XLR vs USB on a budget

[NewbDavid]

I'm know that this question is a Ps4 vs Xbox or Mac vs windows type of question, but i have to know further.
So I bought my Audio Technica m50x's and I really love it and i want a mic to go with it.
I thought of the Modmic 4.0 or 5.0 even tho its easy and simple to use, I didn't like the quality that much which made me look for an actual MIC.
When looking at budget MICS i came across those 2 mics :
Neewer NW-700 + Phantom power supply
Blue Snowball ice
now people told me to simply get the USB one because how easy it is to use but i like to get things that last and upgradable for example : I would use the Neewer Mic for a while and if i feel like i need a better MIC i can simply purchase one and use the same boom arm and phantom power and perhaps when i upgrade the MIC i can get an Audio interface with it to also give my headphones a Slight boost
The snowball will cost about 25 more with a Boom arm and I'm really finding trouble to pick

 

[the nerd 389]

Why not get an interface to start with? The Behringer U204HD is reasonably cheap.

Regarding USB mics, I tend to avoid them, as they don't usually have the best quality ADCs, and, because they include additional parts for the USB connection, they don't offer the same value for money that you can get with XLR mics (not including the interface).

The best choice for you, though, depends on what you plan to use the system for. If you plan to record instruments as well as vocals/speech, XLR+interface is the easy winner. With this type of setup, you normally end up with a number of different mics with different applications. The simpler, better value XLR mics outweigh the higher initial cost of an interface.

If you only care about vocals/speech (but not gaming), USB mics honestly offer better value. They are cheaper than a single mic and an interface, and you'll only ever need one mic, as you only have vocals to worry about.

For gaming, the situation is fuzzier. The convenience/quality/consistency/SNR of a decent headset make it difficult to recommend anything else. If your on-board sound isn't giving you the SNR that headsets are capable of, you have to choose between a decent sound card and an entry level interface. That's not an easy decision.

 

[NewbDavid]

Why not get an interface to start with? The Behringer U204HD is reasonably cheap.

Regarding USB mics, I tend to avoid them, as they don't usually have the best quality ADCs, and, because they include additional parts for the USB connection, they don't offer the same value for money that you can get with XLR mics (not including the interface).

The best choice for you, though, depends on what you plan to use the system for. If you plan to record instruments as well as vocals/speech, XLR+interface is the easy winner. With this type of setup, you normally end up with a number of different mics with different applications. The simpler, better value XLR mics outweigh the higher initial cost of an interface.

If you only care about vocals/speech (but not gaming), USB mics honestly offer better value. They are cheaper than a single mic and an interface, and you'll only ever need one mic, as you only have vocals to worry about.

For gaming, the situation is fuzzier. The convenience/quality/consistency/SNR of a decent headset make it difficult to recommend anything else. If your on-board sound isn't giving you the SNR that headsets are capable of, you have to choose between a decent sound card and an entry level interface. That's not an easy decision.

Soo First of all I'm using a laptop (for now)
And yes i will be recording Vocals and some freestyle type of rap 😛
but i wont lie , i will end up using it mainly for team chat but that doesn't mean i shouldn't get good quality
so judging on what you said if i get the neewer Mic and an audio interface i would get good quality till i eventually upgrade the MIC right ? (note that i dont wanna go over 100 euros because i might end up not using the MIC for it's full potential.
so if i go with the neewer MIC i will have 45 euros budget to get an audio interface but will it be worth it for such a low cost MIC ?

 

[NewbDavid]

Why not get an interface to start with? The Behringer U204HD is reasonably cheap.

Regarding USB mics, I tend to avoid them, as they don't usually have the best quality ADCs, and, because they include additional parts for the USB connection, they don't offer the same value for money that you can get with XLR mics (not including the interface).

The best choice for you, though, depends on what you plan to use the system for. If you plan to record instruments as well as vocals/speech, XLR+interface is the easy winner. With this type of setup, you normally end up with a number of different mics with different applications. The simpler, better value XLR mics outweigh the higher initial cost of an interface.

If you only care about vocals/speech (but not gaming), USB mics honestly offer better value. They are cheaper than a single mic and an interface, and you'll only ever need one mic, as you only have vocals to worry about.

For gaming, the situation is fuzzier. The convenience/quality/consistency/SNR of a decent headset make it difficult to recommend anything else. If your on-board sound isn't giving you the SNR that headsets are capable of, you have to choose between a decent sound card and an entry level interface. That's not an easy decision.

But wait a second..
looking at the Behringer U204HD it looks like it offers an Audio jack for headphones so will that also improve the audio for my headset a notch ? and yes it looks like it would fit my budget
and will i still need a phantom power ?

 

[the nerd 389]

In order for the interface to be worthwhile, you'd need to either:
A) have bad onboard sound and a decent mic, and you're already looking to upgrade the card to make the best of your mic, or
B) get an assortment of mics down the line to have the best mic on hand for any given task.

If you only want a good sound for gaming, get a nice headset if you don't already have one. Don't worry about the sound card until you have a decent mic.

If you want to start recording vocals immediately with the best equipment you can get on your current budget (and don't care as much about gaming), go for a USB mic.

If you're willing to spend a bit more money now to get solid recordings so that you save money down the line (and don't care as much about gaming), get an entry level audio interface, and a solid recording mic. This will cost almost twice your current budget, but it will give you the best quality among these options, and will allow you to expand your recording arsenal as needed.

UPDATE: Interfaces normally have decent headphone outputs. Whether or not these outputs will improve the sound of your headphones will depend on what headphones you have. They also generally provide phantom power.

 

[NewbDavid]

In order for the interface to be worthwhile, you'd need to either:
A) have bad onboard sound and a decent mic, and you're already looking to upgrade the card to make the best of your mic, or
B) get an assortment of mics down the line to have the best mic on hand for any given task.

If you only want a good sound for gaming, get a nice headset if you don't already have one. Don't worry about the sound card until you have a decent mic.

If you want to start recording vocals immediately with the best equipment you can get on your current budget (and don't care as much about gaming), go for a USB mic.

If you're willing to spend a bit more money now to get solid recordings so that you save money down the line (and don't care as much about gaming), get an entry level audio interface, and a solid recording mic. This will cost almost twice your current budget, but it will give you the best quality among these options, and will allow you to expand your recording arsenal as needed.

UPDATE: Interfaces normally have decent headphone outputs. Whether or not these outputs will improve the sound of your headphones will depend on what headphones you have. They also generally provide phantom power.

So What i understood was : A good MIC requires an audio interface
Well how about this : I get the neewer NW-700 and the Behringer 302USB and if needed upgrade the MIC
does that sound good of a plan ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wzMSDJm3q8 This video futures everything i just said and it sound very good.

 

[the nerd 389]

There are good mics that do not require an interface. The good USB mics cost more than a comparable XLR mic, but dramatically less than a good XLR mic + a decent audio interface.

The mixer provides phantom power, but does not appear to allow you to turn it off. That's a serious strike against that model. As I mentioned earlier, the U204HD is where you should start if you get an interface. If you can't afford that, you think about how likely you are to get more mics down the road.

For the same audio quality, the tipping point for the interface (where it will cost less than USB mics) is at about 3 mics. More than that, and the interface + XLR route is cheaper. Less than that, and the USB mics will be cheaper. Again, that is if you consider USB mics that are the same quality as the XLR + interface.