When I first got this item, I was so excited. Being an amature recording artist, all I knew was that this mic was a huge step up from the headset microphone that I had used to use. I learned later on, however, that USB mics differ in quality from their pre-amped counterparts in several ways. Fortunately, if you are willing to spend the time, and have a good software program to record with, you can get a way with the vast diffrence in quality if you can edit the sound well and get a good physical recording. For the money, I would say that you get what you pay for, and thats not entirely a bad thing.

I liked this product, surprizingly, for its simplicity. On a mic, you dont really want a bunch of features, however, you want to be able to tweak it to your desire. I gave this an 8 because it comes with a free downloadable applet that is essential in audio editing for this mic.

I'd prolly give it a 8.5. Its recognizable by severaly audio software programs when plugged in, which is great. However, i can recall more than once when I had to rerecord because the levels were too high when I thought they were set correctly.

Its been dropped a few times (on carpet) and I cant notice.

For the price, its worth it. Also, now that they are selling these with Sonar, its definately worth the price.

It looks professional. Nowadays, thats a big part of the music industry.

Active musican, recording engineer

Alternative, Hip Hop, Experimental

This product produces great sound at an incredibly low price. This mic produces sound that compares well with others costing hundreds more, and I'm quite fond of it.

It's a microphone. Make sure, if you don't own one already, that you purchase a stand to go with it, any standard stand will do. (Comes with Euro adapter.) Because of not needing phantom power or a mixer, it's great for a portable setup.

The software could be better, and because of no live playback, you have to watch your levels instead of listening for them. (You can use a software playback, but because of the disconcerting delay that it causes, I find it easier to watch.)

Cosmetically, it was perfect, no blemishes, dents or missing finish. Everything appeared aligned perfectly. It seems quite rugged and is heavy. I've had the product for about 90 days now and have had no problems, I use it nearly everyday.

This mic is VERY well worth the money I spent on it.

Samson responded quickly to an inquiry about the live playback, and they have an excellent amount of information on their website about this mic.

Overall this is a great mic.

Voice Artist

n/a

The sound quality is very good. It basically reproduces the sound of what it's presented with, without coloring it...which I believe is what you want from a good microphone...you can then add filters etc. to get the sound you're looking for.

I actually purchased th e Podcasting Pak which included the Spider Shock Mount, a stand and a nice silver case to transport it all. A great package!

I am using the C01U with my Intel iMac. I suggest you download the UB version of Samson's SoftPre driver which gives you more control over the microphones levels and sound quality in the Mac domain. Once you read the manual and understand how to setup the mic as your input device for each DAW application it is simply simple!

Appears to be made with high quality die cast materials.

A USB condenser microphone that does what it's supposed to for under $100...great value!

Phone support not needed yet...however I think Samson's website has a good amount of information...all that I have needed so far.

I like the look of this mic although it is more practical than sexy...and that's how it should be!

hobbyist

Rock / Pop

The only reason i give the sound a 9 is because ive heard other condernser mics int this price range with comparable sound quaility, but other than that you can't beat the bamg for the buck...if you want more thna what this mic offers, don't complain, just spend more money...duh

How many features do you want at this price?? There are 4 digit mics out there,even 5, so you get what you pay for.

doesn't get any easier..true plug and play, just select it in your DAW

I've dropped it twice on, on CONCRETE, if theres anyu difference in sound I cn't tell..just a few nics on the casing..nothing major.

Bang for Buck..that's what it's all about..pound for pound one of the best...

Dont know..havet needed..butthe website is plenty helpful

looks cool to me

"active musician"

ALL

As a hip-hop producer the vocals in my mixes are very important. This make gives a smooth clean flat response which is what you need for any genre of music .

It came with what it needed. The manual and the mic its self.

Its plug n play how much easier can it get

Its heavy for a mic and has a really hard metal casing. I've nver dropped it but, I think it could take some blows to the floor from an accidental fall.

A condenser mic that plugs into a pc. You'd would exspect the price to be throught the roof but its not. You get a lot of bang for you buck.

Their website answers many questions.

