VSS can sound more ambient and immersive, which depends on the processor you use (CMSS-3D, Dolby, SBX, etc.), but it degrades the sound quality and diminishes detailing due to compression from digital processing. You might also experience less accurate imaging and separation if the headphone already has good imaging and separation. Note that a deep soundstage is equally important as a wide soundstage.
  Imaging | Accuracy of sounds/objects positioned across the soundstage. And I mean where they are positioned -- not merely what direction they come from. This distinction is important because being able to tell only what direction objects come from isn't good enough to me when playing against people. Imaging is inherent to the audio content, so if the game is recorded or mixed poorly, a headphone with good imaging won’t improve the positional audio, so don't judge the headphone before using it in games you're very familiar with. I test mine mostly in Battlefield: Bad Company 2.
  Separation | Separating individual sounds from a range of sounds. Good separation makes it easier to filter out or discern overlapping sounds from other sounds and track them.

Holy shit I'm so sorry, lol. I got distracted.

So there's a couple of things that might be for good. There's two distinct types of mics so I'll recommend some from both types:

Condensers - these are typically very sensitive but they sound pretty nice, too.

• Blue Snowball iCE and Blue Snowball - I think these are the same, but the iCE just has the one pattern - they're both pretty good
  
  
• ATR2500 - Also good, and has a headphone jack for direct monitoring
  
  
• Samson Meteor Mic - also has a headphone jack for monitoring
  
  Dynamic - they typically aren't as sensitive and still sound pretty nice. It's probably better to get a dynamic, although your computer is quiet enough that you might be able to get away with it. IIRC from any given distance a dynamic picks up less room noise, but that can make it harder to pick you up at an acceptable level as well so keep that in mind.
  
  
• ATR2005 - this is a little over budget and for that I apologize, but it's a pretty great mic. Headphone output, comes with a stand to point it at your face (as do all the others), sounds great (there's lots of videos of it, it's pretty good sounding), has an XLR output so if you upgrade to a mixer you can keep using it... nice little piece.
  
  
• ATR2100 - the 2005's little brother
  
  Unfortunately those are the only two USB dynamics I personally know of. Over on /r/podcasting I'm sure /u/BangsNaughtyBits knows of some more good ones that I don't know of.
  
  My personal recommendation would be the ATR2100, but I encourage you to look at them yourself and ask questions to find out which one fits you best. Also keep in mind this is just for your sub $75 price range request.

1). Unfortunately, I don't know if I have the link to the original podcast anymore, since it was only done once before they went their separate ways. And in order to get all of my material from the school, I'd have to go through them for distribution, and I'm not sure how easily they'd allow that.

2). My available time each week is truly dependent on the week itself. I work a part time job which is not always consistent. Usually I work late afternoons Thursday-Sunday, but the rest of the days are truly just up to where I'm needed that specific day. However, I can always take a specific day off that everyone can be free on in order to ensure I am available consistently on that weekly basis. All I'd need to know is when everyone else is free.

3). When I worked on my radio show back at the school, it was a live two-hour format with a break every twelve minutes. Often times, we would take a few things throughout the week, from general entertainment news, and compile everything together the day of before the show. Not all of the show was improved by any means, but being in a live format where there are no edits definitely makes you think about what you can say and how long you can do so.

With that being said, I do edit, both videos and audio, and I'm actually working on an audio drama in my spare time from time to time (fun fact). So, I can edit and distribute with ease for sure, that's not a problem. And as stated before, I was the main lead co-host on my show, so I have no worries being heard in a hosting format. And obviously gathering content and the like go hand in hand with everything I've already said.

4). Excuse me if I'm sounding silly here, but I'm not exactly sure what you mean, but I have been up all night dealing with some family emergencies. What it appears to be is you asking me if I'd like to be on an already existing show as a "field expert" on a specific topic. In which case, absolutely. As I said, I'm not souly looking to start my own podcast from the ground up. If someone comes along and asks to take me under their wing, I'd be very interested in doing so. And of course, guests often turn into regular occurrences, so I have no quarrels with that.

5). Yes, I do. The microphone of choice I have is a Blue Yeti, which I know may be a major turn off for many people, but it's always done me well. Obviously with any mic, the environment is important, and the only main thing that hinders my sound quality is my graphics card's fan, which when in intensive use can get loud, but can easily be edited out with some simple editing in Adobe Audition, which is what I personally use for my audio editing. Otherwise, I am not set up in a sound stage or anything, but I find that my audio quality is rarely irreversible, and as long as my graphics card isn't in intense use, it shouldn't be a problem at all.

With that being said, I am considering getting this soon, but the main problem is having the money to spend on that when I'm going on vacation with my family for a week in just a few days. With that next paycheck being a little light, it may have to wait for a month or so. But it is a future investment I do have on my mind.

6). I kind of already touched on this earlier, but I mainly work weekends in the afternoon (4-10 PM Central Time), and the rest of the week is really dependent on the day, but it tends to be about the same. As previously noted, I will be going on a vacation in the next few days, which means I won't really have my recording equipment to do any recordings, obviously. However, I will remain active in whatever forum used to communicate (Personally, I find Discord to be a good communication device, if only for text). And as also previously noted, once I know everyone's availability, I can work around it with my work schedule with relative ease.

Thanks for asking these questions. I try not to shove every detail of information into my post at once, and overwhelm any onlookers. So it's good to know that there is some interest in the post.

Others have already asked some pretty useful questions, but if you're looking for more specifics here's what I know.

Recording & Editing Software

While I can't speak to resources for non-Apple tools. If you have a Mac you can start out with simply a good microphone and the GarageBand application.

Microphones and Pop Filters

If you're looking for a mic recommendation I've had a lot of success with the Yeti USB microphone. It's pretty versatile and the sound quality has been quite good. A cheaper reliable option is the Snowball. You can find mics for less than that but I can't vouch for the quality. No extra set up is really needed, just plug it in and record. Some people recommend a pop filter, they're pretty cheap and I've had a good experience with the Dragonpad ones. If you need an example of sound quality PM me, I'm happy to link you an episode I created using the Yeti mic.

Uploading and Hosting

Once you've recorded and edited your Podcast you'll need somewhere to host it so others can listen to what you've created. I usually upload the file to SoundCloud and then share the link or embed the player in my blog and website. There are a lot of other podcast-specific hosting sites out there but I've found SoundCloud to be free and easy.

Helpful Guide

When I first started out I came across a great blog article by Mike Cernovich that I followed to create my first episodes. You can read it here if you're interested (it's specific to using GarageBand though).

I hope this helps, a D&D podcast sounds great. Can't wait to hear what you create.

Alright, I can work with that.

To preface this, I recommend pairing one of the following headphones with a clip-on microphone - either a cheaper model like a [Zalman ZM-Mic1] (http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-Zm-Mic1-Sensitivity-Headphone-Microphone/dp/B00029MTMQ) or a more expensive model like [Antlion's Modmic] (http://www.modmic.com/collections/frontpage) - rather than getting a headset with an integrated mic. From a price/performance standpoint, headsets almost never stack up. The headsets made by the real headphone brands are exceedingly expensive, and with a very small body of exceptions the cheaper headsets sound terrible.

Now, onward to the headphones. When I hear "isolation", "comfort", and "neutral/warm sound signature", the first thing that comes to my mind is [NVX's] (http://www.head-fi.org/t/624729/review-nvx-xpt100-a-direct-brainwavz-hm5-competitor) [XPT100] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2G9qk7IOEA) ([$99 via Amazon] (http://www.amazon.com/NVX-Over-Ear-Headphones-ComfortMax-Cushions/dp/B0093PVTPS)). I actually own a pair of these myself for use as moderate isolation movie/podcast headphones for when my house is too loud for me to use my open headphones, and they're among the most comfortable headphones I've had. While they don't take the top spot - no headphones without an AKG-style suspension strap will ever do that - they're definitely in the top five or so. Their sound isn't the most detailed out there, but they're fairly neutral, solidly built, and very comfortable, particularly given their price.

A more expensive step up would be [Shure's] (http://www.head-fi.org/products/shure-srh840/reviews/5056) SRH[840] (http://www.head-fi.org/products/shure-srh840/reviews/3768) ([$199 via Amazon] (http://www.amazon.com/Shure-SRH840-Professional-Monitoring-Headphones/dp/B002DP8IEK/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1426324378&sr=1-1&keywords=shure+srh84)). While I sadly haven't had a chance to try these out myself, I've heard little but good things about them. Formerly on Innerfidelity's wall of fame, and with consistently good reviews for their sound, comfort, and overall quality, they're definitely a solid choice if you're looking for a neutralish sound with some bass.

A third option would be the [Focal Spirit One] (http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/focal-spirit-one-page-3) ([$175] (http://www.amazon.com/Focal-529102-SPOH-Spirit-One-Headphones/dp/B007AH7YFU) or [$179] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008R9QRIU/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_2?pf_rd_p=1944687702&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B007AH7YFU&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0HS51KQ3XCE0J5B14R27) via Amazon for the black and white models, respectively). Focal has a quite a solid reputation in audio, but the Spirit One had some serious issues on its release due to manufacturing defects, and it suffered a rather bad reception as a result. These issues are said to have been since resolved, however, and the Spirit One is a very solid headphone at that price. The sound is a bit on the bassy side, but not extremely so, and is quite good for this price. Comfort may be an issue, however, as the One was quite clearly designed more for portability than comfort. While no review characterizes it as uncomfortable, it's a safe bet that it doesn't measure up to the other two in this regard.

Another rather unique option, albeit one with some inherent drawbacks, would be [Fostex's] (http://www.head-fi.org/t/570138/review-fostex-t50rp-my-intro-to-the-world-of-orthos) [T50RP] (http://www.head-fi.org/t/559233/review-fostex-t50rp-its-been-needing-a-review) ([$127 via Amazon] (http://www.head-fi.org/t/559233/review-fostex-t50rp-its-been-needing-a-review)). Now, the T50RP is, at stock, not the best-liked headphone. Though it is one of the (if not the) cheapest orthodynamic headphones in the world, its very poor comfort and [rolled-off sound] (http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/FostexT50RP2011B.pdf) have attracted a lot of criticism. Having a pair myself, I wholeheartedly agree with criticism of its comfort, but think its stock sound is better than people give it credit for. What the T50RP has going for it, however, is an [exceptionally dedicated modding community] (http://www.head-fi.org/t/618659/fostex-t50rp-incremental-mods-and-measurements), and some very high-profile modified variants. Modded T50RPs under the branding of MrSpeakers and ZMF can sell for $300, $600, or even $1,000, and experienced reviewers and audiophiles alike have claimed that they measure up to headphones in those price ranges. If you happen to feel a DIYish inclination, a T50RP can be quite a solid project to work on, and, in theory, it can get you $300-600 sound quality for a little sound of $200 accounting for the various materials it takes to mod them.

Now, there are, as said, quite a few drawbacks to the T50RP: the stock sound isn't for everyone, it requires more power to drive than the other mentioned headphones (not enough to cause issues at stock, in my opinion, but when modded it can be quite intensive to drive, almost assuredly moreso than your integrated audio can support), and it's absolutely terrible in comfort (if you do go for them, [a headband cover like this] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00862522A/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and a pair of [Shure] (http://www.amazon.com/Shure-HPAEC840-Replacement-Cushions-Headphones/dp/B002Z9JWZS/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1426325351&sr=1-1&keywords=shure+pads) or [Brainwavz] (http://www.amazon.com/Brainwavz-Replacement-Memory-Foam-Earpads/dp/B00MFDT894/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1426325358&sr=1-1&keywords=brainwavz+pads) pads were what I used to take them from "terrible" to "pretty darn solid" comfort), and modding isn't for the faint of heart. After quite a while of tinkering, I've yet to get my own T50RP mod working properly. It's amazing value if you can make it work for you, but it's quite a significant amount of effort to achieve that.

Hi OP! I spec and build custom machines semi-professionally, and I'll be more than happy to answer any questions you have. I know /u/simonc95 has already given a ton of good information, but if you have any concerns on specifics I can definitely fill you in.

I will however, reiterate what was said on power supplies - DONT CHEAP OUT. The thing is responsible for keeping your machine running, and if something goes wrong could fry the entire thing. Not a risk worth taking. Stick to tier 1 and 2a from the list provided if at all possible. Personally, I'm a big fan of the EVGA Supernova G2 PSU's, as they give the option of semi-passive and fully passive cooling if silence is your gig.

Since you want to do both gaming and editing, I'd recommend sticking to Nvidia's GTX line for your GPU (AMD is fine too, but I've always held issue with the amount of heat those things put out. That's your call though.) - the Quattro's are fine for purely workstation systems, but are not intended for gaming. (A 960 or 970, or the equivalent low -mid range of the next batch of cards when they release this year - should do you just fine.)

One thing that hasnt been covered yet is peripherals - since you're planning to do photo/video editing, you're going to want something that color accurate -this points you towards an IPS panel (as opposed to a TN panel. The principle by which the screen updates pixels is the difference. TN panels are generally better for gaming as they are capable of much higher refresh rates, up to 144hz commonly, but a decent IPS will handle the games you listed just fine).

You'll have to shop around a little bit to find one with a solid color score as well as the features you want. If you want to be in 4K, as is in vogue right now, you'll need a beefier graphics card, (esp for gaming/video rendering) and a 4k monitor, which unfortunately have yet to come down in price by much.

Now, for typing, this comes down to personal preference, but if you want your hands to love you, buy a mechanical keyboard. Anything with Cherry MX switches is a pretty good option, but if you find another switch type that tickles your fancy then that's your prerogative. Mech keyboards are more expensive than your typical rubberdome, but taken care of properly (like not spilling drinks on them) they'll last virtually forever. They're also hugely customizable - you can get LED backlit keys, or custom keycaps, and even keycaps you can see through!


For audio recording, most people use Audacity, which is a free audio recording and processing software. If you want to do anythig more serious that just talk over VOIP, you'll want to get some variety of condenser microphone (as opposed to dynamic, which is commonly used in most (gaming headsets). If you'd like to have a boom style microphone on your headphones of choice, the Antlion Modmic is an excellent option. Otherwise, you can always use a freestanding microphone - the most popular has been the Blue Yeti for quite a few years now. If you just want something to start you off, the Samson Meteor mic is actually quite the bang for the buck.


Alright, sorry for the wall of text. Feel free to comment reply or PM me if you have any questions.

If you are looking to MC, I don't see why you would need an MPC. An MPC is designed for someone who wants to physically manipulate samples (drums, chords, bass stuff, w/e) by banging it out on a set of pads. Don't get me wrong, they're great (and I own a Maschine Mikro, love it but barely use it now... which reminds me I should use it more...), but if you are looking to spend money on what will help your vocal skills, I would say buy a condenser microphone, an audio interface, and get some software to record in.

Software:

Audacity is free but featureless or difficult to use to truly edit stuff together.

FL is an option and is easily grabbed through pirating.

I use Logic Pro.

Ableton Live is great if you are into electronica or like certain features that if I describe here will only be way over your head right now.

I've heard good things about Reaper, it's free to try, and a license is only $60, so it's the most affordable legit one out there, but I can't speak from experience.

(You'll essentially want the ability to have multiple tracks of audio)

Hardware:

A simple interface is needed to get the mic to get audio into your computer. You will need a mic.

As for a mic, you can use dynamic mics (usually cheaper, lower quality in terms of vocal sounds, but can be held and you can move around with it if that gets you in the groove). You can also go with a condenser mic (more expensive, but much better quality in terms of vocals, but you can't hold it and move around with it because they are really sensitive to vibrations).

If you go with a condenser mic, you will need a mic stand for it. Your interface will also need "phantom power". Scarlett 2i2 is a good basic interface that has phantom power (the little light/button on it that says 48v). This interface can also handle dynamic mics, but you will turn phantom power off with them (they don't require the extra power to amplify their signal.)

If you go with dynamic mics, the SM58 is a traditional and sturdy choice. If you go with a condenser mic, you don't have to go all out and spend $500 on your first mic. Save that for if you really get into it and need better quality once your vocals are up to par. You could go with the AKG Perception series which are really affordable and of decent quality. I own one, I think the one listed, but I forget, since I haven't recorded anything in forever.

So, for something like, what... $400 or so, you could have Reaper, an interface, a condenser mic, and a stand and the cables you need, and you'll be good to go. I suggest checking out small music shops to see if you can get better prices. Craigslist may also be good, but sometimes people try and pawn broken gear off, so always ask to test it first.

Just thought I'd throw in my personal set up as well, if you want to explore multiple options

Capture device/software: Elgato Game Capture HD

The Elgato is incredible. It's very simple to use and comes with all of the cables you need. It's capable of capturing in 1080p which is a great plus. The software that comes with it is very easy to use and works very well. One of the best features of this capture card is that the files that it makes are remarkably small considering their quality. I'll record like an hour and a half of 1080p gameplay and only end up with an 18GB file but the quality still looks perfect.

It allows you to capture your voice from a microphone at the same time that you play, but I like to be able to change the volume on my own later so I use Audacity as well. The software also has integration with Twitch if you want to livestream, however I haven't used this feature yet.

Overall, the elgato might be a little bit more of an investment but it's DEFINITELY worth it. You'll get great quality and it'll make recording a lot easier. It also has support for legacy consoles and since it uses HDMI/component it should be compatible with the next generation of consoles as well.

Microphone: Blue Yeti

I use the Yeti but there are cheaper options by Blue that also have fantastic audio quality. If you're looking for something on the cheaper side, go for the Blue Snowball hands down or maybe the Blue Nessie. The Snowball is one sale right now on amazon and it's definitely worth that price. A lot of commentators over look audio and just use their headset or laptop mic. In my opinion thats a huge mistake and for many people that will make or break whether or not they enjoy your video.

As far as video editing goes, g4video is right, Vegas is the way to go. But its expensive software. Elgato comes with editing software as well which seems like a good start if you can't afford Vegas as well.

I'm assuming you have a physical location to record & some type of computer.

Do this:

Get ahold of $100-$500. Buy a microphone & either some really nice headphones or some studio monitors (i recommend headphones if you can't do both). My first mic was a Blue Snowball. I love using my Audio Technica headphones. Probably not gonna win you any grammys but it will teach you some things until you can afford a better setup.

OBTAIN... in whichever way you see fit... some software to record on called a DAW. From the free software Audacity to something like Logic Pro X or Studio One. Just get one. There's hundreds of tutorials on youtube on how to use them. You're also going to want to get some Vsts. Google will be your friend for this section lol.

Practice making songs on here in the cypher & collab call threads. There's also a billion beats on youtube that nobody's going to know you used if you just keep it between yourself and some friends.

