Rode PodMic review

Our Verdict

For $99, yous can't find a better USB microphone than the Rode PodMic. It'southward a small, sturdy and intimate mic that brings studio-level professionalism to your podcast.

For

Affordable
Internal pop filter
Great sound
Professional build quality and looks

Against

Stand sold separately
XLR interface not ideal for beginners

Tom'south Guide Verdict

For $99, you lot can't find a better USB microphone than the Rode PodMic. It's a pocket-sized, sturdy and intimate mic that brings studio-level professionalism to your podcast.

Pros

+
Affordable
+
Internal pop filter
+
Great sound
+
Professional person build quality and looks

Cons

-
Stand sold separately
-
XLR interface not ideal for beginners

This Rode Podmic review must start, if I may, with an chestnut. Before I became a podcaster, I was a radio host at a local station. As a matter of fact, my beloved for radio inspired me to transition the show to a podcast amid a dramatic career alter.

Rode PodMic specs

Connection: iii-pin XLR

Ports: XLR out

Condensers: Non stated

Directional patterns: Cardioid

Size: 6.viii x 4.3 x 2.iv inches

Weight: 33.1 ounces

You're probably wondering — what does that have to do with a small desktop microphone? Well, subsequently using plug-and-play mics for most of my podcasting career, the PodMic was a welcome return dorsum to shine-sounding (and sultry-looking) mics with XLR cords and soundboards. It's no plug-and-play USB model, and then, but the PodMic is one of both the all-time microphones and the best podcasting microphones you lot can buy today.

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Rode PodMic review: Price and availability

$99, though no stand included
Bachelor at range of retailers

The Rode PodMic is available for $99, an accented steal for such a high-quality mic and just the right price signal for beginners. With that said, if you are looking to ready multiple mics, you tin't beat $99 a pop for each setup — though a stand isn't included in the box, so put bated another $20-30 per mic.

Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy and Focus all stock the PodMic, though Focus currently has it at a slight crash-land up to $109.

Rode PodMic review: Design

Minor nevertheless robust build
Uses XLR rather than USB, so better for experienced users

When I opened the PodMic box, information technology brought dorsum pleasant memories of my time on radio. There'due south something iconic about a stocky studio mic with a chrome and/or metal stop. It'south like laying out a sports jersey before game twenty-four hours — it merely gets you lot in the mood to perform.

With its all-metal pattern and finish, this item mic looks proficient, and is sturdy for its size. It comes with an XLR cord, which gave me plenty of room to move the mic abroad from the soundboard — though beginners beware, you won't be able to merely plug it into your PC's USB ports. A Bluish Yeti or JLab Talk this is not; Rode also has a $99 USB mic of its own, the Rode NT-USB Mini.

The simply other drawback that I noticed was the swinging subclass that hovered below the XLR port, which doesn't let for a free swinging subclass. It's only a pocket-size inconvenience, and I didn't notice it once I started to record.

The mic does require a stand or boom arm, and I chose the $29 Rode DS1. This stand is piece of cake to put together, relatively modest and doesn't accept up too much space. From there, it was time to tape.

Rode PodMic review: Sound quality

High recording quality with integrated pop filter
Doesn't need complex setup for smashing sound

Putting it mildly, this the Rode PodMic is the real deal. Part of the features advertised with the PodMic are its "circulate-quality dynamic capsule" and "internal pop filter to (minimize) plosive," forth with the mic'south specific dedication to "speech applications." Equally someone who has done podcasting for over v years, I was thoroughly impressed with the sound and range of the PodMic.

I recently recorded a podcast with a couple of friends using a couple of PodMics. I erroneously left on the racket gate for both of our mics, which was significant because of my friends' distance from their mics, likewise equally a neighbor who was cutting his grass. Even so, erven with the racket gate and surrounding annoyances, the mic picked up my vox perfectly, with no groundwork static.

While I was almost a foot away from my mic, my friends were a scrap more distant. 1 of my friends, who was about iii-4 feet away from the mic, nonetheless sounded great on the mic. The other friend, who was about 10 feet away, had his vocalism get in and out considering of the noise gate.

Here'due south why that's significant: Fifty-fifty while fumbling around with the initial setup, the mics still sounded great. That'southward the type of coverage a beginner (and even an experienced podcaster like myself) looks for in a product, despite the more pro-minded XLR connection.

The final sound, particularly with my input, came in articulate and didn't demand any editing for pops and such. With that said, I tin and will ever recommend that users invest in a popular filter or windshield for their mic(s). The goal of any successful recording is to minimize problems that might cause problems during the production stage.

As always, my mics are child-tested — both for sound and strength. My 3-yr-one-time spoke boldly into the PodMic during a contempo exam, and was quite handsy with the mic likewise. Again, between the PodMic and DS1 stand, there wasn't besides much risk of the mic becoming dislodged, or even the entire set falling to the floor.

Rode PodMic review: Verdict

The Rode PodMic has a strong reputation amid regular podcasters, and information technology's easy to see why. The only minor outcome I had with this mic was the XLR connexion getting in the way of the swinging bracket, but that's nothing compared to the keen sound, style and stoutness of the PodMic.

At $99, this mic will requite you a lot of bang for your buck — and thanks to the internal popular filter, you might non even hear information technology.

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Ken J. Makin is a tech and amusement author for Tom'due south Guide, and has nearly twenty years of experience as a announcer. He's an gorging podcaster and freelancer for diverse sites, including ESPN's The Undefeated and The Christian Scientific discipline Monitor. When he's not podding or writing, Ken is likely spending time with his wife and children.