Samson GOMIC Go Mic Portable USB Condenser Microphone+Mounting Clip+Carry Case

UPDATE June 15: I've had this mic for over 3 years now and it's still going just as strong as the day I bought it. IF it ever breaks, I've already made up my mind to buy another just like it. Couldn't be happier with it. Original Review: I was sick of dealing with poor microphones from headsets and all the hubbub of headphone microphones and I simply do not trust logitech or many other big-brand companies to produce long-lasting quality microphones that stand alone on a desk. I then found the Samson Go Mic and thought it might be the best solution for my needs. I was definitely pleased to finally do some of my own testing and find out that it was all they said it is and more. My uses for this mic include voip applications like skype, mumble, ventrillo, and others, as well as for blog posts and even amateur voice recording. I also wanted something better than my laptop's mic to record lectures for class. Everything comes through crystal clear on this mic even at low volumes. For my voip applications, I actually let it sit behind my keyboard but directly in front of my screen. In normal cardioid mode, it picks up my voice perfectly. I can even whisper very quietly and it comes through on the other end loud and clear. I never have problems with people saying they cannot understand me no matter how low I'm talking. This is also great for me since I often like to chat late at night when my girlfriend sleeps in the next room. I'm no longer yelling and waking her up at night because I'm confident other people can hear me even with my mic so far away. For lectures, I switch to omni mode and it produces wonderful results. It's like having a third ear that records directly on to my computer. I also love how portable it is as I can just slip it into either my laptop bag or pocket without an issue at the end of class. The only complaint I might have is that I find the cord actually to be too long as I'm either plugging the usb cable into my keyboard's usb port or laptop's on my desk and the extra length is just wound up in a wad in its original twist-tie it came with, simply adding more bulk when it doesn't need to. Other people may need the extra length though, so this is somewhat of a non-issue. Lastly, the stand is a fairly heavy metal that has more than enough weight to hold the mic and is a pretty good mechanism for doing so. I simply wish the clip opened further to attach to bulkier monitors. Overall, I love this mic and I'm very happy I went with this one over one of the blue competitors I've been seeing on sale lately. Its cardioid mode is excellent and the omni mode is great for recording lectures and conversations alike. I just wish more people had this mic so they'd all be as easy to understand on my end as I am on theirs. I would recommend this mic to anyone who doesn't need super-high quality, studio grade equipment for professional recording as it does a great job of picking up voices and is very well-built and portable. Seriously: get this mic - it's more than worth the 40 clams you'll pay for it. UPDATE: Still loving this mic, and have yet to have many problems with it, except for maybe one or two, which I list below. The mic actually picks up on too much sometimes, so you have to be careful with it somewhat. Specifically, I had originally positioned this mic in front of my keyboard thinking it needed to be that close to me to pick up well. When I was on skype however typing on the keyboard, people would complain that my keyboard sounded like it was being pounded by the hammer of Thor. Easy fix though: I simply moved it just above my monitor and nobody has complained since. The only other thing with this mic I might complain about is that it picks up GSM interference somewhat badly. I've had my phone sitting on my desk in skype and gotten a call only to hear people on the other end screech in horror that my mic was beeping and buzzing out of control. I've found that using better shielded cable has helped (and attaching one of those little circular magnets to that as well) but the problem still somewhat persists sometimes. This is only a GSM problem though from what I understand, and so shouldn't affect people on verizon/sprint, and also fairly common in almost all mics of this size or larger. Still, these incidences are rare and correctable, but something to be conscience of. I would still like to say that this is the best mic I've ever used and am extremely happy with my purchase. I still only wish a few of my friends online had one!

