The Movo VSM-7 is an excellent studio XLR microphone. With a performance much higher than what you'd realistically expect from a $125 microphone, it's an easy recommendation for podcasting, live streaming, and pretty much every other demanding task where having a great-sounding microphone is essential. Sure, you can get even better microphones for significantly more money, but it's safe to say that most users won't ever feel the need to upgrade from the VSM-7.

Aside from sounding good, the Movo VSM-7 has a couple of other things going for it. It sports an all-metal design, which makes it sturdy and leaves an impression of lasting durability. I am of course unable to tell you how it's going to hold up after two, three, or more years as I've only spent around four weeks with it, but I can't imagine any of its parts degrading over time.

The built-in, large condenser capsule has three available polar patterns: cardioid, bi-directional and omnidirectional. Then there's the fact that the Movo VSM-7 comes bundled with two important accessories, which you'd otherwise have to buy on your own: a shock mount and a pop filter. Both do their jobs properly, as you can hear in the microphone performance section of my review. The microphone is even equipped with a -10 dB pad, and a low-cut/high-pass filter; both can be turned on or off via their appropriate switches on the body of the microphone.

If you decide to buy the Movo VSM-7, do take into consideration that you'll also need an audio interface to get it to work (and to connect it to your PC), as well as a microphone boom arm. Even if you go with budget options—a no-name boom arm and a basic audio interface, such as the M-Audio M-Track SOLO—the entire setup, with the Movo VSM-7 microphone included, will end up costing you around $200. This of course isn't a real drawback of the VSM-7 itself since these extras are mandatory for any XLR microphone. With that in mind, if your budget is tight and your demands aren't so high that a good USB microphone wouldn't suffice, the $80 Movo UM700 strikes me as a more reasonable choice.