Customer Reviews

Sony ECMHW1 Bluetooth Wireless Microphone for DVR-DVD405, 505, HDR-SR1, UX1 & DCR-SR60, SR80, SR100 Camcorders

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I'm very happy with this microphone. The audio is balanced very well. We have a Sony HD-SR1 camcorder which records in Dolby Digital 5.1. There is a setting on this mic to set it as the center channel. You can also set it as the primary mic as well.

Recently we used this to record our daughters Holiday recital. She is only five and this was a group singing event. The microphone picked up her voice as the main center channel and the rest of the singers surrounded her. This was very effective. It was so cute to hear her voice from the crowd. This would not have been possible without this wireless mic. It even picked up her whispers. We were sitting about 50-60 feet away and the sound was excellent and we the bluetooth connection was never disrupted or disconnected. We even used it for her meeting with Santa and it was incredible to hear her whispering what she wanted to Santa. Our past videos simply have lips moving with inaudible sound. What a great experience to capture with the simple addition of this microphone.

Pairing was very simple as you simply turn on both the camcorder portion and the microphone. The bluetooth receiver uses power from the hotshoe so it doesn't need additional batteries. You will need some AAA's for the actual microphone though.

I only have two minor complaints...
- The neck strap is itchy. This is hard to explain. It is a nylon strap and the back portion is melted on to connect the strap. The melted portion is hard and scrapes your neck. I'll look for another strap but it is hard to find one that will work since the mic opening is tiny. This is a very minor annoyance though.
- My second minor annoyance is that when wearing the neck strap, any slight movement causes quite a bit of rustling sound. This results in large hissing type noise. We tried it with both the wind guard (small felt like cover) on and off and still get the rustling. Problem is especially worse with winter jackets that are loud anyways. The solution would be to use the clip or armband but the clip kept falling off our daughter and she kept playing with the armband and it looked unusual to have the armband on. Again, not a big deal. We are learning how to use this better and will practice with better placement of clip/armband when the situation arises.

Those two issues are so minor, I don't really fault the product itself which is great. I wanted to rate this 4.5 stars but it only let me choose 4 or 5 so I'm going with 5.

The Bluetooth wireless microphone does exactly what it says it can do. The sound quality is excellent as well as the recording range. This is the only product I could find that could achieve the results I was looking for in remote recording. I am a novice when it comes to remote recording and I could not find enough information on how to couple remote recording equipment to different brands of Camcorders. The Sony seemed to solve all of my problems in one easy to use remote recording device. There is a switch setting on the shoe receiver that has 5.1 inch center, off, and on, which you had better experiment with before You do any serious recording. I had the switch in the wrong place and totally lost audio in one Christmas recording but I blame myself for this error. The shoe receiver and the microphone both have a blue light that glows solid blue when both the microphone and the camcorder are communicating, the blue lights flash on and off when they are not communicating. If You use the provided windscreen with the microphone You must be sure the microphone is on before You slip the microphone into the grey cloth windscreen which obstructs viewing of the microphone's blue light. I especially liked this product because it was offered free of charge with my Handycam from Amazon. The prices of this device elsewhere where as high as $199.00 dollars. The possibilities are very good that You may be the only one in the room with this cool technology which makes all others drool. The kids loved the microphone and it was great watching their personalities come to life with the microphone in their hands.

I got this wireless microphone free as it was a part of the deal when I purchased my DCR-SR100. I have to admit that using this really clarifies the sound, especially when there is a situation with a lot of people and you want to hear your subject more than the background noise.

First, the receiver. Its very light (2oz.) and requires no additional batteries. It is powered by the camcorder and ONLY fits Sony's "Active Interface Shoe." **Only newer Sony Models are compatible, need to check if your model works** The receiver has two "on" selections. The first "on" is compatible with 5.1 dolby digital surround sound; it takes the voice information from the wireless trasmitter and plays it as your center sound from your 5.1 system. There is another "on" selection that will not differentiate which speaker the voice comes from but works just as well. The receiver also has a headphone jack so you can monitor what is being said from the transmitter; this can be extremely useful and since Sony has excluded ths feature from most of their camcorder consumer line, its a nice little option to have back.

Now the wireless transmitter can be connected to the person/ object in three different ways; a clip, a lanyard and a arm band. The transmitter also has a windscreen that I keep attached all the time; I find that this reduces that irritating rustling noise and cuts down on heavy breathing. I use the clip as much as possible since it keeps the transmitter steady and in one location. The arm band is second most since it minimizes movement but sometimes becomes obvious depending on the clothing. The lanyard is my least used because it constantly swings from side to side and increases unwanted noise. The transmitter uses 2 (AAA) batteries and is said to last about 3 hours. The transmitter is extremely light and easy to conceal using the clip.

As with all bluetooth items, line of sight is "key". The maximum range between the receiver and transmitter is said to be 100ft with direct line of sight. I tested this product by placing the transmitter in a room full of people and taking my camcorder outside (I had both a dining room and kitchen between myself and my transmitter and had the double paned glass sliding door closed) and was approximately 50 ft. away; I could hear everything without any problems.