Summary: This small, portable, sturdy mic works great for video calls and computer voice dictation on a desktop or laptop computer. Dictation accuracy is equal to a high-end headset mic, with no discomfort or tether. They're sturdy: I've dropped a Go Mic folded into its protective clip on a concrete floor with no damage. And they last: I just replaced the Go Mic I bought in 2011 after its USB connector started getting flaky (it got plugged and unplugged a lot, for years) . The Go Mic I bought in 2014 for my other computer and use daily is still going strong. I bought my first Go Mic primarily for voice dictation using Dragon NaturallySpeaking. Dragon is VERY finicky about sound quality: If you use a mic it doesn't like, accuracy goes way down, and correcting mistakes can waste a lot of time. After trying high-end headsets (they hurt my ears after a few hours, and I hated being tethered) and a Blue Snowflake USB desktop mic (broke easily), I tried the Samson Go Mic, and found the sound and dictation accuracy BETTER than the high-end headsets. These days I use my Go Mics with Dragon on a Windows laptop, on 2 Macintosh computers using the Mac's built-in dictation (which uses the Dragon speech engine), and for video calls. For either dictation or calls, set the switch on the side of the Go Mic to carotid (directional), then point the silver side of the mic directly at your mouth. In a quiet environment, I've found that clipping the mic to a laptop screen works well. If the environment is loud (or the laptop's fan is running full speed), I get better sound (and dictation accuracy) holding the Go Mic in my hand, roughly 8 inches (200 mm) from my mouth and a bit to the side. For desktop use, I elevate the mic 6-10 inches (150-250 mm) by putting it on or clipping it to a sturdy object placed in front of my keyboard (clipping it to a vase, atop a coffee can, etc.), which puts it about 20 inches (500 mm) from my mouth. Elevating the mic gives better sound than placing it on the desk. When it's time to travel, unplug the Go Mic, fold it into its sturdy clip, and zip the folded mic into its case. The result is VERY well-protected against shock and vibration damage. I got tired of moving my Go Mic from computer to computer and now keep 1 plugged into my Mac (my main machine) and another plugged into a Windows laptop that runs Dragon NaturallySpeaking (for higher accuracy and transcribing recordings). The time savings pays for itself almost immediately. Conclusion: excellent mic at a great price, highly recommended.

Excellent little piece of equipment! The sound input is sooo clear. I still have to try it with a zoom or teams call. I think it's the cutest little thing ever! Like, it was made for barbie and ken's youtube setup. But very professional looking and functioning. I do though have a couple gripes that could be a deal breaker. One, the base is so big and doesn't fit within itself very well when in use. I wish that was designed a little better but if you arare able to mount it to something, laptop, desk, shelf, etc you bypass the stand. Number two is the cable, and not because it is mini usb but because it is so bulky looking coming from the right when it would make better sense if it were on the left. The left is where all the bulk in the stand and cables can make a happy median. But I am still playing around with the placement because I really would like to keep this item. I just tested it with a voice recording and it is clear and powerful. I tested both cari and omni settings and, yeah it picks up well. My kid was calling in the back ground and I heard her from 10 ft away. The setup was a breeze, simply plug and play. I have window 10 and it is mainly for work calls. I dont keep my laptop open all to often and my voice is low and muffled on calls. So, I thought I would supplement with something in expensive and this guy had great reviews. Def hoping I can figure out a good aesthetic place it can call home.

Bought this because I needed a small, portable microphone for my microsoft surface. I am doing Rosetta stone, and the built-in microphone of the webcam was reaching a limit for the program's speech recognition. Shouting at my laptop was not conducive to learning french! This microphone fills my needs so well that I'm probably going to buy another to replace my aging desktop speech recognition microphone. Firstly, the packaging is really nice, with a nice box that is so well padded, you could've just slapped a shipping label on the box itself. And this microphone is TINY for a condenser mic. it's only a little bigger than a zippo lighter, and the clamp system is very versatile, you can clip it to your laptop or just set it on the table. Feature wise it's got more than all I'd need, there are three sensitivity levels, and I found the one that works best is the position towards the bottom for my speech recognition software. Build quality is exceptional. Every single part of it feels robust and the plastics feel very nice in the hand. The clamp is firm yet not insane, the small travel case it uses is great. I would like either the case to be big enough to hold the cord, or for this thing to have a bluetooth option, but for the price, I can't fault it for not having those. The microphone is bidirectional, which is nice for both positioning and letting two people sit on either side of the mic, or for recording your voice and something on the other side. Quality wise it's crystal clear, picking up the most minute details and nuance. You can listen directly through it (including hearing the recording) by plugging headphones into the mic. And this thing works GREAT with rosetta stone. Easily as good as my dedicated logitech SR mic did when it was new. I was concerned that this wasn't really advertised directly as a speech recognition microphone, but I can be almost all the way across the room and the microphone picks up enough nuance for Rosetta Stone to happily understand what I said. I'm not a huge audio guy but I like things to sound reasonably nice, so while I'm not going to bother with a pop filter and talking directly into the thing, I don't think it needs it for the vast majority of tasks. Sure, if you have a youtube channel or podcast, this could MAYBE use a pop filter to soften the tones, but I'd be happy to listen to someone on a skype call using this, as anyone on earth could tell you in an instant that this is orders of magnitude better than any standard webcam. For what this costs, I'm more than blown away. This is a stunningly awesome microphone, and with an incredible form factor to boot. As long as this thing holds up quality wise, 5 stars stays. I'm good at updating my reviews, so if this review has no update regarding a quality control or customer service problem, You can safely assume it's still a 5 star product

