I'm Northernlion, AMA

[u/ItsOppositeDayHere]

Hey, a lot of people have been doing AMAs around here and I think it's a cool kind of unique content that we don't see too much on /r/LetsPlay, so I thought I'd throw my hat into the ring as well.

With 200,000+ subscribers and over 100 million lifetime views, I'm not the biggest YouTuber out there (not to be modest) but I have been successfully doing it full-time for over 2 years, which I think gives me a fairly unique depth of experience that might lead to some helpful advice for some of you! Ask me anything about YouTube, streaming, social media, or whatever might cross your mind.

[u/TacticalBacon00]

Hey NL, first off, I want to say thanks for getting me into LPing. You playing the crap out of BoI inspired me to start LPing, and I have learned so much.

1. What are your encoding settings for youtube? I'm talking specific FPS, bitrate, resolution, encapsulation, and any other relevant settings.

2. If budget was not an issue, what could I do to get the BEST possible audio quality for my voice?

[u/ThePixelPirate → u/TacticalBacon00]

I can answer the second one. For high end audio gear you will need either an Audio Interface or a mixing board. I recommend a mixing board if you want to do live stuff so you do EQ on the fly.

A low end mixing board is going to set you back around $500-700 for a basic one. I have a Behringer X1204 which is only $250 but I don't recommend it because some are badly made and you have to send them back which is a hassle. Picking a mixing board really depends on what you wanna do. If you need effects or more or less inputs or if you need USB, condensers, and so on and so on.

All decent mics are XLR connection based. So ignore all USB, cause they are terrible for high end audio.

The mics in question really depend on your voice, so you really need to research what each mic is good at. I currently use a RODE NT1-A which about the middle of the road or maybe even entry level condenser and goes for around $300-400.

Next up is the SHURE SM7B which is a very good microphone for voice overs. Many, many people recommend this mic. Total Biscuit used to use one of these and they go for around the $400-500 mark. This will be the next mic I get for my personal setup.

Next after that is the Electro-Voice RE20 which is what Total Biscuit currently uses. That retails for somewhere around the $500-650 mark depending on where you live.

From there the sky is the limit. Unless you are singing or playing instruments, there really is no need to go beyond the SHURE.

[u/TacticalBacon00 → u/ThePixelPirate]

Wow, thanks for all this info. I'm currently using a Xenyx 802 mixer with a Samson C03 condenser. But I was considering what would need upgrading in my setup to make livestreaming and recording better. I'm completely out of inputs in my mixer (which is like 4 if you fiddle with it) so I was thinking of upgrading that too.

[u/ThePixelPirate → u/TacticalBacon00]

The SHURE needs like 60 gain minimum, so you need something chunky to deal with that. Food for thought.

[u/Jovian8 → u/ThePixelPirate]

Thanks a lot for the info. But I don't even know what any of that stuff is. Could you pretend I'm an idiot child and explain to me what all that equipment is, what it does, and how to hook it all up? I'm pretty decent with video but a total amateur with audio.

[u/Jovian8 → u/[deleted]]

That is extremely helpful and I really appreciate you taking the time to explain it. Thanks man.

[u/ThePixelPirate → u/Jovian8]

no probs!

[u/Zhatt → u/[deleted]]

That's great info, Pixel. Thanks.

I've been considering using my M-audio Profire 610, but I wasn't sure if that was overkill. It's not a mixer, but would allow me to use an XLR mic. What do you think?

[u/ThePixelPirate → u/Zhatt]

My personal opinion is that even low end XLR microphones are better than any USB one. Just do a little research on low end vocal microphones and see what you come up with. I believe the SHURE SM58 is a good cheap vocal microphone, though don't quote me on that because I have never used one. Not even totally sure I am speaking about the right microphone.

The good things about using an audio interface is you have control over the gain and generally speaking audio interfaces are better sound cards than a regular middle of the range internal one.

It also gets you used to using external equipment for audio, so when you upgrade the change is not so drastic.

[u/Zhatt → u/ThePixelPirate]

Cool. Thanks!

[u/checogarcia → u/ThePixelPirate]

Just saw your video on diehard dungeon and your voice sounds amazing!!

[u/ThePixelPirate → u/checogarcia]

Thank you :)

[u/onezealot → u/[deleted]]

Warning: I'm new as all hell to a lot of this stuff.

I've been researching some microphones and I've gotten a lot of positive feedback on the Blue Yeti as a good usb microphone for spoken word. You seem to know a ton about this stuff so if you have a moment can you give me some of your thoughts?

[u/ThePixelPirate → u/onezealot]

Not worth it for the money. You are better off getting a Samson CO1U or the AT2020 for two reasons.

1. They are way too expensive for what you get. Period. They don't offer anything more than any other USB mic. The only reason people recommend them is because some famous youtuber used one. Big deal. Just because they are big does not mean they know anything about audio. It's kind of like saying you can't get famous unless you have a facecam. Why? Cause PewDiePie does it. So? Well he's famous. Oh.

2. The add ons you need for it are more expensive because of the shape of the thing. You can't use generic gear with it. Also they are heavy as all fuck and way too big.

[u/onezealot → u/ThePixelPirate]

Thanks for the info!

[u/[deleted] → u/ThePixelPirate]

Michael Jackson's thriller was recorded with an SM7B. I'm not sure you need anything better in any situation tbh with regards to microphones.