It looks like every other studio condenser mic. It give artist confidence in you.

Recording Engineer/Producer/Soundtrack Composer

All

This sound is awesome compared to the $20 headset mic, which I got from Wal-Mart. It's a huge improvement and if your just starting out in the music world, doing your own thing on your own computer, I RECOMMEND THIS MIC! It's easy to use, affordable, and good quality compared to those cheapy mics. The price is awesome for that much improvement in sound. Also using Acid Pro 4.0 with this mic, helps a little with the sound, you can mess around with it and get nearly a perfect sound. Awesome mic!

Few accessories.

Plug in and your done!

Made well, I think it will last a long time.

Beautiful, so much better and for so little price.

Never called Tech Support yet.

From the moment I saw the mic, I wanted it. It looked easy to use and so much better than my headset mic.

Active Musician

Rap/Hip Hop

rock solid sound, like the others I'd recommend getting the optional shockmount

I didnt get the CD or any programs with it, but WinXP fully supports it out of the box, no problems with getting to recognize and work.

Plug and Play as they say.. just need a program to record with.

The metal is nice and it feels solid all the way around

Wish it was a bit cheaper, but then again its a great price for some quick quality recordings straight to your computer, good for webcasting or Vloggin

I rate 10 because I never had to use their support.

its a bit large, the pictures dont do it much justice... I dont know its sexy I guess haha

Just a hobby

rock

i havent had much experience with other condensors, but seeing as how this mic isnt like many other condensors it's very good. i have no problem with static or noise, it seems to have a pretty flat response. the sound lacks a little bit of warmth and takes a little extra editing to add that warmth back into my vocals, but this mic coupled with native waves platinum bundle = a homestudio dream

there werent any extra accessories or useful features

all i had to do was plug it in and make sure it was selected in my recording program. the applet isnt necessary to use this mic if you know what you're doing with the recording software

i really have no complaints other than the mount that comes with the mic. i had to buy the shockmount afterwards because the mic kept shaking when i recorded with it on the provided mount.

for someone that records at home, this mic is well worth the buy because of the quality you get when you record. it is well worth the money spent...

didnt need to contact the company for support

the whole USB recording aspect of the mic was what made me buy it...if it was not a USB mic then i dont think i would have even gave it a second look.

Rapper/Producer/Song Writer/Recording Engineer

Rap, R&B, Reggae, Reggaeton

Just OK out of the box, but great when modified. The Samson C01U is one of many Chinese-manufactured condenser mics that suffer from two common problems - it is simultaneously ill-defined in the critical midrange and excessively harsh in the treble range. While the circuit used in the mic is quite clever and fairly well implemented, the sonic deficiencies lie within the condenser capsule and headbasket acoustics. By and large, Chinese-manufactured mics use condenser capsule copied from classic Neumann designs. Unfortunately, these inexact copies fall short of delivering the magnificent midrange accuracy and smooth, sibilance-free top end Neumann capsules are known for. Many of the copied capsules deliver a sound that is often described as harsh, spitty, "eshy", sibilant or screechy. Poor headbasket acoustics compound the problems created by these capsules. The Co1U, like most microphones of its class, uses a multi-layer grille mesh headbasket. These multiple layers of mesh do protect the capsule from spittle and wind blasts - but at a cost. Multiple layer headbaskets have a very small percentage of open area in the grille. This means a great deal of sound is reflected back and forth between the capsule and headbasket. Cup your hands around your mouth or speak into a paper tube to get an exaggerated example of the standing wave artifacts caused by a restrictive headbasket. What to do? One of the great benefits of the S01U and other similarly priced mics is low cost. With a very modest investment in the original microphone, it becomes an excellent platform for a microphone modification. The capsule can be upgraded and headbasket opened up. With a suite of microphone modifications this mic, (aw well as many other Chinese manufactured mics) can really become solid a performer that sounds much more like a professional tool.

