There's no shortage of options when it comes to dynamic microphones.
In fact, you can't spell "dynamic" without "mic." #facts
So I wanted to look at some of the most popular ones,
and specifically I wanted to take a look at this right here which
is the Rode Procaster, not the RODECaster Pro II– very separate
things with very similar names.
And I do want to explain why I think that this is the best overall value
when it comes to dynamic microphones.
Right now you're listening to me through the Sennheiser MKH50
running directly into my Sony FX3, but we're going to switch to
different microphones in just a second.
The Rode Procaster I should say was sent to me by Rode for free.
I don't have to make a video about it,
but I want to because it is a really cool microphone, especially
if you're wondering how it compares to something like the PodMic or the
SM7B or something like that.
When you get the microphone, it comes with this little heavy duty plastic clip
here, although it's probably best to put it in a shock mount because shockingly
enough, it is very susceptible to handling noise, and then you just sort of attach it
like this, lock it in.
And then you're pretty much all set.
Now, all the microphones I'm going to be testing today will be running through
the RODECaster Pro II with NOFX and no processing. The RODECaster Pro II
does come with presets for each of these microphones, which I will show you
just so you can hear what it sounds like,
but aside from that, there's no processing.
It's just a dry signal running into the RODECaster.
The only thing to be aware of is that I'm not using any kind of signal
booster because you should not be using those with the RODECaster Pro.
However, if I'm using any of these microphones with basically any other
interface, I pretty much always use them with something like a Cloudlifter
or a FetHead, because as dynamic microphones, they really
do benefit from that extra boost.
So now we're going to switch from the Sennheiser MK50 to the Rode Procaster
running into the RODECaster Pro II.
That's not confusing at all.
This is just on the generic dynamic microphone setting.
I do have the gain set to 50 decibels and there is no processing or anything.
This is just the Procaster running directly into the RODECaster Pro.
And as I say those "pros"
you can hear plosives because the Procaster is
fairly susceptible to plosives.
And while I'm on the Procaster, before we go any further, I do kind of want to
spoil this whole thing by just sort of giving you my conclusions. The MSRP
for these microphones, the PodMic $99 Procaster $182 SM7B $399, RE20 $449.
It's a pretty big price range.
I think they're all worth what you pay for them because they're
all excellent microphones.
I think that the
Procaster is the best overall value because for under $200 to
get this sound, this build quality, that warranty, it really warrants
checking out because it's a really cool microphone.
However, my favorite microphone of these is the SM7B.
And I know that's almost a boring answer these days because it's such a popular
microphone and it has been for so long, but there was quite a long period of
time where I actually really didn't like the SM7B or I didn't want to.
I kind of thought it was overrated.
I thought people were spending too much money on a microphone when there were
better options out there for less money.
And I was just kind of wrong.
It's just a really good microphone.
It definitely deserves the reputation that it has.
But with this microphone, I would definitely recommend using something
like a pop filter or a windscreen, the Rode WS2, which also fits on
the PodMic fits perfectly on here.
And then now Peter Piper pitched a podcast with plosives and it was perfectly pleasing.
The problem with this is that I actually hate the way that this looks.
So one thing I found was this little pop filter that's designed for the RE20.
I'll put a link to this in the description.
It's from a website called BSW. I think it's called the "Repop."
It's kind of expensive but it's all metal, including the
filter itself.
And then it just fits around the Procaster.
Now, Peter Piper pitched a podcast.
I think this is actually even more effective at
plosives than the windscreen.
Peter Piper pitched the podcast.
Peter Piper pitched a podcast, peep peep, peep.
Yeah. This is really fun to listen to.
And you can definitely hear some of that handling noise.
If I tap the base right here.
If I drop the base, like a 2013 dubstep song, you can definitely
hear all of that handling noise.
But aside from that, so if you put this in a shock mount or you just don't touch it,
if you put a windscreen in front of it to handle some of those plosives, those are
all things that are pretty easy to remedy.
So with that in mind, let's focus on the sound quality.
How do you think that this microphone sounds?
If you want to know what it sounds like with a little bit of processing,
if I just turn on generic dynamic processing on the RODECaster Pro II.
This is without any processing,
and now this is with processing.
It's just the generic setting for a dynamic microphone.
I actually kind of like the way this sounds more than I thought that I would.