Do that for however long it takes for you to feel that you're good. There's plenty of forums out there like gearslutz and this one and some others that you can get info on.

When you feel like you're good start buying beats and all that stuff. Until then you're going to have to practice and learn what you sound like and what makes a good song otherwise it'll be a waste of money. It's much cheaper to collab with people though...

For networking if you make a good song and start sharing it with your friends it'll get around since you're still in high school. That's already 2k potential fans & they all have people that they know. Start with them. It's NYC and the world is much smaller than you think...

EDIT: Also never pay to do a show and stay on the lookout for scammers.

Blender is a good start for video editing software. It's free, and is GREAT at 3d work. I haven't done any basic video editing in it myself, although I have done some 3d work with it, but I've heard it works pretty well for editing.

OBS is free screen recording software. You can always watch a streamer you enjoy, record some footage, and make your own edits.

You can also take a song you like, and make a music video for it.

Making memes and creating GIFs for r/highqualitygifs is also a great way to practice editing.

If you want to do voiceovers, or any voicework, the Samson C03U is an AMAZING USB microphone that I would personally rate better than any other USB mic in the market under $250. (and it only costs $100). I've used that mic and it's predecessor (the C01U) since I started working.



Really just finding something you want to create and going for it is where you start.


Hope this helped out!

Yes but M50x is the top of the line that you should get. It's also the most stable and popular one out of all, the others are kinda the "little brothers" of M50x.

I have had my pair for 7 years now, not even the x version but the older one and they are superb.

Few things I'll say off the bat though: Buying SRH840 EARPADS and replace the default m50x's ones is going to change your life. They fit perfectly and the comfort is so much better.

I had to take off the m50x after an hour or so as my ears starts to hurt. Once I bought the 840 earpads I could have it on literally all day without even noticing it's there. Such a massive difference.

That being said, despite M50x being incredible and fucking amazing for the price you're paying, it's also designed for mixing use, so it might not have the biggest soundstage or listening experience. It's amazing for hearing details, and has a nice bass. But I think there could be, not sure, something out there that is more based around soundstage and a wider listening experience, maybe lacks more in details but gives you a better party going in your ears.

But at the very least I can confirm that M50X is better than any other MX with a lower number. My brother has a M30X and the 50 completely blows it out both in sound quality + comfort.

You're going to have a few options here.

The first is obviously a headset. This is by far the easiest solution, since it's all-in-one headphones and microphone. The headphones are isolated from the mic, too, which means you don't need to worry about echo or picking up any noise otherwise coming out of your speakers.

Since you say you'd rather not wear a headset, though, that's out of the picture, I guess.

The next best option, I think, is some combination of headphones and mic (it's more of a pain in the ass to set up, since the components are separate, but it might get you a bit more quality, too). If that's not possible, I guess speakers and mic is it.

As for the microphones that you can pair with whichever sound output is your choice (speakers or headphones), you have a few options there, too.

The easiest of these are basically designed as PC peripherals that use either USB or 1/8th inch analog line in ports. Pretty much anything that comes up when you search "desktop mic" on Google will fit into this category. From general consensus, one of the best of these mics is the Blue Snowball mic. It's got very good quality and it's relatively cheap as far as high end desk mics go, and the USB format means it's usually easier to get working than the line in kind. If you want to get really fancy there are some good lapel mics out there, too, but frankly unless you're roleplaying on your tablet while walking around your house you can probably make do with a desk mic.

Beyond this stage is what might be termed "professional mics", at which point you need to become concerned with knowledge of condenser vs. diaphragm, phantom power, and audio interfaces (largely because your PC doesn't have an XLR-in port, which is the cable these microphones almost always use). This is probably somewhat above your price range and needs. If you really want I can explain more about them, though.

So now back to your specifics -

> I'd rather not wear a headset.

Headset's the easiest, but any mic paired with headphones is just as good (albeit more annoying to configure). Mic + speakers will often get you echo and unintentional pickup, but there's not much you can do about that as the end-user since echo cancellation is usually handled by the VOIP software and not your microphone.

> I'd like to be able to just talk normally and have the microphone pick up what I'm saying.

All microphones do this, since if they are turned on they are always transmitting data to your computer - including whatever you happen to say. Not all software does this, but if you configure your software of choice to pick up any noise over a given threshold (including a threshold of 'always on') you will get this effect.

> Ideally something that works in such a way that even 'push-to-talk' becomes redundant.

I'm not sure what this means. If it's important and I haven't covered it yet, please feel free to elaborate.

I definitely agree with you on game selection. I see so many people in a YouTube Gamers Facebook group covering the same games as PewDiePie, JackSepticEye, Markiplier and wondering why they don't grow at all.

I do think that it's fine to make videos on a game if you're new if you have a niche. For example, the PC version of NieR: Automata has a lot of issues, and there are plenty of user mods to alleviate those issues (by using the FAR mod, among other tools). Not many people have video tutorials on those (and none at the time I made the video, I think), so I made some tutorials on those.But that requires some research and knowhow on the game you're covering.

Between three of the videos, I have something like 7.5k views, which is not bad for a fledgling channel like mine (and I didn't really promote the videos on social media).

The AT 2020 is something you might want to link to in your article. I'm happy with my Blue Yeti, but I've heard people prefer the AT 2020.

I'd throw a shoutout for Hitfilm 4 Express as a great free video editing tool. It does pretty much everything you need to out of the box, for no cost, and you can buy reasonably priced upgrade kits to get fancier effects (I think the starter pack is worth the 10 bucks, but I didn't need it).

It doesn't seem to support MP4s with multiple audio tracks (only selects the first one), but if you're using audacity to record your mic, this isn't too much of an issue.


As for scheduling, really good information there. I actually didn't know that information about alerts.

I'd say game specific sub-reddits are fantastic for views. I do a lot of Warframe stuff, and if one of my videos gets popular there, I can easily see 10x the views on a video.

But yeah, great article as a whole and a good intro for newbies.

• Best reasonable price mic: Blue Snowball
  
• Programs: Fraps for VOD Only, XSplit for livecasting (TwitchTV can upload to YT, so you don't need fraps if you live cast)
  
  I copied and pasted my response from a other caster I was giving advice to:
  
  You can't use viewer count for motivation. For a new caster each video is a lotto ticket, there is a very small chance one of your casts will make it on a site such as SC2Casts or Reddit but when it does you will get 1000 views and hope that 5% of those come back. Until that happens, just upload on a consistent schedule; for instance I just started live casting at 19:00 EST every day and uploading the VODs to Youtube. By setting up a schedule you are catering to "the 1%" who watch you, hoping they tell friends and such.
  
  If you still enjoy casting after following a schedule for a month or two, look into purchasing some gear to improve your quality. You can't look it like "I will buy a $100 mic and it will get me more views and pay itself off!". You're staying at home more and if you are like me staying at home means you are not going out to the bar; which is saving you money. It now becomes I saved $100 this month by not going out; I reward myself with a microphone.
  
  Don't advertise your video's until you are very happy with them yourself; you will only get flamed and demotivated. Every new caster can improve upon something; vocabulary, mic, and just over all quality. Watch every video you make and take notes until you get comfortable.
  
  If you want replays, I have been attaching replays to my YouTube casts lately http://youtube.com/RageQuitTV but if you just google "SC2 Replays" you will find many replays. However I sift through them which ensures they are good games.

essentialy youwant to be able to do the following -

Record localy- despite what everyone may say , recording localy is a HUGE deal. yes it means you need to learn to edit, but say person X screams in the podcast - you can edit it out. say friend y talks over someone a lot? again cut it out. you have WAY more power to do it with. i highly recomend doing it. bonus - you can do it for free. we use a program called "open broadcast studio", which allows you to record incomign sound and outgoing sound. i advise if you are new to editing you start off by recording in and out and seperate them in something like audacity, which il lget into later. but more importantly yeah it will give you all individual files. that way if someone has bad internet it dosent matter. it takes some training but you get it

common problem we found was if people use headsets with a mic and headphones ,they will not be able to record seperately and will have to record them together

next - cloud storage. sounds dumb, but if you are working with people in different places you want a place you can dump stuff you need. take up the google drive 100gb plan. its $2 a month and my god, its just so usefull. we dump EVERYTHING in ours. books we are reading for the show, music for the show, notes, recordings, it makes getting the files so much easier and we dont have to think about ever hitting the limit.

microphones - any podcast with bad audio is not a podcast at all. you need mics, all of you. fortunatly you have options. blue yeti are good but there are pleanty of other options. i advise staying away from headsets with mics as they can cause problems in recording (it registers both the mic and the audio coming in from the headphones as both local audio and audio incoming, so it screws up all your settings) you can fortunatly pick up a cheap microphone. while i have an ok one samson co1u usb studio condenser my friend got this one yesterday for £13 works fine, does the job, audio is good and yeah. there are a bunch of accessories i could recomend but the main one is pop filters, they help out a hell of a lot

Edditing: did you say a joke that fell flat? did someone fart really loud and it was out of place and reduced professionalism? check out audacity. its a free and great starting place for audio edditing.

then you need stuff like logos, ideas,etc. honestly? if you wana have fun and do it quick just do skype recorder and record calls. but despite what it may sound like, podcasts are so much more than just a few friends on a phone call together. i recomend spending a few weeks discussing things and working together on it before you start. we hvae been looking at starting a podcast for about...2 years now, and this current project we are about to launch next month has been worked on for around a month and a half prior.

Just feel like mentioning that a larger soundstage is nice for gaming, but will mean that sound leaks out of the headphones. If you live with roommates or in close-quarters (like a dorm), you absolutely should buy closed-back headphones or (even better imo) some nice in-ear monitors.

I just picked up the Massdrop x NuForce EDC in-ears and they are brilliant. Perfect for, well, every day carry. Throw them in my backpack, great for jogging, snug fit, crisp and deep profile.

Just throwing that out there.

I use the ATH-M50's at work. I replaced the ear cups with slightly larger and softer Shure ear cups, and I had to get a knit wrap for the headband, which was starting to flake. Overall, I highly recommend the ATH-M50 cans, they sound punchy and fun, but still flat enough to not overtly influence music to the point where I feel like using a software EQ. No amp needed, I plug directly into my MacBook Pro and play Spotify high quality @ 320 kbps.

Ah ok, that's probably the reason. Most built in microphones will not be as good as the microphones you buy in stores/online. They pick up the sounds of your laptop fan and other noises. It's alright if you're a beginner just trying to start but it'll quickly need to be replaced as some people might not even consider following you if there's an annoying sound constantly playing.

Since I haven't heard your microphone then all I can say is that if it doesn't sound like your ears are about to bleed then feel free to use it for starters(test this with a friend or some viewers). But I suggest you get a dedicated microphone for streaming.

----

Microphones my friends and I have used

If you're able to buy a microphone then the ones that my friends and I have experience with are the following:

• Blue's Snowball Microphone
  
  
• Blue's Yeti Microphone
  
  Here's a video that show's off both microphones and an extra
  
  Other Microphones
  
  I've heard that these are also good, though I have no experience with them.
  
  
• Blue's NESSIE Microphone : Review
  
  
• Samson's Go Microphone : Review
  
  
• Samson's CO1U microphone : Review
  
  ----
  
  Some tips for your microphone
  
  I suggest you get a pop filter^[1] for your microphone if you decide to buy one. Then, if possible, you should also get a Shock Mount^[2] but that isn't as crucial as the pop filter.
  
  

1. Pop filters are designed to stop Plosives from being heard when recording. Plosives are puffs of air that emit when saying words that start with certain letters, such as P or B. They can ruin a recording for people that over-exaggerate the begging of some words. Pop filter Example
   
   
2. The best way I can describe a Shock-Mount is a if the mount is a cradle for your microphone. Any bumps or small movements to a Microphone NOT using a Shock-Mount will cause it to be heard in recording, meaning you'll hear all these small sounds in the background. It's easier to just show you what a shock mount does
   
   ----
   
   There's a bit more to recording your microphone, like sound proofing, but that's for another day. I just wanted to give you a list of microphones and some tips that could help you out if you're a new to streaming/recording.
   
   Good Luck! As I said before, if your laptop's microphone doesn't make your ears(or a friends' ears) bleed then go ahead and use it for how ever long it takes you to save up and buy a better microphone. But I suggest you not wait too long if you have the choice.
   
   Edit: Markup
   
   Edit2: Grammar
   
   Edit3: Reworded the first section's title.

I'm just starting out so I may not be the best help but here it goes...

We've done videos so far with either 3 or 4 people. We use the Blue Snowball Microphone and it's been pretty fantastic thus far. It's works great in groups.

We have that mic plugged into a MacbookPro (Which is hooked up to the TV) which is running the capture program Screenflick. Screenflick is pretty phenomenal and quite simple to use. The one issue is that it records both game audio and mic audio into one track so any kind of ducking or advanced editing isn't going to work.

That was our initial set up and it worked pretty well, however we ran into the issue of the mic picking up TV sound which made the videos sound... subpar. So I picked up a Belkin 5 Way Audio Splitter which has been working flawlessly so far.

I have a relatively simple set up but it's been pretty powerful so far. Let me know if you have any questions! :)

Well start at the beginning. People notice high quality recordings. If you listen to your Pod on headphones, crappy mics then get compressed to crappy MP3s is tedious to listen to.

If there are 2 or you, plan on spending a couple hundred bucks to solve this.

I use Sterling ST-51 Condenser mics- You can generally get them on sale at Guitar Center for $70 bucks. Here is a link to amazon

After you get that you'll need two XLR cables
After that you'll need some sort if interface. I have never had more than four people on my podcast, but the nature of podcasting generally means you'll get good a production, go as big as you can early, someone somewhere will want to pay you to produce for them. It's better to have the flexibility out of the box then have to cluge around with shitty hardware. However if you're on a tight budget there are other things you can get. Audio to computer interfaces give you more flexibility because you can add things like music live during a recording from other devices, allow you to use Skype (which isn't obvious when you have high quality mics and interfaces) I trend toward Focusrite, they make Bad Ass equipment. The Scarlett series works well for me. They don't have a loop back feature, but if you get that far let me know and ill tell you how to do it for the cost of a $1 RCA cable.

You can get linear PCM recorders Here and Here for about the same money as an audio interface, so its your call. They put it all in one package, but in the long run I think you'll end up getting tired of moving large files to your software for editing. I use the Tascam DR-40 and give it to people who are traveling - it is STELLAR and less than anything else on the market, because its old. But it's record out of the box- Easy.

Now Software- Ive used pay versions of Cakewalk. Ive used Audacity, which is great but clunky. I have landed on Reaper. It is the most full featured, open, continually updated, solid, go to, piece of software you can find. They're not dumb, they let you download a fully functioning copy for free. Its Not hampered in anyway. If you don't buy a license then you have to sit through a click away every time it opens. Better yet, just try it for a while, then you will appreciate it and want to buy the $60 license for small business or home use. Brilliant in every way.

That set up will last you for years and give you virtually pro quality production capability.

TL;DR
Mics (and Cables) Sterling ST-51 or similar (less than $100 ea)
Audio interface ( Many in, Many out, USB 2, Focusrite or Tascam)
Software (There can only be one, Reaper, Hands down)


Edit: My pods are at Defensesecurity.org , Homeready.org and Renman24.com - if you listen to the first ones and then listen to the latest ones you'll notice my equipment improvement, and editing style change. Its a muscle, work it out and it'll get better.

Edit 2: spelling and links
Edit 3: Links again

What are you trying to accomplish? If you're just podcasting, one USB mic is plenty. If you're doing project recording, layering in instruments, etc., then I would use a standard mic.

I really like the AT2020 USB. Great for podcasts, but can really take the dB's for instrument recording, even if you're playing trumpet or something.

Samson c01u may work just as well, at a bit lower price. c03u is a pricier alternative, but higher quality from what I've read.

If you want a 'standard jack mic' (XLR), then I have more suggestions. Of course, unless you really have the soundcard for it, you'd probably need an adapter to use one. You will get more for your money in terms of mic quality though.

I don't think you can beat a Behringer ECM8000 for value, and I prefer the sound over the industry-standard Shure. I also like MXL for value, and the V67G is a great one, and may be more appropriate for podcasting.

CAD GXL3000 is a good one if you want a multi-pattern.

If you really want to get spendy, get the APEX 460. This is a favorite because you can mod it to sound like a very expensive mic. (EDIT: sounds fantastic right out of the box, too)

If you want to try a ribbon mic, as suggested below, MXL has some real bang-for-the-buck products. Also the Nady RSM-4 and -5. Ribbon mics are a bit different and I think they accentuate highs too much, but I don't fault anyone who prefers 'em.

I definitely think you should invest in a better microphone. If you can save up some money and get your hands on a Blue Nessie or a Snowball, it would be the best idea. They are relatively cheap, and you can plug them directly into your computer without the need of an audio interface (meaning they are USB microphones, not XLR). You also might want to invest in a better camera for yourself. I can see that there is some frame bleeding, and I can assume that you're using a webcam. Got an iPhone? Those work better than most personal digital cameras.

Are you capturing your game footage, video footage, and audio with the same program? (Programs like Game Capture HD can do this) If so, you have more control over your content if you record everything separately, then sync them up on editing software.

But overall, you have some great content! People will definitely enjoy your content more as you evolve as a Let's Player, and you'll definitely be able to grow your fanbase. Just keep yourself consistent and try to be as entertaining as possible.

Good luck!

-Gamebomb

Hi.

Your channel does need improving, as you say the microphone quality needs improving, as well as the banner. I could highly recommend the Blue Snowball Ice, or the Turtlebeach PX21 headset for microphone quality (I use both)

The actual video quality is great, very clear to see, and the added bonus of 60fps. The only issue I have is the length of the videos. I know that a lot of people prefer watching a video that is less than 10 minutes long, sometimes up to 15 minutes. 45 minutes for a single video, personally, is way too long for a small channel. You could combat this by including key parts of the games only, and cutting any slow, or unentertaining sections out. This will also help create a more interesting video, and should help you get some more subscribers.

I would also recommend having an intro, around 5-10 seconds long at max, as this will show viewers that you are putting effort and time into your video, and show a little more professionalism in the beginning of your videos.

When speaking, make sure you are not saying "ur, erm" so on. This will show that you haven't really thought through what you want to say in the video. I personally have some notes on paper next to myself when recording a video which is not live, as this allows you to keep to the point, while also not forgetting what you are wanting to say. If you do this once in a while, you could look at cutting the section out. Also, try to edit the audio so that there is not a lot of silent parts. I usually record a point at a time, then edit the audio to allow it all to feed together, allowing it to sound like a single sentence. If you know what I mean.

