While you’re waiting for the replacement copy of the Shure, would you consider including a connection method using Rode Reporter app as described in this video? I feel like the sound quality is degraded by wrong bluetooth protocols used by DJI and Shure when the iOS system connects them as regular heatsets used for phone calls as opposed to professional sound recording. There’s definitely something there to look into. th-cam.com/video/YrVZ-0EjRtg/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ZE0r_ak4BQUbTQNf
Just used the Blink 500 B2+ at a college to record a competitive presentation. It worked great from 40 feet away and with the speakers walking around. For $129 it was a nice backup system.
One thing might be worth mentioning in terms of feature and only DJI has this feature is the ability to connect via bluetooth to a phone and action camera without any adapters and wires, this is one feature that's super important for me as I can use the MIC2 across multi devices wirelessly. Great video!
I sincerely hope you never stop making videos, even if it's not camera gear because your open minded no BS approach to subjects is refreshing. As for these wireless mics one thing that drives me away from many new products is that they don't have replaceable batteries. I can't consider any of these devices a serious piece of pro gear when it likely will need to be thrown in the trash in 3 years. I will continue using my zoom F2 and syncing audio in post because it's simple and takes AA batteries so I'll likely be using it for years to come.
There's a cable notch behind the clip on the DJI mics. Loop the mic cable behind the clip and into the notch and it's basically the same. You can't pull it out. At least not without great effort or force, but it's definitely not just popping out from an accidental tug.
Professional grade mikes that are equipped with a locking ring might not even properly fit into the DJI plug without having removed the locking ring first.
Last week I used a DJI Mic 2 receiver with my Google Pixel to record some factory tours and interviews. I put a transmitter in my pocket and in the pockets of the people that I was interviewing and I ran Rode Lav Go mics from the pockets to the top of their shirts. We walked around the factories for hours and at no point did the lav mics get yanked out. I disabled the transmitter buttons and setup auto-record just to be safe. Accidentally dropping my phone and knocking the DJI Mic 2 receiver out was more of a concern. This happened once. Luckily the USB port didn't break and the receiver was fine. Perhaps it's safer to run a USB cable to the phone while it's in an aluminium holder instead of putting a DJI Mic 2 receiver into the phone USB-C port directly.
Brother thanks for this. I got the DJI-2 but I was thinking about getting a second system for less-critical applications. You saved me a lot of time and aggravation.
saramonic blink 500 b2 allows dual Bluetooth connection which can be an option for any disconnect you may have with your main connection. Connect one Bluetooth connection to your primary streaming device and the other Bluetooth connection to a phone you have on you. This way you will most likely not miss one moment of your recording time.
Ive reviewed one of the saramonic usbc mics and it was pretty good for the price. In your first test here the Saramonic sounded really close to the rode which shocking. Great review
To be fair, it could be that the Shure audio is even better than the others, but just not EQed properly yet. Much like filming in RAW or Log for video, the Shure may assume you will do processing in post. For example, it sounded like all the Shure needed was some EQ to boost high frequencies and it would have sounded equivalent to the other. It would be interesting to EQ and compress the output of all the mics hard to see which audio withstands it the best. It could be that the Shure audio is way more moldable than the others. Could be that it is not though lol. And also the other negatives you mention about the Shure makes it a no-buy for me anyway. Thank you!
What I like for Saramonic is the transmitter that you can put in the phone. I use my phone and a DJI gimbal and it has an awesome sound on top of that. Thanks for the review.
One thing about the test. I think the test should have been made with the equipment as it is delivered. The Rode comes with a Lav included. TWO of them actually. No extra cost. And I think few will argue that the rode - WITH the lav it’s delivered with - sounds the best, hands down, that’s not even a challenge. Anything about the sound beyond that is subjective. Personally I see the Rode WITHOUT lav at place two, behind the DJI. The cheap one is at 3 for me, and Shure last. But that’s subjective. The fact that the lav is included with the rode and makes it sound even better, is not. Yeah, the other ones don’t come with one, but testing it without the included lav is like saying: ‘rode, you delivering your mics with two lavs at no extra charge is your bad. Shouldn’t have done that, I won’t factor that in’. The lavs are mentioned in the end, but not the sound with them :-(
I’ve been using the Ulanzi U-mic for a while now and I like them much better than my Rode Wireless Go2s. They’re also the cheapest with internal recording. I’m quite happy.
This added a ton of value to me. I will be buying a Saramonic momentarily ^_^ Side note: They have a model with onboard recording which is awesome but the price of the one reviewed is soo attractive. Decisions decisions!