I purchased this mic to use for screencasts (recording what's happening on my PC's screen while I talk about it). I set it up to sit on my desktop, approximately 2' away from me and used Camtasia Studio 8 [Download ] and a free program called CamStudio to test it out. Both programs worked well with the mic and did what I'd hoped it would do - eliminated my need for a clunky, wired mic headset. The build quality of the mic seems excellent, and the compact design is fantastic! I love that it comes with its own carrying case and that it can be on a desktop or clipped to a laptop's monitor. KINKS IN MY SYSTEM: MUFFLED AUDIO The included software: Cakewalk's Music Creator LE can be installed on one computer. You get 30 days to register it. I installed it and registered it immediately, but it would not allow me to put in my registration code, saying I wasn't the system administrator. I am, and my Windows 7 PC says I am, but alas, it wouldn't work. This software is optional, but I decided to install it prior to the microphone (per instructions) to try it out. Eventually I ended up uninstalling it. Soon after installing Cakewalk, I had a PC issue: muffled audio recording. No amount of system tweaking seemed to fix it. I was stumped. Then I decided to go to the Samson site and see if there were updated drivers for the mic. The generic ones installed were from 2010. No luck. I began reading online about 'muffled audio' on Windows 7 PCs. Somewhere I noticed a name I recognized: RealTek, which was a name associated with my speakers on my PC (RealTek digital audio). I went to the RealTek site and noted updated drivers for Windows 7 64-bit (2012), and decided to download and install them. I rebooted my PC and tested out the audio recording once more. Much to my delight, this solved the muffled audio problem! I did set the bitrate to the highest level for the best sound quality recording. Afterwards I tested out the mic using Camtasia and CamStudio, both worked beautifully with the Samson Go Mic! On my desk at a distance of about 2.5', this mic pics up my voice perfectly for dictation and screencasts. No hiss, hum, breath noises or distortion. Very clear and with the properly installed drivers for my audio - works perfectly with the USB 2.0 connection on my powered USB hub. CONCLUSION: BUY IT FOR GREAT RECORDINGS This mic is a truly great if it's recognized and properly configured by your system. Impressively clear recordings, unlike any I've been able to obtain using a Plantronics .Audio 655 USB Multimedia Headset or the mic on my Microsoft LifeCam Cinema 720p HD Webcam - Black . For the price, I don't think you can do better. It's compact, has great voice pick-up and audio recording clarity. Installation issues may occur, but updating audio drivers, using a powered USB hub connection and tweaking audio settings within the operating system should give you the quality you've been hoping for at a price that's right. UPDATE: 12/30/13 Been using this mic consistently for a couple months and I'm liking it. It's a condenser mic, and doesn't filter out ambient noise as well as I'd like, however for an under forty dollar purchase - I'm still very happy with it. Cakewalk never has registered correctly with my system so I uninstalled it. I guess if anything, that's been the downside to this purchase.