Professional microphone modifications

Very nice condenser mic, a little thin, but nothing a touch of EQ can't fix. However, the noise floor is pretty high. Using the free software preamp helps, and it's very clean wideband noise, so it's not even very offensive. Still, for pro use, it needs to drop 20 dB or so. Still, the sound is quite good, and for voice mixed with music, the noise will never be a problem.

Has no features, except the software preamp does offer a great "LED" meter onscreen, and a low cut filter.

For my laptop, it was plug it in, record. Even before loading the Samson software preamp, the mic was recognized, and my computer's sound card switched out as the record input. Unplug, it switched back. You may have to switch back and forth by clicking through on your system, but that only takes a few seconds.

The noise level is the only quality issue here. Strong, well made looking mic.

The mic was a good deal in the first place. Add a preamp, plus a power supply that can run the circuit AND provide phantom power from the five volts it gets from a USB plug, plus an A to D converter, plus a USB interface and cable, for under $80 street price; heck of a deal.

N.A.

Audio Producer / Engineer

Voice production, standard production music all genres

It has excellent sound quality; playback sounds like a live performance. I have not used it with instruments yet; how you should use it depends on what style you are singing. If you are singing something soft like Diana Ross, you are fine a few inches away, sitting in front of the computer; for my songs (rock) I have to stand (or sit) about 3 and half feet away to get a good sound. Any closer and it is too sensitive. I reccomend with this or any other mic that you do a test and record how it sounds at different distances to find where to position yourself. Once you know how far away to stand for your voice the sound is excellent.

there's not really much to it feature-wise. I have not tried the software that it came with yet, so I cannot speak for that. It doesn't have an on/off switch, which is fine, because it runs with energy from the computer.

It is pretty easy to set up and get working; I give it a seven though because if you are going to get loud you need to step back.

It is very sturdy

This is an excellent microphone and well worth the investment.

I put a five here for neutral bc i have not contacted support and i have not needed it.

I love the sound quality; it is crystal clear.

8 years; piano, guitar, trumpet, voice, drums; I produce my own music

rock, pop rock alternative

obtained much better sound using Audacity as opposed to sandard windows sound recorder, recommend software to accompany the mic for those who may not be so familiar with the tools available.

hobbyist

After a complicated update for the drivers, the mic picked up beautifully. Any problem with vocal delay(latency) can be corrected within the DAW program itself, and IS NOT A MIC ISSUE. Provided your system can handle the lower latency settings, it isn't a major problem, if not, an upgraded sound card is needed. In order to achieve optimum performance of the mic, I highly recommend installing the softpre app, if not the sound card's mixer doesn't appropriate gain controls correctly resulting in very low vocal audio volume during recording.

The usb interface removes the need for pricey professional sound cards, and is very convienient. The only problem is the lengthly driver update process, in which I found myself referring to the included help file rather frequently.

After the updates, no problem what so-ever, but after you install the updated driver, any further updating will roll it back to the initial driver.

Standard quality construction as other condenser mics of equal performance.

A condenser mic for 89.99, and it's bundled with Sonar LE. Come on, for anyone looking to get a basic production package for music, this is it. Provided you know your stuff. Besides typical condenser mics start anywhere from $150.00 and go all the way to over $500. This is a steal!

Updating the driver is a complicated and lengthly process, but the end result is far worth it.

Recording Engineer, Vocalist

Hip-Hop

the overall sound and quality of the mic is pretty good. it's better than what i've been using before i started using it. the best part about it is that its powered by a usb port. it's easy to set up and use. i would recommend this onefor any artist that is trying to go about recording for any type of project.

easy!! all you have to do is plug it up, and follw the easy steps in the booklet.

good material, sturdy and well put together. it seems like i could use t his product for years to come if i don't get an upgrade.

yes. i had a minor problem and i e-mailed the company and i got a response that day.

recording artist

hip hop, rap , r and b

Teaching myself to play the fiddle for two years, no prior experience.

Traditional

Not bad at all.

I didn't use the accompanying software but like the sturdiness and weight of the mic.

I was pleasantly surprised at how fast and easy it was to get up and running.

Haven't needed support.

Active Musician

Bluegrass

Electric Guitar. Singing for 10 years.

