Microphones are basic audio equipment to capture sound and it affects your sound quality too. There are actually plenty to choose from based on which seems to match your application the most such as Razer Seiren Vs Blue Snowball that are perfect for users who want to connect the mic directly to their computer. These microphones are convenient and sound really good so let’s see below about which you may like better.
In this comparison, we are going to talk about:
- How to Improve Your Mic Sound
- What are Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball
- How are the Design of Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball
- How are the Specs of Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball
- How are the Sound Quality of Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball
- How are the Setup of Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball
- What else Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball can offer
- Razer Seiren Vs Blue Snowball
Improving Mic Sound Quality
If you want to record an audio of something, we will need a microphone, a transducer that converts the sound wave into electrical signal and then transferring it somewhere else, in this case your recording device like computer or smartphone. The microphone works in a similar manner depending on what mechanism they use and the sound color of each microphone can be different based on how they are designed or manufactured. The best microphone will be the one that captures the sound as similar as possible to the source.
There are so many options to go for when you are in the market buying a new microphone. Almost any decent microphone will be able to work really well and it is wise to go for the best your budget can afford because it can mean a lot to the end result. However, if you already have a working microphone at home, we can still use them or even improve the recording quality. They may not sound like studio microphones but will still be pleasant to listen to.
When it comes to the microphone try choosing or checking the pickup pattern they are using. Most microphones are cardioid which means they are picking sound from the front side of the capsule. Options like the Yeti from Blue have an option to choose the working polar pattern so you can use it based on the recording situation. Cardioid is also popular among streamers but if you want the more natural sound, let’s say for instruments, stereo can capture more and produce a wider soundstage for your music.
Additionally, regardless of the microphone and its pricing, mic placement is something that is extremely important. It may sound unbelievable but we can fix the sound quality captured by a microphone just by putting it at different spots or adding some filter to it. For example those using the mic on a table, ideally the mic must be around 6-12 inches from the face and is slightly tilted upward facing our mouth. Another example is we can fix muffled low ends by moving the microphone away from our face.
On the other hand if your recording sound is washed out and not clear enough, we have to put the mic closer to our sound source while adjusting the settings. If you can spend more, adding a pop filter will make a huge difference too. This hardware is designed to prevent the popping sound caused by P or B sound and other consonants. The recording setup also needs to face the shortest wall of the room with the longer wall on our side if possible or re-arrange the room to achieve better results.
| Razer Seiren | Blue Snowball | |
|---|---|---|
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| Product Dimensions | 3.55 x 3.55 x 6.35 inches | 4.88 x 7.88 x 10 inches |
| Shipping Weight | 15.2 ounces | 16.2 ounces |
| Shop now at Amazon | click here | click here |
About Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball
Overall the sound captured by our microphone is both affected by the microphone’s design and the room or surrounding where you make the recording so we can actually make plenty of adjustments to improve the sound. It is not always convenient but doable or if you can spend the budget, we can get a more reliable microphone instead. Many of them are designed for specific use and we can match the application with the option, such as mic for speech, singing, or recording instruments.
In modern days microphones don’t have to be a hassle to setup because many already use USB cable or port to connect to your digital setup. They are more convenient for lots of applications since they are literally plug and play, combined with your recording or processing software. Razer and Blue are some of the famous names that are making USB microphones, mostly for streaming or recording speech. Their microphones are known to be both durable and sound good.
Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball are two variants you may want to consider if this microphone is meant to be used mostly for recording or streaming your voice such as for making podcasts or streaming your games. The two are pretty much the same when it comes to ease of use by being a USB based microphone. As expected they are also using cardioid as the polar pattern so the mic will focus on the sound coming from the front of the unit.
The most noticeable difference between Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball will be some of the features and some of the sound characters they capture. They are kind of similar to each other when heard in an instant but once you listen carefully the Seiren seems to be more balanced in terms of delivering the sound captured. The Snowball sounds good but for some people it may lack warmth yet, for clarity the two are impressive.
Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball Design
We do think one of the reasons why you will want to consider Seiren is because the mic is currently almost half the price of Snowball. With this fact you may guess that Snowball is made with metal housing like many of their popular microphones but no, the Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball are both made with plastic housing which allows them to be light and affordable. Out of the box these microphones already have a dedicated table mount for your table.
Surprisingly, while the microphone is made of plastic, this mount of Snowball is a very sturdy metal. However, worry not because you can remove them and use an arm for a more ideal placement if necessary. The microphones are plug and play with a USB cable attached to the computer to power the equipment. There is also a small indicator light at the front of these mics to make it easy to notice. Read also: HyperX Solocast VS Razer Seiren X here.
Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball Specs
Now for the most important part, let’s see what the Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball can offer starting from the specs first. The two are USB condenser microphones with Seiren using cardioid polar pattern and Snowball comes with two adjustable patterns; cardioid and omnidirectional. Seiren Mini has a 14mm capsule to record 20Hz to 20kHz, 16-bit audio at 44.1kHz to 48kHz in sample rate while Snowball is from 40Hz to 18Hz frequency range and recording at 44.1kHz 16-bit too using the digital input.
Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball Sound Quality
The Seiren Mini which is what we are comparing today is actually coming with a supercardioid polar pattern which should be less forgiving in terms of capturing the off-axis sound but can be slightly more sensitive for sound coming from the back of the capsule. In terms of sound character, they are quite different. What is noticeable is that Seiren sounds to be more natural than Snowball while it seems the latter is reducing the low to mid-range and slightly increasing the mid to high when in cardioid mode.
Things change between Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball when you adjust the microphone to work on its omnidirectional pattern because this mode creates a very similar pick up pattern to the Seiren and overall more natural. It can be highly subjective but the omnidirectional and supercardioid pattern of these microphones are balanced on the low and mid while also increasing the highs for a cleaner pronunciation so overall we do think they are ideal for speech in typical applications like streaming.
Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball Setup
As for the setup, Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball are very easy. Chances are you just need to connect the USB cable to the computer and let the machine recognize or download any necessary driver, depending on the operating system. The microphone can work with almost any software that you have in the computer and this is necessary since there is no setting or adjustment on the device itself for further tweaking so we need to do it digitally from the computer.
Razer Seiren and Blue Snowball Features
As for the features, these microphones are very simple and don’t need much to work but also don’t have much to offer. They are essentially plug and play so everything will mostly be related to the mic placement or the software we are using. However, as it has been mentioned above, the Snowball does have a 2-capsule design which lets you choose which polar pattern to use between cardioid and omnidirectional. They sound different so we highly recommend choosing based on which sounds better to your ears.
Razer Seiren Vs Blue Snowball
There are so many good USB microphones to consider and these two are some of the best choices to go for. The main difference is in feature because the Snowball is offering more to the user by providing both cardioid and omnidirectional polar pattern while Seiren Mini is only a supercardioid mic. The supercardioid sound is more natural and balanced, similar to the omnidirectional setting in Snowball so we do think this is an ideal setting for the mic.
Conclusion
There is no bad option here and you can go with any mics. If you want to have 2 different polar patterns, the Snowball is an ideal choice but if you just want an affordable mic that both sounds good and easy to use, we will recommend the Seiren.