Roccat Torch Review

A good microphone is easy to forget about. Be it playing with friends or appearing on podcasts, there are tons of reasons to upgrade your audio quality. That being said, when we get so distracted with new controllers and the sound in our ears, we may not think about the friends, enemies, and strangers we play with. The Roccat Torch shows it's time to think about them. 

Roccat Torch - How does it look?

The Roccat Torch is a standalone condenser mic that comes with plenty of little toggles and features to get used to. It has its own stand and you just need one USB slot to plug it in. Coming with two USBs, you can plug it from your laptop into the stand and then from your stand into your mic. 

Color plays a great role both in the function and aesthetic of the Roccat Torch. Being fully black, it feels quite sleek but it has some nice built-in lights that indicate volume, mute status, and what mode it is in. It's quite a large mic, so having it on your desk may get in the way, but it's no larger than most mics I use, personally. I think, due to its price range and marketing, people may expect something a slight bit more compact, but that size holds some surprising functionality. 

Roccat Torch - How does it work? 

The setup for this mic is easy. Just plug it in, boot up whatever software you want to use, and you're ready to go. It may need some initial setup in regards to updates but nothing more. Perhaps one of the Roccat Torch's best assets is how many little toggles it comes with. There are three on the base of the mic, a few on the back,and a sensor at the very top. 

The left toggle switches between three central modes. The first option is one designed for streamers. Casting aside dynamics, it captures your voice from the front of the mic, intended to be placed somewhere while you talk. This is also a great mode for chatting to people while you play games or using it without having to hold it. It is also the default mode on the mic.  The second mode activates the stereo mode. This offers a more dynamic range with left and right audio channels. Essentially, if you're looking for a specific sound with unique panning, this should be your choice. It can be worse for a normal chat but pretty great for recording vocals. The third mode is designed with the ability to whisper. A rather odd but quite fun gimmick - this is decent for late night conversations. 

These can be toggled easily and come with their own unique lighting. Purple for the streaming mode, green for the dynamic mode, and blue for the whisper mode. I said lighting is important to this mic and I mean that. When you adjust volume, the lights toggle up and down to match it. If you mute it, the mic goes red. You can also mute the mic by hovering your hand over the top. Unfortunately, this may be a rather contentious design. Where I enjoyed the gimmick of it, my partner kept muting themselves midway through chatting, eventually turning it off entirely. Luckily, you can also mute it with the middle toggle.

The sound quality is really great on here with enough on-the-fly customization to justify that size. It has a dual condenser which leads to 24-bit audio. This allows a high quality sound with clear and defined playback. The great thing about its design is it's there to be used out of the box. It's not overly complex and its many modes often stop you from having to mess around with any of the settings yourself. If you're a new streamer or a long term audio fan, you are likely to get something out of this mic. 

Roccat Torch Review | Verdict

The Roccat Torch is an excellent mic at a great price point. It's clearly designed for those who want good mic quality and don't want to mess around with software to get it. With tons of built-in customization functions, a nice stand and great audio quality, this would fit nicely into almost any set up.  Now that multiplayer games are more popular than ever, a good mic is needed and the Roccat Torch has provided one of the best out there.

The Roccat Torch was provided by Roccat and can be purchased on their site now or via Amazon