Customer Ratings & Reviews

This Samson microphone impressed me. Out of the box it has a very solid and high quality feel. One of the best things about it is that it can be used via usb or an analog signal path. This is great because no matter your level experience with high quality audio it is easy to use and connect to any recording device. This microphone can be used in any application to significantly improve audio quality. It is great for professional and amateurs. Whether you are using it for podcasting, voice overs, streaming, music recording, or just simply talking to people in a phone conference it sounds amazing. I would highly recommend this microphone to anyone looking for an easy to use microphone with professional quality audio.

not good. mic connection to stand failed and fell off my desk and now it doesn't work. the screw stripped with normal use.

Terrible! Didn’t work well at all. It picked up way too much background noise.

This microphone is impressive! From the moment I pulled it out of the box I knew it was a quality piece of audio recording equipment. It is very well built! It has a nice weight to it and feels very sturdy! The box came with two cables, one USB C and a USB to XLR cable. This microphone can be plugged directly into a computer or an existing audio interface. The microphone came with a pre-installed wind screen over it as well. The bracket that comes attached to the microphone is nice, but you will have to have your own stand to attach it to. This microphone is great for any recording need! Podcast recording with this microphone ensured clear voice audio with no distortion! This microphone is easy to use and will significantly increase the quality of all your audio recordings!

The Samson - Q9U XLR microphone is great for, and even for when I’m doing Zoom classes. I was looking for a new microphone for love-streaming and got my hands on the Samson - Q9U XLR microphone. It’s really easy to setup, the sound quality is great, and it really feels like the quality microphone that it is. I was so excited to get this microphone that I even went ahead and bought a new microphone stand. Make sure to get a stand that can handle a little extra weight, as the Samson - Q9U XLR is a little on the heavier side and may be a bit much for a more affordable stand. Overall, I am happy with the audio quality that I get from the Samson - Q9U XLR microphone. I would highly recommend it.

The Samson Q9U is a pro ready (podcasting, streaming) microphone in a sleek and stylish package. It comes with a swiveling yoke mount which allows for easy setup to a stand and can be balanced to stand on its own. The mic comes with an XLR output which you can plug directly to a mixer, but for those without such a setup, it plugs readily to your PC or laptop with USB C where you'd still get a high bitrate signal. The mic also has it's own headphone output so you can monitor it in realtime. In addition to that, there's a mid-presence boost switch and a low pass filter switch. I'm not quite sure the benefit of the mid-presence boost but the low pass did eliminate some bass from my recoring so I can see how that could be useful to remove some background hum or rumbling sounds and clean things up a bit. I used the USB-C output for my tests. Setup was dirt simple. Just plugged it into my laptop and it was immediately detected and available as a mic option. Sound quality was great, crisper and clearer than the mic on my laptop. For recording to youtube, this was a better choice. For video calls, there were a few instances where the built-in mic did better. That's because my laptop actually has two mics and does a bit of noise cancellation when it's selected for use. However, I've found some third party software that's able to make use of multiple microphone sources to perform this kind of noise cancellation/reduction so I may experiment with that to see if I can get the best of both worlds to make this a always on device. However, even on it's own, it does well at isolating noise not in the path of the mic. In that regard, this is a bit directional, so you'd want to be sure to speak with your mouth aimed at the microhphone.

The Samson Q9U is a wonderful feature-rich condenser microphone that can be used for a variety of purposes. Unboxing the mic, it is immediately apparent that it is well built with nice materials. It is made out of metal, with no plastic or other cheap material in site. Offering the flexibility of both a USB input and an XLR input allows the microphone to be used in a number of settings and different setups. I liked the convenience of being able to plug it directly into my computer when alone, but i could see myself utilizing the XLR input when recording with a mixer and a group. Speaking of the USB input, this thing is a breeze to set up. It’s plug in and play. I don’t even think I needed a driver update—it just worked. And it sounded great. One really appreciated feature of this microphone is the built-in output. Having a zero latency monitor while recording is super nice. I tested this against my virtual monitor and can confirm it eliminated that latency in my experience. The recording for broadcasting sounded great. I’ve heard my voice recorded on many occasions and I found this to be a very accurate and clear reproduction of my voice in a really high fidelity. Overall, I’d say this is a great microphone for any sort of broadcasting, including video game streaming, podcasting, and recording audio for videos.

I stream games on Twitch and occasionally appear as a guest on a podcast or two and that is the primary use of this microphone for me. It boasts excellent sound quality. Also, very easy to set up and use. Making adjustments on the fly is also convenient. I've previously with nicer mics had a problem of keyboard and mouse noise being picked up by my mic no matter how I set it up but not so with this mic. First mic I've tried that reliably could filter that background noise. Very strong, durable build quality as well.