And then the other thing is I can turn that off and now I can go over here.
To Rode's specific Procaster setting.
If I turn that on now, this is what Rode thinks the Procaster should
sound like going through the RODECaster Pro.
And honestly, I do think that it sounds pretty great.
I've been using this on a lot of videos,
you've probably seen it.
It works really well. There we're back on the generic dynamic
setting with no processing.
The reason that I avoided getting a Procaster for so long was
really just because I thought it was more expensive than it is.
I thought it was the same price as the SM7B, because it really is
Rode's answer to the SM7B.
This has been out for many years at this point, but not quite as long as the
SM7B has, which has been out for decades. The SM7B retails for $399
and I just didn't want to spend $399 on another microphone when I really like
the SM7B, but I didn't realize that the manufacturer's suggested retail price,
the MSRP,
is only $182 for this.
So that made me Blink a couple of times, because 182 was such a decent price.
And it does have a 10 year warranty if you register it on Rode's website.
So that's a pretty good deal for a great sounding microphone, which is why I do
think it is basically the best budget dynamic microphone around. But let's
compare it to some of the other ones, specifically let's start out with the
PodMic because as you can tell, just visually, there are a lot of similarities
between the PodMic and the Procaster.
The PodMic came out after the Procaster, but you can definitely
tell they're part of the same family, and the PodMic has an MSRP of $99.
So just as before, I'll be running the PodMic with no effects and no processing.
This is the Procaster,
and now this is the PodMic.
There is definitely a difference in character for their sound.
And this is sort of the polarizing point with the PodMic.
Although– Peter Piper pitched a podcast, it's not quite as
susceptible to plosives.
However, it's often a good idea to put something like the WS2 on the
PodMic to handle those plosives.
And unfortunately the PodMic's a little too big to fit this
around it.
Although I guess you could maybe bend the metal a little bit, but I don't
want to do that because that's expensive and I like it. But this is the PodMic.
This is how it sounds.
I think that it's a very good sounding microphone, but what I've learned as
time has gone on is that the PodMic does not really work well with every voice.
It definitely emphasizes the higher end of things and lacks the lows
a little bit, which of course you can adjust when it comes to how you
equalize things or how you process it.
The PodMic is still decently susceptible to handling noise, but I haven't found
it as much of an issue because it has the built in yoke, which really helps a lot.
That yoke is no joke because it makes it so easy to mount the
PodMic on things, mounting the
Procaster is kind of a nightmare.
Let's go back to the Procaster here.
Ooh...
Comparing those side by side,
I REALLY like the sound of this microphone a lot.
This is just kind of a really big and sort of awkward microphone in a lot of ways.
And it's very, very heavy.
So once you put it also in like a shock mount or on a boom arm, it's sort of
just difficult to maneuver, whereas
something like the PodMic
is incredibly easy to mount, position, change around.
And this is the PodMic right here.
Like I said before, this can be an absolutely stellar microphone, especially
if you add a little bit of EQ, and I have found that when you add the windscreen
to it, it does kind of tame some of those high ends a little bit just right
off the bat and help the microphone sound just a little bit better too.
Let's add in this guy right here,
the Shure SM7B.
And you can b shure that this is a ridiculously popular microphone.
So now we're on the SM7B as I talk about the SM7B, there is
no problem with plosives because you've got this metal grill
right here, protecting the capsule.
It also comes with
well, normally a black little windscreen and then also a bigger fat windscreen too.
If you really want to get a handle on plosives. All of these microphones
are exceptionally well built.
This is no exception to that, except this is not susceptible to
handling noise pretty much at all.
I mean, Shure,
if I hit the boom arm, you're going to hear it,
but if you're using the SM7B and you need to reposition it or move it
around a little bit, like if I grab the microphone and I kind of move it
around like this, there's very little handling noise with the SM7B.
If I switch back to the Procaster and I start moving it around, it's
a lot more susceptible to handling noise.
And I think that's a huge benefit that's sometimes not talked
about with the SM7Bm plus it has a really high quality yoke
that's super easy to mount to stuff.
So as much as I'm a fan of Rode products, and as great as I think the
Procaster is and all these microphones are,
and as much as I love just playing around with microphones and experimenting, when
I just need to use a microphone that's super reliable that I can count on,
and I don't have to think about it,
I pretty much just always grab the SM7B. Let's bring in the RE20.