You do have some work to do on the channel, but the majority of this will be easier over time to do as habit, and will improve the quality greatly. You have a good clear voice, you just need a good microphone to be able to show this fully.

Good luck with your channel.

I'd second the Blue Yeti; they make great mics. I have the Blue Yeti Nano for quick laptop style voice overs and podcasting, and I like it as well. It's a little cheaper, but the sound is a bit flatter (some of that can be changed in post if you like)

As an alternative, I bought this mic from Audio Technica back when I first got into podcasting/video production. Its not super expensive, and there are deals occasionally. The connection is standard USB and the audio quality is very clean. If you're recording in a bedroom/studio or other area that isn't going to get outside noise contamination, this is also a great choice, but it WILL pick up other sounds around you if you aren't careful. But I love mine, and its been a couple years and works great, plus you can accessorize with your choice of pop filters, mounting arms, or whatever else you like.

I'd say as far as cost, with audio - you DO get what you pay for, but you can get really really good quality for under $200 pretty easily. Good luck!

Depends on your total budget, but my best advice for a relatively cheap starter set for bringing your audio setup up to a solid standard on a stationary desktop PC goes like this:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XCKGLTP/ - Fifine cardioid USB condenser mic

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GRMF5ZE/ - Neewer mic boom arm and pop filter

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BDX1IVW/ - Status Audio CB-1 closed back headphones

Total price - $111 USD

Don't worry about an external audio interface until you're looking at a proper professional setup or are having specific audio issues that require you to move your audio processing solution to the outside of your PC case. I've been into desktop audio for a few years now and this is my ultimate "bang for your buck" setup I recommend to people looking to get away from gaming headsets while keeping to a gaming headset budget. I have a couple of friends now running this setup and they love it. The mic is nice and clear, the boom lets you get it out of the way and have it wherever you like and the headphones sound great and are incredibly comfortable for long ass listening or gaming sessions. There's no XLR adaption to worry about and everything will plug straight into your PC as it stands right now.

I don't know much about mics, but I just wanted to let you know my experience(s) with the mic I just bought. I picked up a Samson C01U because it's a lot cheaper than the more popular AT2020 and and Blue Yeti condenser mics.

If you're on Windows 8+ like I am, the default USB Audio Device drivers, the one that will be installed when you plug in an USB mic, isn't as good as it was on Windows 7.

My same mic performs better on Windows 7 because of the gain settings. By default the mic is set to around 50% sensitivity level(gain). If you tried speaking into it on Windows 8, you'd have to pretty much put the mic into your mouth before you can hear anything. One Windows 7, it's still pretty soft, but at least you can see something moving on your recording software.

I have mine currently set to around 96% and my voice sounds good, but it also picks up everything else.. On Win7, to have it sound similar, I can leave the levels at around 80%.

What I do to combat that issue--I've tried searching everywhere for driver help, no such luck--I just use the Noise Gate feature on OBS, or any other software that uses that mic.

Anyways, to get back to your question get a condenser mic. The Rode Podcaster is a dynamic mic, which will most likely pick up more sound than a condenser mic. What the condenser mic does is pickup sound from a 'condensed' area, usually right in-front of the mic, not above/behind/next-to it. Keep in mind, if you do decide to go with a Dynamic mic, it isn't as sensitive as a condenser mic, so it might help with the background noise assuming it isn't too loud. Although, you'd probably have to speak louder than usual for it to be clear.

Also, if your computer can handle it, you can use Adobe Audition to de-noise/de-hiss your audio and output it to your stream/chat software. I've yet to try this method, might try it tonight.

Hey man,

Good stuff in that video, I gotta try that Cat Quest game! I have some small suggestions for video editing and then a major suggestion for sound.

For editing, it may seem really small, but how you pop things in to frame can add so much to a joke. This video on how Edgar Wright does visual comedy is great and goes over the theory of "popping" into frame. Just think of Kramer from Seinfeld. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FOzD4Sfgag

When things come from nowhere it seems haphazard and feels choppy (referring to the master chief and bayonetta joke). Having something smoothly rush in from the side, top, or bottom of the frame can add a lot to the humor. Especially giving things weight and giving it a little animated squash and stretch.

For the sound, I highly recommend you invest in a new mic. Let's Plays are essentially podcasts with some visuals most of the time, and if the audio quality is low people won't want to listen. I understand not everyone can afford the best mics, but if you can invest in the Blue Snowball it will drastically improve your guys' sound quality and you would only need one. A $70 investment ain't bad for a mic that could last you a very long time. https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Snowball-Microphone-Textured-White/dp/B000EOPQ7E

But these are just some thoughts and suggestions, keep it up guys!

Hey, I'm really late, and not as active as I'd like to be, but I just wanted to let you know that I really like your check, great tone and excellent pronunciation. You've definitely got talent for VO work, you should look at getting a better mic and getting demos made.

http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Textured/dp/B000EOPQ7E

A lot of people have good luck with this one, and it's a good price.

I would stick with a USB condenser microphone. They're phenomenal as they have a built in condenser and some have built in noise reduction. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do post editing to the show (like running a condenser and noise reducer over your audio), but it helps shave a lot of post work off.

I run the XLR version of the Audio-Technicia AT2020. What I'm linking is the USB version and you may be able to find it used, or cheaper, elsewhere. It's a phenomenally powerful microphone for little cost.

If you want to go XLR, because you feel like you need to do some on the fly mixing, a Scarlet interface + the XLR version of that microphone is a great combination. You can go more advanced with a Behringer Xenyx Q802USB (what I am running), but if you're just starting out keep it simple.

Also pick up a microphone boom, pop filter, and a shock mount (that particular shock mount has a pop filter with it). Keep it off your desk and about 5-6 inches from your mouth when podcasting. You want to reduce all extra noise including mouse clicks, keyboards, or bumping your desk.

If that's too expensive, a Yeti or a Snowball are great introductory microphones. There is a reason everyone uses them. I cut my teeth on a Samson CO1U, but eventually upgraded to the AT because the sound quality is a bit better. Just...always get some kind of arm or tripod or something and keep the microphone suspended.

At the end of the day, as long as you're using some kind of condenser microphone, it doesn't really matter. Post production can help make the whole podcast sound a lot more enjoyable. Just make sure you're consistent, have decent audio quality, and are excited to podcast. I wrote up some dirty tips and tricks here if you're interested.

Good luck!

You can't really record directly from the iPad to the Mac. I think you're probably going to want to look into getting a webcam. Nearly any USB webcam will work with the Mac.

This is a nice one on the cheap but not super cheap end.

You may also want to get a microphone. Many webcams like the one I just linked have one built in, but these are usually pretty low quality. You might give it a try first with the built in mic but if you want higher quality audio I recommend a nice USB mic like the Blue Snowball. Optional, but it'll make your videos sound 100% better.

All of these can be used as direct input for iMovie. iMovie is great for basic video editing and can upload your work directly to YouTube. It's great software that comes free with every Mac.

Everyone will always recommend the Audio Technica ATH-M50's for a headset, but I'm pretty sure you're looking for a headset with deep, controlled bass, good looks, and stuff like that. V-Moda has awesome headphones and a 20 dollar add-on mini microphone that has decent audio.

The Samson Go Mic has decent audio, but I will recommend the Blue Snowball for better audio at nearly the same price. Many of my friends actually use the Snowball for their home studio setup/recording gaming commentary and more.

Just be careful; the original Snowball and the Snowball iCe aren't the same.

Not sure where your budget bracket falls into, but you can always find good microphones out of popular name brands (Razer comes to mind, I use their Blackshark headset and it's fine) but since you record a lot, you're going to be more focused on your microphone than a full-on headset, so I would recommend going for a desktop standalone. Sennheiser is one of the best makers you can come across, but not the most practical. I think your best bet is to just try one or two out that are Below $100 or so and just keep returning them to the store within a day or so if you haven't found the quality you're looking for.
Couple options I found after just searching a bit:
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/snowball-ice-usb-microphone/3242031.p?skuId=3242031&ref=212&loc=DWA&ksid=3e33501a-bb4a-476e-aded-0a38dbf5dd86&ksprof_id=3&ksaffcode=pg213668&ksdevice=t&lsft=ref:212,loc:2&gclid=CjwKEAiA3qXBBRD4_b_V7ZLFsX4SJAB0AtEVX0thRWeC0I_T8xoQ_g66W5jwC3lCUrEQkPnKLful_xoC7U_w_wcB

https://www.amazon.com/Samson-Meteor-Studio-Microphone-Chrome/dp/B004MF39YS/ref=zg_bs_3015406011_7?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=J8CFQ57YAJSP6MJ435XS

https://www.amazon.com/Turtle-Beach-Universal-digital-Streaming-TruSpeak/dp/B01GTL4YKK/ref=sr_1_4?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1479175250&sr=1-4&refinements=p_36%3A1253505011%2Cp_72%3A1248879011

Hope I'm not too far off the mark, good luck brother

I would definitely invest in a new microphone. The blue snowball is a great starter mic. I use it myself and love it. Here is a link. It's a little expensive, but you can sometimes catch them on sale for $40.

I would also recommend trying to move so you have a different background behind you. It just seems like there is a lot going on and I found myself looking at the stuff behind you more than you whenever I saw your facecam. If it's not possible, then it's not a huge deal.

Your commentary is good and it seems like you can come up with some good quips here and there while playing, which is a bonus. I hope this helped you out some! :)

Welcome to the Twitch Community!

Regarding the mic echo, I'd suggest to use OBS to stream. There is a Microphone Noise Gate in-built to the program, where you can tweak your microphone settings. If you know its room echo, then you could muffle some of it by putting ie. blankets around the room to cancel out any reverb or echo.

If you're still looking for a good microphone at a decent price, the Blue Snowball still stands proud in quality/price ratio. Its a very good microphone to start off. Currently its 59$ on Amazon, so 10$ over your price range, but you can trust me its well worth the savings. Keep in mind that audio makes 50% of your content and sometimes is even more important than your video.
Try and position your microphone close to your mouth without any obstructions in between. The audio will vary depending on the pickup pattern.

Good luck with the livestreams and recording. If you'd like any more help or some opinion on products, send a PM my way, and I'll reply ASAP. Once again, glad to have you in the community!

GLHF

I'd stay off the Snowball completely, it doesn't offer nearly the same voice or built quality as the other microphones that you listed, even the Meteor. A Yeti would fit your needs well. It offers superior quality to the Meteor/Snowball and has a couple of features that you'll probably appreciate. It's not for nothing that so many content-creators use it.

Another choice would be a RØDE NT-USB - it might be slightly outside your budget but offers similar quality to the Yeti (if not slightly better) and matches your colortheme.

There's also the AT2020USB+. It doesn't come with a particularly fantastic stand or anything, so a boomarm of sorts would be a good investment alongside it. It probably offers the best quality out of all the microphones listed above, along with having the correct color of course.

Finally, the only place I could find the black Meteor was on the US Amazon store, but unless you're willing to pay import taxes that's going to be a costly experience. The Meteor is imo the undisputed value king in all this though, sounds very good for the price. I bought one myself when they were on sale a while back for LAN purposes etc where I can't bring my entire main-mic setup.

Hope that helps you out!

1. You're gonna need to upgrade your rig. As much RAM as you can afford(or 12-16GB IMO, some people may disagree but I run 16GB of RAM), a good graphics card (Can't go wrong with Nvidia GTX series: http://www.newegg.com) HDD for video storage (at least 1TB), using Windows 10 pretty much works with everything IMO that I've played so far running from when W10 came out into 2016 and it's the latest windows as well.
   
   
2. Blue Snowball Mic 39.99USD Blue Snowball Mic(PINK FOR THIS PRICE) or a Yeti mic if you can afford it Yeti Microphone 100USD for a quality mic like the Yeti definitely is NOT a bad deal if you can afford it, but the Blue Snowball is a great quality mic as well. (And nobody's gonna see you using a pink mic and it's the cheapest right now!)
   
   
3. By your wording you seem to think "steam games" is just a group of games with the same requirements for all of them, and they're not. Each game is going to have its own computer specs requirement, so make sure you meet the minimums for each game before you go around and buy a bunch of games to record after you upgrade your hardware. This ain't consoles.
   
   
4. You don't need a facecam to be successful.
   
   Also one last tip: If you're going to be starting your own channel instead of contributing to someone else's or something, just play whatever the hell you want. Growth will be VERY slow unless you're a SEO/Marketing wizard. Just keep putting quality content out and subs and views will come.
   
   

A good microphone is probably the most important thing a streamer can have, other than of course a great personality and good social skills, so buying him a microphone would be a great idea. I read that you're looking at spending a maximum of $200. For $200 you should probably buy a USB microphone, as they don't require any kind of external hardware like a mixer or an audio interface. They're generally slightly worse quality, but that doesn't really matter because the audio quality will be compressed anyway, and only audiophiles would be looking for studio quality audio from a gaming livestream.

The higher quality option is an XLR microphone, but they require an audio interface. This will generally be a more expensive option because audio interfaces are usually just as expensive as microphones, so I wouldn't choose this option if I were you. An XLR microphone, a microphone arm, and an audio interface will cost around $250 if not more.

If you decide to go for a microphone, I would say you should go for an AT2020 USB microphone. It's by far the best option if you want good audio quality for a good price. You could go for the Streaming/Podcasting pack if you want headphones and a microphone arm included, which maxes out your budget. It's actually a bit cheaper than buying the mic and a good microphone stand seperately, plus you get a pair of decent looking headphones to go with it.

I can't really vouch for the microphone arm and the headphones as I haven't tried them personally, but Audio Technica is a really good brand. I would be surprised if it wasn't superb quality.

Let me know if you have any questions :)

There's no way you can be on a team without a mic.

Price an issue?

• This Clip On Mic is only 8 dollars and is pretty high quality too.
  
  
• If you can afford to go higher I can recommend a Blue Snowball for $60.
  
  
• Also, maybe a CAD U1 for $30.
  
  Even a headset will do. Make sure you enable push to talk and are using headphones.
  
  Are you afraid? Get over it. Sorry for the bluntness, but consider your team to be friends. People you'd play any game with and still have a good time. If they aren't people you can relate to, don't join their team. It's that simple. Find people you can relate to easily. Find people that won't yell at you. Find people that will crack the occasional joke and laugh at stupid/amazing plays. You will create incredible bonds with these people, and have lifelong friends. These people must be more important to you than a random lobby player, so talk to them!
  
  And to be honest... most teams don't take people who can't/won't talk. Even if you were Clockwork or Ruwin.
  
  So, get a mic.

You need a condenser mic. They're like $30 and can plug right into your laptop to sync with your video. It will make your audio sound professional.

Half of what makes a video good is the audio. Same with a movie. Audio can make or break a video. Not shitting on you guys, just shooting you over some helpful tips. They're cheap and make all the difference. If a podcast is something you guys really want to do, you've got to get yourself better audio. You could get a single mic to sit in the center table in-between you guys, which range from $30 to $100 to thousands, but you can get something that does the job well for $100 or below.

For instance check out Rhett and Link they have a similar setup as you guys. But notice the audio? No echo, clean, sharp. That mic is probably a few hundred or a few thousand dollars but you can achieve the same results with most mics. The technology in mics are very simple.

Check out this mic $30 Condensor mic. Plugs into USB. High quality audio that plugs right into your laptop. You can set it in the center of your table, check the audio levels before you start, you can even put on headphones and talk a bit to make sure it sounds good, remove headphones and start your podcast. Keeps the workflow smooth and offers good results. I'm not saying you have to buy that exact Mic or anything, just a suggestion as there are many mics that will fit your need especially on a budget.

Best of luck guys, keep it up.

edit: oh and eventually you'll need to be in a room that has less echo in general. You can hang blankets outside of the camera, throw some rugs out, buy some cheap audio absorbing foam for the walls (out of sight of the camera of course) and that will also drastically reduce the echo.

Honestly, thank you for telling me this sounded dull. I think this was my best of my earlier practice clips, but that doesn't mean I think it's great. I just started taking an online video course that's going to help with clarity/enunciation and posture, and later on get into emotion and tone. I have another lined up that's supposed to help with using different voices, which is kind of my biggest struggle with the idea of reading drama -- how do I voice different, unique characters (sometimes male) and not just sound like me? Female readers of The 100, Inkheart and the Hunger Games are my favorite examples but I'm just not there.

I feel like being able to do an actual drama is a ways off, though. Any recommendations on types of pieces to try for instead while I practice?

As for the sound quality on this particular link, I listened to both the upload and my direct file back to back with headphones and there was a little quality lost in the upload or something. I don't have a trained ear so I can't explain the difference aside from volume and "it just sounds better to me". So I'm not set on upgrading my mic just yet. But, you did mention noise reduction, and I could definitely see that. I'm still tweaking my set up to not have to use so much noise reduction, because I can really tell it makes me sound tinny. Is that maybe the "thin" that you described?

I haven't recorded in a couple months so I might not 100% remember my full process. But the issue I'm having trouble balancing is my volume versus the room noise hiss versus mouth sounds. If I'm close to the mic I can have more voice and therefore less mic volume (my mic has its own volume knob), so less room noise hissing but too much wind noise or smacking sounds. If I sit a few inches back I have to project more without over powering my hard sounds, and still pump up the mic volume and then have to reduce the hiss, creating that tinny sound. Would a proper pop filter help fix this, instead of a sock? I know they're dirt cheap so I'd be happy to get one. I'm also considering an actual mic stand instead of the 3" desktop tripod (which I keep on a stack of books so it's a little higher), so I can sit with better posture.

This is my microphone, for reference:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B06XCKGLTP/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1
If there's something more highly recommended around $50, I'd consider spending more money if the mic really is the problem.

Thanks for the detailed input!

Blue yeti is supposed to be really good, but I think the blue snowball is better because on sale with your budget, you can get the mic, a tabletop boom stand, and a high quality pop filter for about as much as the yeti costs on sale. Just make sure you don't get the blue snowball ice. They are different and the ice is waaaay worse. Also, dont listen to /u/NekoQt about us being fan boys. Those are good mics but I can personally tell you that blue mics aren't overrated. They're just regarded as good because they're good. Its really that simple.

http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Textured/dp/B000EOPQ7E its on sale from 100 to 50, and if you look at the frequently bought together the mic, pop filter, and boom stand amount of 75 dollars after sales, which amounts to less than the blue yeti which, on sale, costs 85 dollars. Hope this helped.

Also with the left over money you can buy a pretty good micless headset or an inexpensive headset and just not use the headset mic. Tabletop mics are almost always better

One main issue is that most headphones/earphones have loud spikes along the frequency response. The ear and brain has a curve called the equal-loudness contour that defines how loud sound has to be to be perceived at an equal level. The problem is 99% of headphones don't follow this, and have certain frequencies at which they are upwards of 30db louder than at others.

