Whether you're a budding gamer, an avid fan, or ready to build your gaming empire, a microphone is a pretty essential component to your rig.
You'll need to ensure that your team players can hear you clearly, so if you're playing a first-person shooter game and encounter danger, your teammates can respond to your callouts.
Likewise, if you're streaming to an audience, you'll want them to hear smooth and clear audio, entertaining them without any loud bangs or crashes - so a microphone with a shock mount would be ideal.
Similar to a podcasting microphone, a gaming microphone will need to solely pick up your voice, with little to no background noise, meaning you'll be searching for a microphone with a cardioid polar pattern. A cardioid microphone best records singular input sources and picks up little background noise, making it a perfect choice for streamers or singular podcasters.
If you're not sure what a polar pattern is or have any questions on what's the best for you, make sure you check out our FAQs section at the bottom of our buyer's guide.
Our best microphones for gaming roundup includes a wide range of different devices, all with varying price points, so even if you're looking for the best budget microphone, you'll be sure to find it.
Alternatively, if none of these options are within your price range, have a look at what's on offer on Amazon Prime Day; it's just around the corner, and you'll be sure to find some incredible deals.
The best microphones for gaming
Best value for price
The HyperX QuadCast is an all-around excellent product, bringing impressively clear and crisp audio to live gaming at a very affordable price point. The shock mount is the ideal feature for gamers who get a little too immersed in their game but don't want the audio to be affected. It also boasts some other pretty useful features, such as the low-profile gain dial, LED indicators, and a tap-to-mute.
Recommended
Blue is renowned for producing impeccable quality microphones, and that's just what the company has done with the Blue Yeti X USB Mic. The audio produced is crisp and clear, and the four condenser mic capsules can be run over a choice of four different polar patterns. The quality of the cardioid recording is truly impressive, making it a great option for gamers.
Best for professional gamers
If you're less of a newbie and you're more on the path to building your own gaming empire, then the Elgato Wave:3 might just be what you need. This microphone delivers outstanding audio, is very compact, has a pop shield, and comes with Elgatou2019s Clipguard feature which limits audio volume. The pop shield is useful as it will remove any pop sounds from plosives spoken, allowing the words in the audio to remain uniform. The Clipguard feature is also incredibly useful as it prevents audio from becoming too loud; it's an anti-distortion technology that will ensure the audio stays at the same sound level throughout the recording. All in all, this is a superb microphone.
Best budget microphone for gaming
The Razer Seiren X offers precise audio in the form of a bold, sleek, and matte black microphone. It also has a few handy features, including mute and volume controls, as well as a shock mount which, as we know, is perfect for gamers. We especially love that it has an incredibly precise super-cardioid pickup pattern.
Best for beginners
Samson has delivered a very versatile and excellent quality device, all at a reasonable price point. There's a headphone jack for no-latency monitoring, and the tripod stand is adjustable so you can customise it to fit your needs. It's also lightweight, so is a great choice for anyone who is on the move a lot and has to take their gear with them.
FAQs:
What is a USB microphone?
This simply means that the microphone will have a USB output, which ensures you can directly connect the microphone to a computer.
What is a pop shield?
A pop shield or pop filter is handy when recording vocal audio. This is due to the fact that plosives are usually louder in recorded audio even though they aren't in normal life. The pop shield/filter will ensure that any pop sounds caused by plosives are removed, ensuring all spoken words in the audio remain uniform.
What does the polar pattern of a microphone mean?
A polar pattern refers to which direction the microphone will pick up audio. We recommend a cardioid polar pattern for gamers or streamers, as this is best for recording singular input sources and it picks up very little background noise. It is also an excellent choice for singular podcasters, streamers, and singers.
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Isabel Martins is a Commercial Content Writer for What's The Best, specialising in technology.
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