V-MODABoomPro Microphone Detachable Flexible Boom Microphone for Headphones

As a non-gamer, I bought this for video voice overs, skype, podcasting and for use with my video camera. Now, I think this won't work with my DSLR or Canon Vixia video camera, because they require a "line level" input from a powered microphone such as the Vid-Pro lavalier microphone sold on Amazon, which takes a button cell battery and has a tiny amplifier in it.Cons:The 1/8" Y cable that comes with this is terrible. It plugs in very tight, and will never come out. But it feels permanent, once plugged in, and barely comes back out. I felt like I might break the cable trying to remove the 2 little 90 degree plugs from my computer. I would suggest buying a new headset microphone adapter Y cable, for $5 on Amazon that has straight plugs. The cord is nice and braided which feels nice, but it does create a little bit of noise when you brush it against a zipper on a sweater or coat. Not a big deal. The microphone picks up a very slight echo speaking into my custom cubicle style work desk, unless I turn it so the microphone holes are facing up and down, which completely removes any echo. The microphone won't work with my Scarlett preamp designed for large professional microphones.Pros:This V-Moda microphone sounds more clear and accurate than a professional XM8500 stage microphone I recently purchased, which sounds very dense, muffled and muddy in comparison to the V-Moda microphone. After seeing how tiny the V-Moda was, holding it in my hand, I was extremely skeptical that it could reproduce the Human voice properly without seriously distorting the frequency and tone like many other tiny non-powered microphones or cheap headset microphones.Well, the V-Moda BoomPro is not an ordinary cheap microphone. It was engineered by real sound engineers, because it blocks background sound better than my $100 studio microphone, and sounds almost as clear. The V-Moda is more a bass and mid range microphone, picking up the lows very well, without picking up the really low lows that cause distortion and muddiness. It seems to have just the right frequency response for picking up the Human voice. It does not pick up the ultra low rumbling frequencies or the ultra high shrill background noises. Somehow, the itty-bitty tiny little microphone that is nearly invisible, it records big booming sound, and reproduces my speaking voice with clarity and authority.The V-Moda is worth every penny, because it is as good as advertised.Observations and Technical Breakdown:The V-Moda doesn't reproduce the Human voice accurately. None of the microphones I've ever used sound totally natural. Microphones convert your voice into an electronic signal, so there will always be some kind of coloration of the tone of your voice, music recorded in the background, etc. The V-Moda is a little bit heavy in the low mid range area, and a little light in the high end frequency spectrum. It's designed intentionally this way to prevent background noise and to prevent shrill unnecessary high pitched sounds from being picked up by the microphone. I am perfectly happy with the sound tone of the V-Moda for Skype calls and phone calls, as it's nearly perfect. Using default settings, the V-Moda sounds more clear and less muddy than my Behringer XM8500 microphone, which was pretty shocking considering the size difference. I've heard many small microphones that sound so muffled and terrible that they are mostly useless .The V-Moda sounds very similar to my inexpensive studio microphone, an AKG P120 condenser microphone, which uses 48 volts and a preamp, a Scarlett 2i2 2nd generation.For video voice over work, the V-Moda is too mid-bass heavy for my taste. Surprisingly the V-Moda microphone seems to automatically block out frequencies below 100hz, preventing any heavy bass noises from ruining the sound. But if you want your voice to sound absolutely natural, you'll need to do some editing in a sound editor or use some kind of an equalizer. This is for people who are using this to make professional recordings. Now, again I was skeptical that this microphone could be good enough to make a professional recording. But indeed it can. You will need to do a little editing. I'll tell you how I was able to do it.First, you'll need a new computer sound card. Unless you you have a really good internal sound card in your computer, or a professional recording studio, you might get too much line noise from the cheap internal microphone port on your laptop or computer. Every computer is different. However, my laptop and my PC computer both have a lot of line noise when I use a microphone on the factory microphone input jack. I tried using the V-Moda on a Sound Blaster Audigy sound card and there was absolutely no audible line noise or hissing. This is called signal to noise ratio. Add-on sound cards that you purchase separately may be better than the internal sound card, so if you get line noise, I would recommend either buying a Sound Blaster Audigy (Open your computer and check for open PCI & PCI express slots). They make PCI or PCI Express sound cards. Or you can get a USB sound card. I found a really good PCI sound card that also doubles as a professional headphone amplifier. It's called the ASUS Xonar DG 5.1 Channels PCI Interface Sound Card. You can get it here on Amazon: http://amzn.to/2AVdJQmThis ASUS DG sound card is designed for headsets, it has a very high signal strength so it doesn't have any line noise, and it has a built in amplifier to power expensive headphones. People report a noticeable improvement using this sound card with headphones. The ASUS DG