Review: The Dark Matter Sentry Mic is a Solid and Affordable Jack of All Trades

A month or so ago, Monoprice released the Dark Matter Sentry Streaming Mic. This microphone was released to target the Blue Yeti Mic, offering similar performance at roughly half the cost. The team at Monoprice has been kind enough to send me a Sentry to try out for the past month or so and I have some thoughts. Thank you to Monoprice, but the thoughts below are my own. If you’re interested in the mic, you can grab your own from Monoprice now.

First things first, let’s talk specs really quick. The Sentry is a condenser microphone that offers cardioid, stereo, bidirectional, and omnidirectional polar patterns. It has a universal ⅝” threaded mounting point, connects to devices via a USB-C connection (USB 2.0 sadly), and has LED lighting to let you know this is a gaming microphone. The Sentry has a frequency response of 20Hz-20kHz and has adjustable gain to allow +/- 12dB as needed. It also comes with an optional spider mount for you to use if you don’t have a mic arm or other options. As of writing, the Sentry is down to only $74.98!

Before we get into the sound samples, I thought I’d share my overall experience using the Sentry. Overall, I really like the Sentry. It really was plug and play and I didn’t even have to adjust the gain levels of the mic outside of the built-in knob. Compared with a dynamic mic like the Samson Q9U, this is awesome. The button for changing the pickup pattern is very easy to access on top and works great and is able to clearly communicate what the pattern is simply with up to 4 dots on top. I love how easy that is.

Over the past couple of months, I’ve only used the cardioid pickup pattern for the Sentry, but the versatility allows it to have so much more potential. Doing an interview? Use the bidirectional. Doing a podcast with a small group? Omnidirectional is the way to go. All in one convenient package.

I do have a couple of complaints about the Sentry though. First, it has ‘customizable’ LEDs and that just means you cycle through five colors (blue, green, pink, yellow, white) which are persistently on. I kind of wish there was a cycle ability or breathing effect or even the ability to truly customize the colors available. Also, I was literally writing this article when I learned you can turn the lights off (except the light for the word ‘MODE’ up top) by holding the light change button on the bottom for a few seconds. My other complaint is the placement of the USB-C port. It’s on the bottom. I really wish they had put it on the back instead. It just makes it awkward on my mic arm because of how much a USB-C cable protrudes. This is the biggest complaint in my opinion and could’ve been a little better thought out in my opinion.

Now it’s time for the sound samples. You can go check out the sound samples for the Samson Q9U in that review which also includes the Logitech G430 headset mic and Logitech C270 webcam mic if you want a comparison. I first tested in the cardioid pattern with the gain knob set to approximately 9 o’clock, 12 o’clock, and 3 o’clock and then I went through the different pickup patterns at about 12 o’clock gain.

I actually am really liking the Sentry microphone and it has definitely become my go to for all my needs. What’s your favorite microphone to use?