Best Microphones – High-End

After our long odyssey with wireless handheld microphone solutions from different manufacturers over the years, which “kind of” worked but with mediocre audio quality, background noise, and interference, we recently tested Sony’s UWP-D22 wireless handheld microphone. We were stunned by the exceptional audio quality it delivered.

The audio sounds quite dry, almost studio-like, and is clearly optimized for voice recordings while shutting out surrounding noise that was not in the vicinity of the hand mic. It’s not a close mic, so you don’t have to hold it super close to your mouth or nearly press it against your lips, which is also very unhygienic when interviewing various people throughout the day. When we held it at a standard distance, the Sony UWP-D22 worked flawlessly, making it absolutely ideal for our use.

The Sony UWP-D22 will remain our reliable go-to solution for any future trade shows. We like the quality of the sound in comparison to all other solutions we tested – it’s clear, voices sound exceptionally full, surrounding noise is cancelled out well, and the wireless connection is robust and relatively interference-free. 

The wireless lav system with integrated windscreen isolates the talent voice very well, and a range improvement can be expected with a UHF system versus the AVX. For a producer/shooter, journalist, or DP in the jungle, this is the audio kit to consider.

There are all sorts of quality-of-life design ideas here — everything from stackable magnetic mounts to locking connectors. The receiver even warns you when the transmitter is muted. It’s the little things that make set life easier.

Sennheiser has also done a solid job walking the line with the EW-DP by providing just the right amount of options and enough control to provide peace of mind in any interference-heavy environment.

Achieve superb audio capture in demanding conditions for your next professional film, TV, or location recording with the Sennheiser MKH 416-P48U3 moisture-resistant shotgun microphone.

Mix-ready sound quality is provided by its sharp directivity, low noise, and strong output. Plus, there are no controls to worry about; the MKH 416-P48U3 delivers the reliability you need for high-pressure gigs. The microphone exhibits a hypercardioid polar pattern at low to midrange frequencies and transitions to a lobar pattern in high frequencies, allowing it to attenuate 125 Hz to 2 kHz by approximately 10 dB at the 90° off-axis points.

Your dialogue, foley, and sound effects can be recorded with full dynamics and clarity, thanks to the MKH 416-P48U3's wide frequency response, enhanced consonant articulation, and high SPL handling.

The Sennheiser MKH 418S professional stereo shotgun microphone incorporates the Mid / Side (M/S) technique, yielding a high degree of directivity and focus while reproducing signals with extreme accuracy to their perspective placement, within the Left / Right Stereo field. The MKH 418S features 2 independent acoustic systems for generating the mid and side signals. The mid (M), or mono signal is generated using an internal shotgun microphone.

With its frequency range of 40 Hz to 20 kHz, the shotgun accurately reproduces audio with extreme focus, emphasizing pick up of signals at the direct-axis section (front). The shotgun also rejects signal at the off-axis sections (sides) of the microphone, minimizing noise and further strengthening the pick up area. The Side (S), or stereo signal is generated using a separate, internal microphone system that features a figure-of-eight polar pattern. This system is responsible for reproducing the spacial character needed for accurate placement of signal within the stereo field. It can also handle 130 dB of SPL.

The satin nickel KMR 82 i Shotgun Microphone from Neumann uses a combination of a pressure gradient transducer and an interference tube.

If the wavelength of the frequency is longer than the tube length, the microphone works as a pressure gradient transducer. At higher frequencies, it operates as an interference transducer for lateral sound. Off axis sound sources are picked up with reduced level, but without coloration. Therefore, the microphone is well suited to record individual instruments of an orchestra. The pickup areas of several shotgun microphones may even overlap as, for example, during recordings on a large stage, without causing any problem.

Sized between the short MiniCMIT and the long SuperCMIT, the anthracite gray Schoeps CMIT 5 shotgun microphone is an excellent all-around boom mic for indoor and outdoor applications.

Highly regarded for film, TV, and location recording, the CMIT 5 offers customizable tone and predictable directionality, even when rotated. Three selectable filters let you manage boom noise, proximity effect, high-frequency emphasis to ensure balanced, professional audio quality. Special construction and filtering effectively inhibits interference from various sources such as radio, TV, and cellular frequencies.

This Schoeps Colette Series Stereo Set is comprised of 2 CMC6 amplifiers, 2 stereo matched MK5 capsules, a pair of SG 20 microphone mounts, windscreens, and a foam-lined wooden storage case.

The Colette Series are modular microphones that are very popular among field audio engineers. The analog microphone systems are based on the modular CMC6 preamplifier and interchangeable MK series capsules. The capsules provide wide, linear frequency response curves and superior audio quality. This set includes the MK5 switchable-pattern capsules. The MK5 features switchable cardioid and omnidirectional polar patterns for maximum flexibility and control. This versatile capsule is capable of accurately capturing a wide variety of audio sources include singing, speech, instruments, and more.

The CSS-50 from Sanken is a three-diaphragm, electret condenser short shotgun microphone that uses pressure gradient technology and supercardioid diaphragms to offer three distinct operational modes.

The microphone is suitable for capturing audio in video, broadcast TV, and film applications. The shotgun mic is small and lightweight with three switchable modes, mono, normal (stereo), and wide (stereo) to satisfy the various needs of location and studio recording solutions. In normal mode, the stereo angle is approximately 115°, and the microphone picks up the targeted sound as well as extremely accurate stereo localization.