sound card actually has an adjustable output for different types of headphones, so it can work with cheap headphones or professional 600 ohm headphones which usually require an expensive external headphone amplifier. You can configure it for different headphone OHM ratings. I've never seen this feature on any other sound cards, especially internal factory sound cards.Sound Editing:Back to the V-Moda microphone. What makes a good microphone good is it's ability to maintain the information being recorded. If you lose certain frequencies or distort the voice too much, you cannot use sound editing to fix the sound. No amount of editing can fix a bad microphone, because the sound is lost before it gets recorded. The V-Moda handles sound editing extremely well. Again, I was shocked. It's not as good as my AKG P120, but it's close enough after editing, that no normal person would ever notice a difference. The V-Moda does cut off a lot of the high frequencies and it does boost some of the low-mids, naturally, due to its design. You won't be able to magically recreate the missing high frequency sounds, but for voice recordings, that's perfectly fine and even desired in most situations. High frequency sounds are rarely desired in voice recordings, and the most popular radio broadcast microphones today have a sound tone that is very similar to this V-Moda microphone, with muted treble.The V-Moda does't have an absolutely accurate sound tone, it sounds a little bit amplified in the mid bass area, but with some sound equalizer adjustments in a sound editor program, you can make the tone sound more natural, just by reducing some of the mid bass. If you just get a free program like Audacity, then you can record your voice, then edit the sound using the built in equalizer to get the exact sound you want. I am convinced that the V-Moda records with enough quality that you can safely edit the sound recording without losing a significant amount of the audio integrity.In conclusion:The V-Moda sounds slightly muted, slightly muffled, and slightly boosted in the lower-mid bass region. But it appears to be perfectly tailored to picking up the Human voice, and blocking out things happening in the background. It's obviously a very carefully engineered microphone, and is shockingly good for the price. Unlike other microphones which sound wretched and painful to the ears, this V-Moda microphone has a very smooth, very warm sound tone, that is very clear. I am so happy to know that engineers actually engineered this microphone, unlike 99% of the other microphones out there in this price range which appear to be random accidents, and have no ability to recreate the Human voice.You'll need sound editing to remove some of the mid-bass in order to make this microphone record more accurately, but with some sound editing, I think you can make this microphone sound good enough that you won't need to ever buy a more expensive professional grade microphone. I would consider this a professional microphone for home users and hobbyists. If you need something better than this, than I would suggest getting a dynamic microphone like the Shure SM57 with an extra heavy duty gray foam wind sock, a Shure SM7, or an AKG D5. Then you'll need a preamp like a Scarlett 2i2 USB, and a 15 foot XLR microphone cable. If you need super fine sensitivty and detail, then purchase a 48 volt powered condenser microphone like the AKG P120, and a microphone stand with a boom arm on it, then you can hear a pin drop, literally.You'll want to buy a Sound Blaster Audigy or the ASUS DG sound card if you are using a PC computer, if you hear too much white noise in the background in your recordings. Start first by turning down the gain, and looking for updated drivers for your factory sound card.Edit: 11/23/2017I received my Asus Xonar DG sound card for my 5 year old motherboard with a PCI slot on Windows 7. The sound card microphone input jack used with the V-Moda BoomPro is absolutely crystal clear, without a trace of any line noise or white noise. This V-Moda microphone sounds even better now, more natural sounding, and even more clear. I am shocked at how much better a $30 sound card can make the microphone sound. If you are having sound issues or having too much line noise, or not enough gain, try getting a new sound card.V-Moda vs. Golden Age Project D2 microphone. I bought a new dynamic professional microphone and tested it against the V-Moda yesterday. The Golden Age Project D2 sounds much worse than then V-Moda BoomPro. The same for the XM8500, which sounds much worse, but better than the D2. Again, I am so surprised. The D2 microphone was $150, but it sounds like you are speaking into a plastic bucket, compared to the natural clarity of the V-Moda. The V-Moda so far, sounds better than 2 other non-powered microphones I've tried which are far more expensive. The ASUS sound card is not perfect, it has caused my computer to lock up a few times with a blue screen, if I try to use my Scarlett Focusrite at the same time, to record multiple devices at the same time. It also takes a moment to begin recording when you engage the sound card, because it has to charge up the capacitors. The Asus sound card software allows you to do realtime "EQ" adjustment of your microphone input, and it sounds excellent, with an improvement in the high frequency response of the Vmoda mic, which, for the price of the sound card ($30) is truly amazing. With the treble turned up, the Vmoda sounds even more clear and crisp.Conclusion: Get a new computer sound card, and don't worry about buying a professional condenser or studio microphone. Get the V-Moda.