@2:34 Audio is not crazy and does not fail - wireless signals are crazy and THEY fail. You want a reliable signal go wired, end of story. But yes, if you just go wireless and don’t have a back up boom somewhere off shot, back up recordings are necessary.
The PicoMic system has smaller transmitters than the Shure; the receiver is larger though. But the receiver is also the dock for the transmitters, so you still only need one plug to charge, and the entire system still stores down very small. If only it had internal 32-bit-float recording!
Same here, Picomic user. My only gripe is the occasional random clicks. But having two mics mounted on camera hot shoe ready to be grabbed and clipped to a talent in seconds just can’t be beat.
I finally bought the Shure set, not because of this review (obviously), but because of Curtis Judd’s assessment of the sound quality and for the ultra long battery life. Also knowing that if I need a lav with internal recording I have Tentacle packs which can do that instead. I like the sound of them, but there are several big caveats that keep this mic set from comparing well with the other units in this comparison. Tops on my list is the firmware update process which feels like something out of the 1990s. Second would be the limitations of Bluetooth pairing. If you connect the transmitters with the receiver and then decide to use them with your phone, then you have to clear the pairings out manually then pair with the phone, then do the whole forget and pair routine again when you want to use the receiver. I suppose that’s the limitations of Bluetooth and now that I understand this I can deal with it, but the Shure set is at a level of complexity that most DJI and Rode wireless users will find ridiculous. Strictly speaking it’s not a consumer or perhaps not even a prosumer product, but with that said, the sound quality is excellent, and having the built in compressor is a huge benefit for quick turnaround recordings. Definitely worth the effort if you work professionally.
Awesome review. This definitely helped. Something I was considering that I think was missing was noise filtering. If it’s possible to test that in the future, that would leave nothing on the table in regards to what the Mics are capable of (or not capable of) . Either way thank you for this review!
A few things about the Shure 1) Regarding the range. There is an RF signal boost feature that you can select to extend the range. It's in both the receiver and the phone app. And they definitely talk about it in the manual, which you obviously didn't read. Most Shure wireless products have this RF booster built in because Shure pioneered this type of technology years ago. The reason this is an optional feature is because by turning it on, it drains the battery more, so they let you choose. 2) Regarding the audio quality. It's the worst sounding microphone with no processing. The thing is, you can apply processing like compression, EQ and a HP filter from both the phone app AND the receiver. ALSO, found in the manual. I've also heard plenty of You Tube reviews of this microphone that sounded better than yours by a long shot because the reviewers took the time to learn the product before putting out their reviews. They mentioned all these tone-shaping capabilities, they tweaked them, then they got the microphone to sound better. You didn't do that in this review. You just held it up to your chest and talked about how bad it sounded. 3) Regarding the price. If all it did was have the exact same things as the other mics in this review, it would be a rip off. But... - The fact that you can use one or two of the microphones by themselves and not even use the receiver if you use it with your phone. - The fact that the phone app can do both audio recording and video recording with these really nice mics as an audio source - The fact that you can use the receiver as an audio interface with your computer - The fact that there's a safe recording mode where it creates two channels that you can make very different volumes in case you have a part of your passage that clips, you have a safe redundancy at a lower volume. Maybe those features aren't worth $500 to you. And that's fine. To many, it won't be worth $500 because they aren't the target market for it. But your failure to even mention them is pretty lazy. This definitely comes across as a video that was put together in an afternoon and doesn't come across like a reviewer who spent weeks learning the differences between all these microphones. You usually do better work...
Thanks for doing the leg work on this! Great comparison with a wild outcome! Shame on Shure for using their name to bump up the price and slacking on the whole package.
Great video! I almost wished you included the Neewer cm28, which has internal recording. I'm really torn on the best budget set to get around$100, and your opinion would be appreciated.
Actually, 95% of the times I use the internal recording to take advantage of the 32bit float It is clearly a better audio file than the one that goes straight into the camera 🎥
Very helpful review. In this video I thought the Saramonic and Rode were the CLEAR winners in terms of sound quality. They both had a much fuller sound. The DJI and Shure both sounded very thin to me (not much in the low frequency range, mostly highs). Maybe this is just personal preference, however for me, I value mics that capture the bass in my voice and so that's what I was listening for in this video. I'm shocked at how good the Saramonics sounded ESPECIALLY at that price point!! Does the Saramonic has audio outlets for lav mics? (that wasn't mentioned in this reivew).
