Sennheiser Memory Mic – cost about £170 (UK) or $200 (US)
The Sennheiser Memory Mic is a great lavalier microphone option designed specifically for smartphones.
“Memory Mic initially connects via Bluetooth and you don’t have to worry about getting out of range.” Sennheiser.
The Memory Mic records Sennheiser-quality audio (it’s always going to be pro quality from Sennheiser).
The difference between this mic and other smartphone-connectable mics, is after you make the connection to your phone via bluetooth, the mic then records audio to itself. And that’s why there are no range issues.
The audio then syncs back to your phone’s audio or video after you have finished recording.
It’s great for vloggers and Mojo-ers. For fiction filmmakers, there might be issues trying to hide this white box close enough to the actor’s mouth, whilst not appearing in shot. If you can work out a way to hide it beneath clothes, it could be a great microphone.
The microphone comes with pretty much nothing but itself, the charging cable and the instructions. If you’ve done much location sound recording, you will know cables and adapters are the thing which often takes up your time – keeping them tidy, out of shot, noiseless, and non-restrictive to camera operator, crew and/or actor.
Secondly, with boom or regular lav mics you might need 1 or more sound crew to operate them. With this, you can simply set it up and pretty much forget about it – as long as the battery is charged and the mic is synced to the phone (green light).
The problem really is the size. Although it’s small, it’s not as small as a lav mic, so it might be tricky to hide under clothes. The clip is bendy and rubbery, and has a strong magnetic grip once fixed in place.
To use the mic, you’ll need to download the Memory Mic app, then pair the mic to the smartphone.
Beware though, I think I would feel a bit nervous relying on this kind of connection if you’re recording something important and you don’t want to risk not getting the audio. If you just spent a day filming and get home to find something went wrong with the syncing or file storage…
Here’s a tip for making sure the mic is synced before you start recording:
“We also had the disconcerting experience of having the Memory Mic pair with the app (as it must before every new use), but when the session was over, it could not locate the audio to sync it up. The mistake was mine (sort of). Here’s what you need to know to avoid this scenario: The LED on the mic must be green in order to record. It was orange, and I soon found out what the orange LED means: Don’t record. Re-pairing the mic switched the light to green, and subsequent recordings were fine.” PC Mag
The app lets you can choose from low, medium, or high sensitivity. Low for recording extremely loud sources (like a concert) and high is for average people talking levels. However, suggestions are the high sensitivity setting is too sensitive for voice and can result in distortion or clipping. In which case, set it to medium.
When you record audio to a hard drive – with wires or wireless – you can right away check the audio.
Pros:
Sound quality. Dynamic range. Simple to use and clip on. No wires or complicated wireless system to manage.
Cons:
Size and colour not good for discreet mic placement. With bluetooth and apps involved, there’s an extra level of risk of things not working. Maximum 16-bit/48kHz.
Sennheiser estimates the Memory Mic’s battery life at about 4 hours. So for a day long shoot, you might need more than one so you don’t have to stop while you recharge. You can also record approximately the same length in audio (4 hours).
But does it work with camera apps such as FiLMiC Pro. You will have to check with your particular app, but apparently with FiLMiC Pro (at least the iOS version) you can switch to bluetooth mics:
According to this article, the Memory Mic “automatically syncs up to the FiLMiC Pro app”. Having said that, I have searched around and, although I have read Sennheiser are working with FiLMiC, I haven’t found any official announcement that the mic is compatible with FiLMiC Pro.
Sennheiser Memory Mic on Amazon
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