The Best Microphone to Record a Podcast?

If you’re looking to buy a microphone for podcasting, I urge you to read this before you reach for your credit card.

Giving Everyone a Voice.

I LOVE the fact that podcast tech has become accessible. Everyone deserves a voice and the radio industry with it’s cliques and increasing obsession with “celebrity” presenters just does not offer a fair platform. It’s amazing that podcasting is getting it’s second wind and really taking off. It’s also a joy to see the number of podcasts emerging from the UK.

As a producer coming out of the professional UK radio industry 4 years ago, podcasting gives me the scope to create programmes that BBC commissioning would have just not given the time of day.

Content creators are raising the bar everyday without the backing of a major broadcaster and that’s really exciting. New podcasts are being launched everyday and it’s a medium that is really exploding. The downside of this explosion however is that podcasting is becoming a (very quickly) saturated market. Your podcast needs a fighting chance and it begins with good sound quality.

“It doesn’t matter about the sound quality, so long as the content it good right?”

WRONG. The ear is a very fickle thing, your podcast is competing with a whole host of stimuli. You just don’t know what your listener is doing while they are tuned into your podcast. If they find something more interesting or easier to listen to, they’ll switch off. Keeping the attention of the ear for 30 minutes is a difficult task. Yes, the content has to be interesting, but if it sounds like garbage, your amazing content is going to be turned off before it’s had the chance to be heard.

“IN PERSON” / INTERVIEW MICROPHONES

The right microphone for the job? It’s certainly not this one:

I had a coaching client recently who had a few problems with the first few interviews she had recorded and she couldn’t work out why. I asked her to send me over the recordings to take a listen. The recordings sounded really muffled and distant, I also played them to my other half for his opinion (he’s a music producer) and we were both joking “it sounds like someone is talking into an SM58…surely that can’t be right” — we weren’t wrong. On our follow-up call I asked my client to show me the settings on her portable recorder, recording levels were up to max and she had her mics plugged into the correct inputs. Then I asked her to show me the microphones over Skype. My heart sank.

I explained to her that what she had was a couple of SM58 microphones that are designed to be used with a PA system in noisy environments such as music festivals or to record snare drums and guitar amps in a studio. The SM58 is able to handle high volume such as amplifiers or loud vocals and is without a doubt the go-to microphone for bands and artists performing live on stage. However, their frequency responses are just not tailored to the natural voice, they do not pick up it’s subtle nuances, which are vital to any broadcasting / radio recording. The muffled, distant recordings that we were hearing in her examples were the best we were going to get using the SM58 and I recommended a different microphone.

SHE WAS FUMING. Upon reading some advice online, she had shelled out money on two brand new SM58's to record her interviews with. Actually all she needed to do was invest in a good omnidirectional reporter microphone which was half the price of two SM58's.

I would also recommend that if you have one, only use the “on board” microphone on a portable recorder as a last resort. These microphones are only really designed to record actuality (the location atmosphere / noise). You get a lot more control over noise levels / input levels if you use a microphone.

My Recommendations for “In-Person” Interview Microphones

Shure VP64A Reporter Microphone (£70 / $75-$105)

Rode Reporter Microphone (£89 / $109-$129)

Electrovoice RE50 (£120 / $179)

Both the Shure SM58 and the reporter microphones listed above are dynamic microphones, however they are designed for two very different recording environments. It’s a bit like two people trying to ski down a hill, one using a uni-cycle and the other wearing a set of ski’s: they both get you from A-B but one is much more effective and fit for purpose. The microphones I’ve listed above have been designed to capture interviews and reports on location.

These microphones are known as omnidirectional microphones. This means that no matter where you place the microphone between you and your guest, the microphone will be able to pick up what you are both saying. Yes, the omnidirectional microphone is more sensitive and is going to pick up more background noise than the SM58 but when recording on location you should always try to find a suitably quiet recording environment. That is a subject for another post.

I have used / owned all the microphones listed above, they are great to handle and are very rugged. I have also used the Electrovoice RE50 to record presenter links in studio when on the road or on vacation. It has a gorgeous warm tone about it. I would also recommend that you buy a wind shield for your omnidirectional microphone if you are using it on location.

STUDIO MICROPHONES

You want to use a headset microphone to record your podcast With? REALLY?

There is absolutely nothing wrong with using a headset to test the water with podcasting, if you already own one. They’re also great for guests to use if you are interviewing them over Skype, they are a slightly better alternative than using the on-board microphone on their computer. However if you’ve established that presenting a podcast is for you, you should be looking at buying a suitable microphone as soon as possible. Like the SM58, a headset microphone does not possess the technology to pick up the nuances of the voice.

I’m a member of a number of podcaster Facebook groups and the main reason I see people giving for using a headset is the portability and lack of fuss. A plug and play USB condenser microphone would offer you that portability too. They are as uncomplicated as it gets and you are going to sound way better recording into one of those.

There is of course also the subject of budget. Again, which I fully understand not everyone has the cash to throw at tech. If budget is an issue, have you thought about buying a second-hand microphone? There are dealers out there that offer reconditioned microphones with a warranty. When I was a student on a limited budget, I bought a second-hand Electrovoice RE50 for a snip of the full price. It’s now 20 years old and it’s still going strong! Second hand well-made microphones will serve you much better than a cheap headset.

“What about the Snowball or the Blue Yeti USB Microphone?”

Personally I find both of these microphones very gimmicky for the price. You could invest in a higher spec microphone for the same budget. This applies especially when talking about the Blue Yeti vs other condenser USB studio microphones out there. My personal favourite is the sE Electronics X1. I have an XLR version of this microphone and for the price it sounds beautiful. The great news is that sE Electronics have created a USB version of this microphone. It retails at around £79 / $110. The microphone doesn’t come with a stand but you can easily pick a cheap desk stand up for around £10 / $20. I have taken this price from the UK Amazon, costs from suppliers in other countries may differ. Here’s a recent video review of this microphone (this is not my video!):

For “studio” use I would certainly recommend the use of either a studio condenser or dynamic microphone with a broad frequency response. These microphones will pick up the natural nuances of the voice over a dynamic microphone with a much smaller frequency response (such as the Shure SM58 mentioned earlier). I can fully appreciate why someone would choose to use an SM58 as it may not pick up as much background noise within the room you’re recording in, however you are greatly sacrificing frequencies that give the voice it’s beautiful texture and tone. If you can, try creating a quiet recording environment and use a studio microphone. You’ll thank me for it. I am also going to create a blog post on recording environment in the future!

My recommendations for “Studio” Microphones

sE Electronics X1 XLR (£89 / $128)

sE Electronics X1 USB (£79 / $114)

Rode NT-USB (£116 / $169)

Electrovoice RE320 (£200 / $300)

Electrovoice RE20 (£300 / $434)