I loved the sound quality of saramonic, however I can never comfortably recommend that brand after 2 back to back failures. First unit died right after warranty period expired, I contacted them and had to pay for repair and was advised to just purchase a replacement. I bought a second unit that died in 3 months, I now have zero confidence in that brand, and it’s a shame because it was an enjoyable product to use while it worked.
I think that instamic should really be in this comparison. For me, it's an obvious choice as it is waterproof! No option for lav mic though (unless the new version does it via usb c??)
Are any of these mics good for use on a speaker that will be used outside? Looking for for a wireless mic (hands free, clip) that will be used to address a crowd of mayb 30-50 ppl
Have you tested/used Hollyland Lark mk2? ISO...wireless mike system for use w/DJI action camera on e-bike ridealongs. Compared to Hollyland, Rode/DJI/Shure/Sennheiser, et al...are high-end
Thank you so much for making this video. I wanted a portable mic to put infront of my acooustic amp while I recorded in my phone. I have a mic plugged into my amp for loudness and effects but my video content recording from my phone sounds a little ashed with my phone pointing at me from across the room. Now I can breath easy that I don't have to spend over $300 on quality external mics like the DJI but instead I just bought the Saramonic 500 B2's on Amazon and I'm excited to rerecorx some of my content to see how it sounds.
A couple quick notes. Mic systems for the US market cannot have both internal recording and transmission capabilities. One of the high end production audio companies has a patent. And about the Shure sound, it’s a fairly bright/ punchy sound which can help provide a cleaner result if clothing gets in the way but handheld in open air it might sound a bit harsh. Regardless I would most of the time prefer to have the brighter sound in post especially for spoken word recordings.
I am aware of this patent but both Rode and DJI are selling in the USA now. I'm not sure how they got around this. The Shure Mic does not sound the brightest to me, it flaw out sounds the worst. It almost sounds like a a lower bitrate or something with less highs and lows than the other 3.
@@FStoppers Have you posted the audio files? It’s always hard to judge sound details coming off TH-cam, especially today because I’m on the road and in noisy environments. As for the patent, I’m not sure what’s up with that at the present moment, but do the DJI and Rode mics allow you to transmit and internally record simultaneously or do you have to choose one mode or the other? I just remember Deity late last year talking about the need for a different SKU for the US because they could not include internal recording in their latest body packs.
@@waveland I heard someone talking about this patent (I think it was Curtis Judd in his review of the Deity Theos), and his guess was that Deity was allowed to do transmit/record in the Connect system because it was 2.4ghz, and Zaxcom (who owns the patent) only offers professional audio systems that are UHF, so Deity wasn't really competing against Zaxcom since it was in the 2.4ghz band. However, the new Theos system, which is UHF, competes directly with Zaxcom's own units, so simultaneous transmit/record is disabled in the US. In other words, that seems to be why Rode, DJI and others are able to sell record/transmit units in the USA - because they're 2.4ghz.
Honestly speaking, if you don't require internal recording or lac mic conection, I've found that the Hollyland Lark M2 are the most usefull. The footprint is just very small and their magnets are just great. Quality is not the best, but I sacrifice a bit of that for the smaller mic. Disclaimer, I have used the Lark Max and the DJI as well and are just too bulky for my taste.
@@PeterAlanJohnson The M2 actually have 2 channel recording, if you set them up in stereo, they record on each side the sound that each mic brings. I don't think they will add internal recording, it will make them bigger and defeats the purpose
@@MicheletDiez according to the M2 manual (Page 18)-it does not allow stereo with either of the phone receivers, (only when connecting using an analog cable to the camera receiver)
Hello! Thanks for this great video, I'm subscribing! Would it be possible to know which microphone is used to talk in front of the camera in your office/studio? 🙏
Seramonic was the DSLR Film Noob’s (fellow TH-camr) favorite brand for cheep but great audio equipment around the 2010-2020 time. I like DJI, but they are becoming yet another behemoth Chinese company stampeding over everything in their path. Let’s give the Scandinavian company Røde some love. They are an audio only company and they have a wonderful origin story.
Caveat with the saramonic blink 500 is it may not work. Brand new mic didn’t work on my Sony cam and just barely worked on my phone. I returned it immediately because I didn’t want to waste my money. Quite disappointing too because I actually liked the sound
Enforced mono is a problem with a lot of the newer systems (Hohem, Hollyland Lark M2, the dirt cheap $10 wireless sets on Amazon etc. especially using their USB connections)
Audio tests would be more usefull if you adjusted the level closer to the naration level. Like this, they all sound bad to me. I am avare you are using some much better mic for naration.
Probably there will be no notable difference. They all use the same digital RF connection protocol. So it is either full quality or no audio. The signal drop off test should be all you need.
