Rock Band microphone in the wild for $50, Wii [update]

42 Comments by Alexander Sliwinski Jan 28th 2008 3:00PM
Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Rhythm

This bit of info is flying pretty close under the radar, but apparently the Rock Band standalone microphones are sporadically out in the wild. The picture above comes from a tipster at a Best Buy in Cuyahoga Falls, OH, who tells us the microphone is being sold for $50. We knew the standalone guitar is coming in April and the drum kit gets a beat on retail next month, but the microphone was conspicuously missing from that announcement.

If $50 for the "official" mic seems a bit much, just remember that a standard USB mic should be compatible. Still no "official" announcement on this microphone that has apparently gone ninja into retail.

Update: The packaging claims the mic is compatible with PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and ... Wii! Rock Band for Wii?! Not so fast, this could just be a standard USB microphone for use with games like – *shudder* – Boogie.

[Via Engadget, Thanks Arcaynn]

Tags: ea, harmonix, microphone, mtv, rock-band, rockband

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(Page 1) Reader Comments

Joseph: Jan 28th 2008; 3:02PM

great, love to sing this
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZOU8GIRUd_g

THE WICKER MAN (BWF) (GT: Dalek Prime): Jan 28th 2008; 3:08PM

$50.00!!!!???????

JJ Rooster: Jan 28th 2008; 3:26PM

DO NOT BUY THIS!!!

Get the same microphone at Dell.com (or .ca) for $15 dollars, with free shipping!
search "ps2 microphone"

I bought one, it works great.
This thing is a rip-off even at the previously rumored price of $30. Paying $50 for this is batshit crazy!

Lars: Jan 28th 2008; 5:33PM

I'd pay $50 if it had controller buttons on it so the singer doesn't need to use the mic AND a controller. People who like to sing always tend to hide the controller for some strange reason.

But if it's just a USB mic then WTF?! Any mic works, any headset, even bluetooth ones that come with cell phones.

Jeremy: Jan 28th 2008; 3:08PM

If you have the 360 Headset, you can just use that, so why waste $50?

F-Forward: Jan 28th 2008; 3:18PM

Oh, had missed that completely. So if I already have two GH-guitars and a headset, it means that I just could buy the software and play with that. And just the drums extra for the full setup?

baby sea tuna: Jan 28th 2008; 3:51PM

Correct.

Personally, I prefer a mic to the headset, but like the dude a couple of posts up said, any USB mic'll work.

shamowfski: Jan 28th 2008; 3:52PM

Yes, I picked up the game only used for 50.00 I think before christmas. Just use the GH III guitar and the 360 headset. The only problem is there are some tapping things, and some "saving" (when like the guitarist fails the singer can save him/her) events that don't seem to work very well with the 360 headset.

THE WICKER MAN (BWF) (GT: Dalek Prime): Jan 28th 2008; 4:15PM

Your guitarist sucks. :) I havent tried it but the manual says you just hit the a button on the controller for tambourine and hand claps.

bobartig: Jan 28th 2008; 4:52PM

How do you perform cow bell/tambourine hits with the XBLive headset? That would be the only reason to go with a standard mic. That, and if you're not into projecting your inner-Britney, you can hold on to the mic and get your singing on.

The $50 'Rock Band' price is ridiculous. As many have already posted, an indistinguishable mic (the RB mic is a rebranded Logitech mic) can be had for $20-30.

bobartig: Jan 28th 2008; 5:04PM

Buy.com, $17 + some hefty shipping, but $23 shipped.

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=10376669&SearchEngine=PriceGrabber&SearchTerm=10376669&Type=PE&Category=Game&dcaid=17900

Saneless: Jan 28th 2008; 5:38PM

The 360 headset's range sucks really bad. The quality for RB sucks really bad. And oh yeah, it lags independently of the calibration, making it near impossible if you have a slower refreshing TV.

But to hit the tamborine you hit A on the controller

License to ill: Jan 28th 2008; 3:10PM

$50 bucks! Does it at least come with some K-Y?

License to ill: Jan 28th 2008; 4:10PM

You are? Thanks for sharing no one cares...

Deck: Jan 28th 2008; 3:14PM

I could buy a new game for that.

Forget it.

oopogfe: Jan 28th 2008; 3:26PM

the last time i went to best buy i saw this, which was over a week ago, I just thought everyone knew about this, but ya it was 50

sparki: Jan 28th 2008; 3:36PM

JJ Rooster found a better deal than me. But the Logitech Vantage USB Mic is the same exact mic, and sells for $30 in your fav retal store. The only difference is that it's branded w/ the Logitech logo. The one I bought for my 360 was even labeled Playstation 3 on the box.. it works great, for my horrible singing and mad cowbell skills.

Yea, I may cheat and let my wife sing for me on the harder difficulties.. But I still rock the cowbell.

Eric: Jan 28th 2008; 3:39PM

Has no one here ever bought a decent mic? 50 bucks is cheap, go to guitar center and see how much a mic cost you there. I want to know how much they are selling the Drum sticks for?

baby sea tuna: Jan 28th 2008; 3:54PM

Yeah, but it's not like you're buying for a recording studio or a venue, you're buying it so you can sort of match the pitch of a background track on a video game. For that purpose, $50 is a massive ripoff.

