Audio-Technica AT2020USB+ Cardioid Condenser USB Microphone At2020usb

I have never used a microphone before. I wanted to see how I sound. My voice is rusty, crusty, and not very trusty. This microphone does its best to flatter what little vocal talent I have. With the standard Garageband settings I have some compression and other stuff including a bit of echo. It sounded like I was in a hallway somewhere. I tried a bit of singing (the last song I heard), andsometimes I hit the right note, other times I ran out of phlegm and my voice disappeared, but overall it wasn’t too horrible. Ext I talked and it actually sounded OK. I went close to the mike with no booming, and I backed off, but then my weak voice got even thinner. Well, not weak, but not as masculine and commanding as the voice in my head. My voice is soft but has some ... MoreI have never used a microphone before. I wanted to see how I sound. My voice is rusty, crusty, and not very trusty. This microphone does its best to flatter what little vocal talent I have. With the standard Garageband settings I have some compression and other stuff including a bit of echo. It sounded like I was in a hallway somewhere. I tried a bit of singing (the last song I heard), andsometimes I hit the right note, other times I ran out of phlegm and my voice disappeared, but overall it wasn’t too horrible. Ext I talked and it actually sounded OK. I went close to the mike with no booming, and I backed off, but then my weak voice got even thinner. Well, not weak, but not as masculine and commanding as the voice in my head. My voice is soft but has some substance, and is quite clear when I concentrate. There is an intimate quality which is quite reassuring. When sitting next to a stranger on a train or at a social event, that stranger will often tell me their life story and we will become friends quickly. I would like that quality to come through a microphone, and I think the AT2020 achieves that. Money well spent (plus it was the only decent mike my local store had at a price I could afford. No regrets.

Excellent, high quality simple mic for beginners

This is a great condenser mic for the pricepoint.The USB is truly plug and play - no hassles and works with no need for additional gear (interface, XLR cables etc.) or software drivers.Recording quality is great for vocals and for podcasting/voice recording.The mic build quality is solid and sturdy. It comes with a little tripod which is well made enough but you may want a different mount depending on your setup. There is an audio output jack on the mic for monitoring and a hard balance control wheel.There aren't a ton of bells and whistles or other controls, which is ok for the price point. I can't really ding it for much. Highly recommended overall.

First USB Microphone

This is one of the best USB microphones I have tested. I do have dual Sennheiser MK8 and dual NTRs, and I find performance from this very similar to more expensive XLR mics. I now use this mic on (almost) a daily basis, apart from my XLR mics, to record my grand piano.Pros of this mic:*Very wide dynamic range and frequency, goes from 20Hz-20000Hz/20kHz.*Well balanced bass and treble voices for mono setup*Amazing build quality, solid full metal build*Internal LED light to indicate power to mic*Real-time zero latency monitoring off headphone jack*Sturdy included stand*Nice codec 16bit 44.1/48kHz*Premium mic pouchCons of this mic:*No pop filter or any other goodies apart from the short mic stand*USB mics, so no two way ORTF or any stereo type of ... MoreThis is one of the best USB microphones I have tested. I do have dual Sennheiser MK8 and dual NTRs, and I find performance from this very similar to more expensive XLR mics. I now use this mic on (almost) a daily basis, apart from my XLR mics, to record my grand piano.Pros of this mic:*Very wide dynamic range and frequency, goes from 20Hz-20000Hz/20kHz.*Well balanced bass and treble voices for mono setup*Amazing build quality, solid full metal build*Internal LED light to indicate power to mic*Real-time zero latency monitoring off headphone jack*Sturdy included stand*Nice codec 16bit 44.1/48kHz*Premium mic pouchCons of this mic:*No pop filter or any other goodies apart from the short mic stand*USB mics, so no two way ORTF or any stereo type of recording. You can't use two USB mics at the same time. Workaround: Plug each individual mic into different computers, then transfer both audio files into a single computer and sync audio in post*Wished they included an XLR port. Some USB mics have XLR built in as well.Overall, Audio-Technica does not dissapoint. Another amazing mic from the legendary Japanese audio company

