The best 10 microphones in comparison

Whether you need a microphone for podcasting or are a musician looking to get the best microphone for vocals, there’s a wide range of options available. The best microphones offer varying degrees of sensitivity, frequency response, and overall sound quality. However, those aren’t the only factors that you need to consider when choosing the right microphone. To help you distinguish between the best microphones for different types of activities, we’ve compiled this helpful guide on what to look for in a high-quality microphone.

Types of microphones

Depending on your intended use, you’ll find that there are different types of microphones for different audio needs. Identifying the kind of microphone that you need begins with identifying what you’re going to be recording. If you spend hundreds of dollars on the best microphone for gaming, for example, but need to record acoustics in a unique studio setting, you’re going to find that even the best microphone won't record the sound that you want.

To help you decide which microphone is best for you, it helps to understand the different types of microphones. The two most common types of microphones are dynamic microphones and condenser microphones.

Dynamic microphones

Dynamic microphones are the types of microphones that you see comedians and musicians using at live events. This is because they’re designed to capture loud sounds in noisy environments. The other main difference between the two is that a dynamic microphone doesn’t require power, whereas a condenser microphone does.

Due to the construction of dynamic microphones (it’s one of the oldest and therefore features the most primitive design), they’re often cheaper than condenser microphones. They’re also much more durable and can withstand higher sound pressure levels. However, because of the primitive design, they’re not as sensitive to high-frequency sounds.

Condenser microphones

The design of condenser microphones is a bit more complicated, utilizing capacitor plates instead of a coil and magnets. Therefore, it can capture quieter sounds with more accuracy. Condenser microphones are, generally, considered to be more sensitive and accurate than dynamic microphones and are used mostly for podcast recording or singers recording tracks in a sound booth.

Because they’re more sensitive, you’ll notice that condenser microphones aren’t great for louder noises. Instead, they’re more fitting for softer sounds at higher frequencies. Overall, they’re more suited for recording complex sounds with a wider range of frequencies. Because they require power (unlike dynamic microphones), condenser microphones are more static. The only major exception is the shotgun-style microphone you see used to capture audio while filming a video.

Sound quality

Sensitivity

The best microphones for podcasting and the best microphones for vocals are going to be the ones that are sensitive to softer, complex sounds. This is why it’s so important to first understand the full intended use of your microphone before deciding which microphone is best.

Sensitivity comes into play big time here, as it refers to the measurement of the quietest sound that the microphone can pick up. If you need a very sensitive microphone, you’ll need to look for a lower number. The lower the number is, the quieter the sound can be to be picked up and recorded.

Sound pressure level

Sound Pressure Level, or SPL, goes hand-in-hand with a microphone’s sensitivity. In short, it measures the loudest sound that a microphone can record without distortion. It’s measured in decibels and therefore makes it easy to compare against different microphones. 

The SPL for the Marantz MPM-1000U is 132 dB, for example, while the SPL for the Maono AU-902 is only 110 dB. This means that the Marantz MPM-1000U can measure louder sounds than the Maono AU-902.

Unless you’re recording drums or other percussion instruments, SPL isn’t likely to be an issue for most microphones. This is because these types of instruments produce short peaks or higher frequencies that a microphone with a low SPL can’t pick up on to record clearly without distortion.

Polar pattern

What do you want to record with your microphone? Do you need it to record only the sound of your voice speaking directly into it, or are you interested in capturing a range of sounds, for example, in the entire recording studio or room? The answer to these types of questions can help you determine what polar pattern to look for.

Polar patterns are also known as recording patterns, and they refer to the microphone’s directionality. The most popular polar patterns for microphones include cardioid, hyper-cardioid, omnidirectional, bi-directional, and shotgun. 

One of the most common is cardioid, which records sound in a heart shape. The Rode Podcaster and the Razer Seiren Elite are two examples of this kind of microphone. They both pick up audio from the front and the sides instead of in all directions.

Omnidirectional microphones pick up sound in all directions. The Blue Snowball microphone is both cardioid and omnidirectional, which might be easy for some to detect, given the unique globe-shaped design of the microphone. Given the design of the Blue Snowball, it’s easy to see how it picks up sound from all sides and directions of the microphone.

And, shotgun microphones are highly directional and record sound mostly on an axis; these are the ones you generally see on movie sets and for video and interview recordings.

Some microphones offer just one of the aforementioned polar patterns, while others have multiple patterns that you’re able to choose between when it makes the most sense for what you’re recording. The Blue Yeti, for example, features four different polar patterns: cardioid, bidirectional, omnidirectional, and stereo.

Frequency response

Audio experts often note that frequency response is one of the most important factors in determining the overall sound quality and style of a microphone. It refers to the range of sound that the microphone can reproduce and how that output varies in different frequency ranges. 

Because the frequency of a sound wave determines the pitch of a sound, this is crucial in choosing the right kind of microphone. Lower frequencies are heard as deep basses, and higher frequencies are heard as treble sounds. So, consider this when selecting the best microphone. Make sure you know how responsive the microphone is to specific frequencies that you’re going to record.

USB vs. XLR

Most microphones are traditional XLR microphones, which stands for External Line Run. As the name suggests, these types of microphones use a cable to connect to an audio interface before connecting to a computer. When choosing the best microphone, you’ll need to consider this as it means you’ll also need to consider the need to purchase an audio interface.

USB microphones are becoming increasingly more popular. While they often result in lower-quality sound, they balance that out by offering more convenience to the user and ease-of-use. Whereas audio interfaces used with XLR microphones convert sound from analog to digital, USB microphones carry out this process internally. The result is often a reduced quality sound that’s less dynamic.