Blue Yeti: https://amzn.to/3v50qcl
HyperX QuadCast: https://amzn.to/3rzqTMH
Both the HyperX Quadcast and the Blue Yeti have been out for a while now, but they are constantly compared to each other and are still real competitors when it comes to being some of the best USB mics in their price range.
The Quadcast comes in HyperX's trademark black and red colours, with the microphone being illuminated whenever the user is audible. If you want to go a level higher to the Quadcast S you get the bonus of RGB customization, but the base model is fixed in crimson. The regular Quadcast does come with some features that make it a great mic for streaming and content creation straight out of the box, such as its integrated pop filter and tap-to-mute functionality.
Up against it is the Blue Yeti. It's a larger and heavier device than the Quadcast but still comes with the same four audio profiles. It does, however, have better audio monitoring functionality with its adjustable passthrough to allow the user to monitor their audio levels during livestreams or recording sessions.
While these USB microphones are very similar, in the video above we go through the differences that separate them and name our mic pick for gamers and content creators.
Audio and voiceover were recorded with each microphone during the relevant sections, and treated with identical post-production settings to ensure a fair comparison.
Video Transcript
Both the Hyper X Quadcast and the Blue Yeti have been out for quite some time now, but they're still compared to each other when it comes to getting the best USB microphones. So today we thought we'd take a look at both to really find out which is the best USB mic in this price range.
But the first thing you're going to notice by the court cast is obviously the bright red that's pushing through the honeycomb mesh that makes up the main shell. This isn't RGB. If you want an RGB microphone, then Hyper X offer the Quadcast S, which does let you change the color, but for now it's Simply Red. Did I just reference?
80S Manchester Britpop band.
Now this mesh isn't just for the gamer static, although that's probably a big selling point, but actually doubles as a pretty basic but very functional pop filter. So as long as you're not directly breathing into this thing, then all of your popping peas should sound perfectly passable without any aftermarket pop filter add ONS. The same red and black look covers the rest of the microphone with its shakman elastics, as well as the rubber top and bottom and sturdy black shell. It also comes with a 9 foot USB cable, which may seem like a little.
Overkill, but there's nothing worse than short tight cables getting tangled and limiting mobility and flexibility when it comes your gaming or streaming setup. This mic is also very light and has a much smaller profile than a lot of other mikes out there, which is a big advantage from me because I've been using it on my own personal streams and I would recommend it for other streamers because it's not going to be covering that beautiful little face of yours. Give the fans what they want, you know you don't want a big bulky microphone taking up the goods now the microphone can be mounted on the handy little stand that it comes mounted to.
Straight out of the box, but it also has a little adapter for if you want like me to have it mounted on a boom arm, but I think my favorite feature, the microphone, is its mute functionality. This little rubber top actually doubles as the mute button, and it's very obvious.
When it's on and when it's off.
And was quite surprising is you're tapping directly on the microphone.
But there's actually, there's actually no audible popping or banging when you're making contact. It's nice and easy. It's super functional. It's very readable to the user when your mic is off, as well as if you're streaming to your chat to inform them that you're Microsoft. Not only do you know that no one can hear you, but they do as well. I stream a fair bit in my free time and I'm constantly forgetting to unmute my microphone after coming back from the bathroom or getting some or what have you, and then having my chat bully me because I'm 10 seconds into an escape from Tarkov raid and no one can hear my voice.
But now that I've got this Crimson Beacon sat in front of me. Since I've been using it for my streams, I've not forgotten to mute my microphone once. Seems like such a small thing, but it was like it's a really nice quality of life thing. If you're going to be using this for streaming, I'm all this. Microphone is mostly marketed towards streamers. It does come with four different audio profiles that can make it useful for interviews, podcasts, vocals, etc etc. The first being cardioid that's going to capture basically everything.
Here and that's going to probably be the setting that 90% of people are going to use an. It's the real default setting for streaming Discord voice overs. That's for when you just want to capture what's in front of the microphone, which is.
Usually your voice the next is omnidirectional, meaning that everything around the microphone is going to be captured, and that's going to be used for things like. If you're recording a podcast with a group of people and you're only using one microphone, that means that everyone can sit around this one thing and all be heard. The next setting is bidirectional, which means everything in front and everything behind the microphone is being recorded. That will be for your 1/2 on podcasts, interviews, and finally the stereo setting, which lets you split the audio between left channel.
And right channel. So you can sort of make one ear have more of a treat than the other, which I suppose you could use for vocals. I know some singers will use it in stereo mode, and if you're someone that likes to make.
ASMR content.
I don't know, I've not really used it, but if you might have used for it.
Comments down below those captures of your beautiful voice can be adjusted with the gain knob at the bottom of the mic and the quadcast really does have a great range of gain all the way from up close to really far away.
Zachary in here.
It's really hot, but the readings on the bottom of the microphone really don't do a lot to tell you where you're at. The range of gain actually goes way beyond the small dots at the bottom, so it may take some tweaking to figure out what works for you. Hear what I'm saying, you can hear me. Click clacking away at my keyboard that's using Cherry MX Brown switches, so you can sort of get an indication as to how audible the keystrokes are. The main rub is that if you use a mechanical keyboard, your microphone is probably going to be picking it up, but if you're using Discord or OBS stream, there's features in that software that will allow you to set a noise gate and sort of limit that.
Background noise isn't nearly as bad as some of the microphones that I've heard. It does have the advantage that it's on a boom arm. If you have it on the desk, it is a lot worse and the stand kind of vibrates along with it and you'll hear the desk impacts as well as the keystrokes, but it is manageable if you sort of tweak the software, but the microphone as it is, you are going to be picking up some of that clicky clacky noise. If you're gaming and using this at the same time, but All in all, this is really a fantastic microphone. As you've heard, it has really great.