@@Samtagri no notable difference between the sound quality of Lavaliers that come with some of the units, and just the receivers themselves? I think you misunderstood what I was saying. The Rode comes with Lavs that dramatically increase the quality of sound for the same price as some of them that only have to receivers.
Because a certain high-end company you know thousands of dollars high end per unit has a patent on recording and transmitting you are not going to see recording capability on anything in the US until that patent runs out and hopefully doesn't end up patent trolled more than it already is. Either their skirting the patent in some form or they're paying licensing fees.
You can't compare 4 different wireless systems all transmitting next to each other. Each one should have been recorded separately with only one set power on at a time. That's the only way to get a true distance and wireless signal quality. There's no real world scenario where this test would actually be practiced.
Hey man, I bought a Ace pro, with the cold shoe adapter, curious about microphones. Can any of these microphones clip into the cold shoe adapter or is the cold shoe adapter only for shotgun mics? And with the Ace pro maybe you know maybe you don't, can you not just connect a wireless Bluetooth microphone to the camera itself?
Update: Shure saw the review and they believe there is something wrong with my unit (lucky me) so they are sending me another one.
Yeah there is something wrong, the price and the audio quality
While you’re waiting for the replacement copy of the Shure, would you consider including a connection method using Rode Reporter app as described in this video? I feel like the sound quality is degraded by wrong bluetooth protocols used by DJI and Shure when the iOS system connects them as regular heatsets used for phone calls as opposed to professional sound recording. There’s definitely something there to look into. th-cam.com/video/YrVZ-0EjRtg/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ZE0r_ak4BQUbTQNf
hmm something wrong with the unit they say 🤔…“Shureeeeeeeeee" there was..
Too Late, Damage Done.
Why can’t you use MKE2 mic with DJI? What specifically? I have the MKE2
I'm literally coming to TH-cam to search comparisons for these and this is the first video that pops up in my recommended, man I love TH-cam.
You can trust Lee. He is smart and holds no punches back.
A.I. Bro! It's awesome
I call it the University of TH-cam. I've learned so much from good, ethical presenters like Lee!
Love the constant surveillance 🥰
They're listening... 😂😂
Which mic are you using in most of the video? The sound quality is perfection...
Just used the Blink 500 B2+ at a college to record a competitive presentation. It worked great from 40 feet away and with the speakers walking around. For $129 it was a nice backup system.
One thing might be worth mentioning in terms of feature and only DJI has this feature is the ability to connect via bluetooth to a phone and action camera without any adapters and wires, this is one feature that's super important for me as I can use the MIC2 across multi devices wirelessly. Great video!
I have the Saramonic Blink 500 Pro and it is fabulous. I had a Rode Wireless Go and I struggled to get it to work. No such problem with the Saramonic.
I sincerely hope you never stop making videos, even if it's not camera gear because your open minded no BS approach to subjects is refreshing. As for these wireless mics one thing that drives me away from many new products is that they don't have replaceable batteries. I can't consider any of these devices a serious piece of pro gear when it likely will need to be thrown in the trash in 3 years. I will continue using my zoom F2 and syncing audio in post because it's simple and takes AA batteries so I'll likely be using it for years to come.
You just saved me $500! Thank you sooooooo much for making this post.
Why are Hollyland Lark Max and Hollyland Lark M2 not on your desk for comparison?
Great system but my receiver's battery died only 2 months from purchase, they replaced it but I had to pay shipping to them
I've been using Saramonic non wireless mics for years. Very good quality and also affordable.
There's a cable notch behind the clip on the DJI mics. Loop the mic cable behind the clip and into the notch and it's basically the same. You can't pull it out. At least not without great effort or force, but it's definitely not just popping out from an accidental tug.
Exactly! I looped my lav mic in the slot behind the clip and I struggled to remove it when I wanted to disconnect the cable, it is incredibly secure
Professional grade mikes that are equipped with a locking ring might not even properly fit into the DJI plug without having removed the locking ring first.
Last week I used a DJI Mic 2 receiver with my Google Pixel to record some factory tours and interviews. I put a transmitter in my pocket and in the pockets of the people that I was interviewing and I ran Rode Lav Go mics from the pockets to the top of their shirts. We walked around the factories for hours and at no point did the lav mics get yanked out.
I disabled the transmitter buttons and setup auto-record just to be safe.
Accidentally dropping my phone and knocking the DJI Mic 2 receiver out was more of a concern. This happened once. Luckily the USB port didn't break and the receiver was fine.
