Review Best Mic for Motovlogging - 3-Way Shootout

[Guest]

Hey all, I wanted to take a look at three very different microphones to figure out which would be best for motovlogging.

I tested all three mics at city and highway speeds with the same bike/gear/setup.

The first one was a generic $8 amazon mic. The second mic was the popular Purple Panda. The third mic was an AudioTechnica more advanced lav mic that on paper should be the best.

So how did they all do, and which one do you like best?

 

[GIZZ]

are the mics all mounted the same? With the same amount of cover? I’d try and tuck the panda in the padding to cut the wind noise. I don’t like all the extra stuff with the technica, don’t really like the long wire on the panda.

 

[Guest]

are the mics all mounted the same? With the same amount of cover? I’d try and tuck the panda in the padding to cut the wind noise. I don’t like all the extra stuff with the technica, don’t really like the long wire on the panda.

Same helmet, mic position, bike, on all three.

Audio Technica wire is even longer. Like absurdly.

I think if I wanted to really get the best possible audio I would probably use two mics. One strictly for the exhaust tone, paired with the Audio Technica for the clean clear voice. But, I want this to stay fun and relatively easy. Less is more, especially as a one man gig, y'know?

 

[GIZZ]

I agree, simpler is better. But before you run 2 mic’s, I’d experiment with mic placement and wind socks.

 

[Guest]

Thanks. I haven't experimented too too much as I'm going to retire my Arai and switch to a different brand. Not for lack of love of Arai, just because I haven't found any graphics from them that make me want to spend that kind of money.. Might be unboxing video time soon to show what I've switched to come to think of it...

 

[HippoDrone]

I'll be taking a look at this in a bit, I just use a £6 mic, has a really short wire so no need to hide it away and works well for me, I'll comment back here in a bit once I've checked out your video!

 

[Guest]

I'll be taking a look at this in a bit, I just use a £6 mic, has a really short wire so no need to hide it away and works well for me, I'll comment back here in a bit once I've checked out your video!

Good to know! I've never watched your videos (not recently anyway) and been like "This guy's audio stinks!" so I'd say that 6 lb microphone is doing well. Seems a bit heavy though?

I also can't say I've seen vids of you riding at highway speeds though. Does the mic hold up? That was one of the limitations I found of the cheap $8 one. At highway speeds it was not in a good mood lol.

 

[HippoDrone]

The PP sounded best overall in this comparison for sure. I'd try one myself if it didn't have a long cable. I use a similar mic to Shadetree Surgeon which cost around £6 and am quite happy with it. If it breaks I may try the PP.

Good to know! I've never watched your videos (not recently anyway) and been like "This guy's audio stinks!" so I'd say that 6 lb microphone is doing well. Seems a bit heavy though?

I also can't say I've seen vids of you riding at highway speeds though. Does the mic hold up? That was one of the limitations I found of the cheap $8 one. At highway speeds it was not in a good mood lol.

Hahaha, aye, its why I wear a carbon fibre helmet... to reduce that weight a bit!

In my last GSXR750 vid I def got up to legal top speeds (and maybe a bit higher too), I did get some peaking and clipping, which could have been the mic, but I think it was more likely to be the media mod connection as that has always been dodgy on that camera, is why I normally run the GoPro mic adaptor as it seems to stop that from happening so much.

 

[Guest]

The PP sounded best overall in this comparison for sure. I'd try one myself if it didn't have a long cable. I use a similar mic to Shadetree Surgeon which cost around £6 and am quite happy with it. If it breaks I may try the PP.



Hahaha, aye, its why I wear a carbon fibre helmet... to reduce that weight a bit!

In my last GSXR750 vid I def got up to legal top speeds (and maybe a bit higher too), I did get some peaking and clipping, which could have been the mic, but I think it was more likely to be the media mod connection as that has always been dodgy on that camera, is why I normally run the GoPro mic adaptor as it seems to stop that from happening so much.

lol i will take a look! I had the mic adapter from an old gopro hero 6 from 3 years ago, maybe more(?), so when they come out with the media mod i never bothered. I just use the ulanzi case that has a slot for the mic adapter built into the gopro case to keep it nice and tidy.

 

[HippoDrone]

I don't normally use the Media Mod as I think it is a bit rubbish for how I do my helmetcam setup, mine always allowed the mic jack to wobble. The Mic Adaptor is so much better, but I was using a different helmet and didn't have it set up for the mic adaptor, sorted it now though

 

[GIZZ]

I don't normally use the Media Mod as I think it is a bit rubbish for how I do my helmetcam setup, mine always allowed the mic jack to wobble. The Mic Adaptor is so much better, but I was using a different helmet and didn't have it set up for the mic adaptor, sorted it now though

Interesting, I'm looking at the Hero 10 and media mod. The issue I had was the size of it all hanging off the front of the helmet. You had real issues using the media mod?

 

[HippoDrone]

I hate the Media Mod on the 8, 9 & 10 it is huge and makes swapping batteries a pain. I use Velcro to attach the mic adapter to the helmet, works much better for me.

 

[Guest]

I like these cases that have a slot for the mic adapter. Makes it really easy to keep the mic adapter and my gopro together (they're never apart), whether on the helmet or tripod. Just plug in the microphone and you're good to go.