This causes a big problem where at even a normal volume level, that one area is super loud, and most people don't notice because across the whole spectrum, the average loudness level seems normal. That is why you can ear the snare hits or clicks across the bus, but not the other frequencies. Unfortunately it is also at high frequencies that hearing damage happens more readily.

A pair of affordable headphones that most accurately matches the ear's equal loudness contour is the Superlux HD 681. You can buy them from ebay or amazon for $50 or under:

Superlux HD 681 on Amazon

Make sure you get the HD 681 and not the 681 EVO. This company is little known because they mostly make recording microphones. Coincidentally these cheap headphones are preferred by artists and recording mixers/engineers over thousand dollar headphones because of the clarity/quality due to this reason. Their sound signature matches the ears equal-loudness contour. THEY SOUND AMAZING because superlux actually knows how to design headphones for quality rather than looks. This is not a subjective claim - this is the objective reason behind why they sound good. You might want to also get the ear cushions called HPAEC840 for best comfort.

In theory headphones designed like these sound objectively perfect and will not create holes in your ear's hearing response because they won't damage small areas without you realizing. You can have the volume higher without unnoticeably feeding your ears sounds that are 30db higher.

Still, listen to music quieter and discover that the level you listen to is actually creating distortion. At a level most people deem normal, it is actually loud enough to cause your ears to engage mechanisms to dampen sound to protect themselves. Most people don't feel the mild ear pain and significant distortion that comes when you have sound over 90db, because they're just used to it.

Some people haven't damaged their ears and have also psychologically preserved their sound sensitivity by not raping it with distorted noise, and will continue to be able to hear as well as notice a pin drop until they're 100 years old.

If you don't want to pay for anything(Most bolded text should be clickable, otherwise google it):

Recording software: MSI Afterburners Recording feature to record. I suggest looking up youtube guides for it.

Livestreaming: OpenBroadcaster is a fantastic streaming program. Completely free with a lot of features.

Video Editing: Windows movie maker for simple stuff to put stuff and clips together.


-Now for what I use-

My Recording software: Dxtory. I use it because I have a ton more options than Fraps. Not to mention Fraps takes a lot more CPU than Dxtory does. Which for Planetside 2 is a god send. I also use a lagarith Lossless Codec with it. I suggest [THIS] video tutorial to get you a similar setup I have.

Video Editing: I use Sony Vegas Pro 11 because I won a legit copy from TGN ages ago. The latest is Sony vegas 12 (Which I'm sure a lot of people pirated. Which I don't blame em' it's tons of cash). I don't feel like buying the new version since it's practically a "big" patch with each new version.

Microphone: Any "decent" turtle beach microphone will do excellent when starting off. But, I use a C01U USB condenser microphone on a studio arm with a hand made pop filter. Sounds great for my type of voice.

Making videos, depending on what the video is. Takes a looooooong time, or just a few minutes. If you just wanna throw some clips together to show friends your MLG pro skills. My free option will do you nicely.

Well, first of all, you probably want to scope what you're going to do, and also figure out how much money you want to spend to do it. I mean it's kind of vague to just want to match their equipment and it might be extreme overkill for you to do so. Like you don't need "breakaway cables" to switch your consoles (per the GrumpOut vid)... in fact, I highly recommend switchboxes as a much saner thing to do there. :P

But to the question:

> I don't know where I could order or purchase them

... this may or may not be a simple answer. Depending where you live, Amazon sells just about everything you could possibly want. Not saying you should necessarily buy it from them, but you'll probably find everything you need there.

But getting back to cost, definitely consider what you can spend, because even just one Sennheiser MKH 416 microphone (as they have just stated they use) costs about $1000.

/u/FabbrizioCalamitous already answered adequately about capture cards of course, so no need to repeat that.

Honestly I think getting good audio equipment and a good environment to make your voice sound excellent is one of the most difficult aspects of the setup. There are just so many factors when it comes to audio; reflections in the room, how your mic is mounted, quality/type of the mic, vibrations from the street, etc. Few of us have a real "studio" type acoustically-sealed room to get really good voice recording, and it seems anything and everything easily gets in there and makes a mess of it. But of course unless you're really well off you probably can't afford to set up a room like that or afford Sennheiser MKH 416 mics. (Or at least can't justify the cost for something extravagant before your YouTube channel has taken off.)

Most likely what you ought to do is Google around a bit and try to find a more modest starter kit. If you start to earn a decent viewerbase you might start considering upgrading incrementally. I mean, even the Grumps started out with just a mic on a table in the living room. They graduated to much grander setups over years of time.

Having good audio is crucial (Especially for a mostly voiceover channel). Now normally I would say, "stay away from mics less than 200" just because it is really an investment and you get what you pay for, but the snowball is a fantastic mic, especially for its price.

https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Aluminum/dp/B002OO333Q/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1466624278&sr=8-3&keywords=blue+microphones+snowball

If thats still a bit pricey, I would say save up until you can afford it because anything less than that will either break the day you open it or sound similar to what you are using right now. (Keep in mind, i dont mean to sound like a jerk, i'm a nice guy i swear) And the great thing about this one, over the snowball ice is that it has a switch that will cancel out any background noise automatically.

If you want the cheaper variant, i thought i would link it, its fine but it doesnt cancel out background noise for you so it will sound pretty cruddy. But if 70 bucks is too much, this is the absolute cheapest i would suggest.

https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B006DIA77E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1466624278&sr=8-2&keywords=blue+microphones+snowball

Happy hunting!

If you don't mind a separate mic and headphones, then /r/headphones should be a good place to check out, but at $50 you may not get too far. There are a number of good quality, decently branded, headphones that cost over $100 that are also sold by generic brands at about $50, since they come from the same place. So it would be good to ask them for any potential on-going deals.

If you had to opt for a separate mic, you have a few options:

• a lapel or clip-on microphone, about $1-2 from eBay, or $10 for a Zalman ZM-1.
  
  
• a mini boom flexible microphone that attaches to your headphones via tape, velcro or a rubber band, and an extension cable, for about $5-10 via eBay
  
  
• a modmic for $50+
  
  
• a $30 USB microphone like the FiFine 669B
  
  > Also, I see some people talking about the difference a dedicated sound card makes, how big is it?
  
  If you get a USB headset, then you would be using the headset's built-in sound card on the USB cable.
  
  If you connect via 3.5mm analog, then you'll be using the motherboard's sound chip.
  
  The difference isn't too bad these days, but you may notice it - it varies by motherboard.
  
  A good sound card should have clarity, and be able to separate sounds clearly without being muddy.
  
  It should be well equalized, or have a "neutral" sound signature, so one range of sounds aren't too stronger than another.

I like his commentary a lot and I think he has huge potential, so here a few little things that he could improve:

• Get a widescreen monitor. 4:3 is very offputting if you're watching it on 16:9/16:10. I personally like the newer IPS panels, but an average TN will suffice.
  
• Buy a better mic. The audio quality is very important if you are doing a lot of commentary and the average headset one isn't good enough most of the time. A lot of streamers/casters use this one since it's rather cheap, solid quality and looks awesome
  
• Adjust your webcam angle and position. The image should contain mainly your upper body and your face while the camera is placed on the same level as your head or shoulders like this. Basically you want to give the viewer the impression that he is sitting right in front of you since it helps with presenting your personality and content. If you need a decent webcam with better quality and a better stand a lot of streamers use this one.
  
  If you have trouble with funding your hardware I'm sure redditors will be glad to help you out a bit.
  
  
  
  
  

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Description|So, do you believe Blackout should be free or no?⤶⤶Battlefront I vs 2 survey⤶https://docs.google.com/forms/d/10FnfCTlXfVmao9yodAieDi1eMSGU4iUS2OuADArA67g/edit⤶⤶Hopefully, you enjoyed the video please like and subscribe as it helps to lower my crippling insecurity⤶⤶Comment your thoughts and comment ways I can improve this channel as I want to commit as a Gaming YouTuber who speaks his opinions due to it being something I love and will continue to love.⤶⤶New Vid every week⤶⤶Equipment:⤶https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Snowball-Microphone-Textured-White/dp/B000EOPQ7E⤶https://www.amazon.com/Elgato-Game-Capture-HD60-PlayStation/dp/B01DRWCOGA ⤶⤶Editing Software:⤶Video: Adobe Premiere Pro⤶Audio: Adobe Audition ⤶Thumbnail: Adobe Illustrate/ Photoshop⤶⤶Intro: Death Stranding Korg⤶Outro Song: 90’s Flav: Call Me; https://youtu.be/hcuPAUdhJLg ⤶⤶Twitter: https://twitter.com/ClosetIndian1 ⤶Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_closet_indian/ ⤶⤶Personal Message to the world: https://youtu.be/07KFq7EqkPw⤶⤶The goal of the year: Get 250 subscribers

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1. I think OBS is the most resource-friendly recording solution. I am able to record HD videos in 30 fps on a fairly medium office machine (Windows 7, i7, integrated graphics). Though to be fair, I have zero experience using either Macs or the Mac version of OBS. The OBS forums are usually a good place to look for solutions on technical issues.
   
   
2. As long as you don't plan to record chat alongside your lesson, chat can run separately. I'd recommend at least two screens for that purpose. If you would like to show chat whenever you address chat questions, you can simply set up another scene in OBS that also shows chat. As soon as you start using scenes, I recommend using global sources instead of simple sources (look it up in the manual). Also, defining hotkeys for scene switching is a life saver for a smooth video. Also note that scene switching basically allows you to record videos in one take without the need for ex-post-edits.
   
   
3. I haven't tried live streaming yet, but I have considered it. A platform like Twtch would be ideal, but it is restricted to gaming. Your best hope at the moment is probably Google hangouts (free) or Adobe Connect (not free). Hangout could look somewhat like this: https://youtu.be/Okwgrsb9WUA
   
   
4. Hardware: Computer performance aside, a good microphone should be on the top of your list. What I mean by "good" is something like this
   
   http://www.amazon.com/Rode-NT-USB-USB-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00KQPGRRE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1459376263&sr=8-1&keywords=rode+nt+usb
   
   or this
   
   http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-AT2020USB-PLUS-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1459376263&sr=8-8&keywords=rode+nt+usb
   
   or this
   
   http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Yeti-USB-Microphone/dp/B00N1YPXW2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1459376263&sr=8-3&keywords=rode+nt+usb
   
   alongside a shock mount and proper stand. The quality of your voice transmission is the first thing people will judge you on, both positivey and negatively.

nice thanks. i want to do both but probably more acoustic + classical guitar than electric. i think i will go for the interface + mic.

i just youtubed the two products in my description of other people testing it out with their guitars a few min ago and it seems alright but not very satisfying. i do want better quality audio than that.

so back to the interface + mic.

for mic: i think ill go for the AT2020 but i see two products on amazon. which one would be better?

http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-AT2020-Cardioid-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B0006H92QK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458572206&sr=8-1&keywords=AT2020

or

http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-AT2020USB-PLUS-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1458572224&sr=8-2&keywords=AT2020

for interface: from focusrite or presonus, will i be able to find a good interface for unde 100$? if so, can you link me a good one for the best bang for my buck?

Thanks again

ooooooookkkkkkkk lol well i mean you guys sounded like you had a fun time :) i thought some of it was funny. the thing is i think it would of been more funny if your audio was not so bad. ALWAYS remember that people can forgive bad video but they will never EVER forgive bad audio speeking of that your recording software it was really lagy and kinda buged me after a wile. when you colab with someone make sure that they have a good mic and sound quality otherwise it will bring your video's quality down. Here are some suggestions for equipment that could help you.

Audio\Mics

1. Blue Microphones Snowball

http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B006DIA77E/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1458586302&sr=8-3&keywords=usb+mic

2. Blue Microphones Yeti

http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Yeti-USB-Microphone/dp/B002VA464S/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1458586302&sr=8-4&keywords=usb+mic

3. AT2020

http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-AT2020USB-PLUS-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458586316&sr=8-1&keywords=usb+mic+at2020

Facecam: (i know you said you had already ordered a facecam but i thought i would throw this one out there for you just in case also dont forget lighting if you dont have enough light into the room you will get a really bad image.)

Logitech HD Pro Webcam C920
http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Webcam-Widescreen-Calling-Recording/dp/B006JH8T3S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458586861&sr=8-1&keywords=logitech+c920


Software

(i am glad to hear you have obs there are lots of youtube videos that explain how to set the settings for youtube or twitch so i would sugest looking that up also if you are going to do a face cam this is importent you need NEED to record it separate from your game capture otherwise you risk having the game video and the video of you being un synced try recording your game with OBS and your face cam with Xsplit)

Xsplit:
https://www.xsplit.com/

And Free Edditing Software

Hitfilm 3 Express: (second only to adobe)
https://hitfilm.com/express

Gimp 2.0

https://www.gimp.org/downloads/

this is for thumbnails i hope all this helps man :)

Absolutely, and I don't think it would look bad with black pads on white headphones personally.

Here are the ones I bought. They took a little effort to put on there, but are very snug and don't move around. (The amazon picture isn't correct, as it looks like they are the plastic/leather pads, but what you get is the velour) http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0016MF7W2/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

These Shure pads apparently work as well, although I don't have any experience with them. Looking at the reviews they seem like they fit a little bit looser and can freely spin a little bit. http://smile.amazon.com/Shure-HPAEC940-Replacement-Velour-Headphones/dp/B005OM06RG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395931310&sr=8-1&keywords=srh+840+velour

When I get home tonight, I can take some pictures of them on my M50's if you'd like. I love them and well worth the $20 I say.

Hey man, don't worry about asking "stupid" questions, there's no such thing, and we've ALL been there before. I still seem to ask stupid questions at least once a day, and I've been doing this for some years now.

You have two options here bud. You can buy something like this which is a USB microphone, (similar, but not the same to what the last guy said) a really common choice for beginners looking to just experience recording into their computer, but the quality is still surprisingly great. It can work on ANYTHING. Guitar/vocals/drums/farts whatever.

The second option is to get something with some "upgrade" capability if you plan on doing this for a long time. That would be to buy TWO things, one would be an audio interface (which has preamps built in) which can connect virtually ANY microphone into it, which goes into your computer via USB. This is a great one of those, simple and doesn't break-the-bank But then you'd also have to buy another microphone, like the sm57 or whatever. If you did it this way, your interface could last you many many years and it will provide usually a headphone output, one of two mic inputs, as well as gain control and leveling. A little more professional, but an extra thing to buy.

If you have any questions feel free to ask.

Try this (Blue Yeti Mic) and this mic stand

​

These might look a little like his buddies. But the mic is very recommended from streamers and such, I personally us it and it is great. If he likes his headphones then a new mic would be another step to improve his audio.

​

I would say that I am not sure this is ideal for him, just trying to help as much as I can based on the original post!

​

EDIT: This is a cheaper mic made by the same company that is also a great option. Best of luck!

I have a few suggestions:

• OBS Multiplatform. Works good for recording game play, is free, and allows for multiple audio streams. Can be used instead of Fraps or as a backup program.
  
  
• Audacity: Free audio editing program that has lots of good features.
  
  
• HitFilm 3 Express: Also a free video editing program. I would have a copy along with blender as a backup.
  
  For USB 3.0 External HDD i have heard good things about the WD Elements products. I had WD internal drives and have had no issues. I record 1080p 60fps. You'll have a little less speed with an external, so maybe do 1080p, 720p 60 fps, or 720p.
  
  
• For a microphone I highly suggest getting a standalone mic and a headset instead of using the built in mic. You''ll get much, much better sound quality that way. Maybe a Blue Snowball, ATR-2100, ATR-2500, or Samson C01u.
  
  
• For headsets, I suggest the Logitech G430, Steelseries Siberia V3, ATH-M30x, or a nice pair of Sennheisers.

Sound Review:

First let me say that the best way to describe them is to say they are nothing like my HD650s. Really if the HD650s are dead north, these are dead south. They have pronounced mids and highs, small bass, but they are exceptionally clear. You hear details that simply did not exist before. They take quite a bit of power to drive (the OTL wouldn't drive them properly). Anyone should be able to build these for less than $200. I would say that at that price point these are a great value. I dont know that these will be my go to headphone, but they are definitely different than anything I have ever used before.

EDIT: Do not use self adhesive felt on the drivers, get non adhesive stiff back from Michael's or similar. This will give you nice strong bass, with excellent extension. These bad boys sound amazing now. Now if I could just get the pads to stay on better...

Information:
Original thread.

Stuff to buy:
Fostex T50RP
Sticky Stiff Felt
Modeling Clay
Shure Replacement Pads
Double Sided Scrapbook Tape
Silverstone Audio Block

I'm trying to figure out a good setup to work on my PS4 and PC. Let me just start off by saying I know very little about headphones and amps, soundcard thingys and such but I do know that the PS4 controller jack uses bluetooth and has compressed audio and headsets sound worse when using it. Anyways, I'm trying to figure out if this setup will work.
I want to use a Blue Snowball Mic
with Senneheiser 598
and Turtle Beach DSS to get the performance out of the 598's. Has anybody tried a setup like this? Would this even work? Is there a better/easier option to have a good desktop mic + headphones? If I'm able to put the snowball directly into the PS4 and then use the headset with the DSS plugged into the console then that would be perfect. Thanks for helping me figure this out.

I'm also strongly considering something like these just to save money and have a simpler setup.

