My setup now consists of Jack mic which is very loud and picks up every sound in my house, even with closed doors can hear people speaking in the next room which triggers auto input.
With the limited experience with microphones and limited options to test everything out - I ask for the advice on the directional Mic, that can be used in these conditions:
HTPC/gaming PC, so basically some skype calls, discord and in-game voice;
I’m sitting 1,5-2 meters (4,5-6 feet) away from the Mic right now and want the next mic be roughly same distance away from me;
Mic can be XLR or USB one;
budget up to -/+100EUR (110$) including audio controller, if it is XLR;
Rode Videomic is already more than the budget amount, and still need a preamplifier/interface
dynamic microphones are best for background noise rejection
they are the usual microphones used in broadcast studios
broadcast studio is not sound treated and can be noisy, unlike a recording studio
but a dynamic mic has to be worked from close range
I was using a Samson Q7 microphone (good copy of a Shure SM58)
that would leave about 2/3 of budget for a cheap preamplifier
most usb audio interfaces within your whole budget generally do not have enough gain in the preamplier section to boost a dynamic mic to good level for pc
Rode podcaster is a good Dynamic USB mic with headphone monitoring
but needs to be worked close
Rode Videomicro costs around 45eur (50$) here. the same in amazon.
Only thing that is a Jack mic. From my “fancier” friends heard that i’m a pleb by still using jack mic
That said - video reviews show that it isn’t that bad, actually it is very well received and used by wannabe Steven Spielbergs a lot.
I haven’t seen a video mic that small from rode before
that needs 3v plug-in power from a pc/camera etc
100Hz-20kHz would be not good for deeper pitched voice
and cardiod pattern would not be tight enough to block much background noise
you would need something more like a true shotgun mic
lots more slots along the sides for a tighter pattern
9v battery version to be independent from later devices, and hotter signal
but probably not within budget for rode brand
Try ebay or whatever auction site you can get cheap enough
Rode NTG-2 for < $100usd
At that distance you’ll hear the room a lot especially without treatment. Shotgun not great indoors; cut the lows to balance it out a bit. Best option is move the mic closer or ceiling mount it if you can dig that. Don’t use dynamic at > a few inches, it won’t pick up. Get any supercardioid condenser that fits your budget; won’t be much for that but it can happen, definitely buy used
Alternatively I would suggest looking into either a wireless gaming headset or use your phone for discord voice (that way you don’t have too many wires).
You want a mic that’ll pick up your voice from 6 feet away? Normally I’d want the mic to be more like 6 inches away for that. In general I’d say to acoustically treat the room if you can and get a shotgun mic (or maybe even parabolic), but those are both just educated guesses. All my experience is with live music and presentations and such… all stuff where I could just put the mics wherever I wanted.