Perhaps it's safer to run a USB cable to the phone while it's in an aluminium holder instead of putting a DJI Mic 2 receiver into the phone USB-C port directly.
Brother thanks for this. I got the DJI-2 but I was thinking about getting a second system for less-critical applications. You saved me a lot of time and aggravation.
saramonic blink 500 b2 allows dual Bluetooth connection which can be an option for any disconnect you may have with your main connection. Connect one Bluetooth connection to your primary streaming device and the other Bluetooth connection to a phone you have on you. This way you will most likely not miss one moment of your recording time.
Ive reviewed one of the saramonic usbc mics and it was pretty good for the price. In your first test here the Saramonic sounded really close to the rode which shocking. Great review
To be fair, it could be that the Shure audio is even better than the others, but just not EQed properly yet. Much like filming in RAW or Log for video, the Shure may assume you will do processing in post. For example, it sounded like all the Shure needed was some EQ to boost high frequencies and it would have sounded equivalent to the other. It would be interesting to EQ and compress the output of all the mics hard to see which audio withstands it the best. It could be that the Shure audio is way more moldable than the others. Could be that it is not though lol. And also the other negatives you mention about the Shure makes it a no-buy for me anyway. Thank you!
No it's not the eq. Movemic is simply low detailed low quality. No amount of eq can save that.
I've just tested the Lark M2 in depth and I will do a video about all my tests on TH-cam very soon...
DJI mic2 works quite well because of the popularity we all bring. if you're pushing it say so. otherwise Fulaim X5 baby. I'll push that neewer c28 one
What I like for Saramonic is the transmitter that you can put in the phone. I use my phone and a DJI gimbal and it has an awesome sound on top of that. Thanks for the review.
I've been using Saramonic mics for over 6 years and they keep surprising me as to how good they are.
Love these methodical tests, thanks Lee!
One thing about the test. I think the test should have been made with the equipment as it is delivered. The Rode comes with a Lav included. TWO of them actually. No extra cost. And I think few will argue that the rode - WITH the lav it’s delivered with - sounds the best, hands down, that’s not even a challenge. Anything about the sound beyond that is subjective. Personally I see the Rode WITHOUT lav at place two, behind the DJI. The cheap one is at 3 for me, and Shure last. But that’s subjective. The fact that the lav is included with the rode and makes it sound even better, is not. Yeah, the other ones don’t come with one, but testing it without the included lav is like saying: ‘rode, you delivering your mics with two lavs at no extra charge is your bad. Shouldn’t have done that, I won’t factor that in’.
The lavs are mentioned in the end, but not the sound with them :-(
True but in my full wireless pro review I found the lav almost sounds identical th-cam.com/video/C6OIvGyoods/w-d-xo.htmlsi=9BrEDPTDJAnrxthk
What mic are you using for the video? Sounds great
I’ve been using the Ulanzi U-mic for a while now and I like them much better than my Rode Wireless Go2s. They’re also the cheapest with internal recording. I’m quite happy.
Do you have the Ulanzi AM18s?
@@ThomasMendenhall Yes, those are the ones
Please update for the Shure when you receive the replacement.
This added a ton of value to me. I will be buying a Saramonic momentarily ^_^
Side note: They have a model with onboard recording which is awesome but the price of the one reviewed is soo attractive. Decisions decisions!
Which Saramonic model did you end up buying? Any performance thoughts?
Thank you so much! I had no idea where to start with microphones. You have SAVED me 100's of dollars!
This has to be the most beneficial and informative video I’ve looked up and seen on TH-cam. Thank you kind sir. Blessings to you and your family!
Not gonna lie. I feel the exact same way as you about the cheaper microphone sounding the best 😮
I'm getting that 100%.
@2:34 Audio is not crazy and does not fail - wireless signals are crazy and THEY fail. You want a reliable signal go wired, end of story. But yes, if you just go wireless and don’t have a back up boom somewhere off shot, back up recordings are necessary.
The PicoMic system has smaller transmitters than the Shure; the receiver is larger though. But the receiver is also the dock for the transmitters, so you still only need one plug to charge, and the entire system still stores down very small. If only it had internal 32-bit-float recording!
Im using the PicoMic 2 since December last year
Yes! I have the PicoMic and love it. Sound quality isn’t outstanding, but the low profile makes up for its slight audio shortcomings
Same here, Picomic user. My only gripe is the occasional random clicks. But having two mics mounted on camera hot shoe ready to be grabbed and clipped to a talent in seconds just can’t be beat.
