Blue Yeti Pro review

  • £209
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The Blue Yeti Pro is robustly built and suited to a wide range of situations.

MusicRadar Verdict

It might not be the most affordable unit out there, but desktop USB mics don't get much better than this.

Pros

  • +

    Quality sound; multiple pickup patterns; solid desk stand; mute switch.

Cons

  • -

    Not much.

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USB mics can be convenient, incorporating microphone, preamp and A/D converters in the same package - you just plug them into your computer and get on with recording. The other side of the coin, though, is that you're getting fewer options than with a separate mic and audio interface and possibly less quality in the case of a budget USB mic.

Blue's new Yeti Pro, however, ought to show none of the downsides as it offers high-quality A/D conversion with 24-bit/192 kHz digital recording resolution via USB and also has an analogue XLR output so you can use a separate preamp/audio interface route to your computer if you wish.

In Use

Looking like a miniature R2D2, the Yeti Pro can sit by your computer on its robust stand and swivel through a range of angles for recording, but is equally at home on a conventional mic stand.

Four selectable pickup patterns - cardioid, omni, stereo and figure-of-eight - courtesy of the mic's three condenser capsules facilitate tackling a wide variety of recording tasks such as an ensemble performance in stereo, backing singers clustered around it, and everyday vocal and acoustic guitar duties.

The captured sound is full-bodied, clear and precise and the inbuilt headphone monitoring system offers zero-latency monitoring with instant control over the volume level.

Trevor Curwen

Trevor Curwen has played guitar for several decades – he's also mimed it on the UK's Top of the Pops. Much of his working life, though, has been spent behind the mixing desk, during which time he has built up a solid collection of the guitars, amps and pedals needed to cover just about any studio session. He writes pedal reviews for Guitarist and has contributed to Total Guitar, MusicRadar and Future Music among others.