Elgato | microphone | $129.99
Premium USB condenser microphone with clean broadcast tone and creator-focused software control.
Sample Rate: 48kHz
On USB mics, the internal sample rate affects recording quality.
Bit Depth: 24-bit
On USB mics, higher bit depth gives more dynamic range.
Frequency Response: 70Hz-20kHz
Wider frequency response captures more of the audible spectrum, from deep bass to airy highs.
Polar Pattern: Cardioid
Polar pattern determines where the mic picks up sound from. Cardioid rejects background noise; omnidirectional captures the full room.
Elgato Wave:3 connects straight to a computer over USB-C, so no audio interface or mixer is required to record with it.
At $129.99, Elgato Wave:3 is the 4th cheapest of the 33 microphones we list, which puts it in the lower third of the category by price. In the rest of the category the cheapest is Amazon Basics USB Condenser Microphone at $44.99 and the most expensive is Shure Super 55 Dynamic Vocal Microphone at $399; the median microphone price is $149. That is $269.01 below the most expensive option and $85 above the cheapest in this category.