Logitech Z-2300 Review - Among The Best Computer Speaker Systems

Contextual Background

For a really long time, and I mean reaaaaally long time :-) - about 7 years, we have had Yamaha's dimunitive computer speakers that have defined our music and video watching experience on the desktop computer sitting in the second bedroom. The experience, expectedly, has been so-so and ho-hum with nothing to write home about. Our nearest comparison benchmark for sound systems was the 2 year old high end speakers in our TV room hooked into a high end receiver, so our bar was set high. Having recently bought a widescreen 1080p capable LCD monitor, we were on the lookout for enhancing the audio experience for movies, games, and music we tend to watch and play more these days on the computer.  We looked at several sites and one speaker system kept coming back to us as the best PC speaker based on our research and that was the Logitech Z-2300 THX Certified 2.1 Speaker System with a Subwoofer

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Top Five Best Quality Affordable Microphones including Rode Podcaster, Blue Yeti Pro, etc.

Picture this - Your innermost desire for a long long time has been to produce a professional recording at your home recording setup. You have been wanting to showcase your talent to the world, be it family, friends, or relatives or to a recording label or to popular TV shows like American Idol. You have frequently put off that purchase of a high grade microphone as it typically had a high price tag and perhaps have had to settle for a cheap microphone with average sound quality. You are now absolutely ready to take that plunge and make that investment in an affordable high quality Microphone for your home recording.

But you end up spending enormous amount of time looking for a good value but high quality microphone for your hard earned money.

If this is you, this blog entry is intended to help you look at nicely priced microphones that really shine with quality and help you make a more informed decision quickly and acquire a good quality microphone at an affordable price. I hope this article helps you cut to the chase.

I have compiled a list of the Five Best High Quality, Reasonably Priced Microphones (including USB microphones) in the market based on their popularity, ratings, and preferred buying patterns on various websites.

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Blue Yeti USB Pro, Rode, Audio Technica - Microphone Stand

One of the frequent questions that comes up privately many times over the past months since I posted this Blue Yeti review, is about the recommended Blue Yeti microphone stand and for any other microphone you are using.  So I am adding content here to help folks on the lookout for this.

Blue Microphones Inc. does not manufacture a microphone stand other that the desktop stand that the Blue Yeti USB or Blue Yeti Pro microphone comes with.  But it does come with a standard threaded mount socket where standard microphone stands can be used. The options include tripod boom stands and desktop swivel stands.

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Blue Snowball USB Microphone Review : The most affordable high quality USB microphone

Contextual Background 
In a previous review, I covered the Blue Yeti USB Microphone - a product I consider to be the ultimate in professional quality USB microphones at the $90 - $150 price point.

After buying the Yeti, I had the opportunity to try out the Blue Microphones Snowball USB Microphone (White) - a retro looking product that preceded the Yeti, and one of the first microphones offering a variety of recording patterns with modern day specs.

Although I did not purchase it (given that I already had Yeti), I gave the Blue Microphones Snowball USB Microphone (White) a few tries to judge its quality and fidelity.

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Review Of Blue Yeti and Blue Yeti Pro - The Ultimate Pro USB Microphones At a Great Price - Look here For A Voice Sample

Contextual Situation

Up until now, my trusty Shure SM58-LC Cardioid Vocal Microphone without Cable, a dynamic cardioid microphone has worked well for my Home Recording needs. My need was for finer sound capture like a professional singer/voice over artiste, through a wider frequency range microphone.  I also needed the digital sound  to come directly from the microphone and not be converted from analog on the computer.

I had choices : a professional microphone or an external audio interface that would send in digital signals directly with a high quality output. However, good quality audio interfaces can cost quite a bit and my budget was limited.

Enter Blue Yeti and Blue Yeti Pro

Blue Microphones Inc have come up with two high quality multipattern Condenser microphones called Blue Yeti USB and Blue Yeti Pro Multipattern Condenser Microphone that make you love your voice, and your musical instrument sound unlike many other conventional microphones out there in this price range.

At the time of writing this article, I had purchased the THX Certified Yeti USB microphone from Amazon for about $25 less than most other outlets that sell it around $149.99 - I got it for $124.41 a little while ago BUT current prices are even lower around $100. You can get the Blue Yeti USB Microphone from here.

I am absolutely thrilled with the quality of the Blue Yeti USB Microphone compared to all the previous ones I have had. My review of the Blue Yeti microphone below is based on my experience with it in addition to how the Blue Yeti USB compares with the newest entrant, the Blue Yeti Pro Multipattern Condenser Microphone.

I have been using the Blue Yeti Microphone since early 2010 and I have to say this is probably the best microphone I have ever had. Read on below for why.

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