RODE VideoMic Directional Camcorder Microphone

Customer Reviews

Fantastic item, great for a film maker on a budget.

2008-07-05
After receiving this mic I put it into action. It is very sturdy and the shock stabilization system works very well. The sound quality is fantastic with a bit of tweaking. The only thing to consider, is picking up a mini plug extension cable for using this mic on a boom pole.

Great microphone for the non-professional

2008-06-16
Hi all!

I recently discovered Rode products, and this Australian company seems to make quality gear. I ran my VideoMic through my Canon HG10 and it worked quite well. If you are non-professional looking for a high-quality external microphone for your video camera, then look no further. You won't find anything better at this price point (trust me, I spent weeks looking.)

To listen to a comparison of the Rode VideoMic vs. the Canon HG10 internal microphone, watch this video:

[...]

My two issues with this microphone are:

(As some other reviewers have observed), the jack is an unbalanced line, which means that if you try to mount this bad boy on a boom pole or microphone stand away from you camera, you get buzz and hum.

Two, this mic is pretty big. I travel a fair amount giving keynote speeches and leadership training. I bought all my video gear to record my work. The VideoMic takes up a lot of space in my camera bag. Clearly, this is not an issue if you don't travel, but if you do ...

I recently upgrade to a R0DE NT3 Microphone microphone, which has an XLR connection, which means I can mount the microphone away from the camera and have no buzz. The NT3 is a professional-grade microphone and costs more than the VideoMic, but the NT3 suits my needs better.

Bottom Line: If you're looking for a high quality microphone that will stay on your video camera, you can't go wrong with the Rode VideoMic.

Enjoy!

Tim Warneka, author
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Can't beat the quality for price relationship

2008-05-08
I needed a shot gun microphone to fit the hot shoe of the Canon HG10. I am shooting a documentary and needed to interview folks in loud surroundings. This was the most valuable and important upgrade to my camera. The sound difference is unprecedented for the price. For $149 the mic comes with a build on rocker (so you don't get all the bump noise) and can be adjusted to avoid the truncation of the peaks of your sound waves. The mic comes ready to use, but I would suggest changing the volume to -10dbz to combat this problem. You get a clean sound, but the cord attaches to the camera with a short earpiece jack. You cannot extend this mic out on a boom or you would get buzz and hum. For the average user and camera mounting, this camera is perfect.

It does not overwhelm the profile of the camera and is very light. I would suggest that you buy 1 along with a 9 volt battery (not included). It seems like a steal.

Excellent mic

2008-04-25
I normally use XLR shotgun (e.g. Audio-Technica AT-835) and mini-shotgun mics with professional video equipment. However, for consumer type camcorders without XLR inputs, your choices are to add a Beachtek XLR interface box (pricey) - or get a nice mini-shotgun mic with mini-phone plug connection for direct connect to most any camcorder with an external mic input. The mic is powered by a 9v battery with a claimed 100 hours of use per 9v battery (I have not tested that claim). The sound quality is very good, the directivity is very good - a great addition for anyone wishing to greatly improve the audio quality of small camcorders.

Great Microphone for Field Reporting

2008-04-18
This mic provides outstanding audio in the field, indoors or out. The only drawback seems to be picking up consistent sound in windy conditions outdoors. Besides that, this microphone has served me very well in a variety of settings. It's great on batteries to boot -- I haven't had to change the original yet, and I've used the mic on two extensive video projects so far.

