Decided to get an external microphone for my Canon 60D DSLR, to record video at concerts with decent sound. After a bit of googling and brainstorming with @theproof, the focus settled on RODE products.
The mic is for a DSLR, so it has to have a hot-shoe mount to clip onto the camera. We figured: if we’re buying a mic, get one from a company that specialises in them, which RODE seems to be. The various Nikon/Sony mics were dismissed straight away. RODE has a fairly broad range. Within budget, the candidates were the condenser RODE VideoMIC and the RODE Stereo VideoMic. From the names it’s clear the first one records mono (and is also indecently long). The second one records stereo, which I like a lot more.
The mic needs its own power from a 9-volt battery, which is more of a plus than a minus — it won’t drain the camera battery. On a 9V it can run for about 60 hours, which is fine unless you’re shooting around the clock.
It connects to the camera via a 3.5 mm jack. It has three switches (it took me a moment to realise they’re switches — at first I thought they were buttons):
The left switch lets you cut the recording level by 10 dB, which is what you want when recording something loud — say, a concert (which is exactly what I’m planning to do). The middle switch is on/off. The right one, when on, reduces high-frequency noise — for example, traffic noise.
It also comes with a fluffy windshield for outdoor use in windy weather.
As usual, I didn’t read the manual or any tips. Just stuck it on the camera and went off to a show. Shot two videos. The audio came out clipped in places — I didn’t flick the -10 dB switch and I didn’t lower the recording level on the camera (recommended is 75%). For the record — it was a gig by two Japanese artists, Tezya and ASAKI. The internet calls it Future Glam Rock — for teenage girls, basically. It was in the small hall at Orlandina.
Resulting video:
Tomorrow I’ll try recording sound at the Smyslovye Gallyutsinatsii show with proper settings.