Hi I'm Gordon from camera labs and this Is my review of the Sony ECM M1 Microphone and before I go any further With this review all of the sound that You hear in this video unless otherwise Stated was recorded with the M1 Microphone mounted on an a6700 body I've Got a separate review of that camera if You're interested in finding out more About that the M1 is a compact Multi-purpose microphone aimed at Content creators who want the Flexibility of capturing their Surroundings maybe recording interviews Or perhaps switching to a more Directional shotgun style for presenting It's a similar concept to recent models Like the b1m and B10 but the m1's Smaller and now not only features extra Modes to customize the directionality But can also exploit newer cameras to Deliver safety channels announced in July 2023 and costing 350 dollars the M1 Is pitched at the upper end of this Series but as you'll see and here it Delivers a pretty unique feature set Alright b1m B10 and the mini G1 is Designed to mount onto one of Sony's Multi-interface or Mi shoes this Eliminates the need for wires or Batteries with the microphone instead Drawing power directly from the camera It does however mean it won't work with Other camera brands and it also means
That if you want to mount it off camera You're going to need a special extension Lead so the M1 is only for Sony cameras But it will work on some older models so Long as they've got that multi-interface Shoe a switch on the side will let you Set it to analog for compatibility with Older cameras or to digital to support Newer models like the a74 or a6700 Either way once mounted the microphone Will take over your audio recording Levels which you can adjust manually Using a small wheel on the back or Simply set it to Auto there's also an Attenuator switch for 0 10 and 20 DB Levels if you have a digital connection You'll also notice an extra menu Allowing you to set the recording Quality as well as enabling a four Channel mode which lets the micro don't Supply two additional safety channels One for a general pattern in case you've Accidentally left it on something a bit Too directional or facing the wrong Direction and another that's much Quieter in case you suddenly have some Very loud sounds in your recording like The b1m and B10 the M1 also features Digital noise cancellation as well as a Filter to reduce the constant hum of say Nearby Machinery or air conditioning if You want to reduce wind noise a muffler Accessory is also supplied but what Makes the M1 unique compared to the B1 M
And B10 or its Diamond arrangement of Its four capsules and the internal Processing which allows not just three Different recording modes but eight Which are adjustable using a dial on the Back this lockable dial starts with Three different directional modes facing Forward followed by omnidirectional Which records from all around you then The directional mode for the rear when You're behind the camera one that Focuses directly in front and behind for Conducting interviews another which does The same but records them on separate Channels for then adjusting levels later And finally in a world full of mono Shotguns the relative novelty of a Stereo mode Okay now for some tests and comparisons But before even taking the microphone Outside I wanted to perform One Quick Test indoors when it's still nice and Quiet I'm going to shake the camera Around for a bit so stay with me but Listen carefully So Not only was that a good rolling Shutter test for the a6700 but the Reason I was doing it was to test that Shock mounting on the ECM M1 microphone Because on some previous Sony Multi-interface shoe microphones that I've tested if that shot Mount was a Little bit loose well the main Microphone body could actually be heard
Tapping against the mount under more Vigorous shaky conditions and that could Include if you were vlogging on some Fairly unstable ground you can actually Hear it clicking in the background but As you heard there I don't think it's Going to be an issue for this model your Mileage may vary but that's how it Sounded to me now let's go Outdoors so I'm now outside on a fairly sheltered Woodland path and for this first test I'm using the built-in microphones on The Sony a6700 have something for you to Compare that microphone to and before I Do switch over to it I just wanted to Rattle the camera again Sure if you can hear that but the strap Lugs on this camera are a little bit Rattly and that is a bit of a problem if You are using the built-in microphones But put something better on top and it Should solve that problem straight away Right now I've switched to the Sony ECM M1 microphone mounted on top of the A6700 I've got a digital connection here And because it's on the multi-interface Shoe the microphone has taken over the Audio recording levels and I've got it Set here to its omnidirectional pattern Which means it should be picking up Sound from all around And there is a little bit of bird song Here They stop as soon as I mention it and
