I bought this with my own money. Every product here did weeks of my workdays before I scored it. If you buy through a link on this page, I may earn a commission. How I test
How I used it
I bought the original HyperX SoloCast myself in early 2023. It replaced a very cheap mic, and it was my first proper one. I have used it almost every workday since, on client calls and cold calls. It's always on. I've run it both through a USB hub and straight into the Mac.
What it gets right
Up close, it sounds good. When I speak straight into it from about 15 cm, my voice comes through full and clear on calls. That’s the setup where this mic earns its place on my desk, and it’s the one I’d recommend.
For cold calls, it’s the setup I want: the mic close, my voice direct into it.
The design is sleek. The top and middle sections look good to me, and I like how it looks on the desk.
What could be better
- It has to sit very close to your mouth. Once I moved it above my monitor, about 30 cm from me, people on calls said I sounded too far away, and some couldn’t hear me well.
- The distance problem is the main reason I’m moving on from it. The mic didn’t change. My setup did, and this one doesn’t tolerate it.
I didn’t put a different mic above the monitor. These days I take calls on my AirPods Max and my AirPods Pro 3, so the mic I talk into now is in my ears. I haven’t run a side-by-side test of how they sound against the SoloCast, so I won’t rank them.
Height above the monitor turns out to be the same argument on the video side of a call, which is why I wrote about using an iPhone as a webcam instead of buying one for work calls.
How it compares
The original launched at $59.99. HP’s SoloCast 2 came out in August 2025 at the same $59.99, with 96 kHz sampling and a boxier design. I haven’t used the SoloCast 2, so I can’t say how it sounds. If you’re buying now, compare the two on the features that matter to you. If your mic has to sit above the monitor, my microphone guide for video calls covers the boom-arm route.
Tech Advisor reviewed the original in 2022 and called it “a great first step into the world of USB mics,” especially for the price. In my use, the same holds with one condition: it has to be close.
Should you buy it?
Yes, if you’re on a budget, you want a dedicated USB mic, and you can keep it close to your mouth. It’s a good choice for cold calls and for anyone who talks directly into the mic.
No, if you plan to mount it above your monitor or sit back from it. Your voice will sound distant, and you’ll spend your calls asking people to repeat themselves.
Specs
These are the maker's published figures unless a line says it comes from my own use.
- Pattern
- Cardioid
- Bit depth
- 16-bit
- Sample rate
- Up to 48 kHz
- Weight
- 261 g (without base)
- Connection
- USB-C to USB-A, 2 m cable included
Final verdict
For my current setup, I wouldn't buy it again at today's price. That says more about how my desk changed than about the mic itself. It's a good microphone when it's used the way it's meant to be used, and it would be unfair to call it bad.
Buy it if you want a sleek, budget USB mic and you'll keep it close. Skip it if you need it at a distance. For me, it comes down to where the mic sits.
