I have to work in very noisy environments such as near construction sites, near very loud music or highways, and due to the nature of my job I need to be in a lot of online meetings.

I need a clip microphone with a really good noise cancellation feature that would filter all of the noise out leaving only my voice.

Any recommendations? I’ve found Hollyland Lark M2 but it seems it lets a lot of noise through anyway.

  • Walking Coffin@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
    3·
    3 months ago

    While browsing a few years back, I found myself buying the Blue Snowball. While many headsets now include good microphones, I chose this one because it was (and still is) cheap and of good enough quality for regular use.

    As for the input settings, that might be tough if you have no experience with it. Depending on your laptop’s OS and the wide range of software it might be tough.

    Before any audio settings in place, test out your audio with:

    • a microphone,
    • a physical filter (some uses socks, its not recommended but it’s just to give you an idea of what it is),
    • a room with as much noise reduction as possible (thick curtains/room with a good amount of furniture/sound absorbant panels, all of those can help).

    Chances are, the noise will still be too much and you will want some artificial changes from softwares afterwards, but the more you dampen the noise, the less tweaks you will have to do in the software making it easier while also not ruining the audio too much with software filters.

    If you’re willing to tell me what OS you will use with that laptop I can try and see what could potentially work on there without just telling you xyz software and giving you random values you have no informations on. Sometimes, simple OS audio configurations can do as much as some advertised software.

    • SurpriZe@lemm.eeOP
      2·
      3 months ago

      Thanks for the effort!

      Why wouldn’t I just use Krispy or Neep in this case? After researching for so long I feel like that’s the only real option left.

      • Walking Coffin@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
        3·
        3 months ago

        It is a solution. I prefer to know exactly how my software is doing things and prefer to set every settings myself. While that isn’t something I recommend most do due to time constraint, I also forgot that those tools are implemented in a lot of big applications making use of video/audio calls. If it suits your needs and find no issue using them, go for it. It will indeed help tremendously. The tips to dampen the noise in the room you are in still applies. Noise cancelling tools like so need to distort the audio the more ambiant sounds there are and the volume they’re at. The louder an environment is, the more your audio will be distorted and the worst the quality will get. Nowadays, we are at a point where it shouldn’t matter too much because of how well those tools processes the audio so it should be fine. Just keep it in mind.

        In the end that wasn’t all that useful but I hope you’ll manage to have good calls with an audio that fits your needs and liking.

        • SurpriZe@lemm.eeOP
          2·
          3 months ago

          Thank you. It’s rare to see such help from a total stranger on the web these days! I appreciate it.

          My need is to use the mic with my laptop on the go wherever I am, which could be cafes or loud environments.

          I’m looking for a pair of in-ear earbuds with a good mic, maybe even without much noise cancellation but a good option in general. Any recommendations?

          • Walking Coffin@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
            2·
            3 months ago

            In the case of your laptop and microphone together while being on the go, a “small” microphone and somewhat cheap would indeed be best like I said previously. If you’re outside, I wouldn’t bring some equipment that attracks too much attention to you for sure.

            As for in-ear earbuds, the only good options I’m aware of do not offer any microphones. The cheapest and only ones that I can think of are the old (now retired) apple standard earbuds. However the mic isn’t that “good” per say and I doubt many places still have a stock of them.

            • SurpriZe@lemm.eeOP
              1·
              3 months ago

              Any specific microphones come to mind? I found the MoveMic by Shure but it’s way over my budget.

              • Walking Coffin@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
                1·
                3 months ago

                I haven’t tested many microphones since I quickly settled on the current one I have, the Blue Snowball. Like I saod previously, it’s cheap and does well for everything I need. It comes with a small stand making it easy to transport and quickly set up. Only downside for what it is would be the shape. A round ball isn’t very practical while packing up.

                I cannot help further on the model of the microphone. If you go to a shop on-site they may let you test some of them. If they do, chances are you can also see how much noise around you gets picked up. You could also look at some reviews and buy online by some big marketplace like Amazon where you’re sure to be able to return the product if you’re unhappy, without having to spend extra for returning it. By experience, you won’t get in any trouble if you buy and return a few of them right after.