Customer Reviews

Rode Deadcat Wind Muff Microphone

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I feel that the price is a bit high but it does keep the wind at bay when use on the Rode Video mic. Note that In real high winds I also have to set the lowpass filter on the Video mic to on.

Great wind shield to use on your mic while recording outside.
It cuts the strong wind, while getting good quality sound.

We do video. This is an excellent purchase. Works well. Thick, wraps sturdy and filters noise very well. Love it. Will buy more.

I bought this after an outdoor video shoot on a windy farm yielded a lot of audio ruined by wind noise. I was shooting with a Rode NTG-2 shotgun mic mounted on my camera with the standard foam windscreen, but no matter which direction I turned I couldn't get away from the constant wind noise caused by maybe a 5-10 mph wind, tops. Barely a good breeze to anyone else but me.

I got the Deadcat just in time for my second farm shoot on a nearly identically windy day. Worlds better. Almost all of my audio was perfectly clear, and any slight, occasional wind rumble that came through actually sounded like natural wind instead of jet blast.

However, and this is why there's no fifth star, the Deadcat has a weak spot: the opening. The whole thing just slips over the foam windscreen that you (hopefully) already have. If you don't have it, there's no way to secure it to your mic. But even slipped over the foam, there's no real way to tighten it down or cinch it up. The result is that the rear is still wide open, and any wind coming from behind is funneled straight into the mic. It took me a few shots to figure out what was happening, and I was able to stop that wind by simply reaching up and holding the Deadcat cloes with my hand. Next time, I'm going to have to bring an extra velcro cable strap, a rubber band, some Gaff tape, or something to close that up.

Finally, the thing really doesn't look like it should be as pricy as it is. Same as other reviews.

But for the most part, it works very well. Audio was far and away much better, and that's the point.

Work fine, stops the wind from killing your shoot. I use this with the RODE mono VideoMic, the best outdoor, under $200, setup you can get for audio.

I shoot DSLR video/cinema; commercials, wedding trailers, creative shorts, etc.

Every DSLR has a dedicated mic (as SLR audio is notoriously bad, at least on the earlier models), which we use the Rode VideoMic Directional Video Condenser Microphone w/Mount to fix, and for every one of those we also use this product, the Deadcat Muff windshield. If you are shooting outside and have the VideoMic but not this, you're just wasting time and money.

Yes, with this attached you will get strange looks. Kids like looking at the dead squirrel (or Dead Cat) that is attached to your SLR. The usual quip is, "Whoa, what died on your camera?"

Also, and I am a big proponent of this, if you are looking to increase the perception of value of the product you offer - like video making/recording service - then yes, this is an accessory to have. Anyone can have a mic, not everyone carries a giant, fuzzy, dead animal-looking thing that covers your mic. :)

Price: 2.5 stars
Functionality: 4.5 (it doesn't cover the entire Rode VideoMic, so watch for heavy wind blowing from behind)

Total: 4 stars

Cheers!

Slightly overpriced, but it's better than getting crappy sound without.

FYI: Make sure you put it over the foam piece that already came with your mic. I tried it on the bare mic and it was way too big, and only then did I realize from the box that the windcat itself is supposed to go over the foam piece, which in turn goes directly over the mic.

Works really really well in getting ride of wind noise! It does add size to your recording setup, but the quality of sound you get back is worth the trade off.

Great for outdoor use, however it should not be $40, maybe $20. But if you use a Rode Videomic and do a lot of outdoor recording, you should definitely get this.

Daughter of mchampneys: I'm a young, independent, student film-maker who lives in the 3rd windiest place in the US. Because of the wind, audio was always a nightmare. I bought this and used it with my Audio-Technica ATR-6550 Shotgun Microphone to try and fix that problem. The first film day I used this was outside in a horrible blizzard. I heard my actors loud and clear and barely a puff of wind! Totally worth the $40!