Arcaynn: Jan 28th 2008; 4:02PM

The sticks were $7.99

turrican: Jan 28th 2008; 7:29PM

For drumsticks, just hit up your local music store. The ones in the game are comparable to size 5A.

Danzig: Jan 28th 2008; 3:41PM

The Logitech Vantage is not the exact same mic as this. The Vantage is the same one that comes in the Rockband bundle. This is different.

Game Artist: Jan 28th 2008; 3:41PM

Crazy. I figured this would be a $30 peripheral.

Eric: Jan 28th 2008; 3:42PM

20 bucks! for drum sticks thats dumb. there like 7.99 at music stores.

Leilock: Jan 28th 2008; 3:44PM

Purchasing a mic for this game is a must, however purchasing one for THIS price is a mistake. I tried playing with the default Xbox 360 headset and found it hardly picked up the singing and it was way off. We went out and purchased the aforementioned Logitech mic for $30 and it works like a champ. Friends don't let friends buy overpriced first party periphs.

Squeek: Jan 28th 2008; 3:44PM

What the hell.

This should be $50 WITH the game.

And here I was hoping I could get the Mic bundle when it comes out for Wii for $50 or $60 since I already have the Guitar Hero guitar.

deaftly: Jan 28th 2008; 3:49PM

Why would you want Rock Band for the Wii? It would just be a port of the gimped ps2 version. DLC is one of the best parts about Rock Band which the Wii would never get either.

baby sea tuna: Jan 28th 2008; 4:01PM

"...when it comes out for the Wii."

You might wanna make sure the room is clear of any furniture first. Wouldn't want you to hit your head on the coffee table when you pass out from holding your breath.

Squeek: Jan 28th 2008; 4:12PM

"While there has been no official announcement regarding a Wii version, when asked if there was a possibility of seeing the game on Wii, Rigopulos responded "Absolutely."[13]"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Band_(video_game)

I know, I know, I shouldn't hold my breath. But still, one can hope.

Squeek: Jan 28th 2008; 11:00PM

I know it's too late to note this since comments die the instant they hit page 2, but according to engadget, the top of the packaging says this microphone is compatible with the PS3, X360, and Wii versions of the game.

deaftly: Jan 28th 2008; 3:45PM

Ripoff... The xbox headset works just fine if you didnt buy the special edition. Found it out by accident because i thought i had a broken mic, didnt rtfm.

[.sm0ke.]: Jan 28th 2008; 4:09PM

The microphone is, if I'm not mistaken, a Logitech Vantage mic.

http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-Logitech-Vantage-Microphone/dp/B000ZRVT6W

It's $30. You're paying $20 more for the black plastic and the Rock Band logo. I have one and it works fine.

jayeffaa: Jan 28th 2008; 5:05PM

The microphone included in the special edition is a rebranded Logitech Vantage. The one they sell for $50 is a different model, supposedly a "premium" microphone. You can see in the picture that it's longer and has a rounded tip, instead of the flattened tip of the standard RB mic.

Still, the mic they included in the special edition is the only instrument that nobody seems to be having any trouble with. It's silly that it would be the first peripheral that gets the premium treatment. How about a premium drum kit instead?

Asystole: Jan 28th 2008; 5:49PM

Actually it isn't the same as a Logitech Vantage, you guys are wrong. The ORIGINAL mic that comes with the Rock Band bundle is the same as the Logitech Vantage. This mic is a much higher quality mic and looks different (although you can't tell from the picture, I have seen and used one in person). Not that you NEED a high quality mic for this game, but it is a better mic as it is much more sensitive and can pick up whispers and whatnot better. If you look in the "Read" link on Engadget you can clearly see it's not the same. Also as a side note, I think this new mic is actually manufactured by Pelican.

Marioarm2: Jan 28th 2008; 4:19PM

I work as a cashier at a Best Buy in NJ and now that I think about it, I remember ringing up a guy with a RockBand microphone but I didn't think anything of it at the time..

bounchfx: Jan 28th 2008; 4:27PM

Pretty sure the idea here is to GET THE BUNDLE. If you can't afford it all at once save up. don't buy separate~!

Rob Accomando: Jan 28th 2008; 5:41PM

How much are the drumsticks? $45?

Alex: Jan 28th 2008; 6:04PM

I USED TO LIVE NEAR THAT BESTBUY!!!

OTAM: Jan 28th 2008; 6:59PM

$50 for a mic?!?!!? How many bong rips did they do before pricing these instruments?!

I can get Smash Brothers or a million other games for that price!

wes: Jan 28th 2008; 8:52PM

@Saneless

The Rock band mic is not a crappy mic,I recorded my bands demo with it and have had nothing but compliments on the sound quallity...

Amber: Jan 29th 2008; 6:32AM

Um...

PS2 Karaoke Revolution mic = Rock Band mic. With a different label. Literally. So if you're not too worried about your mic not saying "ROCK BAND" on it, I would say search ebay for the PS2 Karaoke Revolution mic for a lot of savings.

skullivan: Jan 29th 2008; 3:16PM

That's INSANE! Logitech has been selling the exact same mic for PS2 for like 4 years for $19.99.

How much are those drumstick in the picture, $34.99?

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