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For the past few years I have been using my Sennheiser 363D for my gaming headset.
Unfortunately the mic got caught onto something and I snapped it.
Now, I dont want to purchase a new headset if I dont have to, so I was considering getting a desktop mic.
Some quick google search results show that Floureon BM-800 seems like a good budget choice.
Considering the price point, I was about to purchase it when I realized that apparently my PC might not be able to power the mic. Some recommend a $20 "48V phantom power supply" to go with the mic.

Now my question is.. do I need the power supply or is my desktop gonna be able to power it? I am using onboard sound from Asus Maximus VII Ranger.
Are there any other better "budget" options out there for someone like me who is only gonna use it to talk to people over voip and gaming sessions?
While I dont want to spend too much, I definately dont want a mic that will result in weak sounding voice.

Looks like you need something with a preamp designed to be used with professional condenser mics, or a separate power supply. This mic is not designed to be used standalone with a standard PC mic input.

I got the very same mic for the very same reason. The listing on Amazon was a bit confusing and said that a desktop could use it without phantom power... this is half true. My xonar D2X can just barely make things a good volume with microphone boost and 100% volume. My onboard sound just can't. If you don't need this right away, I'd say get the mic and try it out to see if it's too quiet and get the power supply if it is. Personally this is the best mic I've ever used, but then again, I've only used cheap mics and I failed a blind test of better ones. If anything else, the blue is rather striking.

Yeah, it is designed to be used with a 48V condenser mic supply. PC soundcards supply at most 5V to the mic jack -- barely more than 10% of the recommended voltage, if you're lucky. I'm surprised you're able to get a usable signal level at all.

Edit: FWIW it looks like recent Realtek codecs (I am looking at the data sheet for the ALC892) have a software selectable mic bias voltage, and can be set for 2.5V, 3.2V, or 4.0V.

just brew it! wrote:

Looks like you need something with a preamp designed to be used with professional condenser mics, or a separate power supply. This mic is not designed to be used standalone with a standard PC mic input.

Do you have any recommendations for the preamp? Or should I just get the phantom power and go with that?

Ari Atari wrote:

I got the very same mic for the very same reason. The listing on Amazon was a bit confusing and said that a desktop could use it without phantom power... this is half true. My xonar D2X can just barely make things a good volume with microphone boost and 100% volume. My onboard sound just can't. If you don't need this right away, I'd say get the mic and try it out to see if it's too quiet and get the power supply if it is. Personally this is the best mic I've ever used, but then again, I've only used cheap mics and I failed a blind test of better ones. If anything else, the blue is rather striking.

I'm gonna take this as a recommendation for the mic. Now I just need to find a stand for the mic.

rahulahl wrote:

just brew it! wrote:

Looks like you need something with a preamp designed to be used with professional condenser mics, or a separate power supply. This mic is not designed to be used standalone with a standard PC mic input.

Do you have any recommendations for the preamp? Or should I just get the phantom power and go with that?

I really have no idea. People who have more familiarity with current pro audio equipment (and interfacing it to PC soundcards) can probably suggest something.

A popular PC mic interface are the Focusrite products - something like this. In addition to phantom power, this contains a ADC and USB connection so it behaves as its own audio device, obviating the need to use your soundcard.

But if you only need it for a single, low end mic, then this might be overkill. And just getting a USB mic might be an option. Snowballs are popular choices - or this one for something around the price of the one you listed (though I have no experience with the latter).

If you prefer to use your soundcard, want something that doesn't require phantom power, and want a drop in replacement for you snapped boom mic on your headset, then the Antlion modmic is a popular choice (I think you can find this a bit cheaper if you look around).

Edit: That said, the obvious choice is to chuck your headset out and just get these...

$10 clip-on USB mic, like this. It's a gaming session, not Morgan Freeman narrating a $200 million movie.

Yeah. For a voice comm mic get something simple and cheap. Definitely not condensers+preamps+phantom power+XLR...

Or pick up a ModMic-4. It will be cheaper than the mic you selected plus the pre-amp/phantom power supply for it, and it will attach to your headset.

--SS

NovusBogus wrote:

$10 clip-on USB mic, like this. It's a gaming session, not Morgan Freeman narrating a $200 million movie.

You are right. I dont really need anything special as it is mainly for gaming sessions. That said, I am leaning towards a desktop mic rather than a clip on.

cynan wrote:

A popular PC mic interface are the Focusrite products - something like this. In addition to phantom power, this contains a ADC and USB connection so it behaves as its own audio device, obviating the need to use your soundcard.

But if you only need it for a single, low end mic, then this might be overkill. And just getting a USB mic might be an option. Snowballs are popular choices - or this one for something around the price of the one you listed (though I have no experience with the latter).

If you prefer to use your soundcard, want something that doesn't require phantom power, and want a drop in replacement for you snapped boom mic on your headset, then the Antlion modmic is a popular choice (I think you can find this a bit cheaper if you look around).

Edit: That said, the obvious choice is to chuck your headset out and just get these...

Lol at the cat ears headset.
I am actually getting pretty convinced by the snowball. Seems like a lot of people like those and havent really heard anything bad about them.
Since you have experience using those, can you tell me if in your opinion they will capture ambient background noise or eliminate most of it?
Also, my head might be a couple of feet away from the mic as I like to lean back into my chair when I play. Do you think it will still sound fine at that distance?
I have never actually had a desktop mic before so not really sure how much distance is acceptable.

meerkt wrote:

Yeah. For a voice comm mic get something simple and cheap. Definitely not condensers+preamps+phantom power+XLR...

Yeah, I got carried away for a bit.
Doing a bit more research showed me that while the mic itself might be "budget" oriented, the whole setup will just add up to too much money and complications.
Might just go for a simple desktop mic that can capture decent audio at 2 feet distance while having a reasonable noise cancellation to ignore the other ambient noises.