Today, we’ll look at two popular USB microphones – the Elgato Wave:3 and the Blue Yeti. to do so; we’ll look at different comparison factors, including ratings, performance capacity, and more.
The Yeti and Wave 3 microphones are highly rated among customers with easy assembly and use, but the Yeti features multipattern functions and specific effects that the Wave 3 does not.
Let’s compare these two great microphones in more detail.
Table of Contents:
Elgato Wave 3 vs. Blue Yeti – Overview
To get a complete understanding of how these two microphones compare, we’ll look at several factors that are important to users, including the following six:
- Customer ratings
- Performance specs
- Ease of use and assembly
- Software and effects
- Mic patterns
- System compatibility
Customer Ratings
Elgato Wave 3
The Elgato Wave:3 microphone has garnered a high average rating of 4.7/5.0 stars on Amazon, reported from over 4,000 customers.
Customers also indicate satisfaction regarding device sheerness, value, gaming use, and quality. However, the ratings are relatively lower when it comes to noise cancellation.
For these reasons, we give the Wave 3 a score of 9/10 for customer ratings.
Blue Yeti
The Blue Microphones Yeti has an average Amazon rating of 4.7/5.0 stars, but this is coming from over 40,000 customers. Customers also note satisfaction regarding quality, voice recognition, durability, and gaming use.
For these reasons, we give the Yeti mic a 10/10 for customer ratings.
How They Compare
There is more positive feedback for the Yeti microphone, which is why we’ve given it a higher score in this category.
Performance Specs
Elgato Wave 3
Regarding the recording performance, the Wave 3 mic features a maximum 24-bit/96kHz analog to digital conversion and an average 4.6/5.0-star rating for sound quality.
For this reason, we give it a 9/10 score for performance.
Blue Yeti
The Blue Microphones Yeti mic features a maximum of 16-bit/48kHz, and it has garnered an average of 4.5/5.0 stars for its sound quality and voice recognition capabilities.
For these reasons, we give the Blue Yeti a score of 7/10 for performance specs.
How They Compare
Both mics are rated well by customers for their performance.
However, we think the Elgato Wave:3 outperforms the Yeti mic due to its higher bit and sample rate, which supports higher sound quality.
Ease of Use and Assembly
Elgato Wave 3
The Elgato Wave 3 mic has various customer reviews noting that the included mixer software is easy to use, and so is the mic itself.
Further, the setup is quick and straightforward, and the mic controls for adjusting functions are beginner-friendly.
We give the Elgato mic a score of 10/10 for ease of use and assembly.
Blue Yeti
The Blue Yeti microphone also features super simple assembly, which the company notes takes only seconds to complete with the included mic stand.
Because of its plug-and-play USB design, it’s also super easy to start using right out of the box.
We give the Blue Yeti a score of 10/10 for ease of use and assembly.
How They Compare
Both microphones measure up to our standards when we compare the ease of use and assembly.
We think they’re both ideal options for beginners.
Software and Effects
Elgato Wave 3
The Wave 3 microphone comes with free and helpful mixer software that you download onto your device to amplify your gaming and streaming recordings.
This mic also features anti-distortion settings, sound effect plugins (compression, reverb, EQ, etc.), and Stream Deck compatibility.
We give the Wave 3 a score of 10/10 for its software and effects.
Blue Yeti
The Yeti mic features effects like advanced modulation and Blue VO!CE Broadcast vocal effects and HD audio samples in tandem with Logitech G Hub.
and all of these effects are accessible via the Blue VOICE software for recording and streaming.
We give the Blue Yeti a score of 9/10 for software and effects.
How They Compare
Both mics have impeccable software and effects.
But since the Yeti effects require an additional Logitech download, we think the Wave 3 software is more user-friendly and, thus, better.
Mic Patterns
Elgato Wave 3
The Elgato microphone features a unidirectional, cardioid polar pattern for precise audio capturing.
We give the Wave 3 mic a score of 8/10 for its somewhat limited, although high-quality, pattern offering.
Blue Yeti
The Yeti mic features four pickup pattern options: stereo, omnidirectional, bidirectional, and cardioid.
Whether you’re a streamer, podcaster, musician, or interviewer, this selection offers versatility.
We give the Yeti mic a score of 10/10 for mic patterns since it has so many easy-to-use pattern options.
How They Compare
The Yeti outperforms the Wave 3 in mic patterns due to its versatile selection of options.
System Compatibility
Elgato Wave 3
The Wave 3 microphone is compatible with PCs, Macs, Playstation 4, and Playstation 5. But it doesn’t perform specifically with iOS or Android mobile devices.
We give it a score of 7/10 for system compatibility.
Blue Yeti
The Yeti microphone is compatible with Mac computers if you also download Audacity. It’s also compatible with PCs and certain USB-compatible Android mobile devices.
We give the Yeti a score of 9/10 for its system compatibility.
How They Compare
Although both mics are somewhat incompatible with mobile devices, causing inconvenience for users, they both work well with Macs and PCs.
But we think that the Yeti is slightly more versatile in this area.
The Breakdown
After compiling our scores for the comparison factors of these mics, we found the following about which microphone wins overall:
| Elgato Wave 3 | Blue Yeti | |
|---|---|---|
| Customer Ratings | 10/10 | 10/10 |
| Performance Specs | 9/10 | 7/10 |
| Ease of Use and Assembly | 10/10 | 10/10 |
| Software and Effects | 10/10 | 9/10 |
| Mic Patterns | 8/10 | 10/10 |
| System Compatibility | 7/10 | 9/10 |
| Total Score | 54 | 55 |
The Winner – Blue Yeti
This comparison resulted in a close call, but overall, the Blue Yeti microphone won by one point.
The Yeti also outperformed the Elgato Wave 3 mic on several individual levels, including mic patterns and system compatibility.
While both microphones are great options for USB users, the Yeti takes the cake.
If you’re looking for a more affordable option, look at our Samson Q2U vs. Blue Yeti comparison.