There are a lot of great reviews here already, which prompted me to purchase this mic, but it seemed the number of reviews for my particular use were lacking, so here's another review from a singer-songwriter perspective. Background: I have been playing music and writing songs for years, and I'm a gearhead so I already own tons of recording equipment in all shapes and sizes. You name a recording interface, I've probably owned it at some point, and I currently have a fully functional pc recording setup with a rackmounted pc and USB interface. That being said, I can't carry my setup around in my pocket. Inspiration can strike at anytime, and this mic is so small that I can put it in the case and fit it in my pocket with my cellphone and keys. The pics offer no perspective on how small it really is, but to be sure, this thing is TINY. I use REAPER as my DAW, and having used so many interfaces, I've done a fair share of troubleshooting to get devices to be recognized and function as they should, but this mic is truly plug-n-play. The mic has the omni switch on the side, which is a great feature and makes a world of difference depending on your application. The mic is super hot, and picks up sound beautifully in both modes. My intention was to have a small mic to plug in and record rough versions of "in progress" material, but just for kicks I plugged some earbuds into the headphone out to check out the direct monitoring. It works as advertised, but what I did not realize is that the pc sees the Go Mic as a mic input AND an audio output, so the headphone out can be used to monitor the WET signal from the DAW, which is GREAT news, since I like a little reverb and compression whenever possible, and it's nice to be able to eq to my taste. I add these FX in the chain so that I'm still recording just the dry signal from the mic, but I get to hear it in real time with whatever EQ and effects I like. I experienced no latency, but USB is USB, so any latency would be the fault of the computer rather than the mic anyhow. Depending on the environment you're recording in and on your proficiency in the post production department,it's easily possible to get high quality tracks using this mic. If someone says otherwise, it's either because they own much more expensive mics, whose existence they need to justify, or because they don't know what they're doing. This is not a $1k ribbon mic, but it does stand up to several mics all the way up to the $200 range. This mic sounds great, has an impressive form factor, and once you factor in the crazy low price, you really can't go wrong here. If it were lost or stolen, I'd order another one immediately without hesitation.

This unit offers CD-quality 16-bit, 44kHz digitization and seamless plug-and-play operations with Windows and macOS. I was a guest on a podcast, and my previous microphone earned a complaint from the recording engineer. I ordered this one, and his immediate reaction to its sound was "Wow." Aside from the really good sound quality, it has a clever and unique design. It is one piece, with the body of the microphone swiveling out of the base, into which it tucks when you're not using it. It came with a hard-sided zipper case to keep it safe and clean. (Microphones are sensitive pieces of technology.) The base clips onto your laptop screen, or it can sit stably on your desk. There is a switch with three selections for sound pickup pattern. Omnidirectional is just that, a broad pattern that picks up all sound in the room. Cardioid is more directional (and cuts the bass a little bit). There's also a slightly muted (attenuated) cardioid setting that reduces clipping if you speak loudly or if there are loud noises. A status light on the front of the microphone is green when it is connected to your computer, and it flashes red if the mic saturates. Handy. No software is needed with this unit, nor are there batteries or a power supply to worry about. Just plug it into your computer's USB2/USB3 socket using the supplied cable. My Mac has USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 ports, so I got a separate USB-C to Mini-USB cable (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B08L37R89D) to enable direct connection. A good quality, shielded cable is beneficial to avoid picking up hum. Operation was instantaneous and flawless. The audio input options for Windows and MacOS offer some simple adjustments but I did not have to touch these. This mic works great with teleconferencing software like Zoom and Skype, and with podcasting software like Zencaster. Incidentally, you can keep using your existing earphones or headset as I did, as all the software I've tried allows you to select microphone and headset independently. Between its compact size and gratifying performance, this unit is now part of my traveling kit, and beyond podcast interviews I'll use it for Zoom sessions and Skype and such. Maybe I'll get some "Wow"s there too!

I waited almost a year to really evaluate this mic, I launched a YouTube channel with it, and overall this is pretty nice, this is a podcast mic, this is not a mic that can handle loud noise, or singing, or harsh laughing, but for sitting down and talking it's really, really great. Warm, fairly crisp, it's no Audio-Technica XLR mic, no, but it is surprisingly good for the price and size. The issues I have are the same as everyone else, clipping being the most prominent, but one stands out above all others - wind. I have a small portable fan pointed away from the mic four feet from me and it picks that up easily, no matter what I do, and that means turning off the fan, which is pretty awful in an apartment. I have a fan - behind a heavy curtain - in the little T shaped hallway outside my bedroom, and it picks up THAT as well, meaning no airflow of any kind is allowed during recording. You say "Just buy a windscreen they're six bucks!" but here's the thing, there aren't any, there exists no windscreen for this microphone, it is a very strange shape for a microphone, too big for lapel windscreens, far too small for regular dynamic microphone windscreens, a very frustrating situation. You'd think with how tremendously popular it is a company would have pooped out a cheap little windscreen and cornered the market, but no, no they have not, leaving you in a pickle. I recommend this if you have a completely soundless, windless area set up, I do not recommend this if you're the type of person who wants airflow in your area, plain a simple, it's a solid starting microphone.

