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What is the Best Microphone for Voice-Overs?

When I started making voice-overs, with dreams of landing my first paid voice acting job, I had no idea how huge the market was for voice-over microphones!

Content with my wife's Red5 Condenser mic, I set to work in my bedroom studio, and created my first demo.

It did ok. I managed to get myself non-exclusive representation deals and landed my first ACX Audiobook Narration job.

As I had history with producing music, I didn't feel it too far a stretch to produce my voice-overs in very much the same way.

I used a wealth of post-production effects to engineer the heck out of my voice-overs, reducing the room reverb and signal chain noise, cutting out the low end frequencies that muddy-up the audio, adding a nice high shelf to put some top-end on the voice; and - for all intents and purposes - it worked.

Then my wife's Red5 died (RIP) and I needed a new mic fast. So I did some research, reading articles kinda like this one, to get an idea of what was the best mic for a professional voice actor to use.

I'm not gonna lie, it's a bit of a minefield! So I've broken it down to my best 3 microphones based on budget: high-end, mid-level, and cheaper microphones.

Best High-End Mic for Voice-Over

The legendary Neumann U87 AI Studio Mic

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This mic will set you back about £2,500 ($3,295) and you will be familiar with its crystal clear sound from many a Disney movie. RCA Studios have used these mics for years, and they are guaranteed to give you the highest quality sound for your next voice acting role.

The Best Mid-Range Mic for Voice Acting

My favourite; the Lewitt LCT 540 Subzero.

After the tragic demise of my wife's Red5, I quickly ran to Amazon and picked up an AKG condenser studio mic. It was cheap, and it sounded "okaaaay."

After a few auditions I knew I needed to upgrade the mic in my newly soundproofed booth, and the Lewitt leapt out at me. This mic is more sensitive than the human ear! And has great built in filters to cut off any nasty frequencies that can dirty-up your sound. If there's one mic I would recommend to anyone who is serious about getting into this voice acting game, its the Lewitt 540 S.

Best Mic for Voice-Overs on a Low Budget

This may be controversial, but due to trying to save some money I've gone for the Rode NT1A. The fact is you can get the Rode NT1 for about £240, and most agree it is the superior voice-over mic compared to the NT1A. But we're looking for low budget options, and for that reason, the Rode NT1A wins out.

With a price tag around £160 for a package including the mic, pop-shield, XLR cable, shock mount and dust cover. The mic itself has a decent frequency range and SPL.

If you're looking for anything cheaper, you may struggle to find good paying voice-over work. It all starts with the mic, but it by no means ends there!

Check my other articles on getting your home studio to broadcast quality, and choosing the right pre-amp for voice acting.

Thanks for reading, and best of luck with your voice acting career!

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