Computer Microphone Buyer's Guide - PC Guide https://www.pcguide.com Practical Guides to PC & Tech at Home, Work, and Play Sat, 20 Apr 2024 15:02:33 +0000 en-US https://www.pcguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/PCguide-favicon-75x75.png Computer Microphone Buyer's Guide - PC Guide https://www.pcguide.com 32 32 Best gaming microphone of 2023 – our picks for streaming, budget, and overall https://www.pcguide.com/computer-microphone/buyers-guide/best-gaming-mic/ https://www.pcguide.com/?p=22530 Fri, 11 Aug 2023 12:06:02 +0100 Best Blue Yeti Settings For Streaming Plug n' Play

Blue Yeti USB Microphone Power Consumption: 5V 150mA Bit Rate: 16-bit Polar Patterns: Cardioid, Bidirectional, Omnidirectional, Stereo Frequency Response: 20Hz - 20kHzView Latest DealWhen looking to improve the quality and content of your Twitch streams, a good piece of recording equipment can go a long way. Some popular streamers and voice overs artists will use a wide range of professional tools, from the Snowball to the Blue Yeti microphone and more. While having the best set of recording equipment isn’t a necessity, it can help to greatly improve the sound of your voice and lesson background noise when communicating with an audience.That’s where Blue Yeti microphone comes in.If you go to any electronics retailer, they will likely greet you with enthusiasm when the Blue Yeti brand is mentioned. This is one of the big guns in modern microphone technology; it is used by Markiplier, PewDiePie, and some of the most famous streamers in the world. It’s a reliable microphone that is used by the pros, but won’t cost you an arm and a leg. Once you’ve acquired the Yeti mic however, you may need mess around with it a bit.Since the Blue Yeti microphone can be used in a wide variety of ways, it may need some special attention when you try tuning it for streaming. There are a few settings and tweaks that can grant you the best performance when playing games live.In order to prevent any keyboard feedback or loud mouse clicking coming through to the microphone, you can adjust your Blue Yeti settings accordingly.

Drop that Gain Down Low

One of the biggest pros of the Blue Yeti can also be one of its biggest cons, depending on how it best suits your needs. The gain on the Blue Yeti is so sensitive that it will pick up almost any sound, including ambient background noises, and project them loudly through your recorder.You don’t want that!Try dropping the gain down as low as it will go. While it may seem counterproductive to reach the absolute minimum with your gain, it will benefit you by preventing the accidental pickup of keyboard typing, mouse clicks, chair squeaks, and more.This is especially true if you have a mechanical keyboard right next to your Blue Yeti mic!

Adjust Your Windows Volume

You may want to check on your Windows volume when using the Blue Yeti. Various streamers have reported separate audio results with the sound quality, depending on the volume level.If your gain is down all the way, try setting your Windows volume to 100 thus adjusting. This will help your mic regain some of its sensitivity without creating that extra buzz or picking up on noises that aren’t your voice.If that balanced approach does not work for you, you can try raising your gain to a middle point and lowering your Windows volume to 0. For some streamers, this technique helps them to achieve the perfect level of volume and sensitivity. For others, it’s better to have 0 gain and 100 Windows volume to prevent any ambient sounds from getting through.All in all, you’ll want to adjust your Blue Yeti gain slowly to see what works best for you. Use an external noise gate to help buffer some of the outside sounds. Keep the mic close to your mouth when you speak, and fairly close to your computer as well. With the right amount of adjustment, you should be able to achieve an audio quality that lets your voice ring through loud and clear while keeping background noises at bay.Check out our full review of the Blue Yeti microphone here]]> https://www.pcguide.com/computer-microphone/guide/blue-yeti-settings/ https://www.pcguide.com/?p=3700 Thu, 20 Jun 2019 07:12:48 +0100 Best Blue Snowball Settings For Streaming Best For Gaming and VOIP

Blue Snowball USB Microphone Sample Rate: 44.1 kHz Bit Rate: 16-bit Frequency Response: Position 1-3: 40 –18 kHz Polar Patterns: Cardioid or Omnidirectional Weight: 460gView Latest DealYour Blue Snowball microphone is one of the best for recording Twitch streams and professional-quality YouTube videos, but it may take some adjusting to achieve the perfect settings. Some popular streamers, such as Inside The Game and thegaminglemon, will utilize the Blue Snowball both for streaming and recording.It can be done, and the results are worth it. Here are a few settings that we’ve found to be quite successful and adaptable when it comes to recording your voice.

Boost That Mic!

Boost the microphone to achieve the perfect sound quality for your voice. An existing complaint about most Blue Snowball brand microphones is that it can sometimes be difficult to really pick up your voice – especially if the microphone is more than a few inches away from your mouth.If you do need the mic to keep its distance, however, the mic boost will come in handy. You can slowly turn it up to see what works best for you. Pair this technique with adjusting the volume of the microphone itself on your main window, and it can help to pick up your voice crisp and clear.

Add the Necessary Filters

You can add some noise-reduction filters to your Blue Snowball to optimize it for picking up your voice only. This is the best option when live streaming through Twitch or YouTube.In the main microphone menu, you will see a Filters box option. If you click on the cog button next to Filters, it will open a new menu. From there, you can click the plus sign to add all of the filters you want. Try adding “Noise Gate” filter, which can greatly improve the audio quality of your videos.A noise gate will basically tell the microphone to shut itself off when you aren’t talking, and it will only pick up sounds when you do talk. That can prevent ambient sounds from being picked up.Another benefit to the Noise Gate filter is the ability to stop the mic from recording something that reaches below a certain decibel level. This will also keep any stray noises away, only picking up the sound of your voice when and where you need it. Applying Noise Filter will prevent keyboard clicks, fans, and background noises from showing through. The threshold of the Noise Filter should be somewhere between 30 and 40 for best recording results.

Suppress the Noise

In addition to the Noise Gate filter, you should also add a Noise Suppression filter. This goes hand in hand with your noise gate, as it specifically prevents ambient sounds such as fans and passing cars to be picked up by your microphone.The default setting on the Noise Suppression filter is typically around 30, but most professional streamers will keep it lower than that. Try it out at 25 at first to see if that works for you.You can always go back and change your settings later depending on how the quality of your streams works out. Using different recording programs can help as well, although that shouldn’t matter as much as the adjustments you make on your Blue Snowball microphone.]]> https://www.pcguide.com/computer-microphone/guide/blue-snowball-settings/ https://www.pcguide.com/?p=3805 Thu, 20 Jun 2019 07:12:13 +0100