As the description suggests, this is very much a plug and play microphone. Not much to the set up. I do not do a ton of recording, however recently my workplace has asked that I do video tutorials of certain job tasks and my headset was just not cutting it. My voice would cut out and you would hear all of the background noise. I live in an apartment so I needed something that could produce better quality sounds. I like this microphone because it cuts out the background noise and makes everything sound very clean. Since I am fairly new to this level of voice recording, I am still figuring everything out. When I am on Discord or just doing a simple voice recording, my voice comes through very clean but also deeper than it should so I'm not sure if I'm doing something wrong, my settings are off, or that's just the way it is. Samson has good customer support so I'm going to see if there is anything else that I can do to fix that. Overall I would say that this is a good buy for anyone that is streaming or recording. Samson has a great reputation for quality and support so this will not disappoint.

Background About 5 months ago now a friend reached out to me to see if I would be interested in starting a podcast with him because we both love the history of all sports. We both have previously done podcasts but never had an opportunity to do a podcast together. He has previous experience running and hosting a hip-hop podcast, while I had done an iOS development & security podcast starting back in 2010 for a couple years. Back in 2010 the equipment I used was very basic as was the equipment of my co-host. Each of us us were using a normal gaming headset with a built in microphone from our personal gaming setups. The gaming headset would pick up environmental sounds & so it made post-production longer for us than it should have been. While discussing the new podcast with my friend, he was suggesting microphones for me to get that would produce great sound quality, not pick up the background noises and also not break the bank. The Samson brand is one he recommended for me to give a shot. To be prepared, I had him send me some additional cabling & equipment so that when I decided what microphone to go with then we could hit the ground running. I am glad I did because when I saw the email come in that I was being offered an opportunity to test a Samson broadcast microphone that fit what my friend was suggesting, I immediately sign up for the opportunity to do so. Packaging The box arrived & was heavier than I was expecting. I did not think the microphone was going to arrive so quickly, so I was pleasantly surprised when I realized that it was my new podcasting microphone! Since the microphone has XLR (analog) & USB-C (digital) connection types they included a USB-C to USB-C cable as well as a USB-A to USB-C cable. The included cables look & feel high quality-definitely a nice touch! There is not a XLR cable included, so you will have to supply your own. They did include a foam filter as well. Microphone Design & Build As I opened the packaging up & took out the microphone I was struck by how sleek, elegant & sturdy the microphone looks. It definitely feels solid & has a nice weight to it. At a price point of ~$200 this is an amazing deal based on the build & sound quality (more on that later). The microphone has a swivel mount for mounting to a stand or an arm. On the microphone we have a mute button as well as buttons for EQ adjustment. It has a dual-layer windscreen and as previously mentioned it also has a foam filter. Lastly, of course it has the USB-C connection type as well as the male XLR connection type. Also on the microphone is a 1/8" headphone output so I can use headphones to hear myself, which it does well and without any latency. Setup & Testing Setting up the microphone over USB was a breeze! I plugged the microphone in and my Windows 10 Pro machine was ready to go instantly as there is no drivers to install. Next I switched over to using the XLR connection and the mixer my friend had loaned to me for testing purposes as well as to have for a while until I decide what my setup is exactly going to be. Both connection types sounded amazing on the testing tracks that I recorded to ensure everything worked as it should. My friend & I are both techy people. However, my friend has been much more involved in podcasting during this trend toward a more professional independent podcaster. Next my friend & I did some more test recordings using both connection types, however, this time with his help we also tested using the different EQ settings. We performed the testing both with and without the use of the included foam filter. WOW! It was shocking to hear how professional this microphone made me sound-it truly delivered that "broadcast voice" that I'm so used to hearing from others. Having done the previous podcast vs. hearing others' podcasts of today I felt even more like an amateur when listening back to my old podcast. Based on that, I was slightly worried about doing another podcast and it sounding...meh...at best. Granted this won't turn you, me or the dog into a world-class sounding radio DJ, a legendary sports broadcaster or even an award winning podcaster, but this microphone sounds great! As you can probably tell, I am super impressed with this microphone. Due to my tech geek side wanting to come out and play, I am wanting to try to use it on my work laptop the next time I have a video conference call that I can record to get a feel for how well it performs in that type setting. Also, I am going to give it a shot the next time my sons & I are streaming our gaming sessions. We don't have a huge following, but every little helps to boost our production value; which could mean a bump in our impressions, engagement & followers. Since they were about 6 years old they wanted to be gaming streamers & we have fun even if it is only for an audience of 3....us 3, of course, hah! Conclusion Right now, with us still just kind of beta testing the podcast before rolling it out fully later this year, we have been letting a few close friends that are hosting their own podcasts give our shows a listen. Between those podcasting friends, other (non-podcast producing) friends & each of our families, everyone has had great things to say about how clear, crisp & professional I sound. While I know that I am now older & giving this podcast more effort in upping the showmanship, I also want to give credit where credit is do....and that credit is for a really great dynamic microphone that has been made by Samson! They knocked this one out of the park . My friend is going to be getting a couple of these to have on hand, test with and I bet to even replace his current microphone with. Should you get this microphone? I'd say it is most definitely: yes! It helps to produce a great broadcast sound, is durable, is expandable as you grow your use of it via the XLR and USB connection types, and it is reasonably priced too!

