Customer Reviews

Sony ECM MS907 - Microphone - metallic gray

5 star:		(1)
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3 star:		(1)
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I bought this mic to go with our Kodak Zi8 pocket video camera to record our meetings. Our group needs to set the camera on a tripod about 15 or 20 feet away from the person at the podium, and that means the sound from the Kodak's built-in mic was seriously lacking. I had been using a Shure SM48S with an XLR cable into one of those bulky XLR-to-quarter-inch adapters into a mixer and out to the camera via an RCA-to-3.5mm TRS. I bought the Sony mic because it would eliminate the need for all that equipment, and make everything easier to set up.

This Sony mic did just that. All you have to do is plug it in and turn it on. The sound is natural, a huge improvement over the camera's built-in mic. The 90° pick-up angle setting is a perfect balance between the person at the podium and the audience. You don't even need a mic stand. You can just pop it into the little clip and set it on the conference table. The battery seems to last forever. (I forgot to turn it off after a meeting, and one week later, I didn't notice a difference.) The cable is attached, so you can't lose it. And this mic is affordable.

Now the downsides: Since it's a stereo mic, Sony has decided to make the body somewhat V-shaped so it only fits into the provided mic clip. This ensures that you're always recording left and right, not tabletop and ceiling. That's a good thing. But that also means the mic won't fit into any other standard clip, and the clip provided doesn't fit into any standard mic stand. You're stuck with either setting the mic on a flat surface, or shoving the end of the mic clip into another mic clip on the stand (what we've done).

The attached cable is only 5 feet, so we're using an extension cable which introduces a high-pitched noise that I have to process out of the recording later. There is not a lot of gain with this Sony mic. Our old Shure took time to set up, but it produced nice, quiet recordings. Basically, I've traded set-up time for post-production time.

The Sony's on-off/pattern selector switch blinks only briefly when you turn it on. That feels odd, like maybe it's not really turned on.

I would imagine a better choice for us would have been the Audio Technica AT2022, but that one costs over $250. (Any problem can be solved with more money, right?)

If you're looking for an upgrade over your camera's built-in mic, and the mic can stay within 5 feet of your camera, and you don't have a lot of money, I'd say you could do much worse than this Sony mic.

I replaced the same model from a microphone I bought 10 years ago. It produces excellent sound. I use it with a Sony Walkman and record on mini-disks. The acoustics give you the experience of being in a full spaceous room of sound, esp. when recording music. I highly recomment it!