Here's the parts list. Every fan in the case (and CPU cooler) were replaced with 120/140mm Noctua Industrial fans. These things are awesome, hyper efficient, and can move a lot of air. They typically run under 1500RPM. The videocards are overclocked with MSI AB, +100 core and +400 mem, +120/90 on power and temp. The CPU is overclocked to just 4.375GHz.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-6850K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor | $599.99
CPU Cooler | Corsair H115i 104.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler | $124.89 @ OutletPC
Thermal Compound | Gelid Solutions GC-Extreme 3.5g Thermal Paste | $12.99
Motherboard | Asus X99-DELUXE II ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard | $399.99 @ SuperBiiz
Memory | Corsair Dominator Platinum 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory | $262.69
Storage | Samsung 950 PRO 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive | $186.99 @ SuperBiiz
Storage | OCZ Vector 180 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $178.21 @ Amazon
Storage | Intel 540s 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive In Raid | $138.01 @ Newegg
Storage | Intel 540s 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive In Raid | $138.01 @ Newegg
Video Card | EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 8GB FTW Gaming ACX 3.0 Video Card (2-Way SLI) | $679.99 @ B&H
Video Card | EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 8GB FTW Gaming ACX 3.0 Video Card (2-Way SLI) | $679.99 @ B&H
Case | Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX Glass ATX Mid Tower Case | $189.99 @ Newegg
Power Supply | SeaSonic 1050W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply | $209.99
Case Fan | Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 158.5 CFM 140mm Fan | $34.29 @ OutletPC
Case Fan | Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 158.5 CFM 140mm Fan | $34.29 @ OutletPC
Case Fan | Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 158.5 CFM 140mm Fan | $34.29 @ OutletPC
Case Fan | Noctua NF-F12 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 109.9 CFM 120mm Fan | $23.91
Case Fan | Noctua NF-F12 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 109.9 CFM 120mm Fan | $23.91
Case Fan | Noctua NF-F12 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 109.9 CFM 120mm Fan | $23.91
Monitor | Asus PG279Q ROG Swift 27.0" 165Hz Monitor | $799.00 @ B&H
Keyboard | Corsair STRAFE RGB Wired Gaming Keyboard | $129.99 @ Best Buy
Mouse | Corsair M65 PRO RGB FPS Wired Optical Mouse | $49.99 @ NCIX US
Mic | AT2020+USB with Auray pop filter
Webcam | Logitec C925e
Sli Bridge (coming soon!) | EVGA PRO SLI BRIDGE HB (1 Slot Spacing) Model 100-2W-0026-LR

I did everything with an sm58 for a long time, but that's because I couldn't afford anything beyond that. So you don't really need anything else, but If you have the budget for it, I'd recommend a large diaphragm condenser (LDC) mic for vocals. AKG 220 is a solid mic, I've used one for years.
Small diaphragm condenser mics are good for acoustic instruments. I got a used pair of Audix ADX51s recently and they've been awesome. Make sure your interface supports phantom power if you get any condenser mics.

Also for recording electric guitar, I like to use two mics, one LDC and one dynamic mic (sm57/sm58). Each mic pointed at a speaker cone (my amp has two speakers).

I used to make educational screencasts so I'll put in my two cents.

The first thing you're going to need is a microphone. If you don't know where to start, you can't go wrong with a Blue Snowball. That being said, you should do your own research and figure out what mic will be good for your personal price range/intentions.

Assuming you know nothing about video editing, a great software to start with is Sony Vegas Pro. This is my, and many others on YouTube, video editor of choice; it's easy to use and quite powerful. However, it’s not the only software you can use. You could make a video similar to CCP in PowerPoint, if you have the knowledge to do so.

Once you have Sony Vegas, watch some beginner guides on YouTube and get comfortable with the editing basics. One key thing to know is keyframing. This is relatively easy to do in Sony Vegas and, if used effectively, can result in some nice looking animations similar to those found CCP's videos.

Other than that, just make sure you know what you're educating people on and that it's not too dry.

A little feedback on the audio from an audio geek:
The dynamic level change is a bit drastic between your opening theme (which I LOVE by the way, super cool) and when you guys start talking, which forces listeners to turn their speakers way up to hear the content. I would maybe decrease the levels on the intro to match the rest of the podcast.
It sounds like you guys are sitting around one shared cardioid mic (or maybe a built-in laptop mic?) and there's a slight echo in the room, I think you could improve the sound of your voices if you picked up something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Gloss/dp/B002OO18NS/ref=zg_bs_11974631_4 (it has on omni pickup mode so it would register both your voices at the same level without taking turns holding it). Blue makes great mics for basic home recording for around $50-60.

As for the film, I couldn't even get through the Innkeepers personally. I thought it was way too slow getting started and the effects were cheesy. Did really like Ti West's segment in V/H/S though.

I hear the blue yeti is really special. I use the Samson c01u, but it got the same reviews ass the blue yeti in terms of clarity. It doesn't matter which one you buy, if you get super good at EQing you'll sound pretty great, so learn how to mix well and stuff. You'll be fine.

https://www.amazon.com/Samson-C01U-Studio-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00HXE4BYW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1517773207&sr=8-1&keywords=samson+c01u

I've had these phones for about a year. I would recommend doing two things to improve the comfort, that is if you don't find them comfortable.

1. Buy these if you think the ear pads are too small, or if they pinch your ears.
   
   
2. I felt the phones were putting too much pressure right below my ears on my upper jaw. So I bought a sweat band and attached it to the bottom of the headband. They fit so much better now, and even though it looks silly, it feels great.
   
   I have to say that these two adjustments have made a world of difference. Cheers, hope you enjoy some great sounds with them.

Well, I'd start off with a basic desk mic that will offer superior voice quality over a headset paired with a decent pair of headphones. My personal recommendations for this would be:

The mic, a Fifine K669B: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XCKGLTP?ref=dp_vse_pc0

The headphones, a Philips SHP9500: https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826138190

​

The K669B should provide great sound quality for talking, it's a perfect entry level mic that outclasses anything you'd get in a headset and the SHP9500 is an open back pair of headphones with great sound quality. Open back headphones allow you to hear things around you as they don't seal up to isolate the noise. They're perfect in a home use setting as you don't need to block out noise.

Hate to be that guy but a great soundcard won't have much of an affect on bad headphones. Most if not all "gaming" headsets and headphones have terrible audio quality for the money while you could get a great pair of studio headphones for a similar price.

Most modern motherboards have great integrated sound these days.

Edit:

Take a look at these:

Sennheiser HD 558

Sennheiser HD 598

They're around the price of the Tiamat 7.1 in the UK and they give brilliant sound quality since they're professional studio grade headphones along with being made by a reputable audio brand.

Pairing a pair of these with a decent quality desk mic such as the Blue Snowball would yield massively better results than trying to get a new soundcard to marginally increase the quality of the Tiamat 7.1.

If you're able to get a refund I'd 100% recommend this route instead.

Another tip as for mic wise, check out the Blue Microphones Snowball. (New to reddit, so hopefully you are allowed to post links to amazon... but I'll put the link at the end of this post. I'm linking to amazon, you might be able to find them cheaper or even on amazon if you don't want their "prime" service.) It is currently listed at $66 bucks and you can't get a better microphone for under $100 that compares to that one. Another to consider, if you want to save a little and make the jump is the AT2020 (Again, posted as the second link at the bottom.) I bought mine 2 or 3 weeks ago for $110 through their prime. (Seems to have jumped to $140 right now...) Very solid mic. Works great from a distance and close. If you plan on being close to any mic, invest in a pop filter (Link at the end again). Amazon has a great one for $15 that I use. If you plan on just putting it on the edge of your desk and talking, it'll work too, but you'll have to raise the mic levels, and thus get more interference and background noise. I talk close (probably a foot or so away.) to my AT2020, and get no background noise. Haven't personally tried the Snowball, but everyone I've talked to that has it loves it and recommends it. Food for thought when money becomes available. As for your current audio, it doesn't sound bad, seem to be doing a good job in Audacity, I was going to recommend that program until I saw you already use it :-). And if thinking about any other mics, just search them on youtube, people almost always have a comparison or such video to listen to them with. (And on another note, regardless of mics that I've used, I still put an EQ on them to drop off the highs and lows that speech doesn't use. Just a good thing to throw on, usually editing software has it.)

EDIT: Also in order of necessity, mic first obviously, and then the pop filter can come later if you are having problems with the "s" and "p" letters causing peaks. I also forgot to mention, if going with a condenser mic, it's a good idea to look into getting a shock mount that fits the mic, that'll stop vibrations from being picked up in the mic too, sometimes they become audible as a low or high hum that are difficult to remove.

Blue Mics Snowball
http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Aluminum/dp/B002OO333Q/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346788232&sr=8-1&keywords=yeti+snowball

AT2020
http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-Condenser-Microphone-USB/dp/B007I53N0Y/ref=sr_1_12?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1346788324&sr=1-12&keywords=at2020

Pop Filter
http://www.amazon.com/CAD-EPF-15A-Filter-15-Inch-Gooseneck/dp/B0002E3FCO/ref=sr_1_2?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1346788628&sr=1-2&keywords=pop+filter

That is a big limit.

1lb Fat replica

Infant Circumcision Trainer(Great, now i have that in my browsing history)

Weener Cleaner soap (When your hand just isnt enough)

Can we have more than one item that we want as long as its under $2000?
If so, heres a few things. if not you can choose from that list.

4K Monitor $624

Microphone $57

Headphones $188

Keyboard $95

2TB External HDD $100

Computer Case $160

Power Supply $170

Graphics Card $340

I really need any of these so even one thing will help tons and i really appreciate the contest and what you are doing is both crazy and the nicest thing ive seen someone do. even if i dont win you are still and amazing person. Thanks again and good luck everyone.

Not /u/fluffleofbunnies but any features can be matched with a decent pair of headphones, as for style just find a pair of headphones you like the look of and as for comfort, any headphones you pay a decent amount for will be very comfortable.

We aren't telling you you're wrong to get a gaming headset, we're just trying to explain that sound quality can be much better than a gaming headset and that any features and styles you look for can be attained also.

I have these headphones and this mic. The mic is a bit overkill but I used to make YouTube videos. The headphones however, are relatively cheap, great quality and very comfortable.

Some constructive criticism. There is some potential here, but your sketches were all very predictable and/or unfunny. You're either rehashing jokes that everyone has already heard/seen a thousand times before, or your punchlines are falling completely flat due to lack of proper comedic timing and buildup. Take some time to study some of the comedic greats, and really focus on how they build up their jokes over the course of the sketch and how they deliver the punchlines.

On the technical end of things, see if your voice actors have the resources to invest in better microphones. Particularly the "new Lalafell woman"; the low quality of her audio really took me out of the moment. You can often find good quality microphones on the cheap if you shop around online. Generally speaking, headsets tend to have lower quality mics than what you'd want in a voice acting gig. Headsets are sufficient for talking on Skype or Mumble or whatever, but when you're doing voice-over work, you really want a good desktop mic. The Blue Snowball is a good option for amateur voice work. Good quality for the price you pay.

With only a single USB camera you're going to be limited in stream quality regardless so you are going to have to be creative in your production. doing it all live will capture everything, including your friend who can't figure out what he is going to do until its his turn and then spend 20 minutes deciding (Damnit Tim) which won't make for edge of your seat viewing since you can't edit out the down time.

Audio is going to be super important so you will also want to pick up a quality compressor USB mic that will be able to pick up a broad range (as opposed to literally just in front of the mic). Blue Snowball mics have worked well for me in this regards.

Not familiar with Open Broadcaster, so I'm not certain of what it provides that connecting directly to Youtube/UStream for a broadcast wouldn't already do, again especially with only one camera. From the site it looks like it'll broadcast your video games but I could be wrong. Graphic overlays?

From an ease of use perspective if you haven't done this type of thing before, I'd suggest sticking with Youtube. Easy to use, and with proper descriptions/tags will become more searchable by others who are looking for the games that you've previously played as it'll automatically make them available via youtube (one less step for you).

All this said, after a couple of broadcasts to work out the kinks/see if folks are still onboard with doing it, I'd recommend getting a domain that you can point to your youtube channel/website so its easier to share/promote. Redbeardtheimpalerplaysgames.com is easier to remember than youtube.com/watch?v=0hiUuL5uTKc or http://youtu.be/l-O5IHVhWj0

All this said, it can be fun, but make sure that your players are onboard with it. for the sake of showing you what minimal effort can get you, here is a live stream recording of Dice Hate Me Games Brewcrafters playtest that my group did a little over a year ago using the onboard mic/camera to a macbook pro via google hangouts on-air

> Get a good headset (I use the Logitech G930s, but just find something comfortable and decent quality)

I strongly recommend getting a nice pair of headphones and a separate mic instead of a headset. Gaming headsets tend to have poor sound and mic quality when compared to a dedicated pair of headphones and a mic.

For headphones, try /r/headphones. For the mic, you could just get a clip-on like this zalman or an antlion modmic, or you can get a full blown mic like a blue yeti or blue snowball.

Thanks for such a detailed explanation.

I've been using my iPhone to record videos. While getting studio-quality recordings sounds pretty awesome, I'm not sure if I want to deal with the perceived hassle of setting up multiple mics, having cables running everywhere, and etc. Furthermore, I don't think I'm good enough to warrant such a high-quality setup (lol).

I also am not crazy about the idea of having a big mic stand in my bedroom (where I play/record). Something that would take up a lot of space (or so I would think). I did some cursory searching on youtube and as I learned a little bit about dual mic configurations I was left with far more questions than I originally entered with.

I don't know. I could afford a couple mics, and an XLR to USB interface, and some kind of a mounting system. It's just kind of intimidating to me, and I'm not sure if it's currently worth all the effort given everything else.

For a bit of context, here's a video I shot with my iPhone. That video has the best audio I've ever captured with my iPhone. I know that's not saying much, but that's pretty good for my iPhone. So maybe the bar is pretty low, but I'm guessing I'd probably be thrilled with the quality from that audio technica USB mic that was recommended to me above.

What I'd really like is some kind of a simple solution. If I knew that I could set up a pair of mics easily and take it down just as easily, and maybe if I knew what the hell I was doing I wouldn't be so reluctant to try it. This appeals to me because it comes with a little tripod which I could sit on my desk, and that way I could use my webcam to record video (while that records audio). So I can be facing my desk to record, and it's relatively low profile and can be placed elsewhere without too much fuss when not in use.

Maybe a dual mic setup could be similarly convenient and low-profile; I don't know. What do you make of all this?

The Zalman Zm-Mic1 clips onto the wire of your headphones and is pretty good quality for under $10.

The Blue Snowball is a great desktop mic to start out with. It's great quality for the price as well. Many people use this when they are starting out and I think it is personally worth the investment. I have loved my since I bought it.

I don't think that adapter will improve how you sound. Microphones are made to pick up specific frequencies and no in between hardware will change that. It might 'alter' it by removing certain frequencies but if you may not want that because most cheep mic's only pick up a small range to begin with. I think your money might be spent elsewhere. That's just my two cents, and I'm no expert in audio either.


If you want to spend close to nothing, you could go steal your mom's/sisters/girlfriends pantyhose. You'll want to put this over the tip of the mic and cut excess away. Experiment with layers. This will be a homemade pop-filter. :D


Also, you can try voicemeeter. I have a tutorial on how to use it with dxtory. I need up update my tutorial, but make sure to choose the MME devices over the WDM ones. I would like to note that you don't necessarily need to follow my guide to get voicemeeter to work for you. If you need help, let me know.

Money options

I use a MS LX-3000. Cost me $20 USD. Along with voicemeeter, I think i sound pretty good.

Two of my friends use the Samson Meteor and really like it. It's around $70 USD on amazon.

Then there's the whole range of podcasting style microphones. They can range from the same price as the samson to thousands of dollars.

I personally don't record consoles (I'm a PC guy) so I'm not the most knowledgeable person on this subreddit, but I know a few things so here are my recommendations.

From the reviews I've seen this capture card looks pretty good for the money, AverMedia as a whole produce quality products so you could really choose from any of their selection: http://www.amazon.com/AVerMedia-GL310-AVerCapture-Capture-Streaming/dp/B00K5A8FP2/ref=sr_1_6?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1421127944&sr=1-6&keywords=capture+card+avermedia

And as far as mics go for your price range you could get a blue nessie, which is pretty good for the price as far as I know: http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-NESSIE-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00BUIA362/ref=sr_1_7?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1421128019&sr=1-7&keywords=blue+microphone

For Video Editors, I'm not sure which ones are good for practically $0. You could always go with Windows Movie Maker if need be.

looking for a budget audio input solution for podcasting.

I currently podcast with one friend, but would like to eventually add more friends to the podcast. I currently have a cheap microphone, but no stand and no USB adapter for it, and a wireless gaming headset.

For our first episode I planned to use the built-in mic of my laptop and the USB headset as inputs, but i couldn't get the USB headset to mix with the built-in mic.

I saw this article on best USB audio interface. My initial plan was to buy the Tascam US-2×2 to mix my non-USB mic and another cheap microphone. I would need to buy some cheap tabletop mic stands, but i don't know which brands.

An alternative would be to spend the $150 I would spend on a sound board on two new USB microphones instead of a USB mixer. One advantage of USB mics is I wouldn't need mic stands. I was thinking maybe the Meteor or the Snowball ICE

which is the better solution? USB mics or USB mixer?

If I go with the USB mixer, which cheap mic and tabletop stands should I buy?

Is there a cheaper alternative that I'm missing? I would like to start low budget and gradually upgrade as necessary.

The mic I use, and one I've heard recommended a lot for a desk mic is this:

http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-White/dp/B000EOPQ7E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1301863084&sr=8-1

It's pretty powerful, USB, it's a bit large, but has a decent look to it imo. Lots of people use it for podcasts and whatnot. It may do.

As for a 3.5mm mic... you're pretty much looking at stuff like those logitech desk mics for $20 and stuff like that, likely not the best bet. That zalman clip-on is more or less the goto for that style, otherwise you're largely looking at USB solutions. If it's not past your budget and you don't mind the beast sitting on the desk it's your best bet.

That would definitely be advisable. There are other good options of course, but this is the industry standard for commercial/promo voiceover. So I don't know what your endeavor into voiceover is, but I'd recommend a solid investment in a mic that fits your voice well, an interface that offers enough gain staging (otherwise, you need a mic preamp, which is yet another investment. The sm7b definitely needs one of these), and a pair of headphones that offer flat, accurate frequency response so you can listen back and mix well.

The only thing to keep in mind is you could potentially pick up audio from the television on your microphone. You would have to keep the TV turned down low if you don't want to commit to a headset.

A lapel mic would work but may not be very good quality for commentary. I've never had a lapel mic that recorded all that great. You could just set up a USB microphone with a longer cord and mic stand next to you on the couch.

Here is what I use:

https://www.amazon.com/Samson-C01U-Studio-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00HXE4BYW/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003CLIPHO/

If I'm recording at my PC, I just slide it over next to me. If I'm on the couch playing off a console, I just slide it over to where the mic is at appropriate recording distance from my mouth. I love being able to easily go back and forth between areas since I switch between PC gaming and old consoles.

When I'm jamming on the PC, I use a headset so the game audio doesn't get picked up by the microphone.

When I'm console recording over on the couch, I keep the TV turned down low and it's far enough away to where it doesn't get picked up by the mic although I've thought about getting a headset for the TV with a long cord so I can hear the game audio... I like to hear the music lol.

I believe they currently use something like the sE2200a which has been discontinued. If I'm not mistaken, Lewis uses the sE2200a II and the same mic was used to record Simon's vocals on Diggy Diggy Hole (based on the live-action video).