Christian and 60's oldies.

Choral, Musical Theater, Voice Over

Rock, K-Pop

I was extremely disappointed with the C01U. I had read several reviews that suggested it was an excellent buy for the money. Nonsense. I plugged the unit (with the suggested Mac driver) into my new powerbook and used both Final Cut Pro and SoundTrack Pro. This is one of the noisest mics I've ever heard and it's on-axis and off-axis fidelity is terrible. Only slight changes in direction cause a change in frequency response. If this weren't state property (purchased by my University), I'd stomp on it and take it out of its misery. Now don't assume that I'm an inexperienced audio person who doesn't know how to use microphones and computers. This is what I do for a living. I was looking for a simply voice over microphone that I could use when I do field video editing on my laptop. This is not what I was looking for.

Recording Engineer

Jazz

Pretty awesome quality. For this price this is the best condensor mic you can buy. Honestly, with good mixing skills and a nice mixing program/DAW, someone could compare their quality to professional artists recording in a studio. I know some of my songs that I make sound like anything else on the radio, if not, better.

Not many accesories. The microphone is all you really need anyway. The package comes with a soft microphone bag that no one really uses. It doesn't protect the microphone from damage but you can put it in there to hide from damaging water and other liquids. It comes with a pretty long USB chord, nice, simple, long, and black. Also, it comes with a little microphone holster that isn't top quality. The SPM01 shockmount is awesome for this microphone's performance, as well as looks.

Easiest microphone you could ever use. I love it. I plugged it in when I got it, and began recording some songs, and with awesome quality. When I'm done I unplug it and when I need it again I plug it in and record. Some problems you might have are the volume being too high. Simply go to control panel and sound devices and change the microphone levels. Also, some DAWs record in stereo, 16 bit. Change it to Left Channel and 32 bit on all tracks and everything is perfect.

The product is pretty well made. It looks good, nice texture and design. It does it's job and looks good at the same time. Nice LED Green Light on the microphone to tell you when its plugged in.

How can you go wrong with an 80 dollar USB Condensor Mic that is this cheap and this easy to use. Perfect value for any person looking for high quality and professional-like equipment.

Never had any problems, so it get's a 10.

I saw the microphone online. A USB Condensor Mic for 80 bucks. Best thing I've ever seen and invested in. It sounds so good, the price is so good, and it even looks good. Huge "sex appeal" as they put it.

MC, Producer, Mixer, Underground Hip-Hop Artist

Hip-Hop, Alternative Hip-Hop, Indie, Rock, Emo-Hop

When I make recordings there is all this static in the background. I thought it must be the sound of my laptop, but isolating the mic away from the laptop didn't help. At this point it is impossible for me to use this mic for any voice audio recordings because of the fuzz and static.

No thrills here.

I found that the Samson applet helped in that it showed you distortion. But the directions at the website about how to actually access the recording process on Windows were very incomplete. I had to figure out how by hunting around, trial and error.

Solid metal and all. Just makes it a genuine "clunker" at this point.

I don't see how it is practical to record with a USB microphone if it picks up the sound of your laptop and every other background noise; just the "air" in the room.

Couldn't find any useful information or phone numbers at their site.

I wish I had not bought it.

Bands, recording.

Pop/Folk.

the sound at times can sound muffled and you really have to tweak them but its ok for a beginner mic i guess....but if your ok with a little white noise in your vocals and not having zero-latency this mic is for you

nothing good enough to mention

it's plug and play but gotta have a good DAW

i've dropped it once and it works fine..or so i think...but it looks like it'll break easily so i'll make sure i dont do that again....

decent for the price i guess

the customer support are hard to reach and really dont even ask what the problem is as they just assume things.first time i called them it was about the sonar le software which stop workin for some reason, but i called the customer support and the guy didnt even ask what i needed help with as he got right to the point and knew what was wrong. So turns out the little aplet or whatever that comes with the mic is was the cause the the sonar program not working and he told me to delete it and i did and it solved the problem. but my point is the guy already knew the issues which means they're aware of its flaws as maybe lots of people complained about them.

the design is nice i guess....sort of looks like a neumann u87 but in NO WAY works like it

hobbyist

The sound is okay and has a little bit of a fuzzy noise. Usually condensor mics compliment the high end or the low end of a voice but the sound this mic gives is bland. It's alright at most for a budget mic but I would suggest a 100 dollar preamp and a 100 studio mic over this.