And now this is the ElectroVoice RE20.
The RE20 and the SM7B are the two microphones here
that have been in production
the longest. The RE20 specifically since 1969.
That is a very long time.
It is a very famous, very popular microphone.
I have a video comparing the two of these
if you want to hear more detail about them specifically. The cool thing about them
is even though they sort of have this long shared history together, the
SM7B and the RE20 are also totally different sounding microphones, as you
can kind of hear– you know, this is a
crisp bright sound and the SM7B has a much more kind of like
rounded, fuller, more neutral sound.
Maybe it's a sound that I think is sort of made to be EQ'd if
you want to change it and EQ it?
Whereas the RE20 and the Procaster and the PodMic have more sort of like
characteristic sounds just straight out of the box that may or may not need to
be EQ'd afterwards, depending on what you like.
The RE20 though, I do have it in this giant shock mount here, because it is
also very susceptible to handling noise.
And Peter Piper pitched a podcast– not horribly susceptible to plosives,
but definitely does benefit from– Peter Piper pitch to podcast,
from having a windscreen on it.
Let's jump over to the Procaster.
I can't emphasize enough,
there's no processing happening on any of these.
It's just the generic dynamic microphone setting into the
RODECaster Pro II.
This is the Rode Procaster.
How it sounds.
This is the Rode PodMic, with a retail price of $99.
No processing– Peter Piper pitched a podcast, not quite as susceptible
to plosives, but also not quite as much low end and definitely a lot more high end.
And speaking of high end, this is one of the more high end options,
The Shure SM7B– Peter Piper pitched a podcast.
Pretty much no problems with plosives, no problems with handling noise,
but it does tend to be a quieter microphone. That's not a problem with the
RODECaster Pro II, but depending on your interface, I would recommend using a
booster with pretty much any of these, if you're not using the RODECaster.
And of course last, but certainly not least, the ElectroVoice RE20,
a very, very great sounding microphone with a very specific
sound
so it's all personal preference.
You can't go wrong with any of these microphones, but that's what they sound like
raw running into the RODECaster Pro II. Sounds like I was going to start
singing a Lady Gaga song there.
Now let's see what these microphones sound like with their specific
presets in the RODECaster Pro II.
This is the Procaster with no EQ,
and this is the Procaster with the Procaster preset on the
RODECaster Pro. So many Pros in that
sentence.
This is the SM7B with no presets,
and now this is the SM7B on the SM7B preset in the RODECaster Pro II,
which I think is really cool because even though the RE20 and the
SM7B are not Rode microphones,
they have presets built in when you get it,
I think they sound great.
This is what I use most of the time for podcasts and streams and video calls and
stuff is the SM7B on this preset.
I don't really even change much else
because I think that it sounds so good.
This is the PodMic with no presets at all.
Just running straight into the RODECaster Pro II.
And this is the PodMic on the PodMic preset,
believe it or not.
And of course last but not least is the RE20.
This is with no presets, but I'll go over here
and now this is the RE20 with the RE20 preset in the RODECaster Pro II.
So let's compare all of these together with their respective presets.
All right, ee're starting with the Procaster.
This is what it sounds like.
I think that this is a very traditional classic,
and good sounding broadcast sound.
Here's the SM7B on its preset.
I wanted to do these two side by side
so that way you could compare exactly what they sound like.
Maybe I should actually do that with all of them?
So SM7B
and then we'll be back on the Procaster.
Before we jump over to the PodMic on the PodMic preset over here,
this is what that sounds like.
And now back on the Procaster, before we jump over to the RE20 on the RE20 preset.
Now it's always tricky to do mic reviews and comparisons because they
can really only just kind of give you a general idea of what the microphone
sounds like, especially because we're in
my one specific environment with my one specific voice.
And you kind of then have to be sort of like the detective to
figure out how similar that is to your environment and your voice.
So maybe to help out a little bit, I'm going to ask my wife to come in and
test out these microphones so you can hear a female voice on them instead of
just my super ultra masculine voice. 💪
This is my lovely wife Heather, who has agreed to help out. This is the Procaster.
We're going to see how it sounds by me talking to it.
Your voice sounds good on every microphone.
So we're going to do it once without any processing,
and then I will turn on the presets for each of these and we'll do that.
