You plug it into USB and sound like a pro. HyperX QuadCast 2 now costs under 2,600 CZK

The QuadCast is a microphone you see on streams so often that it has become an iconic piece of equipment. The second generation now costs 2,589 CZK with code ALZADNY30 instead of 3,699 CZK – and unlike XLR microphones, for which you need an additional sound card costing a few thousand, you simply plug it into USB and speak.

👍 Get it if you stream, record podcasts, or spend days on video calls and want to sound professional without additional equipment.
🤔 Hesitate if you have a cluttered desk – with a weight of 819 grams and a stand, the microphone takes up a significant amount of space.
💰 Price: 2,589 CZK including shock mount and stand, which are often sold separately by competitors.

Four pickup patterns and tap-to-mute

The biggest advantage of the QuadCast are its four selectable pickup patterns. Cardioid captures only you and ignores the surroundings – this is the mode you’ll use in ninety percent of cases. The bidirectional pattern suits a conversation between two people facing each other, the omnidirectional for recording a group around a table, and stereo for instrument recording. Thus, one microphone can cover a solo stream, a two-person podcast, and a meeting.

A practical feature that every streamer will appreciate: tap-to-mute on top. Instead of searching for a button, you just place your finger on the top of the microphone and it’s silent – no click that would go into the recording. You can also tell the status by the backlighting, so you won’t find yourself talking into a muted microphone for half a minute. It records in 24 bit / 96 kHz quality, which is above CD level, and there’s a 3.5mm headphone jack on the body, allowing you to hear your voice without delay and immediately tell if you’re crackling or hissing.

New to the second generation is an aluminum body instead of plastic and a USB-C connector with a three-meter cable. The package includes a shock mount, which is a flexible mounting that absorbs table vibrations when you hit it while gaming, and a desktop stand – with competitors, these are often accessories costing hundreds extra. On Alza, the microphone has a rating of 4.6 out of 5 from 37 customers.

What to watch out for

The QuadCast is a condenser microphone, which means it picks up sound more sensitively than dynamic models – in an uninsulated room, it will also capture keyboard noise, computer fan noise, or the echo of an empty room. The cardioid mode suppresses this significantly, but if you are sitting in a room with bare walls, expect that the sound will not be studio quality. Anyone recording in a noisy environment should consider a dynamic XLR microphone instead.

The second note is about space: 819 grams and a relatively large stand will take up their share of space on your desk, and the microphone will stand in your line of sight between you and your monitor. If you don’t want to deal with this, consider a boom arm that screws onto the desk. However, for under 2,600 CZK, it’s the easiest way to get decent sound – you plug it in and it works, without a sound card and without studying audio technology.

Do you care about sound quality on video calls, or is your laptop’s microphone enough for you?