I've been shopping around for a replacement cord for my Razer Electra as 1) Razer no longer makes replacement cords (if they ever did in the first place, as I've never actually seen any case where anyone was able to buy one), and 2) the inline mic on the Electra was okay at best. The cord could lock into position in one of two ways: facing towards the user, and facing away from the user. If you weren't paying close attention, this was a pain the behind, as it sounds to other users like you're in another room.Thankfully the Electra uses a standard TRS 3.5mm jack on the headset itself, which opens up options to replace the cable. Since the Electra cables twist and lock into place, though, whatever replacement needed to have a fairly thin jacket/sleeve on the jack so as to not be obstructed by the lock mechanism.The V-MODA BoomPro fits without a hitch.In addition to having a well-placed boom, I now have volume control and a mute switch, both of which were sorely missed. I actually use my headset for conference calls and listening to music rather than gaming, so being able to mute/unmute quickly is a blessing. Sound quality is about the same as the standard Razer cord, but the cord's a bit longer (by about a foot), so now I have a bit more room to move. The braided cord is nice, though I kinda miss the silicone used in the Razer cord. It'd be nice to have a microphone button for Android and/or iPhone, but I don't use this with either, so it's fine. In the product image for the BoomPro, it looks like the plug has a twist/lock design. This made me a little apprehensive to buy this, as I figured it wouldn't be the same as the Electra's, but the actual product doesn't have this lock design. It's just a plain plug. While this was most likely helpful for me, it does show a discrepancy between V-MODAs picture and the actual product itself.Breakdown:PROS:+ Solid build quality+ Volume control and mute switch+ Boom mic is in a good position+ Cord length/strength is near-perfect+ IT WORKS WITH THE RAZER ELECTRACONS:- Price is a bit high- While the product image shows a twist/lock design on the plug, it's not present on the actual product- Cord doesn't twist/lock into place (wasn't designed to, though)- No included boom cover for pop stopping (I'm clearly reaching a bit, here)OVERALL:I'd give it a 4.7/5, but since we're dealing with whole numbers here, I'll round it to 5/5. It's good. And since it's one of the only options for the Razer Electra, it's darn near perfect.UPDATE (1/20/17):I've since been using this with my Status Audio CB-1 cans Status Audio CB-1 Closed Back Studio Monitor Headphones and this works out even better than it does with my Razer Electra. The recess for the cord on the left headphone cup is more pronounced on the CB-1s, so the adapter sinks in a bit further. What does this mean in the long run? The BoomPro ends up holding in place as if it were locked. That was one of the more annoying parts of using this with the Electras: the adapter would rotate freely. It was kinda like a "feature," as I could swing it away from my face when I didn't need to talk, but the stem on the mic itself is plenty flexible. The BoomPro still doesn't actually twist-and-lock in place, but it does hold its position. I DID have to use a bit more effort to get the BoomPro in the recess, and it DID leave a little groove on the microphone stem (I'll add pictures later), but the plug stays in place really well. I've only ever had it come loose once, and it was a pretty decent tug.So I'd say I'd bump this thing up from a 4.7/5 to a 4.8/5, but I can't do that as we're still dealing with whole numbers. Oh well.

Cheap, works, and is better than most gaming headset mics.