What microphone did you use to record this video pls???? I like it
The real question is which mic are you using in your in studio recordings such as this video, it sounded the best
The one thing that I would have liked to see in this video. Was how well each performed with ambient sound.
Thanks for doing this comparison! Side note, you look A LOT like Tom Wilson from the Washington Capitals (my fav team)!
New to this, what are you using to make THIS video Thank you , Killer sounding audio.
I finally bought the Shure set, not because of this review (obviously), but because of Curtis Judd’s assessment of the sound quality and for the ultra long battery life. Also knowing that if I need a lav with internal recording I have Tentacle packs which can do that instead. I like the sound of them, but there are several big caveats that keep this mic set from comparing well with the other units in this comparison. Tops on my list is the firmware update process which feels like something out of the 1990s. Second would be the limitations of Bluetooth pairing. If you connect the transmitters with the receiver and then decide to use them with your phone, then you have to clear the pairings out manually then pair with the phone, then do the whole forget and pair routine again when you want to use the receiver. I suppose that’s the limitations of Bluetooth and now that I understand this I can deal with it, but the Shure set is at a level of complexity that most DJI and Rode wireless users will find ridiculous. Strictly speaking it’s not a consumer or perhaps not even a prosumer product, but with that said, the sound quality is excellent, and having the built in compressor is a huge benefit for quick turnaround recordings. Definitely worth the effort if you work professionally.
Awesome review. This definitely helped. Something I was considering that I think was missing was noise filtering. If it’s possible to test that in the future, that would leave nothing on the table in regards to what the Mics are capable of (or not capable of) . Either way thank you for this review!
what mic do you use for the video? wow it sounds amazing.
awesme review! I love that even though you got most of them for free, you gave a very honest review of each
Bro I loved this video and I ordered the Saramonic Blink 500 B2+, thanks so much for the recommendations!!!
Also saw that with the saramonic you can dual connect the receiver to say a iPhone to back backup recording
A few things about the Shure
1) Regarding the range. There is an RF signal boost feature that you can select to extend the range. It's in both the receiver and the phone app. And they definitely talk about it in the manual, which you obviously didn't read. Most Shure wireless products have this RF booster built in because Shure pioneered this type of technology years ago. The reason this is an optional feature is because by turning it on, it drains the battery more, so they let you choose.
2) Regarding the audio quality. It's the worst sounding microphone with no processing. The thing is, you can apply processing like compression, EQ and a HP filter from both the phone app AND the receiver. ALSO, found in the manual. I've also heard plenty of You Tube reviews of this microphone that sounded better than yours by a long shot because the reviewers took the time to learn the product before putting out their reviews. They mentioned all these tone-shaping capabilities, they tweaked them, then they got the microphone to sound better. You didn't do that in this review. You just held it up to your chest and talked about how bad it sounded.
3) Regarding the price. If all it did was have the exact same things as the other mics in this review, it would be a rip off.
But...
- The fact that you can use one or two of the microphones by themselves and not even use the receiver if you use it with your phone.
- The fact that the phone app can do both audio recording and video recording with these really nice mics as an audio source
- The fact that you can use the receiver as an audio interface with your computer
- The fact that there's a safe recording mode where it creates two channels that you can make very different volumes in case you have a part of your passage that clips, you have a safe redundancy at a lower volume.
Maybe those features aren't worth $500 to you. And that's fine. To many, it won't be worth $500 because they aren't the target market for it. But your failure to even mention them is pretty lazy.
This definitely comes across as a video that was put together in an afternoon and doesn't come across like a reviewer who spent weeks learning the differences between all these microphones.
You usually do better work...
What mic are you using for your video?
Thanks for doing the leg work on this! Great comparison with a wild outcome! Shame on Shure for using their name to bump up the price and slacking on the whole package.
Great video! I almost wished you included the Neewer cm28, which has internal recording. I'm really torn on the best budget set to get around$100, and your opinion would be appreciated.
So what would be a good one for beginners who has no clue on getting started with vlogging?
Actually, 95% of the times I use the internal recording to take advantage of the 32bit float
It is clearly a better audio file than the one that goes straight into the camera 🎥
Very helpful review. In this video I thought the Saramonic and Rode were the CLEAR winners in terms of sound quality. They both had a much fuller sound. The DJI and Shure both sounded very thin to me (not much in the low frequency range, mostly highs). Maybe this is just personal preference, however for me, I value mics that capture the bass in my voice and so that's what I was listening for in this video. I'm shocked at how good the Saramonics sounded ESPECIALLY at that price point!! Does the Saramonic has audio outlets for lav mics? (that wasn't mentioned in this reivew).
