Introduction
The RØDE NT-USB is a top-notch condenser USB microphone, ideal for podcasters, streamers, and content creators. In this review, we’ll explore its features, performance, pros, and cons.
Key Features
- Plug and Play: No complicated setups, just plug it in and start recording.
- Studio-quality: Crystal clear audio for professional-grade recordings.
- Versatile: Great for podcasts, voiceovers, music, and more.
- Accessories: Includes a pop filter, stand, and carrying pouch.
Sound Quality
- Crisp Vocals: Your voice sounds clear and rich.
- Low Noise: Background noise is minimal for a clean recording.
- High Sensitivity: Captures subtle nuances in your voice or instruments.
- No Distortion: Even at high volumes, no unpleasant distortion.
Build and Design
- Sturdy Construction: Built to last, with high-quality materials.
- Ergonomic: Comfortable to use for extended periods.
- Adjustable Stand: Easy to position as needed.
- Portable: Comes with a handy carrying pouch.
Setup and Compatibility
- Easy Installation: No need for drivers, it works with both PC and Mac.
- Zero Latency Monitoring: Hear yourself in real-time without delays.
- Software Compatibility: Works seamlessly with popular recording software.
Pros
- Outstanding Sound Quality: Crisp, clear, and professional-grade audio.
- Versatile: Ideal for a wide range of recording purposes.
- User-friendly: No technical know-how required; just plug and play.
- Accessories Included: Pop filter and stand are convenient extras.
- Affordable Price: Great value for the quality it delivers.
- Durable Build: Built to withstand daily use.
Cons
- Non-Adjustable Polar Pattern: Limited flexibility in sound capture.
- Sensitive to Plosives: Pop filter helps, but still sensitive to plosive sounds.
Conclusion
Simply put, the RØDE NT-USB is a great USB microphone that gives you top-notch sound, is easy to use, and can be used for many things. It does have a couple of downsides, like you can’t change how it picks up sound, but considering its affordable price, it’s a fantastic choice for podcasters, musicians, and content creators looking to improve their audio recordings.
Jimbob –
Rode is above a lot. For the price this mic is the best. Great for vocal recordings, and amazing quality for streaming (my use) 10/10 mic.
David –
Hasta el momento no he tenido inconvenientes la calidad del material y del sonido excelente
Kevin Butman –
If you’re checking the product page for this microphone, then it is likely you already know this is one of the best, if not the best, USB microphone available (definitely the best if you consider the price range).I won’t go into much detail about the sound, as better audio reviews of it are available on youtube, but I’ll say the build quality for it is really solid. It is a mostly metal, subtle imitation of the Rode NT series of microphones. Perhaps the only part that leaves you wanting a little bit more about it is the small tripod and the O-ring that comes with it. They’re plastic and leave a little to be desired. It seems from what I’ve read in some sites these parts are usually the first to break if you’re not careful with your microphone.That being said, a good boom arm will easily solve this trouble. And in case the O-ring below your microphone breaks, cracks or otherwise, there are some people who make custom metal ones, being that you could also instead buy a Rode SMR shockmount (the only compatible shock mount I know of for this microphone) which will come with a metal O-Ring to attach the microphone to it.All of that being said, it seems I might have received some kind of refurbished unit from the seller “Adorama.” The unit was safely packed, but in the back of the microphone there are some scratches that should definitely not have been there because of how beefy the packaging stereofoam around the microphone is. These could also be a QA issue with Rode, but I really have no way of knowing which of the 2 is responsible. It’s probably not a big issue as the unit seems to be working perfectly, but it is definitely something worth noticing.All in all, don’t hesitate on the purchase, it is a great microphone.
Shawn Dostie, Coshocton, Ohio –
Great sound, very professional.