I personally use the Badaax UM900 (not to plug, but you can find an example of me using it here) which isn't exactly studio quality, but certainly gets the job done nicely. If you're looking for something that's more entry-level, there's always the Samson CO1U, the Blue Yeti, the Blue Spark Digital, or the Blue Spark.


All of these are very good microphones, and you should be able to find various tests of them on YouTube. Hope this helps. :)

Audio technica ATH M30 is a safe bet. They are like 40$ on amazon. BTW i wouldn't recommend a headset with a mic. Id honestly say get a nice headset and a nice mic. You dont need an expensive one but you can spend 50$ on a pair of headphones and 50$ on a mic and it will be much better than a 100$ headset. My personal setup is ATH M30 and a Blue Snowball The mic is ok but it picks up everything and the headphones are great.

[netherlands][60$]

Guys ive been doing some research for the past week for a good usb mic for gaming and streaming I dont want to spent hundreds of dollars but just a nice little something that has a decent output the budget is 60euro

I found 2 contestants:

1: samson meteor

2: Blue Snowball Ice

When I listened to audio tests i felled that the samson meteor sounded better just wanted to know what you guys thought about it

If you got some similar suggestions please do so and state why it would be better. (ps USB is highly preffered

I want to thank everyone who took their time to respond to my question in advance!

Keep making these! My feedback is:

1.) Get a better mic. I use this one. I get pretty good quality recordings from it. I also have a pop filter. Here's an example recording with the mic.

2.) I felt like you were jumping around in a lot of different places. I don't feel like all the lines work together to create one vision or support one theme.

Great stuff :-).

I just started a podcast this year and we (co-host and I) use the Fifine USB mic. Our voices sound great and I've never had any problems with it so far. Another things I would say is that make sure you get a USB mic. You're going to get the best quality with USB than with 3.5mm mics.

Mic-https://www.amazon.com/Fifine-Condenser-Microphone-Recording-K669/dp/B01MXL3EOU/ref=sr_1_30?ie=UTF8&qid=1527545415&sr=8-30&keywords=podcast+mic

Hope this is helpful and good luck on the podcast!

TB, Jesse, and Dodger all talked about this in an old episode of the TGS podcast, and they all pretty much said produce, produce, produce. This is paraphrasing, but it amounted to: Find something unique that you can bring to the table - delivery, humour, editing, content, etc., get a decent microphone if you intend to do voice work, and keep making regular content. It takes months and years to find an audience, but as long as you stick to it, you will build one eventually.

It's also what most top youtubers say. If you're interested you should check out partnersproject! The interviews have a lot of little gems of information, and they talk with people like CorridorDigital and Freddiew.

Hope this helped!

So you would definitely recommend it? Were there any issues with set up or anything? Also, just to be sure, you mean this right?

http://www.amazon.com/Samson-Meteor-Studio-Microphone-Cardioid/dp/B004MF39YS

Thanks for your help. Btw, you guys are great, lol.

No problem! For voice commentary, the mixing task isn't as complicated as music mixing (a couple audio tracks as opposed to dozens), so HD 650s could be overkill. You might want to consider something like Sony-MDR7506 headphones. They're not as accurate, but they'll handle commentary mixing just fine for about 1/6 of the cost. I had these before the 650s and I liked them a lot; my only issue was that they weren't as durable. They lasted for about nine months of everyday use before the cord went out on me. I have a bad habit of running over cords with my chair, so they may last much longer for you if you don't do that.

Also, one thing I forgot to mention was that all the mics I mentioned above use XLR connectors. To hook an XLR mic into your computer you'll need an audio interface (something like this), which will run you a couple hundred dollars. If you want a USB capable mic, Snowball mics like this one get you pretty good quality sound (on par or a little less than an SM57) without an interface.

For LANs, I recommend the Logitech G430s. For home, I recommend something like the Sennheisher HD 598s if you have a large budget and play alone in a room (due to them being open back) and pair it with a dedicated mic like a Blu Yeti. I, personally, would stray away from both of the headphones you have listed due to the fact that they are both marketed towards gamers, and generally, headsets of the sort will be of poorer quality (more on that here). If you're on a tight budget, but still want high quality sound, I'd recommend a pair of Audio-Technica ATH-M50Xs' with the Blu Snowball. I also saw you mention the kinds of headsets used by professional gamers. Pros usually are sponsored by certain brands, and in turn, use the brands gear (such as mice, keyboards, headphones, etc.). Additionally, pros generally use 2 separate pairs of headphones, one pair of in-ear monitors, and one pair for noise cancellation. The pair used for noise cancellation is generally one own of their sponsors. As you continue to search for a pair, please consider what I have mentioned, and feel free to ask me any questions.

Okay, so I'm planning on doing youtube stuffs, and I want to get a good mic and headset. So I already have the mic I'm getting a snowball, pretty cheap and I hear it has great quality: http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Textured/dp/B000EOPQ7E/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

So I wanna know thoughts/opinions on the mic, but also what headset should I get? I want a really good one for like listening to my commentaries, and one that looks/feels good. I was looking at some razer products but I don't like green as much and not sure on them. (more of a blue guy)

PS: Give some suggestions please, Tell me what you think :D

Hi inferno - the best value for money mic right now for filmmakers with "a few hundred" to spend is the [$330 Sennheiser MKE600] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00B0YPAYQ/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00B0YPAYQ&linkCode=as2&tag=battleforthew-20) [Referral Link].

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFOG5_6ixDA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Haqm-6DjuM

This mic is a great value for money - it competes very well with its big brother, the [$1000 industry standard Sennheiser 416] (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00030679K/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00030679K&linkCode=as2&tag=battleforthew-20) [Referral Link].

Hope this is helpful!

Bill

I did a ton of reading up on this before making the purchase and I'm really happy with it. It's the Samson CO1U and I'd suggest getting a pop filter for it as well. I've never had any complaints about voice quality with it. You can get just the mic for a good bit cheaper, but I think the kit with the shockmount and stand is worth the extra money. Been considering a boom for it just to free up desk space since it has a pretty large footprint, but it's been more than fine without one.

Thank you for the help. Also, I appreciate the feedback on the Podcast as well!

We are all on Skype and use Snowball Mics. We used to use MP3 Skype Recorder as it was free but it was buggy. We have since upgraded to Audio Hijack and edit with Audacity. There is some cleanup needed still but it has gotten easier.

Good luck on the Podcast!

Zalman Clip-on is kinda decent if you want one that is attached to your headset...but I would recommend a desktop mic for the quality of the voice capture. If you go the desktop route, I would take a look at the Blue USB Snowball. 1) they look awesome on your desk 2) they are really nice and give great sound quality, which your buddies that you play with will appreciate 3) they aren't expensive.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EOPQ7E/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I've been very happy with Sennheiser's mics which always get excellent audio.

If you ever need to get good audio and can't use the external recorder, a great but cheap mic that goes straight into your DSLR (via mini-jack) is the Audio-Technica ATR-6550. It makes for a great combination of low price and good quality.

Step 1. copy of your build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor | $378.95 @ OutletPC
CPU Cooler | Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler | $74.99 @ NCIX US
Motherboard | ASRock Fatal1ty X99X Killer ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard | $264.99 @ Newegg
Memory | Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory | $194.99 @ Adorama
Storage | Intel 530 Series 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $109.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $51.99 @ Directron
Video Card | MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card | $349.99 @ Amazon
Case | Corsair Vengeance C70 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case | $98.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply | EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply | $59.99 @ Newegg
Monitor | Acer GN246HL 144Hz 24.0" Monitor | $215.02 @ Amazon
Keyboard | Corsair K70 Wired Gaming Keyboard | $118.99 @ Amazon
| | Total
| Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available | $1918.88
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-20 05:19 EST-0500 |
I dont think you really need a blueray player butttt thats just my opinion :P

As for webcam perfect.
CAN NOT STRESS ENOUGH HOW MUCH OF A DIFFERENT 144hz MONITORS MAKE FOR GAMING.
I think your case cooling is alot, but thats you :P
Mics is where i think its meh.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001AS6OYC?ie=UTF8&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&tag=ezvid02-20&creativeASIN=B001AS6OYC

or

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002OO333Q?ie=UTF8&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&tag=ezvid02-20&creativeASIN=B002OO333Q

Are both good.

But real talk, you really dont need a 5820k. id say you should go to 4790k, or even 4790 non-k AND drop the cooling if you dont plan to overclock. however if you do teh k is fine. get a 4790k and a capture card.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor | $333.99 @ Newegg
CPU Cooler | Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler | $74.99 @ NCIX US
Motherboard | MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition ATX LGA1150 Motherboard | $126.00 @ Newegg
Memory | Team Xtreem LV 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2400 Memory | $149.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Intel 530 Series 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $109.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $51.99 @ Directron
Video Card | MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card | $349.99 @ Amazon
Case | Corsair Vengeance C70 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case | $98.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply | EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply | $59.99 @ Newegg
Monitor | Acer GN246HL 144Hz 24.0" Monitor | $215.02 @ Amazon
Keyboard | Corsair K70 Wired Gaming Keyboard | $118.99 @ Amazon
| | Total
| Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available | $1671.93
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-20 05:23 EST-0500 |

Downgraded to non-k 4790
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-4790 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor | $250.00
Motherboard | MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition ATX LGA1150 Motherboard | $126.00 @ Newegg
Memory | Team Xtreem LV 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2400 Memory | $149.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Intel 530 Series 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $109.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $51.99 @ Directron
Video Card | MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card | $349.99 @ Amazon
Case | Corsair Vengeance C70 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case | $98.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply | EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply | $59.99 @ Newegg
Monitor | Acer GN246HL 144Hz 24.0" Monitor | $215.02 @ Amazon
Keyboard | Corsair K70 Wired Gaming Keyboard | $118.99 @ Amazon
| | Total
| Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available | $1530.95
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-20 05:24 EST-0500 |

AGAIN, Capture cards. They make streaming decent to watch.
I think the 2nd or 3rd options are the most realistic. the 1st is pointless for you, and most people unless theyre doing nothing but editing/rendering on it.

Yeah I was thinking about something like this as a sound cage. And yeah honestly I don't understand the problem fully probably. Mic I currently use is capturing reverb in the room and sounds kind of compressed (not like production compression, I mean like tight I guess?). Worked well before, now it doesn't. Thing is I'm not really able to hang much up around my room to remove sound from walls which is why I was hoping a sound cage would work.

I personally have the Audio Technica ATH-M30x and they are really comfortable and sound really good. These are the best of the best though. For microphones, the Snowball is pretty good but I got the Yeti for $60 during black friday and its amazing

Samson Meteor Mic is great for this.

Not too expensive. Records great audio, and looks great.

Best feature is the audio out feature on the actual mic. You can listen to yourself live. I found that there can be a good amount of latency with other USB mics. In other USB Mics the sound is picked up by the mic, sent to your computer for processing, then sent back out through your speakers or headphones.
The audio jack on this mic solves that latency problem.

50 Bucks.

My setup right now is a pair of HD598s and an AT2020 USB+, and while I'm certainly not a hardcore enthusiast, from what I do know, it's one of the better/best combos you can go for without worrying about getting an amp, dac, or any of that. They both have different and/or newer versions available, but any jump up in tier will probably see a huge price hike (the hd600 would've been as much as the 598 and mic together, idk if you could justify that).

Both of them sound incredible compared to anything I've used in the past, and as a daily driver to bring with you places I couldn't recommend the 598's more (provided you buy a shorter cable; they're basically studio headphones and come with only a 3m one that's a huge hassle), and you can't do that with a headset!

Alternatively you can get a yeti, it's in a similar price range to the at2020 and I've seen a lot of good reviews. Personally I needed a mic that worked well with my super-deep voice, and I had read of some issues with the yeti that I haven't experienced with the at2020. I could be totally off base there though, I don't think it really matters too much! And if you do want to look into a DAC or and amp later on, the non-usb vesion of the at2020 is a good choice too

Tl;Dr for about $300 on sale you can get a great separate headphone and mic situation instead of dropping the same on a headset that might be lacking on one or the other.

Edit: autocorrect hates short words smh

I dont personally have the iphone 6s, but there is mic processing built into all iOS devices as far as i know, which messes quality up in my opinion, there are a few apps that allow you to turn off mic processing specifically for recording your own audio with the built in mic. I have almost every music production app so let me know what you have. I mostly use FieldScaper by iMusicAlbum which is made specially for field recording, and has built in time warping, or i use Anytune Pro+, or Twistedwave Audio Editor for the ease of use (my opinion is subjective of course) but even with just some cheaper mic purchase you would eliminate onboard mic processing, i recently bought this..
Samson Meteorite USB Condenser Microphone
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I9RK97K/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Which i used yesterday to record some construction work outside my place, which was jackhammers, and some heavy machinery, it came out near crystal clear.

I'd definitely recommend FieldScaper, and their other app SoundScaper is freaking amazing, both solely for iOS

If you haven't sprung for anything just yet, I'd just like to point out that the problems you described could just be caused by a slow internet connection (on either your or your friend's side). If this is the case, then no matter how much you spend on your microphone, your poor friend still going to end up with cruddy audio.

Short of switching to a completely different network provider or paying up for a better connection, you should probably first try out how different software works for you. Tpommes' suggestion of Discord is a good place to start, since in my personal experience Skype really isn't much good.

If you've determined that that isn't the problem, I think a USB Onmi (or multi-pattern, if you're using it for more than just the situation you described above) condenser mic will be what you're looking for. These can be found on the cheap, and I'd start with something like the Blue Snowball, which has half decent sound quality, isn't exorbitantly priced and also features multiple pickup patterns.

If you need any terms clarified, feel free to just ask me or there are a number of helpful resources on the interwebs. Good luck!

You can probably find these for lower prices than in the links, but I'm just providing some main ones:

-----

Headphones: Audio Technica ATH M50x: http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-ATH-M50x-Professional-Monitor-Headphones/dp/B00HVLUR86

With

Mic: Modmic 4.0 (microphone that attaches to your headset): http://www.modmic.com/collections/frontpage/products/modmic-4-0

-----

OR (you can mix-and match too. Like if you want the Modmic with the M50 or the Snowball with the M50x, go for it)

-----

Headphones: Audio Technica ATH M50 (older version of the M50x I linked. Lower price and just as good. Only problem is that I can only find them in white, but you could probably find black versions on eBay): http://www.buydig.com/mobile/product.aspx?sku=ATHM50WH

With

Mic Blue Snowball USB Mic (awesome quality mic with 3 different recording signatures you can switch to. This is actually the mic I have and I use it for gaming as well as recording myself/my band playing guitar): http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Textured/dp/B000EOPQ7E

With

Extra: Pop filter (you really should get one of these with a real microphone. They reduce the "popping" sound caused by the fast-moving air against the metal and pieces inside the mic that you'll get when yelling into the mic): http://www.amazon.com/Dragonpad%C2%AE-Studio-Microphone-Flexible-Gooseneck/dp/B008AOH1O6/ref=pd_bxgy_MI_img_y

-----

Here's a video that kills 2 birds with 1 stone. It shows both what a pop filter does as well as shows you the Blue Snowball: www.youtube.com/watch?v=KREN_ojEnKo

-----

If you decide to go with the Snowball (my personal recommendation. Even better if you play instruments and feel like recording) you pretty much need to get the pop filter. I'll answer any other questions too.

I've never used anything outside of their mice and a rubber dome keyboard I had for like a decade before going mechanical.

Their mice have always served me great except for the cords. It seemed like if you didn't baby those braided-covering cords they would go bad in a year. It was always in the same place too, right where the cord meets the mouse.

I'm on a G400 now and it has just a normal rubberized cord and it's lasted 2 years without even a hint of damage, so maybe it was just something with the braided cords. No idea.

As far as headphones/sets go, I'd pretty much always recommend a decent pair of headphones coupled with an independent mic. You can get a great clip-on mic from Amazon for like $10, or you could go up to something like a Blue Snowball for $50.

$33 for a pair of headphones that bunch well above their price range and $60 for a professional quality microphone. Maybe throw in a $10 pop filter, just to go all out.

You can try just using your hand to redirect the sound waves from your mouth towards your ear, or you can try just closing one ear with a finger or hand. Sometimes you see people do it when they are doing licks or runs for pitch precision.

In terms of equipment, yes this is why musicians in studios wear headphones while singing. They can hear the background music and monitor their vocals as they are being recorded.

Equipment:

Audio-Technica AT2020USB PLUS Cardioid Condenser USB Microphone

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=22NJSL3TGXXEH&coliid=I2ZQ8TLHXXM7FL

Rode NT-USB USB Condenser Microphone

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KQPGRRE/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=22NJSL3TGXXEH&coliid=I2XMC8MD4Q3FO8

One of those USB microphones with built in headphone monitors should work for you. The Rode has better sound quality and comes with a pop filter. The Audio Technica is cheaper, comes with no pop filter, and is slightly bassy sounding. You will probably want a microphone stand and a decent pair of headphones as well.

Audio-Technica ATH-M40x Professional Studio Monitor Headphones

http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-ATH-M40x-Professional-Monitor-Headphones/dp/B00HVLUR54/ref=sr_1_1?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1457017838&sr=1-1&keywords=Audio+Technica+m40x

These headphones are really nice and neutral sounding. Close-eared for good recording. The more expensive m50x actually are less neutral and will give a little bit of bass coloring to music.

Edit: If you start doing regular covers this will work well for that as well. You can download the audio files from youtube karaoke videos and then play them using Audacity as you record and monitor your vocals. Audacity is a free recording program that lets you also edit all your tracks. If you play instruments these microphones will do fine with those as well, but you'll have to be careful about placement and room reflections/modes/background noise etc.

So for recording with my Samsung Note 5, I use the voice recorder app already on there. I've never had an issue with it. I use the Stony Edge Lapel Mic, which just plugs into your headphone jack for anything with the phone now. Haven't done a commute ramble with it yet, but I will.

For other recording purposes, I use a Blue Yeti Blackout Edition, and have a Blue Microphones Snowball USB Microphone, Cardioid Mode(Gloss Black) for mobile use (i.e. traveling). I have a generic pop filter I picked up at a music store, and a DR Pro Tripod Mic Stand with Telescoping Boom for streaming and recording at home.

The Yeti is a pretty popular mid-price mic for GWA peeps. Snowball is a GREAT starter mic though. My dream mic is a toss up between the Shure SM7B and the AT2035 (both please?)

For desktop recording/editing, a lot of people use Audacity, which is what I started with. I now use Reaper Pro to record, and Izotope RX6 for editing.

Disclaimer: None of these Amazon links are referral links, and I earn no money from them

Sure, I have used the Samson microphones as they are quite easy to set up. I used an older one, the Samson C01U, but there is a lot of good from the Go Mic and Meteor Mic.