It's always difficult when we do mic videos to figure out what to say when
you're testing out a microphone, right?
Yes.
Well, I have the source of my power here.
This is "The Jokiest Joking Joke Book."
$9.99.
That's the title right there.
The joke on the cover says, "Why did the dummy put his iPhone in the blender?"
Why? "Because he wanted to make Apple juice!" (sad trombone)
Wait, where is it?
I meant to do the other one, but actually that one's more appropriate.
Oh my gosh.
I'm just going to have you read a joke into each microphone
and we will start right here.
This is the Procaster.
Here we go.
How can a super number make itself bigger?
It can use its powers!
What shapes do big rigs like to draw? Semi circles!
Are these supposed to be funny?
This is the PodMic.
And what does a really bad cold put on its pancakes?
Cough syrup!
Why did the blender chop up the cubes?
It just wanted to break up the ice!
No break the ice.
I read that wrong.
This is the SM7B.
Why was the lightning so bad at bowling?
Why?! Because lightning never strikes twice!
Why did the volcano never erupt?
Because it was a lava, not a hater!
Love-a,
oh I see it.
Funny. I see it.
Yeah. Okay.
This is the RE20.
What did the doctor ask the dumbbells?
Have you been waiting long?
Oh, ugh.
It's the silence that kills me.
It's like so cringe
You get used to it,
don't worry.
What we're going to do now is, these had no processing,
I'm going to turn on the presets for all of these and we'll go through
the whole roundup one more time.
This is the Procaster.
Okay. Random facts about Tom.
When Tom was a kid, he took violin classes
and gymnastics.
No, that's not a joke though.
It's for real, yeah, that's the thing.
I just didn't
do it at the same time.
Yeah. I didn't do gymnastic violin.
That would've been violint.
Wow.
That wasn't it in the book.
This is the PodMic.
And another random fact about Tom is that he always has to eat
chocolate after eating a meal.
The meal is not complete until he eats some kind of chocolate. Chocolate
of choice at the moment is M&M's.
Peanut M&M's.
Yeah, peanut M&M's.
All right.
This is the SM7B. Next random fact about Tom,
One of his celebrity crushes is Anna Kendrick.
Actually, I don't know if I'm talking long enough, so we're just going to
talk about Anna Kendrick. I need to clarify and say that this was
her character in the movie 50/50, which is a very specific character
as I was a student teacher at the time as the same kind of character.
Anyway.
Alright. This is the RE20.
And I think a lot of people know this, but just in case they don't,
me and Tom actually met on YouTube.
That's how we connected.
And we were like, "Hey let's meet up
because both of us are super excited about digital literacy! So exciting.
It's true.
And the very first YouTube comment I ever left in my life on YouTube,
Yeah.
Yes.
Was your channel! Was on my channel on my video.
I can't believe that you can remember that.
I had to! It was, I didn't know how to leave comments!
It was, it was a whole ordeal to like log in and figure out how to do that.
I didn't know
that was my future husband pinging me there.
Yes.
Uh, speaking of future things,
do you, did you like any of these microphones more than the other?
Oh, I totally wasn't paying attention.
Oh.
I was like too busy trying to think of facts.
Facts.
Wait, can we just do like a lightning around real quick?
This is the RE20.
This is the SM7B. This is the PodMic.
I remember not liking the PodMic but I actually like it right now.
I don't know.
And this is the Procaster.
Oh, I like this one.
Oh yeah.
I actually like this one the most. I actually do too.
I'm impressed at how good that sounds on your voice.
Yeah. Yeah, it sounds good!
To wrap this up,
thank you very much for helping me out.
It's really nice to have not just my voice on a mic review.
Yeah.
But as a parting gift, I would like to give you a laugh: Knock knock.
Who's there?
Linda.
Linda who?
Linda me a hand
this box is heavy! (yikes)
My favorite thing with all of these microphones is that
there really is no bad option.
You're either going to be getting a great value
that sounds really good,
or you might spend a little bit more money
and still get something that sounds absolutely amazing, which I guess you
could also argue is a really great value?
And speaking of things that are great values, thank you to everyone
who helps support my channel through Patreon and YouTube Channel Memberships.
That was a smooth transition.
And speaking of smooth transitions, if you haven't checked out some of
my other mic reviews and comparisons, check out these videos right here.