There's also a fairly busy road just a Couple hundred meters to one side so you Might be hearing a bit of that But let's now go for a slightly more Directional mode So now I've chosen the first of the Three front directional modes it's still Recording some sound from either side of Me but it should be more focused to the Front especially if I turn around and Allow it to pick up sound coming from Different directions The birds are still singing But let's focus that audio a little bit More carefully Now I'm on the second of those Directional modes so it should be Getting pretty focused to the front and If I was to angle the camera a bit to One side well it might not hear me quite As clearly but there is an even more Directional mode coming up so let's have A listen to that one Right now I've switched to the super Directional mode so the microphone Claims that it's now focused directly on Whatever is in front and if I was to Angle it to the side well hopefully you Wouldn't be able to hear me quite as Loudly in fact if I take that to The Logical extreme and turn the camera all The way around I'm now directly behind It But as I bring it back round to face me
Hopefully I should be coming back into Audio focus so that's the super Directional mode this is the microphone Now working pretty much as a Conventional shotgun microphone I think it's time for another comparison And there's the caption below reads I've Now switched to the rode video micro 2 Which is a much simpler and considerably Cheaper basic shotgun microphone which At around 80 US dollars is around four To five times cheaper than the ECM M1 of Course it's also a much simpler Microphone it's an analog model so I've Got it connected here with a wire to the A6700 and that also meant that I had to Set those recording levels on the Sony Camera manually now your camera might Support automatic levels but on this Model I had set them manually so I've Lost that convenience of one of their Multi-interface shoe models it's also Lacking all those different Omnidirectional modes it doesn't have The cunning noise reduction it's just a Basic shotgun but it may offer Everything you're after so if you don't Need those extra modes then do consider Getting a cheaper microphone but this Review is about the Sony microphone so Let's switch back to that But if you prefer to be behind the Camera well I've now got the ECM M1 set To its directional mode but facing
Backwards which is where I am now behind The camera it should be picking me up Pretty clearly but if I was to turn the Camera around now to face me so the Microphone should be recording audio in The other direction while I've become Pretty quiet now if I turn it back again Until I'm behind the camera then I Should be nice and clear so what a Lovely evening it is in these woods now So far all of this talk has been about Mono audio mono shotguns mono Omnidirectional but the ECM M1 also has A stereo mode and I'm using it right now And in fact if I was to turn the camera Around you should hear me pan to one Side and then as I keep going you should Be getting the ambient sounds of the Woodland around me And my sound going from side to side Until I face the camera again so that is A stereo mode on this microphone which Could be a nice novelty if you're not Used to filming like that okay now for a Different environment I'm going to start This clip by recording the sound The built-in microphones on the Sony A6700 Now I've switched the ECM E1 microphone And I have it set to its on the Directional mode and I'm in a station so There's quite a lot of noise around me Kind of low level noise like the sound Of the train is getting ready to go so
Let's try something a bit more Directional now I've switched to the Most directional mode so the microphone Should be concentrating on me and even If I go slightly off axis I should sound Quieter and it should be picking up more Of what the microphone is pointing at But so far I've not had noise canceling Turned on so we'll switch that on to the Next clip and see if it can reduce some Of this ambient background sound So now I have the super directional mode Enabled as well as the NC or noise Canceling and this should be helping to Eliminate some of that low level train Engine noise that's kind of all around In a environment like this one I'm going To shut up for a minute but keep Recording so you can hear that sound And finally just out of curiosity I'll Switch back to the omnidirectional mode So it should be recording sound from all Around me but I do also have noise Canceling enabled so let's see what that Does to it whether it picks up some of The train noise or cuts that out For this test I wanted to try out the Effectiveness of the wind Muffler which At the moment is not on and I'm walking Down a very Breezy Street you can hear That wind noise and now I've switched to The wind Muffler which is supplied with A microphone attached to the top still Pretty Breezy but hopefully you will