Link:

 

[bernhtp]

Moto helmet audio is so difficult and variable. There are many factors. Here are 10 off the top of my head:

1. Mic placement in the helmet, e.g., proximity to your mouth.
2. Wind/noise damping around the mic – cheekpad, foam, dead cat.
3. Mic type, sensitivity/gain, dynamic range, and frequency sensitivity.
4. Type and noisiness of the helmet, e.g., sport helmets tend to be noisier than touring ones (lighter, more ventilation, tuck orientation).
5. Helmet configuration. Closing vents and installing chin curtain reduce noise and improve audio, but decrease comfort.
6. Bike windscreen (or not) and whether it moves air from or to the helmet. Sport bikes solely aim to increase aerodynamic efficiency (especially in tuck), which tends to move more air, not less, to the helmet area. Touring bikes do the opposite.
7. Noise from the bike itself, mostly intake and exhaust, which mostly varies with throttle and RPM.
8. Speed kills, um, audio. Most audio setups work acceptably well at slow speeds and low noise. The aim is high-speed/noise audio quality, which is really difficult.
9. Recorder type, digital processing, filters (e.g., wind noise suppression) and AGC (automatic gain control). GoPro audio tends to suck, starting with requiring the HUGE adapter or media mod. This causes many/most pro motovloggers to eat the cost, setup complexity, maintenance (charging) and post/mixing work of a dedicated recorder, e.g., Tascam.
10. Audio strategy/emphasis (related to the above). For example, my Cardo Packtalk intercom has very aggressive filtering, AGC and compression. Its DSP eliminates audio from non-voice frequencies, requires a threshold level to transmit anything (like a transmit button on a CB radio), and compresses the dynamic range to make otherwise noisy vocal audio comprehensible. This audio is useless for other purposes.

I would post some examples of these, but for unknown and counterproductive reasons, my previous links were removed and the posts edited by the mod to remove references to the linked video – all without explanation or apparent reason. The bizarre (and unprofessional) moderation here makes this site for less useful than it could be otherwise.

 

[Guest]

Great post ^

Looking back at some of my old footage I found that the TASCAM + Audio Technica sounds different (and I think a lot better) than the GoPro + Audio Technica...

I think more homework is needed.

 

[bernhtp]

Great post ^

Looking back at some of my old footage I found that the TASCAM + Audio Technica sounds different (and I think a lot better) than the GoPro + Audio Technica...

I think more homework is needed.

The dedicated recorders like the Tascam appear to have better signal processing with good wind filter, voice boost and AGC.

GoPro et all should be ashamed of themselves for not providing an analog audio in and good signal processing for external audio. They've been completely ignoring our needs. The old Sony FDR-X3000 was far better in both regards.

 

[HippoDrone]

sadly, we motovloggers are not GoPro's core customer, so we will never be listened to. Insta360 have tried to answer our call, and done a reasonable job at it, Jake The Garden Snake has shown their cameras can do the job, I know of some smaller channels that have ditched regular action cameras for the 360 jobbies, but personally am not convinced it is a better result.... Am sick of being GoPro's beta tester, for cameras that don't do what I want them to do!

 

[Guest]

Compared to the audio from my insta360 one r, I will never complain about GoPros audio lol

 

[bernhtp]

sadly, we motovloggers are not GoPro's core customer, so we will never be listened to.

I don't think this is true. GoPro has a diversity of customers and uses. There are camera mounts on almost half the bikes/helmets I see. A significant percentage of the millions of motorcyclists around the world record video, and the most popular option is GoPro. I can't help but believe that we constitute among their largest markets. I would be interested in seeing the stats.

One problem is that GoPro attempts to address its wide diversity of uses with a single camera. We don't need two screens - don't even need one - but we do need external audio into the helmet. Media Mods that are bulky and require full disassembly to just change the battery (and recover from the occasional freeze) are super crappy solutions. We are saddled with battery life far shorter than our ride segments.

We have our problem because we aren't loud enough. All of us should lobby for a camera that fits our needs far better. Post on social media and send their product management emails. Do the same with their competitors: Insta360, DJI and even Sony. Then see who listens.

They should introduce a successor to the Hero Session that has its minimalist form factor and:

1. 3.5mm audio in for an external mic. Alternatively make the USB-C friendly to common USB mics without requiring the proprietary and bulky adapters.
2. No screens - don't need the extra size, weight, power drain, expense, etc. We can do all setup via a phone app.
3. Modular/Snap-on battery (similar to One R) to make replacement quick and even allow for different battery sizes that don't interfere with the mount side.
4. We don't need 10m waterproof. Some water resistance is fine.
5. Built-in mount fingers.
6. Better and configurable AGC to deal with our highly-variable moto noise environment.
7. A start/top button that is more easily operable with a gloved hand and gives more salient feedback on its on/off state.
8. GPS that works with the camera mounted inverted and operates with quick-start.

This formula would also help other helmet uses, e.g., bikes, skateboards, etc., though they generally lack our audio needs.

GoPro then could also offer a "Moto Pack" that includes a mic having:

• matched impedance and gain for the helmet noise environment.
• A short cable (we generally only need 4-6 inches from the cheek-pad mount and the camera.
• Surrounded with a dead cat.
• A flat spot for attaching to the helmet via adhesive/tape along with a bunch of tiny mount pads.

Whoever addresses this use-case problem set first will gain a large market.

 

[HippoDrone]

I'd love a new version of the Session, the only reason I stopped using my Hero 5 Session was that it stopped working from a powerbank randomly on both of my Hero 5 Sessions and I lost loads of footage. The Hero Black 10 is a far better camera for footage, but the form factor is poop. The new endurance batteries do work great though, far better than the standard batteries it comes with.