Audio-Technica AUD AT2005USB Cardioid Dynamic USB/XLR Microphone

I have been a professional syndicator for 20 years working out of Nashville, and purchased this mic to use with my iPad for field recordings. The mic sounds good with it's own built in pre-amps through the USB and frankly, was everything I had hoped for when doing work outside the studio. It even has a headphone jack for live monitoring with zero latency. Sweet.On a lark, I decided to swap it out with my Electrovoice RE-20 on air studio mic. For this test I used the XLR connection instead of the USB, and ran it through the same audio chain as the RE-20. WOW...was I surprised! I think most listeners would not be able to guess which is the RE-20 and which is the AT2005. In fact it sounded so good, I just did a full show with it. It has a pleasantly warm low end and a clean high end that isn't tinny or irritating. Well balanced and perfectly to my liking.Note, it will sound much better using the XLR connection with a good board and digital converter, than it does through it's own internal pre's with USB, but this mic is a tremendous value no matter how you size it up.If you want to use it on the iPad, purchase the Apple camera connection kit and use the USB connector to simply plug it right in. This is an undocumented feature of the new iPad 3 (haven't tested the iPad 2) but it works like a champ. I use an app called AudioMemos that has some nice audio boosting features which you will find handy, as the audio levels can be a bit low when recording through the USB port. That said, this mic works with all the apps I've tried so far, even iMovie. So yes, you could shoot hi-def video interviews with this mic and an iPad 3. Just add a mic flag and you're all set. The only other thing you may want for video interviews is a Tri-pod mount. I use the Tournez2 carbon fiber mount by Joy Factory, available here on Amazon for under $70 bucks, but there are cheaper options too.Lastly, the AT2005USB includes a long thin USB cable (which comes in handy when connected to the iPad for interviews), an XLR cable, a small folding stand and a zippered pouch. You will likely want to get a foam windscreen for it to cut down on "p-pops".Nice job Audio-Technica. This is my new favorite mic!

I recently got this mic after envying the sound quality one of my cohosts had on the podcast we run together. I had previously been using the Blue Snowball, and the sound quality was "robotic" for lack of a better word. No amount of editing was helping to eliminate that effect. My teammates in games also complained that when I got loud over something exciting, it was very annoying and shrill.With the at2005usb mic, I sound like I am right there in the room! No distortion. No issues at all. Best part? I just opened the package, mounted it on my boom arm and plugged in the usb. I didn't need to to do anything from a software point of view either! I just started recording that night on audacity!This mic being a dynamic cardioid mic, my teammates never hear my mechanical keyboard clicking, since it only picks up sounds directly in front of it. If you live in a noisey house or appartment, this mic will help cut out all that extra noise that you and your audience want none of. I do run a little bit of a noise gate via Voicemeeter Banana, but you really should not have to.A boom arm is 100% recommended for gaming with this mic, if you are a streamer. A cheap $20 boom will easily support this mic.The reason I said this mic has room to grow, is the ability to also use this mic with an XLR setup. That requires more investment in the mix amp and phantom power though, so I am in no rush on that front. This thing sounds great via usb already! This mic competes with the Blue Yeti or HyperX quadcast on price, but competes with much more expensive mics in terms of sound quality! I'd recommend this to anyone interested in sounding good, be it for podcasting, youtubing, streaming, voice over work, etc.Update in 2024: I am still using this same mic with ZERO issues. I have upgraded every part of my setup from the PC, to the peripherals, monitor, desk... everything. But not this mic. Because it just works. And it's cheaper now than it was 5 years back. If you are on the fence, just buy it.

Sound quality is pretty great to me. May be a tad bass-heavy but so are a lot of microphones from what I'm hearing on youtube. Very sturdy construction and nice heft, but the rubbery mic clip that is included doesn't hold onto it very well. It never falls out, but isn't super secure, either. USB convenience is nice, I can bring this mic to my friend's house and hook up to his mixer via XLR for our group Twitch sessions and then bring it home and use USB at my desk for myself. Output via USB seems pretty low but I believe that to be a Windows driver issue and adjusting mic gain via software isn't a big deal once you google for a minute. Sound quality is 9/10ths the same over USB as XLR with the last 10th going to the built-in compressor which you can not turn off, as it creates audible hiss if you fall silent for a few seconds. Again not a huge deal for me because for Twitch I am also outputting video game audio which effectively covers up any hiss.Included desktop tripod is OK but is impractical for me because you really need to be less than 10" from the mic to sound good.Included XLR cable is as good quality as any but 10' may be too short for some.Included pouch is a thoughtful addition but isn't very padded at all.I got a great 'crushed box' deal on this mic via Amazon Warehouse Deals! Steep discount and the box contents were still in perfect shape.