Great hardware, but plagued by unfixed driver issue

The microphone itself is excellent. Unfortunately, there's an issue with the driver (or potentially the hardware) where it's sporadically recognized as a USB Input Device by the host OS, and constantly sends the "Media Next Track" keyboard event. This has been consistent for me across multiple computers and operating systems.When this issue pops up, it causes a variety of issues for other software running on your computer. Any application that detects mouse hover by checking for the absence of keyboard events while the mouse is stationary will fail to detect hover (VSCode is one example). And of course, applications that listen and respond to mediaTrackNext will have problems.This is especially problematic because your computer will give you no indication that ... MoreThe microphone itself is excellent. Unfortunately, there's an issue with the driver (or potentially the hardware) where it's sporadically recognized as a USB Input Device by the host OS, and constantly sends the "Media Next Track" keyboard event. This has been consistent for me across multiple computers and operating systems.When this issue pops up, it causes a variety of issues for other software running on your computer. Any application that detects mouse hover by checking for the absence of keyboard events while the mouse is stationary will fail to detect hover (VSCode is one example). And of course, applications that listen and respond to mediaTrackNext will have problems.This is especially problematic because your computer will give you no indication that the reason that things aren't working is your USB microphone. I've talked to a number of people who have completely rebuild their machines or reinstalled their operating systems to try to fix their applications randomly not working.There's an obscure fix on Windows involving disabling the erroneously detected USB Input Device from within the Device Manager (Hardware IDs USB\VID_0909&PID_001C&REV_0100&MI_03 and USB\VID_0909&PID_001C&MI_03), but I'd wager that very few people realize that their computer issues are in any way related to their microphone.Audio Technica support has been documented as being aware of this issue for years, but just suggest that you unplug the microphone or use a different USB port when the issue pops up. Months of unplugging my microphone and having to scramble to find the cable when I get a work call before I found the Device Manager fix were very frustrating.If you're comfortable disabling devices in device manager, the microphone itself is actually great, but I definitely wouldn't recommend this device to anyone without fully cautioning them about the headaches that this major issue causes.

Great product. Honest and humble service.

I am a professional. I know this microphone is good. I use it for TV voiceovers and it covers up many of my home/office's acoustic deficiencies. I buy my professional equipment from B&H as, many of my coworkers do. My last order was truly an ordeal but I would not really blame the seller for the lack of supply, because it was a popular microphone and the demand for it had peaked during the pandemic. B&H charges you in advance even it is backordered, unlike many others sellers do. So the money is taken away from your credit account for that transaction period, even if it is backordered or has not arrived yet. That is what happened to me for more than a month. I did write to them about my issue and they kindly and humbly replied. I know it sounds unusual to many ... MoreI am a professional. I know this microphone is good. I use it for TV voiceovers and it covers up many of my home/office's acoustic deficiencies. I buy my professional equipment from B&H as, many of my coworkers do. My last order was truly an ordeal but I would not really blame the seller for the lack of supply, because it was a popular microphone and the demand for it had peaked during the pandemic. B&H charges you in advance even it is backordered, unlike many others sellers do. So the money is taken away from your credit account for that transaction period, even if it is backordered or has not arrived yet. That is what happened to me for more than a month. I did write to them about my issue and they kindly and humbly replied. I know it sounds unusual to many consumers. B&H does not need me to speak for its favor. But it was worth the patience. They sent the microphone when they had the order available and it saved a lot of my time when I began using it. Our video editors are also happy with the sound quality. During this one-month wait process, it took my attention that the product was being offered by third party sellers for a little less than its worth, but I would not take any risk. I know it sounds unusual to many online consumers. B&H does not need me to speak in favor of it. There have been a few times B&H tested my patience, especially when I ordered my SL-1210GR, but that order is the true meaning of my life. One thing I am sure though, a coworker of mine had earlier ordered a webcam, but the backorder period took to long. She had cancelled it. She was refunded immediately. So your payment is safe even if you have backorders, but you are going to receive your professional orders from truly professional people.