John Kranz –
Let me say this is a positive review, even though I had to return the mic for reasons I will explain in a moment. The quality of the mic and the dynamic range when testing it was superb. I highly recommend this mic. So why did I have to return it. As has been reported online and after 48 hours of troubleshooting, I could not resolve the situation that the mic audio gain would automatically adjust once I started recording under Windows 10 (using Google Chrome to be precise). Even with the various options selected to make sure no application could alter the audio gain, it was simply not possible to be able to stop this from occurring. Where do I point fault. In my research, it seems to be a Google Chrome issue as when testing the mic using other sound apps for Win10, the sound gain did not happen automatically. But unfortunately, the web based apps I require for audio recording (under chrome and Edge browsers) could not stop this from occurring. So I reluctantly have returned the mic despite thinking it was a great product as many others have stated.If Rode would offer such a mic and — this is CRITICAL — offer a manual audio gain nob as some other USB condenser mics offer, I would buy it in a heart beat. Having control of audio gain for the mic is a must-have, and leaving it to software did not work out for me in this case, unfortunately. I picked up another highly rated mic from Apogee, but my gut sense is that this RODE mic is superior in audio quality and build.But again, unfortunately for me, the lack of a manual audio gain nob to control this is missing from this mic and was a game breaker.
Anon –
I absolutely love this mic! It does topple over if you don’t configure the stand in a certain way, but the sound quality is great (in my opinion). It does pick up background noise, but I think you can configure your settings to adjust it.
Jeffry P. –
Mainly use it for gaming but has great audio quality. The monitor mix control is a great option that let’s me hear how boring I am and for catching myself before I use gamer words.
RH. –
Does exactly what you’d expect a good mic to do. It’s made even better by being USB, the USB connection means you don’t need any additional hardware to achieve high quality audio recordings even without being in a sound booth.Likes: – Low price in relation to other mics at this performance level – Plug and Play for Windows 7/8, iOS, Android – In-line monitor headphone jack – Monitor balance (mic/device mix) – Monitor volume – Built-in vibration/shock mount – Desk Tri-pod (non adjustable legs/feet) stand included – Pop filter/screen includedDislikes – Included zippered sleeve style case (would have liked a soft/cloth wrapped hard-shell clip-closure or zippered case for the mic at least) – That I only needed 1 of them for nowGeneral Comments There are a few professional/high-end recording artists and/or sound engineers (neither of which would apply to me) who have created independent video reviews showing the mic in use vs. the competition (some of those mics are 3 or 4 times the price of the NT-USB), and the overwhelming feedback has been that this mic is worth the price! I’d seriously suggest hitting your favorite video site and doing a search for review videos showing this mic in action, as like with any mic, there are technical recording aspects (high/low, ambient/pickup, etc…), that if they are important to you, the pro’s highlight and discuss in more detail than I could do here.In general though, if you’re using a basic mic and considering taking your recording to the next level, or want a high quality/inexpensive replacement (or additional) mic that can be taken with you, this might be the mic you want to seriously consider.
DR –
Un gran micrófono, aunque con algunos defectosDespués de 2 meses de usar este micrófono hay varias cosas que me han gustado y otras que no me han gustado mucho.PROS-Calidad del audio excelente-Micrófono robusto y buena construcción-Fácil uso-Incluye filtro antipop y funda para guardar el micrófonoCONTRAS-Poca reducción de ruido-Chasquidos, clics y otros ruidos molestos en las grabaciones-No se puede controlar la ganancia ni silenciar desde el propio micrófono-Soporte endeble e inestableRESEÑA COMPLETANada más desempaquetarlo vemos un micrófono robusto y contundente, con buena calidad al tacto. En la caja viene además un filtro antipop muy bonito y práctico, ya que va bien sujeto a la base, así como también un cable bastante largo de unos 3m aproximadamente que permite tener el micrófono lejos del pc y pasar los cables por detrás del escritorio. Uno de los aspectos negativos es su base, está hecho completamente de plástico endeble y es un poco inestable al mínimo movimiento. Tienes que poner el micrófono