Logitech for Creators Blue Yeti USB Microphone for Recording, Streaming, Gaming, Podcasting on PC and Mac, Condenser Mic for Laptop or Computer with Blue VO!CE Effects, Adjustable Stand - Black

​I bought this Blue Yeti on a whim for my home office setup, and it has completely changed my audio game. I was expecting a decent upgrade from my old headset mic, but this thing is on another level. The clarity is astonishingly good—my friends on Discord now say they can hear me chewing my cereal from a mile away (which, apparently, is a pro for them, but maybe not for me).​The setup was as simple as plugging it in, and the different polar patterns make it super versatile, whether I'm recording a podcast or just hopping on a video call. It captures the full range of my voice, from my booming laughter to my quiet, mumbled thoughts about what to have for dinner.​Now for the minor con: This microphone is an absolute beast. It has a solid, heavy-duty build, which is great for durability, but it's not exactly what you'd call portable. It takes up a significant chunk of real estate on my desk, and I definitely wouldn't want to carry it around in my backpack. It’s a real mic-nificent piece of equipment, but maybe not for the traveler.​Overall, if you're looking for professional-quality sound without a complicated setup, this microphone is a legendary choice. It's been a monster improvement, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

This microphone is a solid bit of kit. It's not cheap plastic like most electronics, it's a solid heavy metal thing that looks like it is designed to last for years and the sound quality is exceptional even for my non-telegenic voice. The microphone offers different modes for various uses, I have only used it for personal vlogging. So yes it's expensive, but think of it as an investment, not just buying any old peripheral - it will probably keep quite a reasonable resale value should you wish to sell it in a few years time. Loads of internet vloggers and podcasters use this microphone or a similar model so it is tried and tested.How it works with background noiseI assumed that microphones like this automatically filter out most/all background noise as my cheap headsets always have that typical annoying background fuzzy noise even when the room is quiet. That's NOT QUITE how it works per se but this microphone does handle it a lot better - it is very sensitive so it can pick up noises, so you may need to use software such as audacity to filter out such noise if it is an issue. The microphone has a "gain" control, so by turning the gain down to a reasonable level, the microphone picks up my voice loud and clear but it does not pick up my computer's fan or the noise outside my house (so long as the window is closed), so by having the gain set to the right amount I don't need to tweak the audio of my recordings. Obviously it is still sensitive to noises on the desk such as moving your keyboard and mouse, so to get around this you would have to use a mounting arm rather than the included stand (or just be careful with your hands). Turning the gain up considerably does make my voice much louder but it then picks up computer fan noises and such, but it is not necessary for the gain to be this high for vlogging in front of a computer screen.The microphone plugs in via USB, on Windows 10 it should be plug and play and the computer should recognise it quite clearly. The included headphone port will automatically feedback your own voice through the connected headphones and it is immediate so you don't hear yourself being repeated, and you can tell if the mute button is on/off by the headphones as well as the LED. You can change your computer's speaker settings to use this headphone port for all other computer sounds if you wish to do so (essentially using it as a headphone jack extension for the entire computer). The volume knob on the front is for the headphones, not for the microphone which is instead volume adjusted by the gain knob at the back.

I think everybody already knows this is the best microphone for the price, its plug and play with USB so there's no setup to actually do, it connects easily and there's no confusion or loss of connectivity. It can come off the stand it comes with and screws into something like a boom arm; The original stand is incredibly heavy, and the microphone has a little weight to it, but it feels of very good quality. I got the black Blue Yeti since it matches my setup, its matte and feels smooth. The cable length is actually very long compared to my past microphone, I have my PC on the right of my setup, and even when the mic is on the left there's still a lot of wire left.