Dan Wake Posted June 3, 2017 Share Posted June 3, 2017 which is it the cheapest good mic for DSLR and interviews on the go? consider I wish to mount it on a DSLR canon. thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyFan12 Posted June 3, 2017 Share Posted June 3, 2017 A friend of mine recommended the MKE600. I am buying one for myself because I'm getting back into the hobby of shooting. The AT897 is pretty decent! Used to have one. I'm selling an AT4073A on eBay and expect to get like $150 for it even though it's legit competitive with a 416... but it's too directional to be an on-camera mic or even to use indoors, where a hypercardiod would be more appropriate. The 416 is... the classic, but again you'd want a hypercardiod indoors unless you're recording foley or walla. Bring along a c stand and mount the microphone to that following the traditional rules of mic placement if you can't afford a dedicated boom op/mixer. Any mic will be pretty awful on camera, whereas even the AT897 sounded pretty good when placed correctly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kisaha Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Canon cameras have internal mics. They are REALLY cheap and already mounted, why bother with useless, expensive and bulky equipment? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cantsin Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Rode VideoMicro. Unbeatable for the price (ca. $60), very small/light/portable, runs without batteries, decent audio quality, significant improvement over internal mics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonpais Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 12 hours ago, Dan Wake said: which is it the cheapest good mic for DSLR and interviews on the go? consider I wish to mount it on a DSLR canon. thanks! For interviews, I don't think you'd want to place the microphone on camera. As close to the speaker's mouth as possible.... I think even a lesser mic positioned properly is going to give better results than the best mic in the world that's too far from the subject. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liam Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Heard decent things about the TAKSTAR SGC-598, for micro micro budget. Probably safer to get a rode (or yeah, a lav) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanveer Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 16 hours ago, Dan Wake said: which is it the cheapest good mic for DSLR and interviews on the go? consider I wish to mount it on a DSLR canon. thanks! If you said a budget, then it might help people say specific mics. 3 hours ago, jonpais said: For interviews, I don't think you'd want to place the microphone on camera. As close to the speaker's mouth as possible.... I think even a lesser mic positioned properly is going to give better results than the best mic in the world that's too far from the subject. I agree. The further a mic is from camera, the worse the sound. Dan Wake and jonpais 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aldolega Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 10 hours ago, jonpais said: even a lesser mic positioned properly is going to give better results than the best mic in the world that's too far from the subject. Exactly. For interviews, asking which mic to mount to the camera is like asking which car will go the fastest inside your garage. Cars need a road to drive on, mics need to be close to the subject. Canon's preamps suck, so that rules out non-powered/amplified mics, which is most of the cheaper ones out there. If you absolutely have to run the mic directly into the camera (with an extension cable to get the mic near the subject), I would go for a Rode VideoMic Pro, which has a pretty good preamp built in. The new VMP is about $250 I believe, the older models should go for less. The better-sounding but similar cost option is a small recorder with a cheaper mic (ideally a lavalier). Something like a Zoom H1 or one of the similar Tascams. Audio-Technica makes a decent 3.5mm lav that's about $35 and uses a watch battery, it has served me well. I'm sure others here can recommend other similar options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shirozina Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 There are no 'cheap and good' mics but if you really have no choice but to use a camera mounted mic in a 'run and gun' setup then as said the Rode Video Mic pro is probably your best choice as it has it's own internal amps so you can crank the gain up on these and feed the camera a very hot signal that minimises the influence of the internal camera amps. When using this setup get the camera and thus the mic as close to the subject as possible. Once you start using a separate recorder it will not be so much of a run and gun setup and you will need to get someone to act as a sound recordist but you could mount the VMP on a boom and feed it direct to the camera via an extension cable ( at the risk of picking up mobile phone signal interference). In a static one man situation you could rig a boom pole on a stand to close mic the subject from above or just a stand to do it from below for close up 'talking head' shots. jonpais 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonpais Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 1 hour ago, Shirozina said: There are no 'cheap and good' mics but if you really have no choice but to use a camera mounted mic in a 'run and gun' setup then as said the Rode Video Mic pro is probably your best choice as it has it's own internal amps so you can crank the gain up on these and feed the camera a very hot signal that minimises the influence of the internal camera amps. When using this setup get the camera and thus the mic as close to the subject as possible. Once you start using a separate recorder it will not be so much of a run and gun setup and you will need to get someone to act as a sound recordist but you could mount the VMP on a boom and feed it direct to the camera via an extension cable ( at the risk of picking up mobile phone signal interference). In a static one man situation you could rig a boom pole on a stand to close mic the subject from above or just a stand to do it from below for close up 'talking head' shots. I've got the Rode VideoMic Pro, the