Razer Seiren Mini review

Our Verdict

70%

This is a very basic streaming microphone, but it’s priced to match and its sound quality comfortably beats most on-headset mics.

As its super-low price would suggest, the Razer Seiren Mini is one of the most basic streaming microphones you can get from the big gaming peripheral brands. As such, it won’t surprise you to find out that it lacks any physical controls and has a modest spec sheet, but it’s still likely to be an adequate streaming mic for many gamers’ needs.

Razer Seiren Mini design and features

Its name gives the game away when it comes to the size of Razer’s new microphone. The whole unit measures just 16cm tall, with an address position of around 14cm. The stand also offers only a modicum of tilt of around 10 degrees, so unlike microphone that offer more tilt and allow you to at list angle the microphone towards your mouth, here you’ll need to raise the microphone up on something to achieve the right angle. That is, unless, you just remove the basic stand and use the 5/8in thread to attach it to any manner of standard mic stands.

While you miss out on physical controls, there is a light on the front to indicate that the mic is on, and there’s also a micro-USB port on the back for connecting it to your PC. Unlike most competing streaming microphones, the Seiren Mini doesn’t include a headphone output, so you don’t get live monitoring of your voice or the ability to use it as a quality headphone amp.

As you’d expect for such a compact and low-priced microphone, the Razer only includes a single condenser capsule, which produces a single pickup pattern. However, rather than the cardioid pattern of most streaming mics, here it’s a supercardioid pattern. What this means is that rather than picking up noise that’s broadly in front of and somewhat to the sides of the mic (while ignoring rear noise), here side noise is reduced even move, but some rear noise is picked up (as shown in the image below).

The assumption is that the only hardware that will be located behind your mic is your PC’s monitor, so it’s unlikely to contribute much noise. However, it’s possible keyboard noise in particular could be caught by this mic.

In our tests, the Seiren Mini did indeed have a slightly narrower pickup range, and it also picked up noise to the rear more than the other mics on test. That’s not necessarily a problem, though – the pattern that’s likely to be more beneficial to you will depend on your setup and usage.

Razer Seiren Mini sound quality

On paper, the Seiren Mini has what might appear to be modest specs, such as its 16-bit/48kHz sample rate, but this spec also matches the Shure MV7, for instance, which shows that these numbers aren’t always reliable indicators of performance, given how good that microphone is. In our tests, the Razer sounded reasonably clear and full, but it noticeably didn’t sound as crisp or spacious as more expensive options, though it far outclassed most on-headset microphones.

Razer claims there’s a built-in shock mount, but this didn’t seem to offer the sort of reduction in desk-knocking noises that we’d expect. Only the Trust GTX 241 Velica offers a true anti-vibration mount from the microphones we’ve ever tested, so the Razer is hardly alone in benefitting from a third-party mounting system.

Razer Seiren Mini pros and cons

Pros

• Decent sound quality
• Stylish, compact design
• Very low price

Cons

• No built-in controls
• Very basic stand
• Supercardioid pattern has limited use

Razer Seiren Mini specs

The Razer Seiren Mini specs list is:

Razer Seiren Mini price

The Razer Seiren Mini price is $50, making it far cheaper than most dedicated streaming microphones from big gaming peripheral brands. That low price is reflected in a very basic feature set and lower sound quality than most competitors too.

Price: Expect to pay $50

Razer Seiren Mini review conclusion

The Razer Seiren Mini is a very basic USB microphone that lacks any of the hardware controls that can make controlling a streaming or recording setup so much easier. However, it delivers sound quality that’s a huge step up from any sort of headset mic and it does so for a very reasonable price. You’ll want to upgrade it with a better stand almost immediately, but it makes for an affordable starting point for your audio setup.

While it’s far from the most outstanding gaming microphone, the Seiren Mini still makes for a great budget choice for gamers. That’s why it’s the best budget microphone for gaming on our best USB microphone guide.

Do you own a Razer Seiren Mini? If so, what do you make of it? Let us know your thoughts on the Custom PC Facebook page, via Twitter, or join our Custom PC and Gaming Setup Facebook group and tap into the knowledge of our 420,000+ members.