Blue Microphones Yeti

At nearly a foot tall and weighing over 3.1 pounds, the Yeti Pro is a beast of a microphone. If it were gold-plated instead of dull silver, it would look more like a trophy for broadcasters than a USB mic.

The microphone itself is a fat, 7.5-inch-long, bullet-shaped hulk with a silver body and a chrome tip, covered in three dials and a mute button and featuring USB and 3.5mm jacks.

The stand is a 7-inch-tall piece of nearly solid steel, weighted to keep the microphone from tipping over and featuring a very large, adjustable axle upon which the mic can pivot up and down.

Removing the mic from the stand’s axle leaves a handful of washers on each side that have to be aligned to replace it on the stand later. It’s not a device you can just pull off of the desk stand and set somewhere else with a click.

A screw-mount for use when the mic is off the stand sits on the bottom.

As a USB microphone, the Yeti isn’t suitable for a dedicated studio. For a home recording setup where you can’t afford a $1,000 mic, though, it’s a great tool.