I loved the sound quality of saramonic, however I can never comfortably recommend that brand after 2 back to back failures. First unit died right after warranty period expired, I contacted them and had to pay for repair and was advised to just purchase a replacement. I bought a second unit that died in 3 months, I now have zero confidence in that brand, and it’s a shame because it was an enjoyable product to use while it worked.
I think that instamic should really be in this comparison. For me, it's an obvious choice as it is waterproof! No option for lav mic though (unless the new version does it via usb c??)
Are any of these mics good for use on a speaker that will be used outside? Looking for for a wireless mic (hands free, clip) that will be used to address a crowd of mayb 30-50 ppl
Have you tested/used Hollyland Lark mk2? ISO...wireless mike system for use w/DJI action camera on e-bike ridealongs. Compared to Hollyland, Rode/DJI/Shure/Sennheiser, et al...are high-end
are you gonna review the new sennheiser profile wireless. Thanks for the series of reviews by the way
Thank you so much for making this video. I wanted a portable mic to put infront of my acooustic amp while I recorded in my phone. I have a mic plugged into my amp for loudness and effects but my video content recording from my phone sounds a little ashed with my phone pointing at me from across the room. Now I can breath easy that I don't have to spend over $300 on quality external mics like the DJI but instead I just bought the Saramonic 500 B2's on Amazon and I'm excited to rerecorx some of my content to see how it sounds.
Which ones the cheapest? 😅
What's the mic your Main Audio is recorded with?
If I tape the Hollyland Lark M2 mic to my chest under my shirt, will it pick up audio with the same quality?
Definitely buying the Seramonic
A couple quick notes. Mic systems for the US market cannot have both internal recording and transmission capabilities. One of the high end production audio companies has a patent. And about the Shure sound, it’s a fairly bright/ punchy sound which can help provide a cleaner result if clothing gets in the way but handheld in open air it might sound a bit harsh. Regardless I would most of the time prefer to have the brighter sound in post especially for spoken word recordings.
I am aware of this patent but both Rode and DJI are selling in the USA now. I'm not sure how they got around this. The Shure Mic does not sound the brightest to me, it flaw out sounds the worst. It almost sounds like a a lower bitrate or something with less highs and lows than the other 3.
@@FStoppers Have you posted the audio files? It’s always hard to judge sound details coming off TH-cam, especially today because I’m on the road and in noisy environments. As for the patent, I’m not sure what’s up with that at the present moment, but do the DJI and Rode mics allow you to transmit and internally record simultaneously or do you have to choose one mode or the other? I just remember Deity late last year talking about the need for a different SKU for the US because they could not include internal recording in their latest body packs.
@@wavelandyes both allow you to transmit and record internally at once.
@@waveland I heard someone talking about this patent (I think it was Curtis Judd in his review of the Deity Theos), and his guess was that Deity was allowed to do transmit/record in the Connect system because it was 2.4ghz, and Zaxcom (who owns the patent) only offers professional audio systems that are UHF, so Deity wasn't really competing against Zaxcom since it was in the 2.4ghz band. However, the new Theos system, which is UHF, competes directly with Zaxcom's own units, so simultaneous transmit/record is disabled in the US.
In other words, that seems to be why Rode, DJI and others are able to sell record/transmit units in the USA - because they're 2.4ghz.
Shure is so bad, that i cant believe with my ears XDDD sounds like a gamers headphone mic just slightly wireless... xD@@FStoppers
I am glad fstoppers and petapixel came upon the same problem half a day apart. It cannot be easy wanting a two mic system in march.
Wait did they? We are being sent a new unit because they said it was a bad copy. Interesting… -P
th-cam.com/video/isnQVtVmJxQ/w-d-xo.htmlsi=89xuVkdzLopNGsdh&t=584@@FStoppers
@fstoppers which microphone are you using for recording the video? Sounds great
Honestly speaking, if you don't require internal recording or lac mic conection, I've found that the Hollyland Lark M2 are the most usefull. The footprint is just very small and their magnets are just great. Quality is not the best, but I sacrifice a bit of that for the smaller mic.
Disclaimer, I have used the Lark Max and the DJI as well and are just too bulky for my taste.
Tempted by these, I hope their second gen allows on-device recording OR 2 channel recording, which owuld make them a lot more useful
@@PeterAlanJohnson The M2 actually have 2 channel recording, if you set them up in stereo, they record on each side the sound that each mic brings.
