A good microphone is, to me at least, a criminally underrated bit of kit. After all, a great mic is the difference between sounding fantastic on your next podcast, stream or meeting—or sounding like you're trapped down a drainpipe with several angry cats.
- We're curating the best Prime Day PC gaming deals right here.
The best microphones used to be somewhat expensive affairs, with XLR mixers and cables a plenty needed to get a great sound. No longer! You can now pick up a great, easy to use microphone for extremely reasonable money. And the Amazon Prime Day sales means its a great time to buy yourself that audio upgrade for cheap.
But which to buy? If only someone who's used a load of them could guide you through all the options, making sure you...oh. Look who's just turned up.
Hello. Here are my top three picks for the best Prime Day microphone deals. Strap in folks. Let's get us some audio.
Quick links
- Razer Seiren Mini| $39 @ Amazon (save $11)
- HyperX QuadCast S | $109 @ Amazon (save $51)
- Shure MV7 | $249 @ Amazon (save $62)
Razer Seiren Mini
This isn't just the cheapest microphone on this list—it's the cutest, too. But before you think that it's simply just a toy, know this: this little mic is capable of capturing brilliant sound. That's it. Pretty much all it does, and that's more than alright by me.
There are some concessions made to budget, of course. There's no dedicated mute button, and the cable is rather frustratingly a Razer proprietary model, meaning you'll have to buy one off Razer if it breaks. But otherwise, this microphone is practically the definition of cheap and cheerful.
With a supercardioid pickup pattern and a 14 mm condenser capsule, this little mic plugs in to your machine via USB and captures warm, yet accurate audio primarily from whatever is in front of it. In this case, of course, you. For $39 at Amazon right now, you get a great, small, good-looking little mic that does the job, and does it very well, as we found in our review.
Plus it looks like a boiled egg in an egg cup. Come on, what more do you want than that?
HyperX QuadCast S
Sometimes, looks are important. If you want your mic to be in frame, or simply to look pleasing on your desk or attached to a boom arm, it's got to be the HyperX QuadCast S, currently available for a smidge over $109 at Amazon.
It's not just a looker, however. It's got a built in pop-filter that works very well (saving you the indignity of speaking into a cheap clip-on one), a top-mounted capacitive mute button that shuts off your vocals with the gentlest of taps, and has switchable polar patterns for multiple speaking options. Yep, you can record just you, or several speakers with just one mic.
The Ngenuity software that comes with is unfortunately a bit basic, but it gets the job done. The best thing about this mic, though (as we found in our review) is that it picks up vocal audio brilliantly, with quite a lot of volume. You can tweak that down with the gain controls, and you'll probably want to so you don't overpower other people in a meeting, but let it not be said that this mic is shy.
It captures bold, crisp audio, this mic, and makes a real visual statement doing it. Or you could turn all the flashy lights off, and have a brilliant microphone for under $110. You do you.
Shure MV7
Forgive me if I get a little misty-eyed here, but I love this microphone. Sad, but true. Y'see, it looks to be gradually being phased out by the new Shure MV7+. We haven't had a chance to get our hands on one of those yet, but what I can tell you with absolute authority is that it'll have to work damned hard to do anything better than the original.
Not only is this mic our top pick for best overall microphone, but I personally own two of them, and have used them for years of recording podcasts and vocal audio. I can attest to this mic's exceptional sound quality, build, and ease of use more than almost any other piece of equipment I own.
My two units, despite being thrown in backpacks, dropped down stairs, and placed in front of all sorts of folks, have never let me down. Not once. More than that, they pick up gloriously warm, rounded, yet crisp vocal audio better than some very expensive mics I can name. With both USB and XLR connections on tap, these two ragamuffins have been just as suited to studio work as they have sitting on my desk.
Oh, about that. You'll need a boom arm, or a desk stand, as for some reason Shure doesn't provide one as standard. Beyond that though, this mic is simply exceptional at what it does, and sounds truly brilliant. A bit plosive prone in front of loud speakers, perhaps. Otherwise, virtually flawless. Don't just take my word for it either. Our review says much the same.
If you'll excuse me, you'll find me cradling my two models in the corner and telling them it's all going to be ok. Given that they're still $249 on discount at Amazon, you may be thinking that's a lot of money to spend on an older mic. But let me tell you, I paid more for mine per unit, and haven't regretted it once.
I'm keeping mine forever. If you want the best mic I've ever used, well, you'll find it here—for hopefully a little while longer.
