Perfect Microphone for Radio? Rode Podcaster Review

Is the Rode Podcaster the perfect microphone for your radio station or podcast? Find out why this dynamic USB mic is so popular in our full review.

Rode Podcaster Microphone Review

Equipment used in this review:

• Rode Podcaster Microphone: Buy on Amazon USA or Amazon UK.
• Rode PSA1 Boom Arm: Buy on Amazon USA or Amazon UK.
• Rode SMR Stand: Buy on Amazon USA or Amazon UK.

Stand Off: RM2 vs SMR

Out of the box, the Podcaster comes with the RM2 stand mount. Use it to attach the mic to stands or boom arms to keep it in place. It's ideal as a placeholder if you don't have an alternative lying around.

For this review we decided to use the SMR stand because it’s much more stable. It also acts as a shock mount to minimise bumps and scrapes.

Plug & Play USB Microphone

The best thing about the Rode Podcaster is it's USB plug and play. Normally, dynamic microphones like this need a lot of power and have to run through a phantom power enabled devices like mixers. However, this isn't the case with the Podcaster. Connect the microphone directly to your computer so you don't have to go through an audio interface or mixer.

Normally mics have very short cables, but in this case, you get a long 3 metres, giving you plenty of length to move your mic to the right position.

Built-in Pop Filter

The Rode Podcaster itself looks and feels like a high-quality microphone. It’s quite heavy due to its internal shock mount. You can move it about without much noise being picked up. It also has a built-in pop-filter which neutralizes most plosives when up close, so an additional pop-filter isn’t essential.

Most microphones like this have receivers at the front, but the Rode Podcaster is what’s known as an end address mic. This means you get the clearest sound talking directly into the top. Also, the tight cardioid pickup pattern and mesh body from the front reject off-axis sounds coming from the sides.

Hear exactly what your microphone is picking up with the zero-latency monitoring port, this way you know what you’re recording before it’s recorded. As this is a dynamic microphone it’s designed to pick up audio when up close and cancel out a lot of background noises.

Verdict

Overall, this is an amazing microphone, but it fits a very specific purpose. It’s designed to sound good for your voice when up close. If you need something to capture far away noises like acoustic guitar sets or ambient noises, then this might not be right for you. However, it is ideal for your voice when broadcasting a live radio show or recording a voice track. With its great sound, built-in pop filter, and easy plug-n-play USB connector, this is definitely one to check out!

What do you think of the Rode Podcaster? How does it sound? Let us know in the comments. For more awesome reviews like this then be sure to join the Radio.co Newsletter.