Ich bin keine Tonexpertin, dies vorweg! Ich nutze es für Sprache, kann daher zu Musik- und Gesangsaufnahmen keine Wertung abgeben. Nun aber zur Wertung: Für den Preis ist dieses Produkt absolut empfehlenswert, der Klang müsste nicht mal nachbearbeitet werden, wenn man nicht gerade “Radio-pingelig“ ist. Ich verwende das Mikrofon für Voice - overs, Skype und dergleichen und bearbeite die Aufnahme mit Audacity. Es klingt auch auf voller Lautstärke ohne Nachbearbeitung gut und rauschfrei. Ich muss allerdings dazu sagen, dass ich einen Popschutz verwende. Alle 3 Aufnahme- Modi tun exakt was sie in der Beschreibung versprachen. Der Omni- Modus wurde von mir über Skype getestet. Meine Gesprächspartner hörten mich “super klar und deutlich, als würdest du vorm Mikro sitzen“, dabei stand ich zu Testzwecken 7 bis 10 Meter entfernt. Die anderen zwei Modi nutze ich aber öfter. Dazu kann ich nur sagen: top! Wen es allerdings stört, dass man manchmal seine Atmung hören kann, der könnte enttäuscht sein. Es kommt ja immer darauf an, für welche Zwecke man ein Mikrofon einsetzen möchte. Nichtsdestotrotz haben mich die vielfältigen Möglichkeiten dieses Gerätes beeindruckt. Es klingt in jedem Modus super, jeder Modus macht was er soll. Es ist transportabel, klein und kompakt. Man kann es aber auch auf einem Pop-schutz befestigen. Echte Radioqualität hat es für den Preis aber logischerweise nicht, dennoch klingt es für ungeübte Ohren wundervoll. Die Verarbeitung ist absolut anständig: alles besteht aus schwerem, stabilen Metall. Ich wundere mich jedesmal erneut, wie schwer dieses kleine Ding doch ist. Die Klemme ist so gut gebaut, die bekommt man so schnell nicht kaputt. Und wenn sie klemmt, klemmt sie bombenfest, fast schon zu fest. Man könnte damit sicherlich ein Gummibärchen komplett platt quetschen! Wenn man sich da drin den Finger einklemmt, leidet man Schmerzen! Ein Nachteil ist allerdings, dass sich das Mikro nicht abschalten lässt, daher baue ich alles immer neu auf und packe es anschließend wieder ein. Für überspontane Skype- Anrufe in letzter Sekunde ist es daher nichts. Ein zweiter Nachteil ist der, dass in das mitgelieferte Täschchen nur das Mikrofon, nicht aber das Kabel reingepasst. Man braucht daher eine extra Tasche bzw. Aufbewahrung für das gesamte Equipment. FAZIT: Ich glaube, dies ist nicht nur eines der besten Usb- Mikrofone in der Größe, sondern auch in der Preisklasse. Generell glaube ich, es ist eines der Besten in der Preisklasse, ob Usb oder nicht. Es ist sein Geld nicht nur wert, es ist fast schon billig, wenn man die Vielfältigkeit diesen winzigen Teils bedenkt. Noch dazu hat es auf dem Pc und dem Smartphone plug & play! Ich kann es absolut empfehlen, zumindest für Sprache!

this mic sounds better than my $120 mic and its cheap.

I'm so glad I purchased this microphone. I read some reviews that said building quality looked cheap, but I completely disagree. The microphone is heavier than I expected, and the materials are nice to the touch. The sound quality is good for my use (Zoom calls and recordings), I haven't had complaints of external noise bleeding through the microphone. I do use the cardioid setting only and have never used the other settings. The travel pouch is only for the microphone, not the cable. Cable is long enough. Just plug and play, no setup needed. Spending over $60 CAD seemed a little steep, but I think it's a good price for the overall quality of the mic. I don't regret buying it. Only complaint, product registration for Samson is only available in the US when you buy from Amazon.

Buen micrófono, lo uso para clases virtuales y juntas, muy buena compra

Très beau micro pour les personnes qui utilisent la dictée vocale ou autre dans un but quotidien. Il est conforme à la description, on obtient de bons résultats. Pas de bruit, pas de souffle paritaire. Très bon rapport qualité prix pour une utilisation au jour d’un jour. Je recommande. Bon rapport qualité prix.