This is a wonderful mic. Right away when taking it out of the box, you can tell that it is a very high quality product. It has a nice hefty feel to it, well-built. It comes with a USB-A to USB-C, as well as a USB-C to USB-C cable, which is nice. It has both USB-C as well as XLR outputs, and they both work equally well. Sound quality on this mic is fantastic. Voice comes in nice and clear while any ambient noise in the room is adequately omitted. I am a novice when it comes to this stuff, but this is easily the best mic I have ever used. It even include an on-mic headphone port for direct monitoring, which is great to be able to hear yourself while recording. Overall, this is just a really great mic, that has great performance, features, and build quality. You will not be disappointed with this mic.

I stream on Twitch and have used this microphone for a couple days in lieu of my Blue Ember microphone. I've always wanted to try out a dynamic mic since everything I've used to date have been condenser microphones. I'm happy with the sound quality I'm getting out of this microphone so far and feel like as I tweak things further I can get the sound exactly where I like it. Setup on the hardware side was insanely easy for me as I was just swapping one XLR microphone for another one. If you have an existing interface or mixer, this is just plug and play as you'd expect. I didn't use the USB interface for this but if it's anything like every other USB microphone I've used I assume the setup is pretty straight forward there as well. It comes with a USB-C to USB-C cable as well as a USB-C to USB-A cable so having the options there are really nice. Even though I'm not currently going to use the USB interface of the microphone, knowing it's there and being able to use it in the future on another machine if I need to is a pretty big draw for me. Sound quality is on par with my Blue Ember. I'm sure a pure audio snob might be able to hear the minute difference but I just found it easy to connect it to my mixer and adjust the microphone settings to accommodate a dynamic mic instead of the condenser and things sounded very similar. I feel like I'd need to spend a lot more time tweaking either microphone to get things better than they are. As for the Twitch side of things, since this is a dynamic microphone I can focus a little less on the noise gates and canceling out background noise like my keyboard and mouse even with the gain up pretty high. I would usually need to have my condenser microphone right up to my mouth and the gain pushed way down in order to eliminate a lot of that noise but there's so much more wiggle room with this microphone. One complaint I'd have is the lack of a shock mount. I wasn't able to find one for sale in my admittedly limited search and it doesn't come with one. Moving my mic stand/boom or hitting the desk too hard does come through on the microphone so I'll have to be more careful with that. Overall, though, I'm pretty happy with this microphone and will continue to use it and tweak it as my main broadcasting mic. Being a dynamic mic it's just a much better fit in the non-sound treated room I'm in. It does most of the heavy lifting as far limiting that extra noise so I don't have to rely as heavily on noise gates and other things to cover it up. It might be a tad more expensive than my Blue Ember but I would take the dynamic mic for my use-case over the condenser.

The Q9U is an awesome microphone if you are looking to enhance your streaming or podcast setup. It includes a cardioid pattern which is great for spoken voice, a headset output for monitoring your sound, custom EQ settings built into the microphone as well as a XLR connection to enhance customization and flexibility. My Setup: I occasionally stream on Twitch, and often talk in chat or discord, so I wanted to upgrade my audio to sound a bit more professional, or if nothing else, just sound good compared to a headset microphone. I have a microphone boom placing the microphone about 12” away from my face which is the maximum recommended distance. I am using OBS/Streamlabs to customize the audio to reduce the overall sensitivity by adding filters, as this microphone is very sensitive and picks up everything. There are two switches on the bottom which can help with EQ settings. The low-cut feature will help with a heavier bass sound. There is also a mid-slider which will boost the midrange sound. The manual says this is better for spoken voice and I would agree and have mine turned on. The USB cables are long and come with interference reducers to help with a cleaner sound. You will get both a USB-C to USB-C and USB-C to USB-A. For podcasting and a multiple mic setup, you will want to use a mixer. This is where you get a lot of flexibility with the Q9U. The mixer will give you a lot of customization, depending on the mixer, as well as a multiple microphone setup that can be easily managed for recording/streaming with, usually, a single interface to your PC for overall audio input. With the headphone input on the Samson, you will get feedback on your own volume levels as well as adjusting the audio levels of other microphones in the mix. This is great if you are part of a podcast where you might take your home streaming setup to a studio with XLR for podcasting. So how does it compare? The quality of sound you get from a professional microphone really makes a difference if you are looking at streaming, podcasting, or recording music. I notice my voice comes across clearer, crisper. You do not get a “compressed” or over processed sound like you do with some headset microphones. Samson has been in the audio industry for over 40 years so I feel confident that I am getting a great product, that I know sounds great, and will last me several years to come.

