Quote (nexcoor @ Apr 12 2017 01:21am)
Honestly, having a mic boom vs not having a boom is not even a contest. If you tend to adjust yours often (because of having other people at your PC, eating at the same desk or whatnot), getting a more expensive and higher quality one might be worth it, but otherwise I disagree with prioritizing it. If the boom can handle the weight, is the right size and is decently manauverable, it's already a long way towards doing it's job. Common mods such as the heavy duty Ikea lamp stand mod has been proven to do well and costs only $10 vs the $80 Rode PSA1.
As for FrozenGG and Rikuo's suggestion, the AT2020 (be it the XLR version or USB - at least the newer model, that is) is an extremely nice mic when it comes to audio quality, but also picks up every little sound in your apartment. If you don't live alone or live in a poorly noise-isolated house, it wouldn't be my first recommendation.
That's the point of having the boom arm, You turn down the gain of the mic really low & have the mic close to your mouth. So it only picks up you, not your surroundings.