Rode Stereo Microphone, a Sony audio recorder and a Yeti Blue USB mic. Nothing high end. But nothing beats a high end mic for sound quality, you can check out any number of YT videos and hear for yourself the difference a moderately expensive high quality mic can make in your videos. It's not like a matter of opinion, the difference is striking. But in my experience with low-end microphones, you'll only be disappointed in crap cheap mics, you really need an operator with the mic on a boom pole positioned properly to get the best sound. So I ended up getting two RodeLink Filmmaker kits, it's not cheap, and there are certainly better wireless microphone solutions out there, but it's the first time I'm satisfied with the sound. Skimping on things like lenses and microphones is not a good idea, a couple of years down the road, you'll only end up regretting it and getting something better and wish that you hadn't recorded so many videos with poor audio. I would save up to at least get some good microphones. Shirozina is right: there are no good and cheap microphones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyFan12 Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 16 minutes ago, jonpais said: I've got the Rode VideoMic Pro, the Rode Stereo Microphone, a Sony audio recorder and a Yeti Blue USB mic. Nothing high end. But nothing beats a high end mic for sound quality, you can check out any number of YT videos and hear for yourself the difference a moderately expensive high quality mic can make in your videos. It's not like a matter of opinion, the difference is striking. But in my experience with low-end microphones, you'll only be disappointed in crap cheap mics, you really need an operator with the mic on a boom pole positioned properly to get the best sound. So I ended up getting two RodeLink Filmmaker kits, it's not cheap, and there are certainly better wireless microphone solutions out there, but it's the first time I'm satisfied with the sound. Skimping on things like lenses and microphones is not a good idea, a couple of years down the road, you'll only end up regretting it and getting something better and wish that you hadn't recorded so many videos with poor audio. I would save up to at least get some good microphones. Shirozina is right: there are no good and cheap microphones. Contrary to this, I have heard really good things about the MKE600. I just sold my 416 and am trying it next. $400 for a mic seems cheap to me, very cheap. Likewise, there are $150 lav kits (not wireless, but with an ADC to iPhone) that are quite competitive with the high end. Below that price, I assume everything is more-or-less terrible, yeah. I bought a $200 Audio Technica and it was... shockingly bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonpais Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 18 minutes ago, HockeyFan12 said: Contrary to this, I have heard really good things about the MKE600. I just sold my 416 and am trying it next. $400 for a mic seems cheap to me, very cheap. Likewise, there are $150 lav kits (not wireless, but with an ADC to iPhone) that are quite competitive with the high end. Below that price, I assume everything is more-or-less terrible, yeah. I bought a $200 Audio Technica and it was... shockingly bad. Dan doesn't even say what his budget is, not sure why he's being so coy... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 Cheapest? Good? Yeahhhhh..... you have a bit of a contradiction there!! Oh wait, it gets worse.... :-o It is going to be an on camera mic?!?! Sorry, that is only ever going to make this even worse :-/ That should only ever just be for reference on a scratch track. As mic placement matters even more than what microphone you use! & putting it on top of the camera is a damn bad place to put it. But if you are looking for a very affordable microphone that is incredible bang for your buck then I recommend the Aputure Deity. jonpais 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyFan12 Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/878340-REG/Sennheiser_MKE_600_Shotgun.html $200 today only. Well I just ordered one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyFan12 Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 416 is dramatically better sounding but for $200 I'm incredibly impressed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kisaha Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 22 minutes ago, HockeyFan12 said: 416 is dramatically better sounding but for $200 I'm incredibly impressed. It isn't even close, and you can not tell from this kind of test here. I have seen this guys videos, and honestly doesn't seem like knowing a lot about sound. He has a video about the MKE440, check that as well. I am using 416 for 19 years now and a lot of microphones in the market. 416 ain't an amateurs, or a video person's mic. Most of the times, the criticism of the 416 is coming from people that they do not know what it is and how to use properly. Of course there are other great mics right now (look at everything more expensive than the 416 and you will see a lot of options) with more moderns approaches and technology, but in the most difficult day, when I do not know what to expect, and the weather is weird, then the full Sennheiser kit (blimp and mic) is my best bet. MKE600 is a great mic for the money, but it isn't even close to the 416 (the price shows anyway). There are other things that affect the pricing, like construction, durability, loose of sound characteristics through time, etc MKE series has the 400 and 440 (stereo short shotguns) as well, better look at those last too, they are more appropriate for camera mounting. The 440 especially is a great idea, is stereo, covers a lot more space in front of the camera than a traditional mono mic (and much more than shotgun type microphones), has an internal amplifier to by pass the usual terrible internal ones, you can buy a dead kitten (the hairy thing we put around microphones to cut air), so you can use it with moderate (rather low) air, and most importantly is a directional stereo mic, so you can concentrate to what is in front of your camera, "best" (that is so relative, I can't believe I typed it!) for small groups, or two persons interview as well. Other stereo mics are good for recording ambience sound, NOT dialogue but that's best to do it NOT with a mounted mic, and not while recording (because of the various noises we produce while filming). jonpais 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HockeyFan12 Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 9 minutes ago, Kisaha said: It isn't even close, and you can not tell from this kind of test here. I have seen this guys videos, and honestly doesn't seem like knowing a lot about sound. He has a video about the MKE440, check that as well. I am using 416 for 19 years now and a lot of microphones in the market. 