Rode NT1A

I know you weren't in the room when I recorded it, but it's exactly how my guitar and my vocal sounds in the room, and it's just a smooth, natural res...

And this microphone at $229 with the accessories that it comes with I think is an incredible deal. So the grade that I give the Rode NT1-A is an NT1-A...

Bro, invest in the Rode NT1 not the NT1A. Also, get the one with the custom black shield. The mic is a flat response/signal mic, meaning it captures your true voice when recording.

I have the NT1A and used it as a vocal mic, but it really shines through for me as a room mic (to capture reflections/ambience). That being said, if you're recording rap vocals, a dynamic cardioid microphone like the Shure SM7B or the Electrovoice RE20 (which I have) are better suited for the genre since they do a good job with loud volumes and an excellent proximity effect.

I haven't owned a solo, but I've had 2 2i2s (1st and 3rd gen) and I'm currently running a 4i4 using either a Rode NT1 or a NT1A most often. I've never used a Podmic, and it looks like they're significantly less sensitive than the NT-series, but I use all sorts of mics for every kind of application (I compose a bunch aside from podcasting) and the 3rd Gen Scarlett Preamps have been loud and clean enough for everything I've needed to do so far (I typically only go as high as 7/10 gain), and frankly, even if they're not, the signal-to-noise ratio is usually good enough that I can just normalize/compress/expand everything to a reasonable volume without sacrificing any noticeable quality.