Samson Q9U XLR/USB Dynamic Broadcast Microphone

I've had my fair share of cheap mics, and a couple "cheap" mics; ranging from cheap gaming headsets to a Blue Yeti (the best of the worst).This mic slaps them up and down the schoolyard. It's less than $200, so it's definitely still in the budget range. But for what you pay, this thing kicks ass. It comes with a sturdy, well-constructed device, a solid pop filter, and a USB-C cable.Right off the bat, the fact that you can pick either XLR or USB-C as your connection method is awesome. I don't have to take my interface with me if I want to go mobile! However, it *is* pretty hefty, and my mic arm struggles to keep it up. It manages, but it's crying.However, I have it hooked up to my Scarlett 2i2 v3, and they're a match made in heaven. The Scarlett gives me the basic control I need over the mic, and the gain knob allows me to make up for how quiet the mic's output is. The mic itself has a couple basic tuning options on the rear, but it's better off being tweaked in software, especially for your gain. Even with an interface that can boost output, anyone paying for this mic should already know to tweak in software anyway (whether it's in a DAW, video editing, or streaming live).I think it's a solid value for the price, and after just a few weeks with it, everyone I usually talk to online, be it for gaming or my podcast, have noticed a considerable leap in the quality of my voice online since it arrived. I don't think I'll need another mic for a good, long while.

To put it simply, this might be the best microphone under 250 dollars. I will begin with the features, this mic offers USB and XLR connection along with zero-latency auto monitoring and audio passthrough from your computer. It has has a physical mute switch and two switches on the back to alter the sound. One switch is a mid presence boost and the other is a low cut filter. Next I want to talk about the build quality, this microphone feels excellent and is made of very high quality materials, everything on this mic is either metal or very high quality plastic. Finally the sound produced by this microphone is very very good, I personally use this microphone over USB and have the mid presence boost switch engaged. This microphone has a very warm and deep sound profile that sets it apart from other dynamic microphones, I personally love how this microphone sounds and I would easily choose this over something like the shure mv7 or even the sm7b. I have found that if you want the microphone to sound more like other "podcast" microphones you should enable the low cut filter and mid presence boost, I highly recommend you view the video created by Podcastage in which he reviewed this microphone and compared it to several other microphone in the same category.

I bought two of these mics for a weekly podcast I was doing with my Mom. We wanted to upgrade and I was looking for a dynamic mic because I didn't want to mess with phantom power and I love the sound quality of dynamic mics. It's surprising how heavy these mics are. They are built with super high quality metal and the sound is excellent.We literally plugged them in straight out of the box 2 minutes before hitting record for an episode. There is not setup. Just plug and go. They are coupled to a Zoom H5 recorder. I don't plan on ever needing to upgrade.The other reason I went with a dynamic mic is to cut out background noise. We have forced air heating that is very loud. When we record the air vent noise never shows up in the recording so there is no post editing needed.These are perfect for podcasting, singing, and doing interviews. Great product for the price!

Similar to other Samson microphone products, this one meets the standard for build quality. It's heavy, feels strong in the hand, and has (in my opinion) sound quality rivaling competitors charging twice the price.I won't go over the obvious features, but I will say the following:- It does not come with a stand. Plan accordingly.- It does not come with any mounting adapters.- It does not come with an XLR cable.- It does come with both a USB-C to USB-C and USB-C to USB-A cable. They are about 6 ft. USB 2.0 standard for speed I believe.- It is powered by the USB bus (When not using XLR). If you are having trouble, use a powered USB hub.- It does come with a pop filter.- Mute button is clicked IN for MUTE, OUT for LIVE.Other thoughts....In response to another review complaining about their USB cable breaking off and leaving them with a "useless microphone"... the cables are basic and removable, they're not permanently wired to the mic. Just go buy another cable for $5, why trash the mic with a 1-star review?I've also seen reviews online complaining that the wishbone mount isn't able to be tightened where it meets the microphone housing. The outer plastic on each side is just a cover, you can pop it off to get to the hold-down mechanism (beware of warranty voiding if you tinker too much however, if it's not on the user guide it wasn't meant to be user-serviceable).Depending on your setup and cable organization OCD levels, you might want to get a better USB-C cable that has a 90-degree connector on it for ease of cable routing. Otherwise the cable will protrude straight back an additional 1-2 inches and bending that cable too tightly will put strain on the USB-C connection.In Windows 11, the default mic volume for input was not defaulted to 100%. You might need to tweak that per the user manual to a level that works for you. Mine is at 78%.