A microphone picks up your voice, and everything else that reaches it. This guide covers the microphone itself: how it connects, what type it is, which way it listens and where to put it. It uses maker and OBS documentation read in November 2026. The interface that sits behind an XLR microphone has its own guide, which covers inputs, gain range, monitoring and loopback. For the full gear picture, see our streaming setup guide.

USB, XLR or both

RØDE says every microphone setup needs three components, and that a USB microphone integrates them in one device. An XLR microphone sends an analogue signal and needs an external audio interface to reach a computer.

The choice is no longer strictly one or the other. Two current examples carry both outputs:

• RØDE PodMic USB is a dynamic microphone with an XLR output and a USB-C output.
• Shure MV7+ is a dynamic microphone with USB-C and XLR outputs. Shure’s user guide calls the XLR output passive and says XLR audio is not affected by its software settings.

A dual-output microphone lets you start on USB and move to an interface later without replacing it. Check the maker’s notes on how the two outputs behave. RØDE, for instance, says its USB output goes through its own digital processing, and tells XLR users to disengage phantom power because it affects the output level.

Dynamic or condenser

RØDE describes dynamic microphones as excellent at isolating your voice while rejecting background noise such as air conditioners, keyboard noise and mouse clicks, and says they usually need to be close to your mouth. It describes condensers as more sensitive, less particular about position and more likely to pick up background noise in a room that is not soundproofed.

Shure says condenser microphones must be powered, either by batteries or by phantom power supplied through the cable. A USB condenser takes its power from the USB port. Elgato’s Wave:3 MK.2, for example, is a USB condenser with a 16 mm capsule, a cardioid pattern and a USB-C connection, and it records at 24-bit and 48 kHz.

These are maker descriptions of general tendencies. The room, the distance and the direction the microphone faces change the result more than the type label does.

Three models as examples

RØDE PodMic USB

• Type: dynamic
• Connection: XLR and USB-C
• Pickup pattern: tight cardioid, end-address
• Monitoring: headphone output, zero-latency
• Extras the maker lists: digital processing on the USB output

Shure MV7+

• Type: dynamic (moving coil)
• Connection: USB-C and XLR
• Pickup pattern: unidirectional (cardioid)
• Monitoring: 3.5 mm output, described as latency-free
• Extras the maker lists: LED touch panel, Auto Level Mode, real-time Denoiser

Elgato Wave:3 MK.2

• Type: condenser (16 mm capsule)
• Connection: USB-C (USB 2.0 HS)
• Pickup pattern: cardioid
• Monitoring: wired headphones, zero or ultra-low latency
• Extras the maker lists: Wave FX processor, Clipguard

Sources: RØDE’s product page and PodMic USB user guide; Shure’s MV7+ user guide (version 1.11) and product page; Elgato’s help-center article “Elgato Wave:3 MK.2 - Technical Specifications”. These are manufacturer statements, not our measurements, and Gimaxo ran no test of them.

Illustration of a generic microphone setup, not a photo of a specific model and not a Gimaxo test.

Pickup pattern and distance

Shure describes the cardioid pattern as the most common directional pattern, with a wide pick-up area at the front and maximum rejection at 180 degrees off-axis. It adds that directional microphones show the proximity effect: bass response increases as the microphone moves closer to the source. Shure says this is sometimes used on purpose to give a voice more bass and warmth.

Some microphones are end-address, meaning you speak into the end of the grille. RØDE’s guide says the PodMic USB picks up sound from the end of the grille and rejects sound from around and behind it, and that a dynamic microphone of this kind sounds best placed close to your mouth, around 5 to 10 cm. Other models are side-address, so read the maker’s guide for yours.

Gain and OBS

OBS’s gain filter page says gain should generally be applied at the source, before the signal reaches OBS. The OBS audio mixer guide describes green, yellow and red zones on the meter. Speech should sit in the upper yellow range, and OBS says it may reach the lower end of the red zone, which it describes as close to clipping. The same guide says the top dot shows the loudest level in the last 20 seconds, which helps you see clipping. Use the meter to spot problems and your ears to judge them.

OBS also provides filters, each with a stated job:

• Noise suppression is aimed at mild or steady noise such as PC fans. OBS says it is generally not effective against large amounts of background noise.
• Noise gate cuts off background noise while you are not talking, using an open and a close threshold.
• Limiter prevents the signal from peaking above 0 dB, and OBS says it should be the last filter in the chain.

Room, treatment and soundproofing

We found no maker or standards source we could cite for how much room treatment or soundproofing helps a streaming microphone, so this page makes no claim on it. Acoustic treatment and soundproofing are different jobs, so check what a product says it does before you buy it. A closer microphone, a cardioid pattern and a quieter room are the settings you control for free.

The guide’s own advice

• Pick a dual-output microphone if you are unsure. The two examples above avoid replacing the microphone when you add an interface. The reason is the connection options the makers list.
• Read which side is the front. RØDE’s guide shows why: an end-address microphone spoken into from the side loses what the pattern is meant to give you.
• Set gain at the source, then use the OBS meter. OBS says so in its gain filter page.
• Use filters lightly and listen to a recording. OBS filters are described for specific jobs, and none is described as a fix for a poor position.

What we could not verify

We found no official source for the following, so this page does not state them: which microphone is best, how much a boom arm or shock mount reduces vibration, how much a pop filter helps, prices today, and how much acoustic treatment improves a stream. Gimaxo ran no microphone test.

Sources

Named here as plain text. Pages read in November 2026.

• RØDE, “XLR or USB microphones: which is the best for gaming and streaming” and “Dynamic vs condenser microphones” articles; PodMic USB product page and user guide
• Shure, “Difference between a dynamic and condenser microphone”; “Microphone Directionality and Polar Pattern Basics”; MV7+ product page and MV7+ user guide, version 1.11
• Elgato Help Center, “Elgato Wave:3 MK.2 - Technical Specifications”; Elgato, Wave:3 MK.2 product page
• OBS Project, Knowledge Base: Audio Mixer Guide, Gain Filter, Noise Gate Filter, Noise Suppression Filter, Limiter Filter