I don't think they will add internal recording, it will make them bigger and defeats the purpose
@@MicheletDiez according to the M2 manual (Page 18)-it does not allow stereo with either of the phone receivers, (only when connecting using an analog cable to the camera receiver)
What mic were you using to record the actual video? thanks
Hello! Thanks for this great video, I'm subscribing! Would it be possible to know which microphone is used to talk in front of the camera in your office/studio? 🙏
You should check out Hollyland Lark Max wireless Mic. I’ve been using them and I think it could be one of your top mic you have tested.
Seramonic was the DSLR Film Noob’s (fellow TH-camr) favorite brand for cheep but great audio equipment around the 2010-2020 time.
I like DJI, but they are becoming yet another behemoth Chinese company stampeding over everything in their path. Let’s give the Scandinavian company Røde some love. They are an audio only company and they have a wonderful origin story.
RODE is an Australian company according to Wikipedia.
What are your thoughts or have you done a review on the Ankerwork M650. How would you stack it to these?
Are Sennheiser locking lavalier mic compatible with the Rode transmitter?
Caveat with the saramonic blink 500 is it may not work. Brand new mic didn’t work on my Sony cam and just barely worked on my phone. I returned it immediately because I didn’t want to waste my money. Quite disappointing too because I actually liked the sound
Should have had the Hollyland Lark M2 and Lark Max there, they the 2 devices the truly destroy the competition.
What I really need are multiple Mics with Multipul Receivers to do Multi Camera Shoots but able to keep the audio seperated to be adjustable in post.
Enforced mono is a problem with a lot of the newer systems (Hohem, Hollyland Lark M2, the dirt cheap $10 wireless sets on Amazon etc. especially using their USB connections)
What’s the main mic you’re using?
I have in my possession, 15 or 16 wireless lav systems from $400 to
You missed the Picomic. Have used them for years and their transmitters are smaller than any of these
Which one would you recommend for filmmaking ?
You have to add the Hollylark M2, the smallest and rounded but the clear and loudest one.
Looking for a wireless mic that can handle loud motorsports audio without clipping. What would you recommend?
Audio tests would be more usefull if you adjusted the level closer to the naration level. Like this, they all sound bad to me. I am avare you are using some much better mic for naration.
I want the Sure version 2 where they add internal recording.
Which mic are you using for the video?
kinda like the dji and rode. saramonic not bad thoug, just dji and rode sound much clear and clean to me.
Is it worth using the Samsung Galaxy Buds Live Bluetooth Earbuds as a microphone?
Would love to hear the test with the included Lavaliers.
Probably there will be no notable difference. They all use the same digital RF connection protocol. So it is either full quality or no audio. The signal drop off test should be all you need.
@@Samtagri no notable difference between the sound quality of Lavaliers that come with some of the units, and just the receivers themselves? I think you misunderstood what I was saying. The Rode comes with Lavs that dramatically increase the quality of sound for the same price as some of them that only have to receivers.
Love Saramonic. Their gear is such great bang for buck.
Have you had a chance to try the new sennheisers?
What is internal recording? Why do we need it?
Hey man, dumb question here but what mic setup do you use to record this video?
Thanks a lot! 🙂
can you use that for discord gaming sessions is quality good?
May I ask what mic/audio setup you use for the actual video? Don't see a lav so I'm assuming a shotgun?
good timing. I was just eying off the dji set
@FStoppers
Do you have any advice on a set of wireless Microphones for a group with 5 people starting a Videocast?
Because a certain high-end company you know thousands of dollars high end per unit has a patent on recording and transmitting you are not going to see recording capability on anything in the US until that patent runs out and hopefully doesn't end up patent trolled more than it already is. Either their skirting the patent in some form or they're paying licensing fees.
R0de Wireless Pro system can remote trigger the transmitters. Do the other systems have this capability?
Are there any mics out there that you can hear yourself in real time while recording?
You can't compare 4 different wireless systems all transmitting next to each other. Each one should have been recorded separately with only one set power on at a time. That's the only way to get a true distance and wireless signal quality. There's no real world scenario where this test would actually be practiced.
2.4ghz interference is everywhere so my test is more real world than doing it in a vacuum.
Hey man, I bought a Ace pro, with the cold shoe adapter, curious about microphones. Can any of these microphones clip into the cold shoe adapter or is the cold shoe adapter only for shotgun mics? And with the Ace pro maybe you know maybe you don't, can you not just connect a wireless Bluetooth microphone to the camera itself?
What about the synco g3 pro? Brand new and internal recording. Also very small unit.
which microphone was used to record your voice in the video itself?
the non record one use as in a desktop/podcast setup...
What kind of mic are you using for this review audio?