Like it enough that I now own 3

I have one first generation version, which lacks the headphone jack, and this is my 2nd of the newer generation. If using this in an application where you want a shock mount, be sure to buy the Audio Technica shock mount that is made for this exact form factor. I have both of mine on boom arms. I like the side address form factor and the ability to get cheap pop filters that are semi-cylindrical. Compared to the much more expensive gold standard Shure SM7B, this sounds a bit brighter and has a wider, flatter frequency response. That makes the AT2020 better suited for instrumentals and other sound sources, whereas the SM7B tends to be very specifically suited to voices. I own USB and XLR versions of this mic, and the integrated analog-to-digital conversation seems ... MoreI have one first generation version, which lacks the headphone jack, and this is my 2nd of the newer generation. If using this in an application where you want a shock mount, be sure to buy the Audio Technica shock mount that is made for this exact form factor. I have both of mine on boom arms. I like the side address form factor and the ability to get cheap pop filters that are semi-cylindrical. Compared to the much more expensive gold standard Shure SM7B, this sounds a bit brighter and has a wider, flatter frequency response. That makes the AT2020 better suited for instrumentals and other sound sources, whereas the SM7B tends to be very specifically suited to voices. I own USB and XLR versions of this mic, and the integrated analog-to-digital conversation seems very good, not introducing detectable noise.

Power Meets Beauty

This is my first condenser mic, but I have heard great things about AT in the past. I have owned multiple of their ATH 50s. Very quality products. This mic is no exception. I upgraded to this for my video conference setup and the sound quality is superb.I know must audio professionals know this but if this is your first mic, be sure to have all your cables, interfaces, and holding arms locked in to make unboxing day as smooth as possible.I am only about a month into using the mic but after about 30 hours of zoom and a few short tutorial style videos, I am still in love. I will update this review once I have had some more hours in this unit. I'll also post an raw audio clip for reference!

Solid choice for Streaming and Voice recording!

My experience with AT professional microphones, and conference systems at work influenced my decision to purchase an AT2020 for my hobby. I knew the phantom power requirements so was not offput by that requirement. The sound response is excellent on both lower frequencies (Bass) midtones and higher frequencies (Treble). Adding a RNNoise filter in OBS (to remove some ambient fan noise from a switch near my desk) was all that I needed to record crisp clear vocals. Response is excellent for both my masculine and my wife's feminine voice profiles. This mic is a solid choice.

This is my 2nd

I bought a first-gen AT2020USB. I didn't think I cared that this one added a +, but I was wrong. In addition to having really pleasing, nicely directional pickup, this thing is really a full-fledged external sound card. If one needs to monitor one's own voice through headphones, such as while podcasting, this offers a latency-free headphone jack on board. In addition to a physical volume control, there's a very smart mic/com control, which allows the user to mix the mic's pickup with the computer output in the headphones. While the mic is a solid performer and a good value in my estimation, don't use the included mount and tripod. You'll really need the OEM AT shockmount and a proper height adjustable desktop stand or adjustable boom arm. You REALLY don't want ... MoreI bought a first-gen AT2020USB. I didn't think I cared that this one added a +, but I was wrong. In addition to having really pleasing, nicely directional pickup, this thing is really a full-fledged external sound card. If one needs to monitor one's own voice through headphones, such as while podcasting, this offers a latency-free headphone jack on board. In addition to a physical volume control, there's a very smart mic/com control, which allows the user to mix the mic's pickup with the computer output in the headphones. While the mic is a solid performer and a good value in my estimation, don't use the included mount and tripod. You'll really need the OEM AT shockmount and a proper height adjustable desktop stand or adjustable boom arm. You REALLY don't want this--out of the box with the included mount and stand--to be too far from your mouth AND easily transmit low frequency thumps and paper and keyboard sounds. Budget accordingly for the accessories to get the most out of it.