It included the swivel mount to connect to a stand and you can download an applet from Samson's official site though i've heard numerous of times it's useless and adds noise.

Well I'll give it to Samson for making it so easy to use, plug and play.

I accidentally dropped it and it created a small dent but nothing noticeable.

No, it should be less expensive.

I contacted their audio support numerous of times but I got the same reply: "Please call customer service (insert phone number here)." They get a 2 for at least responding.

Honest to God, it is butt ugly.

Hobbyist.

Hip-Hop & RnB, Acoustic guitar.

What good is a microphone that you can't monitor? There is a major latency problem here. Neither Windows drivers nor Samson drivers make a lick of difference. It uses MME32 bit drivers instead of WDM or ASIO. The result is a hideous delay through the headphones. It disappoints any reasonable expectation of how a microphone should function.

A USB connected mike is a great idea! But without the ability to monitor what I'm recording, the product is useless.

It looks like a mike, smells like a mike.

As far as I'm concerned, this thing isn't worth a dime. If you are thinking of buying one, don't do it. Save your money for a real piece of equipment that is fully functional.

I used Samson's website to download instructions. The instructions were very clear and easy to use. But they didn't work.

This was a very appealing piece of equipment. I wanted a simple mike to record some vocals. I thought the USB connection would eliminate the noise I get with a regular mike. I can't believe I fell for such a piece of garbage.

Hobbyist

Various

Sounded like crap! The sound was all muffled and wish-washy. Higly disappointing. I wouldn't recommend this microphone to anyone. Bad buy

Just a microphone...Nuthing spectacular besides a led light and a usb cable...whoopdie doo!?! But for the price, I wasnt surprised..I bought the shockmount to go with it...looked nice...sounded horrible

Easy to use, but horrible once used...

No comment...

I was really excited about getting this microphone because of the easy usb connection...but I was highly disappointed when I finally got it...what a sham. (Looks can be deceiving)

artist

Rap/ R&B

THE SOUND QUALITY????THE BEST YOU CAN ASK FOR A USB CONDENSER MIC!!

i got the kit that came wid sonar and a boom stand AND it came wid a 10 ft. usb cable!

plug and play

it dropped like a couple of days ago and it still has the perfect sound it came with

VALUE?????THIS IS LIKE ROBBING A BANK

i bought it frm this website

YES I DO....yes i do.

dj/producer

HYPHY,rap,hip hop,r&b

The sound quality is half descent but the latency feedback is horrible you can say an entire sentence and wait to hear it from beginning to end its that badly out of sync with its feedback i would suggest this product for live recordings where headphones arent involved not once so ever for studio recording use

None of this is really all that imporant

its nicely made just crap for anything else other than live use

No unless your into recording live

HAHA you could get more attention from somebody whos blind & deaf

its not all that bad looking

Recording Artist/Engineer

Rap

The sound sounds thin and it dosent sound professional... I wouldnt get this mic!! Its also Very Big and ugly!

No good features!!!!!!!!!

The mic it pretty hard.. but its not the best.

Producer

Rap

Very unhappy with the sound. Very thin and creates digital white noise. No bottom at all.

You're better off plugging in a lapel mic from radioshack direct to you're line in. Less noise, warmer sound for $50 less than this product.

Driver software is currently unavailable. They should have waited to release this mic

Composer/Performer

varied

Good compared to say a Maplins condenser. S's in vocals sound much less hissy and the signal to noise has to be heard to be believed. You can bump the gain with the software preamp, software amplify it some more with a recording application, and it STILL sounds dead clean with little or no microphone hiss. On the other hand, it is awfully faint, the preamp needs to be up to about +39 or +42 to get a good recording.

