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Electro-Voice RE20 podcasting mic review
The is designed for broadcasting and you'll find it in many professional radio studios. This dynamic mic sells for only $449, and it boasts highly accurate sound reproduction.
Why spend money on a good mic?
Your podcasting microphone is the best investment you can make for your podcast. The principle of “garbage in, garbage out” starts with your mic. A bad microphone produces bad audio that is hard to enhance. But a great microphone will produce high-quality audio that you won't have to fix.
Positioning with an end-fire microphone
The Electro-Voice RE20 captures audio from the end, not the sides. So it's best to speak 4–6 inches away from the mic.
If you have to turn your head, pivot around the mic so that you voice is always in front of it.
I recommend positioning the mic slightly off-axis, about 45º to your right or left, to prevent your plosives from hitting the microphone.
Built in pop filter
Plosives are the pops of air that come especially from the consonants T and P. Unlike most other microphones, the RE20 and RE320 have a built-in pop filter that does a good job preventing these plosives from being in the recording.
If you still get plosives with the mic slightly off-axis, then I recommend the .
Variable-D for reduced proximity effects
Electro-Voice's exclusive Variable-D effect reduces or prevents tone changes when you get extremely close to the mic or far away. This was most impressive compared to the Heil PR40 and Audio-Technica ATR2100-USB. Both of those mics had a serious drop in quality as little as 8 inches away, but the RE20 and RE320 both still sounded great.
Bass Tilt Down switch
The RE20 has a “bass tilt down” switch that marginally changes the dynamics of the microphone. It's essentially a bass-reduction switch.
Off (left)
A highly accurate representation of your voice.
* -3 dB at 45–80KHz
* Flat frequency response at 80 Hz – 6 KHz
* +2.5 dB at 6–14 KHz
On (right)
In case your voice is too booming, try the Bass Tilt setting.
* -4.5 dB at 100–400 Hz
Most accurate, professional sound
The Electro-Voice RE20 is $449, which is a lot, but I think it is worth it if you want a professional-sounding podcast. Since testing the RE20 and RE320, I've discovered just how much of a bass boost the PR40 (the over-praised “gold standard” in podcasting) gives. The PR40 also tends to make sharper S sounds.
Recommended accessories for RE20
*
*
*
RE20 vs. RE320, PR40, and ATR2100-USB
* The RE20 is a little quieter than the other dynamic microphones.
* Both the RE20 and RE320 sound great even 8 inches away.
* Side rejection is almost the same on all mics, but the RE20 seemed to reject the background noise a little more than the other mics.
* Both the RE20 and RE320 reproduced voice the most accurately.
Equipment used in this video
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* MacBook Pro (Amazon.com | B&H | MacMall)
View all episodes
By Daniel J. Lewis
4.4
77 ratings
The is designed for broadcasting and you'll find it in many professional radio studios. This dynamic mic sells for only $449, and it boasts highly accurate sound reproduction.
Why spend money on a good mic?
Your podcasting microphone is the best investment you can make for your podcast. The principle of “garbage in, garbage out” starts with your mic. A bad microphone produces bad audio that is hard to enhance. But a great microphone will produce high-quality audio that you won't have to fix.
Positioning with an end-fire microphone
The Electro-Voice RE20 captures audio from the end, not the sides. So it's best to speak 4–6 inches away from the mic.
If you have to turn your head, pivot around the mic so that you voice is always in front of it.
I recommend positioning the mic slightly off-axis, about 45º to your right or left, to prevent your plosives from hitting the microphone.
Built in pop filter
Plosives are the pops of air that come especially from the consonants T and P. Unlike most other microphones, the RE20 and RE320 have a built-in pop filter that does a good job preventing these plosives from being in the recording.
If you still get plosives with the mic slightly off-axis, then I recommend the .
Variable-D for reduced proximity effects
Electro-Voice's exclusive Variable-D effect reduces or prevents tone changes when you get extremely close to the mic or far away. This was most impressive compared to the Heil PR40 and Audio-Technica ATR2100-USB. Both of those mics had a serious drop in quality as little as 8 inches away, but the RE20 and RE320 both still sounded great.
Bass Tilt Down switch
The RE20 has a “bass tilt down” switch that marginally changes the dynamics of the microphone. It's essentially a bass-reduction switch.
Off (left)
A highly accurate representation of your voice.
* -3 dB at 45–80KHz
* Flat frequency response at 80 Hz – 6 KHz
* +2.5 dB at 6–14 KHz
On (right)
In case your voice is too booming, try the Bass Tilt setting.
* -4.5 dB at 100–400 Hz
Most accurate, professional sound
The Electro-Voice RE20 is $449, which is a lot, but I think it is worth it if you want a professional-sounding podcast. Since testing the RE20 and RE320, I've discovered just how much of a bass boost the PR40 (the over-praised “gold standard” in podcasting) gives. The PR40 also tends to make sharper S sounds.
Recommended accessories for RE20
*
*
*
RE20 vs. RE320, PR40, and ATR2100-USB
* The RE20 is a little quieter than the other dynamic microphones.
* Both the RE20 and RE320 sound great even 8 inches away.
* Side rejection is almost the same on all mics, but the RE20 seemed to reject the background noise a little more than the other mics.
* Both the RE20 and RE320 reproduced voice the most accurately.
Equipment used in this video
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* MacBook Pro (Amazon.com | B&H | MacMall)