In a hurry? Here’s our verdict

If you’re a content creator looking for a vocal mic that won’t break the bank, the Podmic is a great pick. It’s consistent and neutral, and it gives you a flat and accurate reproduction of your voice that won’t get fatiguing for an audience to listen to long-term.

Rode Podmic review

Initial thoughts

Out of the gate, unboxing the Podmic was a lot simpler than the NT1. With no added accessories like pop filters and cables, the Podmic’s unboxing was as easy as it could be. It’s a shame that these accessories weren’t included, but with the built-in shock mount and internal pop filter, I found they weren’t necessary.

The feel of the microphone is immediately solid in the hands, and the swivel action on the built-in mount is really good. It looks a little odd with its slightly stubby shape, but its steel grille with the banded black chassis over it reminded me of a sleek modern take on the old dynamic microphones radio stations used through the ’60s and ’70s, which is clearly where it gets its inspiration from.

I plugged it into my Audient iD44 MKII interface and mounted it on a tripod stand.

Build quality

The first thing that struck me about the Podmic, even when I picked up the box to take it home, was how heavy it was for its size. Considering it’s less than half the size of my Aston Stealth, which is my home microphone, it’s considerably heavier than it. This is encouraging and immediately gave me the impression that the Podmic is tough.

Given its intended use as a podcast microphone, I wouldn’t have expected the build to be as durable as it is. I’ve used drum mics that have felt far more delicate than this. Between the metal of the swivel mount and the stainless steel grille, everything is smooth and feels like it could take a beating. If I could sum it up in a word, the Podmic just feels solid.

Design

The Podmic’s design is about as no-nonsense as it gets. No buttons or switches, no accessories. Just an XLR connector at the rear of the body and the attached swivel mount.

Clearly, being a broadcast-minded dynamic microphone, the closest comparisons to it would be the Shure SM7B and the Electro-Voice RE20, and these microphones are about four to five times the price. Great studio and voiceover mics by all accounts, and perhaps more versatile than the Podmic, but their price tags can be a pretty significant hurdle.

In a world full of USB mics that generally don’t persuade me much, the Podmic is exactly what I think a starter podcasting microphone should be.

The Podmic’s stainless steel grille has no give in it – at least as far as I was bold enough to test it – whereas some could very easily get dented and bent. As I mentioned, it seems to be taking its design notes from some vintage dynamic microphones that found popularity in radio stations back in the ‘60s and ‘70s.

Many of these designs have become less sought-after in modern years, with more current mics overtaking them, so it’s nice to see something throwing back to the more forgotten designs.

Tone and sound quality

The first thing I noticed about the Podmic was just how gain-hungry it was. This is important to note as it means you need a high-quality mic preamp on deck. Even with all the power of my Audient iD44 interface, it took about 90% of its gain range to get a good sound with a consistent volume and no clipping.

If you have your eye on a Podmic, getting something like an in-line preamp or a decent outboard preamp with a lot of gain on tap might be a worthwhile investment.

However, even at such high gain settings, I noticed just how low the internal noise was, practically not there at all, and it would have taken some very generous volume boosting past distortion levels to get it to a point where it’s audible. The ambient noise rejection was excellent, too.

The sound of the Podmic is unsurprisingly excellent for vocals. Essentially, the so-frequently billed “broadcast sound” tends to follow the path of scooped mids, enhanced bass and low-mids, and high-frequency detail to balance it out.

The Podmic has a steeper bass roll-off than a lot of similar mics in its class, but it has a far more neutral and accurate midrange than a lot of the typical similarly-designed mics, leaving my voice with enough body to not sound as boomy and uneven as some of the more extreme broadcast sounds tend to.

As I mentioned in my NT1 review, my voice is on the deeper side, and I noticed that the Podmic’s frequency response removed a lot of the rumble from my voice. This is something of a double-edged sword, as it makes things a bit less boomy and more intelligible, which is great, but it also flattened my voice out more than I would have liked, although this comes down to personal taste and how my specific voice sounds.

There’s still a very good bass response, so it’s not like I’m missing anything I need to hear. And if I want a slightly different sound out of the Podmic, its neutrality makes it easy enough to dial in an EQ that fits what I’m after. It’s hard to get any proximity effect on the Podmic, which is, again, to its benefit, ensuring that even if I get really close to the grille, my voice won’t become a boomy mess.

While I was on voice calls with friends and conducting speech tests, it seemed like it would have been great for long-term speech intelligibility for long-form podcast episodes. My friends even noted the difference in clarity between my voice, as I switched microphones while on a call without explaining that I had to try and see how noticeable the difference was.

I’m usually sceptical of internal pop filtering. I’ve used enough mics that claim to have it and still have issues with plosives to rarely believe manufacturers when they mention this spec. I’m sure there is some isolation within the microphone, but it’s often not enough to completely prevent plosives.

However, in the case of the Podmic, it actually was. Even when I got close up to the grille and emphasised the plosives intentionally, I never got that awful low boom that messes with vocal clarity.

I was pleasantly surprised by internal pop filtering, but I was also concerned about the potential for sibilance too, given that was my one nitpick with the NT1. It wasn’t an issue with the Podmic though, it handled sibilant sounds without any issue. This isn’t always an easy feat, even with some of the best microphones, so I was impressed by its consistency.

FAQs

Is the Rode Podmic a good mic?

The Rode Podmic is a good mic that offers excellent sound quality, durability, and value for podcasters and broadcasters. Its dynamic capsule ensures clear voice reproduction, and its internal pop filter minimises plosive sounds, making it a reliable choice for content creators.

Does the Rode Podmic pick up background noise?

The Rode Podmic is designed to minimise background noise. Its cardioid polar pattern focuses on sound from the front while rejecting noise from the sides and rear. This makes it ideal for recording in environments where background noise could be an issue.

Does the Rode Podmic need a lot of gain?

The Rode Podmic does require a fair amount of gain. As a dynamic microphone, it typically needs more amplification compared to condenser mics. Using a high-quality preamp or audio interface with sufficient gain can help achieve the best performance from the Podmic.

Final thoughts

So, the Podmic is unsurprisingly great at exactly what it’s billed for: a clear vocal sound for podcasting, voiceover, speech, and streaming alike. From my instrument tests, I wouldn’t use it for music, but it delivers a sturdy and robust package with a consistent and smooth sound for all kinds of spoken word.

If you’re a content creator looking for a vocal mic that won’t break the bank, the Podmic is a great pick. It’s consistent and neutral, and it gives you a flat and accurate reproduction of your voice that won’t get fatiguing for an audience to listen to long-term.