Nothing special. Lead, microphone, URL of a website I think, that's about it really. The software preamp that you can download free is essential, and so probably is the shock mounting (which costs extra, little in the way of a mount or stand is included).

Sorry, this is the horrible bit. Clunks and clicks creep into recordings again and again. It seems to have trouble with some software at least using WDM and the drivers have an annoying habit of getting changed for the wrong ones. Don't try and record into sequencing or synthesising software directly - try using Audacity (free program)

Seemed OK from what I could tell. Feels very solidly built altho it is very heavy and this can cause problems

Very good compared with the alternative of external sound card plus preamp plus XLR mic, assuming you can get it to work. Undeniably when it came out this was a breakthrough... if you can live with USB mics which do seem to have a patchy record

Haven't had cause to try this. There are some forums available, although a web search is probably your best bet. Try doing this before buying it to get a feel for the sorts of problems users are having

There are too many niggly issues. Some users are very happy and others have muttered crossly about getting their money back. Get it if you need it, but keep the receipt. I suggest go the other way - XLR plus preamp plus external sound card if needed. If you're using a laptop try taking it to the shop to test the mic with your application. Ignore the salesmen's tutting.

Amateur recording artist

Pop-classical crossover

Very disappointed. Don't let the appearance fool you, this sounds like a toy. Good for some applications I'm sure, but not for professional applications.

No user-definable features (pattern, rollo-off characteristics)

Very easy to use

Good quality of manufacture but bad guts

Saw the ad, read the specs, wanted it. Now I want to throw it out.

Recording engineer

The sound is decent....I knew before I purchased the mic that USB mics aren't very promising when it comes to recording. I have to agree with some of the other reviews and say that you get what you pay for, but for those who are serious about recording you might want to save for a mic that doesn't connect through USB. I was still impressed by the clarity of the mic. The style of music I record is usually underground hip-hop, so grittiness is acceptable. For a mic that I use at home, it wasn't a bad deal, but if you can save up an extra $200 to get a more professional quality mic......do it

I couldn't use the Sonar software cause I use Mac.........the stand was good.....wish the cord was a little longer, but it works

I would have enjoyed trying Sonar, but it didn't work.........I use Logic pro 8, and it didn't recognize my Mic when I plugged it in. After several hours of googling, I figured out how to work it. Even now, I still have to change alter with different programs.....I can not run Reason 4.0 at the same time because the way its set up, it screws with the output, so I have to make sure I exit before I open it up, because restarting Logic is annoying...... It works like a charm with Garage Band, I'm sure it does the same for Pro Tools....sound-wise, after altering the equalizer, adding noise reduction, and all the other effects and you got a pretty good mic

Had it for 2 months....so far so good....I'm not a tech expert, but it looks good......everything fits well.....n......i move the mic back and forth, and I don't have to fear that it will break of the littlest false movement....i just wish there was a off button......i really can not predict how long this mic will last, but it seems pretty reliable

I say its a fair price.....better than a lot of mics, but far from the best

Didn't need em' so far...

it caught the eye of a few ladies........i wouldn't say the design is genius..... there is nothing about this mic that made my jaw drop, but it is a good mic....

recording engineer

you get the bang for your buck, it is quick and easy to set up, no modules mixers needed just a computer, music software and you are set to record. the distance you stand from the mic is important. but once you get a feel for it, you will love how great it sounds even without a soundproof room.

the usb cable, bag, and the mount is great. it's the basic stuff most mics come with.

there is really nothing much to learn, it depends on the software you use.

it is a solid mic it will be usefull for atleast 16 yrs or so depending on how you take care of it.

The sound is as good as it gets for the price, if your recording vocals this will come out with a clean result, like I said, the best you can get for the price.. I am satisfied with it and several people who have heard my recordings with it were impressed I achieved such good quality with a simple usb mic.. worth the money.

The sound is decent, it is a condenser mic so you can expect it to pick up everything in the room. You need a room with good acoustics to get a good good sound.