I do hear good things about the Blue Snowball as well, though I do not have experience with the brand.

And once you do get a microphone, I would totally recommend getting a directional pop filter for yourself, it can make quite a difference.

Something large diaphragm condenser. It'll give you the ability to pick up the subtle nuances of your voice and usually has a larger dynamic range than a small diaphragm condenser or any other type of mic (minus a great ribbon mic). The drawback is a lower SPL (loudness). So just don't go trying to mic and electric guitar amp.

In a field where mics can cost from a couple of dollars to tens of thousands...

I'd recommend the Audio Technica AT2020. It's a great entry level mic with a great range and decent SPL. It also comes in a USB model as well.

Additionally, any mic for recording should be used with a good pop filter. You can even make one.

Former audio engineer.

EDIT (Nov 26) All of the above was typed on my phone late at night where links are difficult to do (and I was falling asleep).

Here's the AT2020 and the USB Model

Additionally, the v67g is a great mic. I used to own one but gave it to a friend.

I'm going to echo CoinOpProductions sentiments about the audio quality and cut scenes. One exception to the cutscenes is if you feel you can fill it with good comments about it.

If you're looking for a relatively inexpensive mic that has really great quality you should check out the Blue Snowball USB Mic, it's awesome for the price and usually you can get it for around $50-60 dollars on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Gloss/dp/B002OO18NS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421810461&sr=8-1&keywords=blue+snowball

Aside from that, nice job =)

Thanks! I'm currently torn between two (after hours of research lol)

This is the one I'm leaning toward: (Samson C01U Pro USB Studio Condenser Microphone)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HXE4BYW/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_6?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

And this is the other possibility (Audio-Technica ATR2100-USB Cardioid Dynamic USB/XLR Microphone):

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004QJOZS4/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_11?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER


My primary concern is obviously audio quality, but I'm also very concerned with background noise. I've got 4 kids, and keeping them quiet is...challenging. I think the majority of my recording will be done after they're in bed, but on weekends and stuff they tend to stay up late...so, a mix of me telling them to chill out and a mic that can filter out background noise is probably my best bet. I've already started selling my wife on me turning the guest bedroom into my office lol


edit: I'd like to officially open this up to anybody who has mic advice based on what I just said!

I looked up your mic and it seems pretty decent sounding, so I'm guessing it's part mic placement and part room. I read you have a couch in the room, I actually sit down on the ground with my mic on my couch so that it absorbs the reflections a lot more since the room is hardwood floors and pretty bare walls.

I'm using just a usb mic, a pretty cheap hobby one too, but once cleaned up, it sounds pretty decent lol. I've got the Snowball mic, which is the Yeti's cheaper sibling mic basically. You can hear it here in my verification. It does the job, but I do clean it up a bit in audacity after (and Adobe Audition if the particular recording calls for it lol)

It's gonna be hard to find a better new headphone than the 58x at $160. They are easy to drive, comfy and a well-rounded sounding can. Are they great at anything? Not really, but they do just about everything well. You could step up to the 6xx for about $50, which is a much better headphone to my ear.

But my recommendation would be to find a used T20RP/T50Rp mk3 and swap the pads to Shure 1540s https://www.amazon.com/Shure-HPAEC1540-Replacement-Alcantara-Headphones/dp/B00HXAV0UY. Check out r/avexchange for used headphones or HeadFi has a good sale forum. You could also buy them new together on Amazon for about $190 total.

I actually just picked up a T20RP mk3 and was going to send to Modhouse for an Argon conversion, but I also just got a Focal Elex and no longer need for Argons. The one caveat with this recommendation is I'm not sure how well your amp would work with them. Maybe not enough power.

If you are interested, I would be willing to sell my T20s. Send me a PM if you want. I can send pics your way. I was thinking about putting them on r/avexchange anyway.

I'd recommend trying to find a good quality head set and a stand mic. Its what I am planning on doing and I thinks it's the best option. Many headphones come with a detachable mic or one that retreats into the head set as not to have an obstruction in front of your face. blue snowball this is a decently priced mic. I agree with the hyper x clouds. Seek like a solid head set. But there are multiple out there for under 100$. I'd recommend checking out pcpartpicker.com

Like this one:

USB Microphone,Fifine Metal Condenser Recording Microphone for Laptop MAC or Windows Cardioid Studio Recording Vocals, Voice Overs,Streaming Broadcast and YouTube Videos-K669B https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XCKGLTP/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_iUKhDb9A9ZCJ0

You will save almost 20 bucks and it's plug and play USB! I've had it for a couple years now and it's still pretty good and it's better than the Blu Yeti Mic in my opinion!

If you're just starting out, I would just get yourself a good set of headphones. There's plenty of resources to be found online about a good or bad pair of headphones. I personally use a pair of Cowin E8's.

Microphone, it depends on how much you want to spend. For someone who hasn't streamed yet, I always say never to spend more than you have to until you know streaming is the right fit for you and that you enjoy it.

That said, I usually recommend the Fifine K669. It's USB so plug and play, and is surprisingly good sounding for the cheap price. There's a link HERE so you can see how it sounds yourself.

Great post, as usual. One additional thought - if you do the bass port mod on your T50RP Mk2s, consider the Shure 940 velour pads. Yes they rob some of the bass (hence the bassport mod) but if you are purely looking for comfort, after the alpha pads the velour 940s are super comfortable.

I have very limited DT990 experience (listening to them at guitar center) but I own the Game One and use it on Xbox all the time. I can tell you the Game Ones are with it. A little clamp heavy at first but after a little bit they're one of the most comfortable headsets. Another option in that price range that I also own and use on Xbox are the Audio Technica ATH-PDG1. The Audio Technicas in my opinion need a pad change to be really comfortable, so with them I would recommend the Shure 1840 pads. With the pad change the PDG1 is about $10 cheaper then the Game Ones on Amazon. But you can't go wrong with either choice.

Audio-Technica ATH-PDG1 Premium Gaming Headset https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OTG9RGE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_sgwxDbZ23GGE5

Shure HPAEC1840 Replacement Velour Ear Pads for SRH1840 Headphones https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007Q0POT4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_UgwxDbNKXT3JR

I use a standalone headphones + microphone setup and love it, so that's what I would recommend. There's quite a lot of good quality headphones out there for both music and gaming. If you're looking for a quality microphone that will last then I would recommend the Blue Snowball. As for headphones there's some solid quality headphones out there. Drop on by /r/headphones and say hello! :) I strongly suggest checking out this recommended headphone page. It's a sticky for us over there.

It's odd because I find the modmic4 to be a bit bass heavy for my voice.

AT2020 is very popular as is ATR-2500. This seems like a good starter pack though I haven't heard that mic personally. Pick up a mic boom and pop filter as well. Room acoustics can play a bit to it too, if you want to improve the sound from there look into a mic shield, though I'd go the DIY route, from there the sky is the limit with room treatment and an empty wallet.

Hit youtube and search best USB microphone and go from there. There's tons of videos.

Thanks for the feedback:)

So just to be clear, using something like fraps would get me over 10 fps? Or would that be a case of a better webcam?

As regards the microphone we we're sharing the one on the turtle beach headset. I agree that isnt great, i was thinking of getting something like this

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samson-CO1U-Studio-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B000PTF0E2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1371470450&sr=8-1&keywords=C01U+-+USB+Studio+Condenser+Microphone

It seems to have good reviews although it is a little pricey but if it was worth it i would purchase it.

Thanks in advance.

Will you be using it for recording? If yes, I recommend the Samson C03U. It's a bit higher than $50 but the quality is great. I've recorded with it a few times without prior audio tech knowledge and it has given me great recordings that I only really need to reduce noise in Audacity.

I'm using a Behringer C-1 mic with a pop filter, works like a charm and it's not too sensitive. I have a basic phantom power setup for it, and pipe the output into an M-Audio FastTrack USB unit.

I'd been using my ijebus to record for a bit, which sounded like crap (unsurprisingly), and a VoIP headset, but decided to upgrade so I didn't feel like I was putting crap-sounding audio out there and limiting myself. Plus, with this mic, I can pretty readily record myself playing my instruments, which I couldn't do (with quality) with any other solution.

You're probably looking at ~$200USD to get a similar setup as this, or a touch more, but you can get by with the Blue Microphones Snowball USB Mic, which (I believe) is used by some other folks in that sub.

Hope this helps!

I have the Blue Nessie Microphone.

It is amazing getting the background noise away, but I notice that it gives me a ton of bass in my voice. I use EQ to bring up the treble, but it only helps so much.

Is there a certain trick I could use?

Or should I get a new microphone?

I have heard the quality from the Blue Yeti, and I think it sounds like it'd be better (although I haven't personally used it).

The M50's are a low impedance set of headphones, I think it is 38 ohms. Now a lot of high end headphones have a high impedance, up to 600 ohms or more. What this means is for the same voltage output from your source, the higher impedance headphones will be more quiet. That is where the need for an amp comes from, to increase the voltage output to the higher impedance headphones to get louder music. Unless you are unhappy with the volume output of the headphones, don't bother with buying an amp. They also color the sound, which you may or may not like, but that's just a personal opinion.

I would suggest these for the M50's: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002Z9JWZS/ref=oh_o03_s00_i08_details

Also, if you are worried about the long cord, get the coiled version. It's still something like 3 feet unstretched, but much shorter than the 9 feet I think the regular one is. And for getting a DAC, they only make them for iphones I believe, which is why they all have the iphone jack. Android doesn't support it quite yet, doing a google search turns up very little on the matter, but if it did it would use the USB on the phone. If you are talking about getting a DAC for your computer and if you are using onboard sound then I would suggest it. I noticed a marked improvement to my M50's when I upgraded my computer from onboard to a HT Omega Claro Halo XT sound card, I'm sure a nice DAC would do the same, many recommend them over internal sound cards like I purchased.

I've gone through tons of peripherals. I think I'm finally happy with what I have now. I'd prioratize mouse and headset before anything else. Just make sure you get a mouse with a good sensor and hand fit.

Mouse - G900

Keyboard - CM STORM QF

Headphones - Audio Technica ATH-700

Mouse Mat - XXL Soft

Mic - Snowball

That's all stuff I plan to go over in the first couple videos. I want it to be completely transparent on everything I'm doing. I am brand new at all of this. I know a lot about marketing and SEO so I know how to get things out there. And I watch a lot of youtube so I have an idea on what production quality and stuff I need. But to answer your question. Not positive yet, but I'm on a Mac and at the moment I'm looking into this microphone from blue for audio. There's a cheaper version here I've seen good reviews for but I the other one isn't a lot more and is a bit more adjustable and cooler looking. :) Ha but I know that helps.

Did some research. Found you three options.

1. Samson Meteor Mic This one is probably my least favorite of the three I found but it works. It has a bit of an airy sound to it which may be fixable with a Pop Filter. Works fine for your budget though I don't know how it'll do in your group style. Here's a test if you're curious how it sounds.
   
   
2. Blue Microphones Snowball This one is a bit better. Pop filter recommended.Doesn't sound too shabby though long distances might be a problem. Here's a test for you.
   
   
3. Audio-Technica ATR2500 this one is a step down from what I own. It's also the most expensive though you can buy used or refurbished if you need to. Since this is a condenser mic, it handles distance a lot better and the audio comes out clearer. Out of all of these I recommend this the most. Here's a test if you're unsure.
   
   Hope this helped!
   
   

In my opinion, its tricky to recommend peripherals to others due to the fact that they are so opinion based because everyones different. However, I rock audio technica m40x's with a cheap microphone from amazon. (Huge upgrade from my Astro A-40s... prime example of buyers guilt) Keyboard wise I recommend going on https://mechanicalkeyboards.com to find the perfect keyboard for your unique self. Mouse wise, not sure I use a pos mouse lmao.

M40x's- https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00NLHBZ30/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1504666870&sr=8-1-spons&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=m40x&psc=1

Cheap ass Microphone- https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00K68MT9Q/ref=mp_s_a_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1504666913&sr=8-9&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=microphone&dpPl=1&dpID=41fKuwYE1NL&ref=plSrch

Edit: Added Links

Blue's Snowball is an excellent mic, records anything, costs well below $100 and plugs straight into your pc. Seems like a perfect solution to me.

Just another pebble in the pond but I really love my Samson Meteor Mic.

Not sure how many other people suggest it but its from Samson which is an older mic company that has a good rep for nice mic's.

How do I connect it to a computer? I was thinking about the Shure mic a lot, but it doesn't have the convenience of plug-and-play (plus I definitely can't afford a preamp or interface on top of all this, yikes). Yes, I do want it to record vocals (and all different kinds of instruments, but not at the same time - will that still work?) Some examples of the instruments I want to record are: upright bass, acoustic guitar, dulcimer, mandolin, violin, drum kit (or cajon if that's not possible), etc.

Also, would you mind checking out this mic for me? I'm not sure if it's any good, but it is a lot cheaper than the others I've seen. Thank you so much for your time.

I wasn't trying to be insulting :( I love the videos and what you say is great! Seriously, the content in between the videos is really awesome! I just don't think you have the golden radio voice or whatever... ya dig? as far as mic's go, how about something like one of these?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00I9RK97K/

http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-iCE-Microphone/dp/B006DIA77E/

But hey, if you have a script, I could definitely try to do some voice overs for it, that would actually be kind of fun!

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Title: [SG] [H] Some tech [W] PayPal, Cash
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Looking to sell three items sooner rather than later. Been meaning to make this post for a while, never got around to it.

 Paypal gift preferred, happy to accept regular payments if you cover fees.

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Item Name:

|Item|Condition|Cost|
|:-|:-|:-|
|Behringer XENYX Q802 USB|Comes with a DIY ON/OFF switch and some 3.5mm/6.5mm cables.   Info|£45|
|Wacom Cintiq Companion Hybrid|Android tablet, comes with preapplied screen protector and padded sleeve.    Info|£200|
|Audio Technica AT2020USB+|USB Mic    Info|£75|

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I love my Audio Technica AT2020, they do have a USB version so you can go right into your PC http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-AT2020USB-PLUS-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=sr_1_2?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1449799164&sr=1-2&keywords=at2020

I'm lucky enough to have a nice little sound mixer so I use the XLR version, but it's a great price and works very well.

Thanks! Do you know if the Samson Meteorite is comparable with the GoMic? Asking because I have a small budget haha. Otherwise I'll save up for the GoMic. :) (Can't buy from Amazon even if it's on sale. Shipping not worth it lol)

Thank you!

Yeah for sure :) The first time you switch out pads it takes some getting used to stretching them all the way around. I used these http://www.amazon.com/Beyerdynamic-Velour-Earcushions-MDR7506-Headphones/dp/B0016MF7W2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396027183&sr=8-1&keywords=velour+pads but I found them to be quite a tight fit for the m50's which means slightly annoying to put on your cans. They aren't a perfect fit so the lip of the pads that holds onto the ear cup doesn't go all the way in like it does for the stock pads. If this is confusing I can provide some pictures but they do feel more comfortable after you've completed the mod. A lot of people liked to use these Shure pads http://www.amazon.com/Shure-HPAEC940-Replacement-Velour-Headphones/dp/B005OM06RG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1396027173&sr=8-2&keywords=m50+pads too though I haven't had any personal experiences with them.

found these on amazon.co.uk for a pretty good price:

headphone: Sennheiser HD558

microphone: AudioTechnica at2020 usb

other mic options :

Blue Yeti

Samson Meteor


I don't know any other UK webstores, but be sure to check the ones you know so you get the best price!

• Mouse - Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum. Good weight and decent button placement.
  
• Keyboard - IBM Model M 1391401. Buckling spring keyboards are great!
  
• Headphones - Sennheiser HD598. Open back gives a huge soundstage for gaming. Amazing headphones.
  
• Microphone - Samson Meteor. Very accurate microphone that is very sensitive, so be careful what you say on the other side of the house. If the mic is open everyone will hear. In Discord you can adjust the sensitivity so that it is only open when you speak and that works quite well.

Could be wrong, but it looks like a Blue Snowball with a pop filter.

http://www.amazon.ca/Blue-Microphones-Snowball-Microphone-Gloss/dp/B002OO18NS

Actually quite affordable, but a great mic nonetheless.

I'd actually be curious to know what OP uses it for as well and how it's going. I've been considering a Blue Yeti myself.

I was looking to buy a budget mic for gaming and recording youtube videos and I heard good things about these 2 mics and I was wondering which was better. And if neither of these are good than are there any good USB microphones under $30?

K668: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01D4HTIOY

669B: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XCKGLTP

And are these speakers any good? https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Multimedia-Speakers-Multiple-Devices/dp/B00EZ9XKCM

Monoprice Gateron blue keyboard and 8323 headphones are both highly acclaimed for value. Promo code "scorcher" for %15 off. If you need TKL then there's no shortage of Outemu switches for $40 or less, this Teswell looks good. I haven't used these keyboards but I've bought two of the headphones. I have a pile of $30 headphones that I've reviewed and none come close. Pair them with a Neewer lapel mic or V-Moda BoomPro. In the middle ground you might try this generic desktop mic or one of the many others like it, mine sounds well enough but the BoomPro plainly takes it. At the next tier Superlux 886B or Samson SR850 with a ModMic or Blue Snowball are great during sales. Don't fall for 'gaming' branding.