The Samson Q9U professional broadcast microphone is a great mc option for podcasters, streamers or even for a home studio setup. As soon as you take this mic out of the box you realize its the real deal. It has a solid build quality which is far superior than many mics at this price point. Samson generously include a USB A to C cable and USB C to C cable as 2 options to connect to your computer. The connection to your computer via USB C provides you with a 24-bit/96khz hi definition output. You also have the option of connecting it to your mixer via XLR. The mic also has a 3.5 mm jack so that you may plug in your headphones as a monitor. The mic has a Dual-layer windscreen pre installed so it helps reducing any popping or "plosives" that regularly occurred when I used a very well known alternative mic for recording. Without the help of any software the cardiod polar pattern helps to minimize any ambient noise in the room as it focuses more on the voice directly in front of the mic. The swivel mount on the mic can easily be attached to any standard mic stand. I had no issues attaching it to my mic stand however you should make sure that all of your connections are securely fastened because the mic is quite heavy and will easily fall over if your mic stand is not sturdy. Upon testing the mic via the USB connection and the XLR connection the sound quality of my voice recordings were far superior with the Q9U as compared to my other mic setup. I was actually quite surprised at mic's ability to isolate my voice as compared to my other mic which would always pick up my computer's fan in the background. You can also adjust the mid range and bass roll off directly on the mic and there is also a mute button on the mic just incase you have to mute the mic quickly If you are looking for a fairly priced broadcast mic then look no further than the Samson Q9U. It will make you pack up your current mic and put it in the garage.

I think the Samson microphone is one of the best mics I have ever used. My first impressions of the mic are that it is of the highest quality. It is heavier than I thought it would be. It has a groove so that you can mount it on a stand, but it actually stands up by itself if you need it to. I first used it for video conference calls. I switched between 3 different mics. The first was the PC's built in mic, the second was an expensive Plantronics noise cancelling headset with adjustable mic, and then the Samson. I held several calls switching over the mics and each person I called stated that the Samson mic was the loudest and most clear. I then started recording some videos using the Samson mic and it was actually kind of weird to listen to. My voice sounded different like never before. It was almost like I was listening to a different person. My voice sounded deep and smooth, I was shocked. I wonder if this was how my voice truly sounded or if was being amplified in a different way. Either way, it was so clear and it did not pick up any "fuzz" or interference. I am very pleased with this microphone and think it will serve me well in all of my applications in the future. I look forward to using it and cannot wait to record more content using it. I highly recommend.

This microphone is in a league of its own. The market is saturated with so many microphones for people that it gets difficult to find a good reliable professional grade microphone at a consumer level. One thing to take note of is that this is only a microphone. You will need to find a music or streaming stand or have one already.

This is a true studio quality microphone that produces crisp sound, with no distracting back noises. You can connect it using USB-C, USB-C to USB-A, or XLR cable. For most of us, all you’ll need is the USB-C. When I plugged it in, it was really plug and play. It worked right away with no issues. It does NOT come with a stand... but frankly I didn’t expect one. This isn’t a cheapy all-in-one microphone... this is truly a professional grade microphone, so if your buying this, you probably already have a stand or boom to attach it to, and if not, you’ll want to pick one out that suits your specific needs. You’ll feel the quality as soon as you take it out of the box.... you can feel the quality of the parts and the look of the matte black is really beautiful in person! I wish this had a LED or some sort of indicator light to let you know if you’re on mute. It’s not a deal breaker by any means, but that would really make this a perfect product! All that said, what you get for the price is a great professional piece of audio equipment. An easy buy to instantly up your audio quality in zoom meetings, live streaming, or broadcasting. This is an easy 5 stars.

Great product you should buy it! Good quality! Solid

Great for to go xlr route learn what interfaces too use

This mic is pretty bad when it comes to sound, i have it connected via USBc and it always has problems such as the user having a quiet voice. I have my friends constantly tell me to put up my mic even thiugh its always at 100% overall its not a teally good mic unless you screw of the top