Clean audio that will let the crispiness of your natural voice come through, but if you're looking to use this for gaming or streaming then I have to recommend that you get some kind of my come to mountain this thing 'cause when I use the standard it came with it picked up much more in the way of keyboard strokes and escrow.
Now you can see the Blue Yeti is a much chunkier lad than the quadcast. It's bigger and heavier, and for me doesn't sit well on my mic arm. It doesn't look quite right. It almost feels like I'm being bullied by this thing. It's it's very much in my face and I've tried it in when I'm streaming and it's really sort in your peripheral vision. I don't. I don't like it mounted on the arm, but it's the lesser of two evils when you relate it to its massive desk stand. Also, you're left with these open ugly screw holes and.
Either side of the microphone if you're opting not to use the stand that comes with it, which if you're looking for a gaming or streaming like again, I can't recommend using because like the mic itself, the base stand be thick. That's not to say it's not an aesthetically pleasing micI've got the black one here and I know it comes in plenty of other colors and a lot of people just aren't going to like the red, black or sort of illuminated look. And that's completely fine, but it is a good looking Mike that I don't want to see. It feels like I'm doing a code stream and there's a second person there.
That's just that's just a obelisk that I'm speaking into. As you can see there without the additional pop filter on Mount the quadcast hands, all the buttons and knobs are a tad more accessible in the Blue Yeti. Your pattern switch, the mute button that flashes red when you're silenced the microphone's gain, and it does actually have a volume control knobs to adjust the headphone output if you're monitoring your audio. Something that the quadcast doesn't feature after using the Blue Yeti for little while, I realized how much I was taking the very simple shockmount and pop filter from the podcast.
For granted, now I've noticed as well that your plosives and popping sounds are a lot more noticeable with the Yeti, to the point where I think the aftermarket pop filter is almost mandatory if you want to get the most out of this thing. I will say though, from when I was making videos I started maybe seven years ago, I used another Yeti product called the Snowball and I looked online as pop filter solutions and somebody recommended putting a sock over it as a makeshift pop filter so.
So perhaps my precious petiole clothing option can be of some help when it comes to the Pops.
I mean, it helps a little bit, but you're not going to be booting up the Twitch stream with a bloody hiking sock on it. The point I'm trying to make is the you need a pop filter for this thing. When you take the aftermarket pop filter. When you factor in a shock Mount things that come on this by default basic ones that they are.
They become the exact same price, really it's an extra 10 bucks for a pop filter, maybe 10 to 20 for an aftermarket shock Mount, whereas the quadcast is just like it's got that coming out of the box. But it's definitely something you're going to have to bear in mind and prepare for if you're going for the Yeti, but other than that it has a lot of the same features and the same polar patterns that the quadcast has four in total. Once again, you can hear me on cardioid, the mode that you're going to be using most, the one for streamers, voiceovers. Shouting at your Warzone, teammates doing sick.
Gameplay breakdowns and trailer reactions etc etc. Bidirectional your once on podcasts, interviews capturing either side Omni directional for your group podcasts. Using a single mic or your quarterly business meetings and once more the stereo setting to allow you to stimulate each year separately.
And just as a treat, you can have me at minimal gain and maximum gain are so loud I can see a peaking and once more chatting away using my keyboard there about the same distance away, same keyboard and the keystrokes are very audible now when it comes to the audio profile, I suppose you can decide which sounds best to your is. Personally I find this a little warmer little base here, but they are extremely close. It was a blind hearing test. I think I would struggle to really tell the difference.
But is a really great microphone and there is a good reason why a lot of streamers, content creators an otherwise gravitate to blue and their range of mikes when it comes to streaming, making videos and everything in between. The blue range really holds a special place in my heart. I'll admit that right now, because like I said before, when I was when I was a wee lad and I was making videos in my bedroom, which I'm now realizing I'm doing now. But it was a different time and different reasons. But now in 2021 and we have two mikes to choose from.
Which would be my pick?
As you can see, now that I've switched back to the quad cast is the one I prefer out. Both of these devices don't get me wrong. They're both really great bits of kit, but personally for the smaller form factor, the fact that it comes out of the box a little stronger with its pop filter and shock Mount, an personally I just prefer the lighter, crisper, cleaner sound of my voice that I get with the quadcast. Aesthetically. Maybe I am just a cliche gamer once all of my stuff to have lights on. I'm not going to deny that, but I really do dig the way it looks and the muting is functionality that I get.
A whole lot of use out of all my streams. Again, very simple, but I'm a simple man. I like simple things and I love this. The Blue Yeti is a great micbut I don't really like it for my personal use. I really didn't dig it on the mic arm and when it was on its stand it was just too big and bulky to really fit anywhere comfortably. And combined with the fact that you'd ideally want to shock mount and definitely a pop filter combined with that, they're basically the same price, so you might as well just get something ready out of the box.
That isn't going to take up your entire face, that smells.
New text smell that isn't going to take up your entire face when you're streaming, so for that, all of those reasons it is narrow, but it is narrowly beaten by the quadcast. The Yeti might be more comfortable in a static recording studio or in a Home Office, but for streaming for shouting at your teammates in Warzone.
This little red menace, I think, is the one for me.
Either these devices peak your interest little audio joke for you there, then you can use the affiliate links in the description down below to pick one up for yourself. If you've used either of them, let me know your thoughts of them in the comments section down below. Make sure to subscribe like the video if you did and I will see you in the next one.