> Asus MG279Q 27" 1440p 144Hz IPS https://www.amazon.com/27-inch-FreeSync-Response-DisplayPort-MG279Q/dp/B00ZOO348C/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Asus+MG279Q&qid=1568889772&s=gateway&sr=8-1
Dell P4317Q 43" 60Hz 4K IPS https://www.amazon.com/Dell-P4317Q-42-5-16-Microfiber/dp/B07RBBQBR6/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=Dell+P4317Q&qid=1568889797&s=gateway&sr=8-2
NZXT S340 Elite Black/Blue (can't find on amazon anymore. this would be the follower https://www.amazon.com/Nzxt-H510-Elite-Dual-Tempered-Water-Cooling/dp/B07C3SQPBB/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=nzxt%2Bh510%2Belite&qid=1568889894&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1 )
Asus ROG STRIX B350-F Gaming https://www.amazon.com/ROG-B350-F-GAMING-DisplayPort-Motherboard/dp/B071SGQP1Q/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=Asus+ROG+STRIX+B350-F+Gaming&qid=1568889978&s=gateway&sr=8-4
Ryzen R7 1700 @3.8GHz https://www.amazon.com/AMD-Processor-Wraith-Cooler-YD1700BBAEBOX/dp/B06WP5YCX6/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=Ryzen+R7+1700&qid=1568889999&s=gateway&sr=8-2
MSI GeForce RTX 2080 DUKE 8G OC https://www.amazon.com/MSI-RTX-2080-DUKE-8G/dp/B07GHXMMYF/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=MSI+GeForce+RTX+2080+DUKE+8G&qid=1568890061&s=gateway&sr=8-1
Corsair Vengeance LPX 2x8GB 3000MHz CL15 https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Vengeance-3000MHz-Desktop-Memory/dp/B0134EW7G8/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Corsair+Vengeance+LPX+2x8GB+3000MHz+CL15&qid=1568890088&s=gateway&sr=8-1
Seasonic Focus Plus Gold 450W https://www.amazon.com/Seasonic-SSR-450FM-Semi-Modular-Warranty-Compact/dp/B0778XB7CK/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=Seasonic+Focus+Plus+Gold+450W&qid=1568890111&s=gateway&sr=8-2
Deepcool Captain 240mm White https://www.amazon.com/DeepCool-Captain-240EX-RGB-Liquid/dp/B076ZPCGYH/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Deepcool+Captain+240mm+White&qid=1568890122&s=gateway&sr=8-1
Kingston KC1000 1TB https://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Digital-KC1000-SKC1000-960G/dp/B072ZKXL8K/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=Kingston+KC1000&qid=1568890140&s=gateway&sr=8-3
Crucial MX500 500GB https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-MX500-500GB-NAND-Internal/dp/B0786QNS9B/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Crucial+MX500+512GB&qid=1568890157&s=gateway&sr=8-1
WD Caviar Green 1TB https://www.amazon.com/Digital-INTELLISTORE-Deskptop-1Terabyte-SATA2-SATA3/dp/B06XR3DDCB/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=WD+Caviar+Green+1TB+7200&qid=1568890187&s=gateway&sr=8-2
Fostex TR-90 https://www.amazon.com/Fostex-TR-90-80-Semi-Open-Stereo-Headphones/dp/B079L9ZC6Y/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=Fostex+TR-90&qid=1568890219&s=gateway&sr=8-5
Steelseries Rival 600 https://www.amazon.com/SteelSeries-Rival-600-Gaming-Mouse/dp/B078LJ6RPK/ref=sxin_2_ac_d_rm?ac_md=0-0-c3RlZWxzZXJpZXMgcml2YWwgNjAw-ac_d_rm&keywords=Steelseries+Rival+600&pd_rd_i=B078LJ6RPK&pd_rd_r=7a919f32-0b30-4130-9085-a40d0767f6b2&pd_rd_w=X4QOW&pd_rd_wg=HVxsQ&pf_rd_p=d29bc9bc-49e2-46b8-bc05-387917c341ec&pf_rd_r=G61EGBMPSP2D2K7BTSVZ&qid=1568890240&s=gateway
QPAD FX90 (not on Amazon)
Ducky One TKL RGB Cherry MX Blue (Didn't fint the exact model. It's like this, but with RGB) https://www.amazon.de/Ducky-Backlit-Gaming-Tastatur-MX-Blue/dp/B078YHST8S/ref=sr_1_12?__mk_de_DE=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&keywords=ducky+one+tkl&qid=1568890765&s=gateway&sr=8-12
Microsoft LifeCam Studio https://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-LifeCam-Studio-1080p-Webcam/dp/B0042X8NT6/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Microsoft+LifeCam+Studio&qid=1568890851&s=gateway&sr=8-1
Yamaha AG06 https://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-AG06-6-Channel-Mixer-Microphone/dp/B00TY8JFSC/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Yamaha%2BAG06&qid=1568890863&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1
2x Genelec M030 https://www.amazon.com/Genelec-M030-Active-2-Way-Monitor/dp/B00CC36584/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Genelec+M030&qid=1568890884&s=gateway&sr=8-1
AudioTechnica AT2020USB+ https://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-AT2020USB-Cardioid-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=AudioTechnica+AT2020USB%2B&qid=1568890898&s=gateway&sr=8-4
TEAC TN-300 https://www.amazon.com/TN-300-Analog-Turntable-Pre-amplifier-Digital/dp/B00P9W6SUK/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=TEAC+TN-300&qid=1568890911&s=gateway&sr=8-4
Skagen Falster 2 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H9FC6D3/ref=twister_B07TYFM5JV?_encoding=UTF8&th=1
Maxnomic Office Comfort Quadceptor OFC Brilliant Blue (a bit different stiching) https://www.amazon.com/MAXNOMIC-ERGOCEPTOR-Office-Slightly-Silver/dp/B07PQT4LD4/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Maxnomic%2BOffice%2BComfort&qid=1568890959&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1

I hear the Samson C01U is pretty good for podcasting & broadcasting. A twitch streamer I like uses the Shure SM7B, and I think it sounds pretty good.

So I love my m50x's, but the earpads are trash. I bought the HM5 pads but they sounded awful, and I found that it was because the lip that held the earpads on covered a part of the driver. Long story short i cut a bit of the lip off and now they sound fantastic, but theyre completely ruined and need tape to stay on. So my question is, what are the best earpads for the m50x's? Love the feel of the HM5's, so will these mess up the sound? Please help!

• I am not a voice actor for the anime, just a writer for it
  
  Personally, I recommend either the Blue Yeti or the Blue Snowball
  
  I own and use the Blue Yeti, and my work places uses them too. They are wonderful mics, but are a bit pricey. I haven't used the Snowball, but it is still a great sounding mic. A good handful of pod-casters swear by the Snowball, and Day9, the Starcraft caster, also uses it for his daily videos.

For reference: https://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-AT2020USB-PLUS-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478980220&sr=8-1&keywords=at2020+usb%2B this would be the AT2020 USB+.

Thanks for the answer! I will probably still wait for sales and the sort, but now I have a very clear understanding of both mics. I checked out the specs and they are exactly the same, so I guess it doesn't really make a difference. I'll wait for whichever drops lower I guess! Although I must say, I like AT2020's look better.

I saw this test as well, they kinda sound the same (I think the Yeti is a tad louder while the AT is a bit "deeper", so to say).

Okay well I agree with BlueMetro because I've heard great things about blue snowballs. I found them pretty cheap on amazon and they come in a lot of colors.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002OO333Q/ref=twister_B0033PSG2S

• bare minimum you'll need:
  
  instrumentals of Shakira songs, a USB mic, and audacity
  
  
• download Shakira instrumentals off YouTube like this one with a YouTube to mp3 website (there's a bunch)
  
  https://youtu.be/OjgoUix6zSc
  
  
• download audacity. it's a sound editing software.
  
  
• buy a USB mic, or for super cheap/low quality, buy a headset mic since it's just a joke. or for even lower quality, sing into your phone voice memos, then plug your phone into the computer and find the files of you singing
  
  
• import the instrumentals to audacity (just Google a video on how to import audio to audacity) and go into the settings for audacity and set it up so it can record from your vocal mic if you buy one (again, Google a video of this. they can show you rather than have it typed out in text)
  
  
• sing away. record it
  
  
• make the loudness sound correct compared to the music. it won't sound exactly like the vocals "fit" with the music but you said it's a joke so oh well haha
  
  here's a cheap USB mic. they're usually just plug in and go
  
  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XCKGLTP/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_apa_i_xBAODbV1T5QEP
  
  if I forgot something someone else please lemme know!

https://www.buzzsprout.com/216275/822423-the-happy-apostate-episode-1


I just started The Happy Apostate, it's about my departure from a fundamentalist pentecostal cult. I record with a FiFine USB mic, decent quality for the $. https://www.amazon.com/Microphone-Condenser-Recording-Streaming-669B/dp/B06XCKGLTP/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538873258&sr=8-1&keywords=FiFine&dpID=41SKfZI6PHL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch


Buzzsprout is pretty easy to get setup and it's initially free, though after 90 days they will take down your content. Looking around at other hosting options.

Separate Mic! No need to limit your options by only looking at headsets. Get a decent set of cans and get a separate microphone. This is what i did but you can swap out any solid set of cans in your price range. Drop 250 for akg701's Here and get a 15$ 8$ mic, amazing solution if you have the power to drive the headphones. If you are super picky about microphone quality go for a blue microphone.

You can replace them with the leather pads from the Shure 840's.
Shure 840 Pads

They're taller than the stock pads, and considerably more comfortable in my opinion. Isolation is still good, and there was no decline in sound quality for me at all. They are a touch too big to fit on the M50's perfectly, but they're pretty easy to pop back on if they fall off now and again, it happens fairly rarely to me though.

My main mic is a
MXL BCD-1 Dynamic Microphone

Works amazing for anyone who is on the move and does not have a padded environment. It barley picks up anything! Even better with a compressor.

My guest mic (When recording on the set) is a
AKG 220 Perception Condersor



I do not use a mixer
There are a few reasons I don't:

1.) I'm only a one man setup. Most of my interviews will be done via Skype, Phone, External recorder. This saved me over $300 dollars.

2.)I use an audio interface UR222 interface

3.)This allows me to up the gains without introducing noise. You don't even need a compressor with this saving you another $100-150.

• Capturing sound -
  *128 if you have lots of music bit for podcast and 64 for mono speech only. Here is a quick guide:
  
  

• 320 kbps – Virtually indistinguishable from original CDs
  
• 128 kbps – Typical for musical MP3s and quality podcasts
  
• 64 kbps – Common bit rate for speech podcasts
  
• 48 kbps – Reasonably common for longer speech podcasts
  
• 32 kbps – Poor, usually used to reduce download times
  
  
  
  

I'd suggest a pair of headphones and separate mic like most people suggested. Sennheiser has a bunch of great headphones.

For a microphone, I don't really know any good ones that connect via 1/8"|3.5mm jacks, but I do know a good USB mic for around $70, the Blue Snowball.

I see a few people saying to get a clip-on mic, but if you are going to do that, I feel you might as well just go with a full headset.

Edit: It seems Amazon has a bundled deal where you can get the Blue Snowball microphone, Sennheiser HD 202 II headphones, and a pop filter for the microphone for just under $140. The headphones can be connected via 1/8"|3.5mm jack. Store page

Try swapping out the earpads to alter the sound signature to more of your liking. Currently have pair of alcantara pads on my Beyerdynamics and it made it sound perfect to me. My favorite headphones by far. Even had them on a pair of TH-X00 before I sold it. Bonus it is the most comfy pads I have ever experienced and I tried everything from lambskin leather to velour.

I originally bought a Blue Snowball and it seemed okay enough for solo recording at the time, but I eventually had to upgrade to a Audio Technica 2020USB Plus which not only picks up multiple people remarkably well but is just so much crisper for all purposes. The Audio Technica is actually the same one used by the Rooster Teeth Achievement Hunter guys, to give you a sense of how top-notch and professional it sounds. It's absolutely worth the price, and I'd strongly urge you to save up for it.

Thank you for the feedback! I’m glad you liked it and I hope to do more videos about this. I am trying to explain stuff as clear as I can with high production. I did change my terminology sometimes so that was something I’m trying to be consistent with.


I used the Audio-Technica AT2020USB PLUS Cardioid Condenser USB Microphone, Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_1BpXCbE84WR8E

Please, for the love of god, don't get a yeti. They are so overhyped.

Look into the Samson Meteor Mic. I used it to make a few radio commercials. For a pop filter, check this out. Finally for the arm, take a look at this

This is the setup i used until...yesterday when i got some pricier gear. But it works very well.

If youre looking for sound quality, these items should leave about 50 left in your budget. Consider getting REAPER, a professional quality DAW. Allows you to add equalizers and compressors and just sounds a million times better than audacity.

Credibility: Chief Engineer and former production director at WNYO 88.9FM in Oswego NY

You want the right tool for the right job. The purpose of a LAV mic is to get audio when a mic is preferred to not be seen or when you really have no way to follow the talent around with a boom (for example, I use a LAV for anything Virtual Reality). The audio quality will never match a mic that has a larger condenser.

As you mentioned it's more about quality and ease of use, I would highly recommend the Audio-Technica AT2020USB (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/). It has a wide frontal pickup pattern and is USB. I set this up for a fellow streamer and it allowed her to put the mic next to her monitor (out of camera view) and listen to music over speakers (she refused to wear headphones). The stand that it comes with can be dodgy and I would recommend some type of mic stand that has a shock mount to prevent desk/keyboard vibrations being picked up. This will also allow more freedom of movement without mic rustling on clothing unless you are really going to take the time to setup your LAV correctly before each broadcast (cable loop and undercover please (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004TGNHBA/)).

If you decide that having a LAV is what you would like to do, there are two sure fire options. The Sennheiser G3 (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002CWQTXG/) and the RodeLink (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TV90DX0/). If money is no problem, you can never go wrong with Lectrosonics (http://www.lectrosonics.com/US/Wireless-IFB/category/22-wireless-ifb.html).

As far as the audio logistics, you will have the receiver audio out cable go into the mic audio in on the computer. That's if you dont have a mixer or anything like that. The wireless pack will have a dedicated mute switch in the event you need to cough or go to the restroom.

Also to note, wireless packs will chew through batteries and it's always a good idea to replace them when the pack reads one bar for the battery. Last thing you want is a dead mic mid broadcast and you have to scramble for batteries.

Hey, no problem, that's what this sub is for.

I'm sure you've heard of it in this subreddit, but I would check out the Blue Snowball USB. It's very common amongst LPers, and it's a directional dynamic mic. It's only $40, but my roommate has one and it really is a good mic for the price.

Read the reviews on Amazon, find some videos that demonstrate it's quality, and see if it's something that would suit you :)

I use the AT2020 USB and it's great, an XLR mic isn't necessary. There are plenty of good USB mics

And generally, an audio interface isn't going to be as good as a dedicated amplifier anyway.

If you get combo phones/mic, you'll be getting a worse setup than getting them individually. Gaming headsets aren't worth the extra price.

When it comes to headphones, you have to consider your purpose. For TF2, you won't want to hear outside noise and you want something you can wear for a while. That usually means cans. I couldn't imagine wearing buds for such a long time, it would irritate the heck out of my ears. I use Denon AH-D1001s myself, and I can't complain. Before I had the money for those though, I rocked Sony MDR-XD200s. They also sounded great, and were even a little looser on my head. And if you don't like them, they come with so much cord you can hang yourself >_<.

For mics, you don't really need much clarity for voice. I used the basic Logitec Desktop Mic for a decade until it blew out, then I replaced it with a Blue Snowball for podcasting. A friend that does TV editing used it professionally for years, and it's a great mic.

So if you're going cheap, you'll be way better with the MDR-XD200 and the Logitech desktop mic than with an $80 headset.

Assuming you are recording with a computer, do you have an audio interface and/or a mixer with phantom power? If not, you'll have to confine yourself to USB mics. The one I usually recommend is the Blue Snowball, which is about $70 and works quite well for voice/narration. I have perhaps 20 mics and a decent home recording system but still use the Snowball for podcasts and quick projects sometimes because it's reliable, easy to setup, and sounds good for the price.

There's also a cheaper version (called the Snowball iCE) that is a simpler design with fewer features for about $25 less. I haven't used those but it might be worth a shot, especially if you're just doing a single voice in a quiet room.

While thee AntLion ModMic are nice and allow you to use great headphones while gaming, I'd recommend looking into an alternative like the Blue Snowball Desktop Mic.

The reason why I say this is because the Mic cord on the AntLion will get tangled on your headphone cord unless you mod the two cables together. I personally prefer the Blue much more than my ModMic when paired with my DT990s.

With a smaller head you will likely have issues as I did, but a pair of replacement pads did a nice job of alleviating that issue in my case. The pads it comes with are very think so even with some medium thickness replacement pads (Shure HPAEC1840 Replacement Velour Ear Pads) I got a massive improvement in clamp force (it staying in position on your head) and was far more comfortable (standard ones being so shallow that my ear would get irritated against the inside). For even more clamp force you just go with thicker pads like the ones from Brainwavz.

I'm a fan of the Blue Snowball, but lots of people have cheaper desk mics (I hear logitech is usually good), so I'd just shop around and go with something cheap that's got good reviews if you don't have money to spend on a more expensive option like the snowball. Another thing that might help if you get a desk mic is a pop filter, which is usually around $10.

This is my WIP setup. Totally open to all questions, suggestions, and criticism. Below are some additions coming.

The goal is to be this guy.




---
Things to come.
All of the below is shipping to me right now, in a week I will add them.

• Monitor mount: VIVO Triple LCD Monitor Desk Mount
  
  
• Microphone: AT2020USB+ | Aokeo AK-35 mic stand | Shock mount and pop filter
  
  
• Keyboard: Pok3r (aka WASD WP3 61-key)
  
  
• Wrist rest: Glorius wood
  
  ---
  Other things I want to purchase
  
  
  
• Large desktop mat
  
• Nice webcam
  
• audio mixer
  
• Longer desk and/or L desk. Going to go for 74"L x ~30"W for the main desk.
  
  ---
  Couple of the products you see
  
  
• Monitors: dell s2716DG & ASUS VE247H
  
• Mouse: Anker vertical mouse
  
• Keyboard: Das Keyboard V3, (model S)?
  
  ---
  Edit: Ohya forgot to mention - this is my first post here! Lurking for a long time. This community is awesome, and thanks for the inspiration!

Absolutely. I have an Adobe Creative Cloud membership at a discounted rate through my college, and I'm using Premiere Pro to do the editing.

I'm using an Elgato capture card and a Blue Snowball mic. Maybe it was a bit crazy to go with this particular setup with no experience, but I really like the quality and the result. Links below!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00840353W

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000EOPQ7E

EDIT: I found my Snowball mic at Best Buy for $49.99 -- about $9 cheaper than Amazon.

That's one thing I didnt mention. It's just my basement and I wont be glueing egg cartons to any of the walls :P There's plenty of rooms I can test out the acoustics in, but not something I'll base my decision on when choosing the mic.

I love the potential upgrading, thnx for the heads up on that. but on second thought, separate interface? pre-amp? just my lack of knowledge in this field is pushing me to go with the AT2020USB and get a pop filter separate. Also, [its 41% off!] (http://www.amazon.ca/Audio-Technica-AT2020USBPLUS-Cardioid-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B00B5ZX9FM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1449938668&sr=8-2&keywords=AT2020) that seems like a good deal.

The filter doesnt look like itll attach to the mic or stand anywhere. could be wrong tho. Do i have to anchor the filter on something other than the mic setup?

I may take you up on that, I ALWAYS run into problems/questions. If you know anything about lighting, thats where I'm at now (purchasing a green scree soon) but atm, I have this lamp that I shine in my face, which is decent/better on camera, but burns my peepers! any tips on illuminating my face without going blind?


EDIT: also, there sometimes backround noise. Mostly just some humming from machines. That should be easily fixed right?