en una posición en concreto con la para más corta atrás del micrófono, porque si no se cae por su propio peso. Además, que el espacio que ocupa la base limita bastante dónde podemos poner el micrófono. Yo recomiendo usar algún soporte de micrófono articulado o una base de pie más estable. También cabe destacar que para poner el micrófono a su adaptador de rosca es necesario atornillarlo a una pieza de plástico, que me da la impresión de que como se rompa me va a costar bastante encontrar un repuesto. En cuanto a los controles que incorpora el micrófono son bastante escasos, ya os aviso que esas dos ruedas o diales no sirven para nada a la hora de grabar, solamente sirven para controlar el volumen del micrófono y monitorizar a la vez el sonido del pc; así que si queréis ajustar la ganancia tendréis que iros al “panel de control”, “Hardware y sonido” y ajustarlo desde “Sonido”.Para mí uno de los aspectos más destacados de este micrófono es que graba las voces con una claridad sorprendente, conectándolo al pc y sin usar un ecualizador he notado mi voz mucho más cálida y natural que en comparación a un Blue Yeti Nano. Este micrófono es mucho más sensible y capta todo tipo de sonidos; lo cual es algo bueno y malo a la vez; en mi caso yo suelo grabar en una habitación bastante silenciosa sin tratamiento acústico y teniendo el micrófono alejado del teclado de membrana y un ratón normalito, se escuchan bastante en las grabaciones. Así que si grabáis en un ambiente con mucho ruido probablemente os de problemas el micrófono.En ese aspecto, uno de los problemas que he tenido es la aparición de clics, chasquidos, respiración y otros ruidos de mi boca en las grabaciones. Había leído algo sobre esto en algunos comentarios, pero no pensé que serían tan molestos. Los primeros días de uso, estuve varias horas haciendo pruebas ajustando la distancia y la posición del micrófono, y mis grabaciones tenían todo el rato esos molestos clics.Como comparación, estuve usando el Blue Yeti Nano y no captaba tantos clics como este micrófono y cuando lo usaba con un filtro de espuma no captaba ningún ruido indeseado a pesar de situarlo a un palmo de mi boca.Esto para mí es algo muy importante ya que suelo grabar tutoriales bastante extensos, algunos suelen rondar las 2 horas de duración y es molesto tanto para el que tiene que editar como para el espectador tener que escuchar esos clics.Por eso si tenéis problemas con los clics yo os recomiendo beber bastante agua media hora antes de empezar a grabar y comer manzana o zumo de manzana; eso ayudará bastante a diluir la saliva y la voz será mucho más clara y haréis menos chasquidos.CONCLUSIÓNPor último, teniendo en cuenta todo esto, este micrófono lo recomiendo para todo aquel que quiera iniciarse grabando videos cortos para youtube, podcasts breves, doblajes o canciones. Es uno de los mejores micrófonos usb para conseguir un audio de buena calidad, sin tener que invertir en un micrófono xlr y una fuente phantom. En cambio, si queréis grabar videos largos, no tenéis experiencia en el control de la respiración o hacéis bastantes clicks al hablar no os lo recomiendo, ya que os darán muchos problemas el audio y tendréis que practicar bastante o invertir mucho eliminando de forma manual los ruidos molestos si queréis que quede perfecto.
Caitlin aka KittySyko –
Mein Zuverlässiger Partner für Audioaufnahmen seit 2019Das RØDE NT-USB USB-Kondensatormikrofon hat sich als eine ausgezeichnete Investition erwiesen, seit ich es im September 2019 gekauft habe. In den letzten fast vier Jahren habe ich es für eine Vielzahl von Anwendungen genutzt, und es hat mich nie im Stich gelassen.Die Klangqualität dieses Mikrofons ist wirklich beeindruckend. Egal, ob ich Podcasts aufnehme oder Video-Streaming betreibe, das NT-USB liefert immer professionelle Studioqualität.Die mitgelieferte Spinne und das Stativ sind äußerst praktisch und erleichtern die Aufnahme erheblich. Das Popfilter hilft, störende Plosivlaute zu minimieren, was die Aufnahmequalität weiter verbessert.Die Installation und Verwendung des Mikrofons sind denkbar einfach. Es lässt sich problemlos an jeden Computer anschließen und ist sofort einsatzbereit. Die Bedienelemente am Mikrofon selbst ermöglichen eine einfache Anpassung der Lautstärke und des Kopfhörerausgangs.Insgesamt bin ich mit meinem RØDE NT-USB USB-Kondensatormikrofon äußerst zufrieden. Es hat sich als vielseitiges Werkzeug erwiesen, das meinen Anforderungen in den Bereichen Streaming und Gaming gerecht wird. Wenn Sie nach einem Anfänger-USB-Mikrofon suchen, kann ich das RØDE NT-USB wärmstens empfehlen. Es hat mich in den letzten Jahren nicht enttäuscht und wird sicherlich auch in Zukunft ein wichtiger Bestandteil meiner Audioausrüstung bleiben.