RØDE VideoMicro II Ultra-Compact On-Camera Shotgun Microphone for Recording Audio with a Camera or Mobile Device

There is a minefield of information to digest when it comes to microphones. There are so many different types to consider, and so many different versions of those types it can be hard to know even where to begin. If you're doing recordings in a static environment, perhaps from a desk at home, you're more than likely going to be wanting a condensing microphone and many people will point you towards a product by Blue Yeti. I certainly would as they're superb. If you want your recordings to be mobile, or your subject is going to be far from the camera, a microphone mounted to the talker in the form of a lavalier mike will be the way to go. However, if you want a microphone that you can mount directly to your DSLR camera and have the versatility of both studio and mobile work, an On-camera microphone such as this VideoMicro by Rode is ideal.Rode, if you're not familiar with them, are one of the best manufacturers of microphones in the business. They're based in Australia and manufacture a number of highly regarded On-camera and lavalier products. You just need to decide which one is right for you. There are four or five On-camera mikes that they manufacture which you might consider, from this baby of the range VideoMicro up to the VideoMic Pro+. Each step will bring added features, at added cost, but the VideoMicro is the best selling On-camera mike on Amazon for a reason. It offers excellent sound quality for a relatively modest outlay.You get a compact microphone along with a furry "dead cat" wind supresser, and a detachable TRS cable to connect from the microphone to your DSLR. The microphone attached to the hot shoe of your DSLR camera, and tightend using a dial to get make it stable. When connected the TRS cable can be snapped into slots in the dial which braces the microphone to the camera and prevents wobbling.The sound quality of the microphone is really good, certainly a vast improvement over the in-built microphone in my Nikon D5300 camera. The sound of me doing my pieces to camera is really quite impressive. Being at the bottom end of the Rode range you might expect comprimises, and while the audio gain isn't as impressive as the top end of the range, you're only paying a fraction of the price and you're still getting a very good mike. A word on that, when you connect it to your camera you'll need to go into your menu settings and adjust the gains of the microphone to properly calibrate it. There's instruction in the box for how to do this, and plenty of tutorials online.The TRS cable provided is designed to plug the microphone into your DSLR's mic/aux-in port. Note that this is a different type of connection to the port you'd find on a smart phone. Phones usually use a TRRS port which despite the similar name isn't the same thing. If you look at a connector you'll see a ring on it. That's the "R" of TRS (Tip/Ring/Sleeve). A TRRS connector has two rings (Tip/Ring/Ring/Sleeve). You can buy converters to change a TRS cable to a TRRS, or Rode will sell you a different cable, a TRS to TRRS cable, which will allow you to connect this microphone to your smart phone.Anyway, I've been using mine now for about two months and I've been very impressed with the performance. While I could have spent more money on better ones in the Rode range I've been perfectly happy with the product and highly recommend it.

I recently purchased the RØDE VideoMicro Compact On-camera Directional Microphone for Filmmaking, and I must say, I am impressed with its performance. This microphone is an excellent addition to my filmmaking gear and has improved the audio quality of my videos.The microphone is incredibly compact and lightweight, making it easy to carry around with me wherever I go. It's also very easy to mount on my camera, and the directional design helps to reduce background noise and capture clear audio.The build quality of the microphone is impressive, and it feels sturdy and well-made in my hand. The included furry windscreen is a great addition, which helps to reduce wind noise when filming outdoors.Overall, I am satisfied with my purchase of the RØDE VideoMicro Compact On-camera Directional Microphone for Filmmaking. It's an excellent microphone for those who are just starting with filmmaking or those who want a reliable and affordable microphone for everyday use. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to improve the audio quality of their videos.

I've bought this mic for my note 8 since I'm going on holiday soon and decided to pick this up.Just to clarify some things;It records mono not stereoMounts onto a hot shoe or cold shoe mountRequires the SC7 patch cable (~£10) to work with mobiles (the cable included only works for TRS to TRS)Audio QualityThankfully, they've included the windshield because without it, the audio picks up quite a lot of windy noise. Indoor use without the windshield is okay, but for conveniences sake you may as well keep it on. The windshield does an excellent job at keeping the wind out and softening loud breaths when you speak into the mic. I don't pick up any 'hiss' as other people have complained about, but I do get some noticeable background noise. I've found that cleaning it up using Audacity makes the mic sound extremely high quality.Mic DesignThe mic feels very high quality with its full metal body. There are no complaints from me about the mic design.Mount DesignThe main problem I have with the product is actually to do with the Rycote Lyre Mount. Since the mic is only fixed on it at one point, the mic is able to rock forward and backward quite noticeably when you are moving about (i.e. walking). This is extremely noticeable on the audio, meaning it is more aimed towards stationary vlogging and filming (thus defeating the point of making it compact and easy to travel with). Using a different mount or using a gimbals should solve this, but falls heavily outside my budget (Rycote mounts are ~£50 and gimbals are ~£100). Also, the plastic of the mount feels very cheap and susceptible to snapping at any point. You do get 2 years warranty on this though, so I will see if it is needed at all.Overall, this mic is definitely worth the money. It falls within the budget microphone price while delivering premium microphone quality (especially after editing audio in post). Pick this up if you're looking for a compact budget mic!