This mic came with nothing but a USB cord, I had to download an applet myself to try to get some extra functions from it. As soon as you waste your time doing that, everything stops working. Then back to removing the useless softeware you just downloaded.

Plug and play, it did come on right away.

Seems strong enough so far, I have only had it for a couple of weeks and my band tosses things around pretty good sometimes. Nothing is broken on it yet.

Depends on what you want it for. If you never need to hear your voice thru headphones, it's good for a cheap mic.

Lots of FAQs on the website, I haven't tried to get ahold them yet some I'll rate them right down the middle for not addressing the latency issues clear enough,

I was truly impressed with the sound quality of the vocals i recorded using this mic!! i used to own a behringer b-1 and i honestly NEVER got the sound quality i did with that as i did using this special little mic.

Just plug it into your usb port and your basically set.

I've had it for a few months now and have yet to have any complaints. i've evend dropped it a couple times and i still get the same sound quality when recording with it.

Well worth the price. so inexpensive, yet you'll get the same sound quality as with a pricier model.

Don't have experience with Mics, but have done a bunch of Data Acquisition "stuff" for work and find this to be very noisy. I'm assuming I've gotten a bad unit and am returning it.

Easy to plug in and it just worked with XP SP2, but when I downloaded and installed the "propper" drivers the thing stopped working. Removed the drivers and it goes back to the noisy recording I'd previously gotten

I'm only qualified to listen

Classical

I am not qualified to compare the sound to other condensor mics, but I can having gone from a bad Logitech headset to this was a huge improvement. I don't get huge amounts of static especially in silence like I used to. I use it for narrating training videos and other voice projects. I don't use it for singing or music so I could rate it for that. As the owner's manual suggested turning the microphone 30 degrees really reduced the sound problems with the "P" sound.

Really a slick product. It does almost the same thing as a mixer board, condensor microphone and sound card. It is powered through the USB cable so you don't even need batteries or a power cord.

I was really impressed. It is actually quite heavy with not to much plastic. I think it should hold up well for several years. The software could use some improvements. The software is very important because it is how you control the gain and the filtering.

Best value out there. For $10 more then the non usb version. I would easily be over $200 if I used a mixer board and a sound card. The "Snowball" microphone is only other USB microphone I know of and it costs $140. The picture doesn't show it but you can mounting to a microphone stand either USA or European style. It includes a bag for the microphone.

If you are unhappy with your sound using a cheap microphone. You have to buy this. You will notice an improvement immediately.

The sound of it is quite airy but doesn't pick up too much background noise. That is without a vocal booth. The sound is almost like a complete replication of your voice, that is what i like about it.

The most useful feature is the unscrewable bottom to mount it to the shock mount. I also like the little green led light to let you know that it is plugged in and active. I wish it had the feature to let u choose the noise pick up pattern. I bought the optional shockmount and it's great.

The shell is very strong, but i'm not sure if there are any components inside that can come loose easily.

Aspiring artist and producer

Rap/Hip Hop

This is a good mic. I believe the previous reviewer is completely missing the reason why mics sound warm. A good mic through a cheap horrible preamp and a cheap horrible compressor is going to sound like what? a cheap horrible recording. The warmth is in the preamp and the compression. This microphone bypasses the use of a preamp and an outboard compressor...but that doesn't make it magical. To get a warm sound out of this mic, just like ANY other mic, you need to use good effects processing. I have several microphones including an iFet7, a pair of Earthworks and two incredible Neumann microphones. The Neumann is only as good as the hardware you record it with. It's not magical either. With this Samson USB mic you need to process it with some good quality software or DSP card effects. Sony Oxford plugins, Waves plugins, Voxengo Plugins. They're all good choices.

It doesn't come with much at all. The microphone package comes with no software and a small soft-case. they're supposedly releasing some software for it soon that will add a few basic goodies.

no complaints here. Seems sturdy all around.

was worth the price. The price is nearly nothing.

I don't call customer service from any company. I can handle problems and sofar I haven't had any with this Mic.

USB condensor Mic. that's awesome.

Music Producer

Orchestral, Breaks, Big Beat, Electronic