Maono - PD200W Hybrid Podcasting Microphone

The Maono PD200W isn’t a very good sounding mic to my ears. They sent one to me to review and it is hands down the worst traditional style mic I’ve heard. Wireless sounded like wireless and nowhere good enough for podcasting. Connected over USB sounded like it had a poorly done EQ on it. Using XLR gave the best results, but still had the worst raw sound quality of all the mics I’ve used and heard while editing. The FiFine K688 and Samson Q2U are significantly better sounding mics than the Maono. Out of these two, I’d opt for the Q2U. I like the sound of the K688 better, but the Q2U feels like it has a better build, though my Q9U died after a couple years and 3 uses.

DJI mic mini has been great for me! also have a moano podcast mic which sounds great too

I ordered a cheap podcast USB mic from Amazon 3 years ago, called the Maono microphone. I'm still using it, and it sounds great, and it was about 70$ USA

maono and fifine are great value. pd100x or am8 perform pretty similarly. seiren is pretty spartan when it comes to features. hyperX is good but pricey

I vouch for maono/fifine. Gamer brands are overpriced. Just a heads up, if the mic is an XLR jack, you'll be needing an audio interface tho. That I cant say much about it.

Have you watched the reviews/sound tests on YouTube? I'm definitely not the right person to give any advice as I only have experiences with cheap chinese microphones. 😁 But since you said it's just for hobbies, Maono has some great choices to choose from and there are a bunch of reviews on YouTube testing & comparing them out in different condition. You'd definitely want a mic with a gain control if you also play an instrument as mics for singing are usually only good for close-up singing. I personally own two Maonos. 1 for singing up close, 1 for casual instrument playing. I don't have any room treatment or whatsoever but their microphones naturally reduce background noises and I'm not interested to upgrade as I'm not willing to invest that much for a hobby.

Get one with a shock mount if you can. The desk mics will pick up every little bump and nudge when you hit the table kahit very minor. The maonos are great value for the money if you're on a budget.

With that being said, you can basically use any mic and tune it to your hearts content. Blue snowballs are good I’ve heard and I use a maono in the same situation you are. The Maono does me good enough

Maono! May own software.