Beginning podcasters quickly find out that a bad mic makes for bad audio. Period. There's no undo button on the microphone. Or as you have no doubt heard, garbage in equals garbage out.
I always advocate improving your sound by improving your mic first. Everything else should be secondary in my opinion. But for many podcasters, especially those new to audio recording, adding a professional mic can be a daunting task. It usually means adding a digital to analog converter (via USB or Firewire interface) and/or a mixer. It might also mean adding a microphone pre-amplifier if you use a condenser mic.
Now if it weren't enough to face the learning curve of adding all those new components, there's the issue of money. All those extra goodies cost extra cash.
Enter the USB microphone. USB mics just plug right into any Windows or Mac computer and without much fuss, you have audio. There's no need for an interface, separate pre-amp or mixer. You may have to set some preferences or load a driver, but otherwise, it's a painless process.
David Battino got me interested in the Rode Podcaster with his post from the AES show.
I decided to take a closer look for myself.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
The first thing I noticed about the Rode Podcaster was its weight. It felt sturdy, heavy and solid as a rock. I was surprised because some USB mics feel like toys. While I didn't subject the Rode to any physical harm, I got the feeling it could hold its own if dropped.
The Podcaster is a dynamic USB mic designed to record voice. It has the look and feel of the venerable EV RE-20. It ships with a 15-foot long USB cable. I plugged it into my MacBookPro, opened the System Preferences panel and clicked on Sound. There it was on the Input list, already selected. I fired up GarageBand 3.0 and same thing. It immediately saw the Rode Podcaster, and I was recording in less than 60 seconds. I do have to admit that the ease of that transaction was not lost on me. There's a great deal to be said for ease-of-use in this time-is-money world we live in. I did not test the Rode on a Windows machine, but noticed there were Windows drivers available and I assume that the process would be similarly simple.
OPERATION
Right off the bat I decided the mic needed more gain. This seems to be a typical side effect of the USB mics. It has more gain than the Snowball, but not much. In order to get enough volume out of the mic, I had to turn my mic input all the way up and then I had to work the mic fairly close.
Using this technique, I found that the mic produced sufficient level to record a clean track. There was almost no self-noise.
By the way, some reviewers claim this mic has a high-pass filter. It does if you are using Windows and install a software switch - but there is no traditional HP switch on the mic itself.
COOL FEATURES
There is a small ON light (actually it's an LED) and I appreciated getting that feedback. It let me know the mic was connected and powered via the USB port.
I was really pleasantly surprised to find that this mic has a built-in headphone amp. This offers zero-latency, real-time monitoring, with level control. The 1/8″ jack allows you to plug phones right into the mic body.
SOUND
This is a clean-sounding mic. It's smooth and has very nice lows. If you've recorded your voice with inexpensive headset-style USB mics, you probably thought your voice sounded thin. That won't be a problem with the Rode Podcaster - as long as you work close. The tight cardioid pickup pattern rejected off axis sound and that's a plus if you work in a noisy room or record a round-table style podcast with many voices.
MISCELLANEOUS
The Rode Podcaster comes with a 10-year guarantee. Rode has created a dedicated website for the Podcaster at http://www.rodepodcaster.com/. They are also offering some tips on its use, and a free podcast hosting service.
OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES
The additional shock mount (PSM1) is designed specifically for the Rode Podcaster by Rode and is available from BSW for $49.
COMPLAINTS
Only one really and that's a small one. I wish the headphone monitor jack also gave you the ability to mix in sound coming from the computer.
CONCLUSION
I really like this mic. There are more sophisticated USB mics coming. But they'll all cost more than the Rode. The Rode sounds a little better to me than the Snowball, but it also costs more than the Snowball. If you just need to save the money, get the Snowball. If you want the best, get the Rode. Despite it's high price, the savings you get from not having to buy an interface or a mixer make the Rode Podcaster a good deal. Until something better comes along in this price range, I can highly recommend it.
SPECS
- Cardioid pattern
- 18-bit A/D converters
- Tailored-for-voice frequency response
- Low self-noise
- Direct headphone amp
- Internal pop filter
- “ON” LED
- 15 ft. USB Cable
NOTE: Cross-posted at PodcastGearGuy.com
For more on podcasting, visit my sites PodcastingTricks.com
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