Have noticed a big reduction in the wind Noise and for comparison here is a Version with the digital noise canceling Turned on there's quite a few people Having a chat around me and the windows Really picked up now For a real torture test of wind Reduction I've come down to the seafront It is very very windy here I don't have The windshield on so let's hear what Difference that makes So now I have the supplied wind Muffler Attached to the microphone it is Extremely Breezy for comparison here's a Clip filmed with the low cut filter Enabled this is different from noise Reduction uh it's a different type of Digital filter so we'll hear what that Does And now for the microphone to set to NC Or noise canceling now this is right in Front of me so it's effectively behind The camera so hopefully the super Directional mode will be picking up more Of me rather than it but it is still a Very windy day another interesting mode On the microphone is being able to Record super directional to the front And to the rear but to record them to The separate left and right channels so What this should allow you to do is Actually separate or isolate the audio Coming from in front or behind so if I Now switch entirely to the sound coming
From behind well the C should become a Lot quieter and you should be able to Hear me a lot more clearly but if I now Switch to the sound only coming from the Front well the C should have priority Over me I've switched back again to me Having priorities and now I can switch Back to having both directional front And back or I could switch to my Omnidirectional safety track which Records sound from all around If you have the microphone connected to A camera with a digital multi-interface Shoe that supports four Channel audio Recording you can enable that in your Camera menus and use those two spare Channels to record something else on the Third channel the microphone will supply An omnidirectional mode so that if you Have accidentally got the camera set to Super directional perhaps not pointing It yourself well you may be able to Retrieve some audio from that I've now Got the ECM M1 set to its directional Mode but facing backwards which is where I am now behind the camera it should be Picking me up pretty clearly but if I Was to turn the camera around now to Face me so the microphone should be Recording audio in the other direction While I've become pretty quiet now but If I was to turn the camera around now To face me so the microphone should be Recording audio in the other direction
While I've become pretty quiet now but If I turn it back again until I'm behind The camera then I should be nice and Clear in the fourth Channel there is a Safety option let's say my levels got Really loud all of a sudden and this is Going to be really saturated even with Auto well let's see if we can recover Some of that sound really loud all of a Sudden and this is going to be really Saturated even with Auto So one last test on this super Breezy Challenging day as I go around in a Circle on the beach here now with the Sea in front of me but behind you and With the sea now behind me but you Facing it this is without noise Canceling and now this is with noise Canceling enabled so this is the digital Noise reduction technology that in Environments like this which are very Windy or with the sea can sometimes Sound a little bit processed a little Bit gurgly but let me know what you Think I've Stony done a good job At making a microphone usable in these Very challenging conditions so before my Hat flies off I think I better wrap this Up ultimately the ECM M1 is an Interesting addition to Sony's Increasing range of multi-interface shoe Microphones there's the original b1m With the eight capsules that's got Potentially the greatest sensitivity and
Sound quality in the lineup plus those Three patterns in the chance to deploy Digital noise reduction then if you Can't afford that there's the B10 which Is basically a simpler version and if You really want to go at the budget end There's the G1 a tiny little microphone Although in my test I didn't get on with The shock mount then you've got the new M1 which is the most feature packed of Them all although to be honest in my Test I did tend to either just go for Omnidirectional or the super directional Shotgun mode which is what I'm using Here that said if you do record Interviews from behind the camera the Ability to record both forward and Backwards is genuinely useful especially If you exploit that two Channel version Which allows you to separately adjust The levels and speaking of which if you Do have a compatible camera the chance To exploit those four channels to record Two extra safety channels is a really Neat addition as for the noise canceling Well like headphones it can either work Brilliantly or less than brilliantly and For me it's sufficiently unpredictable For it still to be something that I Wouldn't rely on half the time that I Used it I would absolutely Marvel at the Results and the other half the time it Sounded like I was in a cramped toilet With gurgling noises going past me and
It's best not to think about what is Going on there so for me I wouldn't use That feature but of course your mileage May vary so tell me based on the sound Clips and the situations that I've shown You in this video what do you think of The M1 is it a microphone that you Consider or is it a little bit on the Expensive side certainly if you're just After an upgrade in sound quality over The basic built-in microphones that are Considerably cheaper options available If you don't need that degree of Sophistication with all the different Modes do let me know what kind of Microphones you're using in the comments And if you found any of this review Useful I'd really appreciate it if you Gave it a like and my channel will Follow ultimately thanks for watching And I'll see you next time bye