416 ain't an amateurs, or a video person's mic. Most of the times, the criticism of the 416 is coming from people that they do not know what it is and how to use properly. Of course there are other great mics right now (look at everything more expensive than the 416 and you will see a lot of options) with more moderns approaches and technology, but in the most difficult day, when I do not know what to expect, and the weather is weird, then the full Sennheiser kit (blimp and mic) is my best bet. MKE600 is a great mic for the money, but it isn't even close to the 416 (the price shows anyway). There are other things that affect the pricing, like construction, durability, loose of sound characteristics through time, etc MKE series has the 400 and 440 (stereo short shotguns) as well, better look at those last too, they are more appropriate for camera mounting. The 440 especially is a great idea, is stereo, covers a lot more space in front of the camera than a traditional mono mic (and much more than shotgun type microphones), has an internal amplifier to by pass the usual terrible internal ones, you can buy a dead kitten (the hairy thing we put around microphones to cut air), so you can use it with moderate (rather low) air, and most importantly is a directional stereo mic, so you can concentrate to what is in front of your camera, "best" (that is so relative, I can't believe I typed it!) for small groups, or two persons interview as well. Other stereo mics are good for recording ambience sound, NOT dialogue but that's best to do it NOT with a mounted mic, and not while recording (because of the various noises we produce while filming). I agree! I used to own a 416 back while I was still shooting professionally. I sold it when I quit but decided to pick this up for my YouTube videos and family videos. That said, even at $1000 (much less than the Schoeps) the 416 is not exactly cheap. While it may legitimately be the cheapest "good mic" (I also owned an AT4073a, and I thought that was the closest I could get under $500, the NTG 3 sounded pretty good to me too), I assumed the original poster wanted something even cheaper. $200 for a mic is definitely cheap. The battery power obviating the need for phantom power brings the price way way down, too. But yes, it might not qualify as good. :/ To me it sounds useable at least, but I can clearly hear the difference even here. Very thin. Even worse off-axis sound. And that's at a close distance. Difficult to tell how it rejects sound or what its pickup pattern is, but for a novice the tight pickup pattern of the 416 is problematic imo. Compared with other sub-$200 mics (of which I've used a few) it sounds really great in that video at least. Significantly better than the ME66, which I never cared for at all. Anyhow, perhaps "dramatically better" isn't strong enough a description. But all the same I can't think of anything else that's even usable for $200. But I agree with you. The cheapest good mic is the 416. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kisaha Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 10 minutes ago, HockeyFan12 said: I agree! I used to own a 416 back while I was still shooting professionally. I sold it when I quit but decided to pick this up for my YouTube videos and family videos. That said, even at $1000 (much less than the Schoeps) the 416 is not exactly cheap. While it may legitimately be the cheapest "good mic" (I also owned an AT4073a, and I thought that was the closest I could get under $500, the NTG 3 sounded pretty good to me too), but I assumed the original poster wanted something even cheaper. $200 for a mic is definitely cheap. But yes, it might not be good. :/ To me it sounds useable at least, but I can clearly hear the difference. Very thing. Even worse off-axis. And that's at a close distance. Anyhow, perhaps "dramatically better" isn't strong enough a description. But all the same I can't think of anything better for $200. But I agree with you. The cheapest good mic is the 416. Depending the use, the OP has to come back and help us - help him! What is the best mic for my case (and uses), ain't for you, ain't for him, etc With sound we have to be realistic for what we want to achieve and how. The best way to do it, is take the microphone close to the source, as easy as that sound, it is one of the most difficult tasks since sound were put on celluloid! What I said, is that very directional/shot gun type microphones are the worst to put on a camera, it is a terrible idea really. I did a music documentary series, 1 year with 416, then 2 with the Rode, and when I came back to the 416 for the 4th year, it was a revelation! I never used the Rode ever again. The 600 is a great mic, it really is a different approach of the classic ME66 mic, which again was my back up mic for many years. I do consider getting the 600 for some specific uses, but I also do consider the 440 for camera mounting, for scratch sound, maybe atmosphere and what not. As you see I really like this brand, it is because I have used most of the others, too! PS: sorry HockeyFun, I run out of Up votes! Glad to see the old voting system back! jonpais 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzynormal Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 On 6/3/2017 at 8:09 PM, Kisaha said: Canon cameras have internal mics. They are REALLY cheap and already mounted, why bother with useless, expensive and bulky equipment? Ha ha! Funny sarcasm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonpais Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 Based on Kisaha's advice, I just picked up a Canon to record audio for my G85. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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