Dynamic microphone

Microphones come in all sorts of flavors, but they can be broadly divided into dynamic and condenser microphones. Of these, dynamic microphones are definitely my favorite.

In a dynamic microphone, vibrations in the air move a diaphragm, which transduces the physical vibrations to electrical signals, which are sent downstream to a mixer or amplifier. Because these physical vibrations actually provide the energy the microphone needs to operate, no power source is necessary for dynamic microphones. Some manufacturers make dynamic microphones with an on/off switch. While this is effective in silencing the microphone's output, it doesn't save power because the microphone isn't drawing power in the first place. Really, the switch is just there to cause problems in a live environment when somebody starts to talk into a mic that is switched off.

Another great thing about dynamic microphones is how durable they are. Because the workings are fairly simple, dynamic mics start to look terrible long before they start to sound terrible. As long as the diaphragm and wiring are intact, an abused microphone will sound as good as ever.

Condenser microphones are troublesome. Instead of sensing the physical vibrations in a diaphragm, a condenser microphone detects the vibrations in an electrical field that it maintains. This makes condensers more sensitive and better at picking up very detailed, high-quality sound, but it comes at a terrible cost. In order to create and maintain that electrical field, a condenser microphone needs a power source. For some microphones, this means a pesky battery pack. Others can draw "phantom" power from the mixer. Additionally, the circuitry necessary to maintain the electrical field are much more delicate than the innards of dynamic microphones. If you drop a condenser, you've spent quite a bit of money very quickly.

For all of these reasons, dynamic microphones are better.