Excelent mic at a great price

2007-12-01
The VideoMic is a professional grade shotgun microphone. Based on the latest Film industry technology, the is designed specifically for use with high quality Digital Video Cameras.The microphone exhibits low noise and an unusually wide bandwidth for its size. It is ultra lightweight, yet rugged due to it s ABS construction. The VideoMic is powered by a standard 9V battery and offers a Low Battery LED status indicator and a switchable high pass filter to reduce unwanted low frequency rumble. Attaches to any Camcorder that has the standard hot-shoe fitting and utilizes a stereo mini jack for audio output. Features: Studio recording quality Rugged fibre-reinforced ABS construction 9 V battery operation Custom designed integral wind screen Condenser Microphone Low noise circuitry Low handling noise Integral hot shoe mount & zip pouch Designed & manufactured in Australia Full 2 year guarantee. Specifications: Acoustic Principle: Line plus Gradient Directional Pattern: Super-Cardioid Frequency range: 40 Hz ~ 20 000 Hz selectable HPF @ 80 Hz/12 dB/octave Output Impedance: 200 Signal/Noise ratio DIN/IEC 651: 74 dB (1 kHz rel 1 Pa; per IEC651, IEC268-15) Equivalent Noise: 20 dB SPL (per IEC651, IEC268-15) Maximum SPL: 134 dB (@ 1% THD into 1 k ) Sensitivity at 1 kHz into 1 k : -3 dB re 1 Volt/Pascal (15 mV @ 94 dB SPL) +/- 2 dB (at 1 kHz in free field into open circuit) Dynamic Range - DIN...

A great mic

2007-08-23
I continue to be impressed with the quality of the VideoMic. I use it on a Canon HV20 and have been amazed at its clarity, range and power. The thing looks a little funky. The plastic shock mount wiggles around a lot and is permanently attached to the mic. It is very susceptable to handling noise, but mounts to the small camera well and delivers quality audio for a fraction of the cost of its bigger brothers, which are rather awkward to use on a small camcorder. Rode has delivered on its goal of offering a great mic for the small camera and in spite of its plastic parts and odd design, it is a great tool.

RODE Rocks!

2007-05-25
After spending many days combing the internet and reading review after review I decided to give the RODE VideoMic Directional Camcorder Microphone a try. I wanted something that was good, light, somewhat short and inexpensive. I have a small mini dv camcorder that is only about 6 inches long and didn't want a mic that would get in my viewfinder's shots.

First let me comment on the sound. This little bugger picks up sounds very well. In a quiet room I can be 40 yards away and still pick up the conversation. The quality is outstanding. The audio compared to the built-in mic in my camcorder is night and day. The Rode is so clear. The price is great. I'm guessing the quality would compare to other mics in the $300 range.

My Rode came with a cat tail wind screen which really saved me some money! I haven't used the cat tail wind screen yet, but I'm sure it'll come in handy on windy days.

The shock vibration design is cool and they even gave me extra rubber band thingies. This mic sits high off the camera and stays out of my shots. Since the mic is somewhat far away from the camcorder, I don't pick up any camera humming noise that can happen with other mics that are too close to the camera. Even on my hotshoe, I don't get any humming.

I haven't tried the bass filter on the back of the mic yet.

I wish I could say that I have used $300 mics and above, but I haven't. I will say that you won't be disappointed with this microphone. I'm a photojournalist by trade and I have begun to shoot video for our newspaper's web publication. This mic is perfect for my needs.

If you buy it, don't forget to turn off the mic. I accidently left mine on. There is no auto shutoff.

Good sound/value but needs tweaking for consumer cams

2006-12-31
I like the sound I get from the mic and it is very good valuue for the money for prosumer cam owners, but consumer-level camera owners should beware.

I bought this mic and found that it was way too sensitive/hot for consumer cameras like a Panasonic gs200 which has no audio input level control. It picks up too much background noise and overwhelms the camera's automatic gain controller when things get loud. I'm not sure if the gs200 had a mic attenuation setting or if turning it on would have been a sufficient answer. I put a cheap radio shack in-line volume controller in between the mic and the camera (which can introduce crackle if you adjust it while recording).

On prosumer cams with input level control like the Canon GL2 it works fine, even without turning on mic attenuation. If you have a camcorder with input level controls I might get this.

Another important caveat: You cannot run this mic through a the 1/8" connection of a Beachtek mixer box. You'll hear nothing on the beachtek's output because of an impedance mismatch. I don't know if putting an XLR adapter on the mic cable would work.

Rode VideoMic

2006-11-11
I'm pretty content with the sound with my fx1. I wish the 'mic/line' cable could be a bit longer. Other than that, it's great!