One very, very minor thing that I have an easy fix for is that constant blue light that emits from both the receiver and transmitter. The transmitter is easily covered by the windscreen, but the receiver is completely exposed as it sits on top of the camcorder. I simply cover the receiver's light by using a piece of electrical tape, it seems to have no effect on performance and does not leave any sticky residue. I don't want to be that inconsiderate videographer parent that irritates the other parents during a play or recital.

I'm lucky that this is compatible with my model camcorder, but I still wish that Sony would minimize it proprietary grip on most of its products and technology.

Still a very nice product and I highly recommend it.

Hope this helps

Length:: 0:46 Mins

*Added info below after a month of use*

We just purchased this wireless bluetooth microphone. I give it five stars because there's nothing better - either in the Sony line, or from other companies - that keeps wireless audio gathering simple for this product line. We need simplicity for our news-gathering because we have to shoot both video and still images. If we were only video journalists, it would be a no-brainer to use gear that is more designed for commercial/spot news gathering. But the ECMHW1 offers a very simple set-up: mount the receiver, place the transmitter unit on or near the subject, and turn the camera and both wireless sets on. When the blue light glows steady on both units, the audio can be gathered. The camcorder already uses built-in auto audio levels.

For field tests, I tried a number of different placements, from using the lanyard, to clipping the transmitter on my belt, as well as using the strap that wraps around the upper arm. The lanyard works best, but you can also place the transmitter on a table or in an inconspicuous area near the subject (for sit-down talks). One test, with the camera recording 30 feet away, caught 3 people in the conversation quite well, and the third person didn't even know he was being recorded.

We started in our own work area, which consists of two rather narrow rooms. As for distance, I could record audio clearly within line-of-sight at 40 feet distance; taking the camera from view by walking to the hallway (a doorway was the only way to see him in the other room), the signal started breaking up about 15 feet after losing sight when I turned down the hall.

Outside, the subject walked away as I recorded video with sound. We took the setup outside our building, which sits 100 yards from an elevated highway; the white noise (that sound of traffic rolling) bounces right off our building. But when the subject placed the transmitter around his neck, the recording sounded quite good, considering how loud the ambient noise levels were. Audio began breaking up about 100 feet away, and started going in and out. However, he walked a good 140-150 feet and turned towards me, and I could clearly record sound. This product simply works, no matter how much I tend to hate proprietary gear, like Sony's AIS (Active Interface Shoe), which makes it hard to use things like mounted video lights. However, this unit is great, because the receiver also sports a headset miniplug. People with some of the non-HD camcorders that were built without mic and headphone jacks can now have a camera where you can monitor your sound now.

The receiver also has 3 kewl settings: Off, on, and 5.1 stereo. Turning it off, your camcorder only captures sound from its built-in mic. Turn the units on, and the wireless mic is captured, while no sound gets recorded from the camera's microphone. But turn it on 5.1, and both camera and wireless mics work. That can help if you're shooting 2 people. You keep your camera close to the subject you're shooting, and let a second person wear the transmitter, and you have sound from 2 people. Great for covering spouses or kids.

Things that Sony can IMPROVE on?? Of course. First, I'd like to see the transmitter colored in the same charcoal hue as the receiver is. That bright silver can shout at you when you're recording somebody with it on. My workaround is two-fold: First, frame the subject to crop that transmitter out. Or, set it near your subject. If it doesn't work, well... I see microphones shoved beneath people all the time, so that little wireless mic won't bother me too much. I will try using black tape to cover the silver, which may slightly limit the transmission range. The other thing Sony SHOULD do? Design the next-gen transmitter to have an optional miniplug jack to use a lavalier mic. That way, you can place the transmitter on the belt and run that small mic right to your subject's collar. I hope all that info helps. Hopefully I can add some images as well. If I can, I'll try adding a video clip of the sound levels and situation. Meanwhile, I've recommended that we equip all of our shooters with this wireless microphone set for the Sony Handycams.

**Update** There is a little grey sock that comes with the set, which fits over the small microphone. While shooting an outdoor press conference today, I heard even the smallest gust of wind, which bothered me. It turns out that the little sock is perhaps a windsock. It's a bit thin - but sticking the transmitter inside so the mic sits protected, helped cut that wind noise down. Because the Sony has no XLR jack, I couldn't use the "mote box" that the network cameras plug into for the NFL press conference. All I did was clip the microphone onto the thick mic wire and the sound was pristine. The camera also adjusts audio levels, so whenever a reporter asked a question, I could actually record it better than the podium mic they used. It can even pick up whispers much better than I anticipated.

Works great for adding audio remotely to your video. Used it at Disney, put it on the kids for their school plays and recitals- works like a charm.

I own a Sony SR100 camcorder. I recently bought it to take on a big trip to Hawaii. I noticed on the first day we were there that because of the high winds I couldn't here my wife or daughter very well or at all when we were at the beach. After I started using this add on it was very clear what was being said. I have noticed a few dropouts here and there....it's line of site so keep that in mind. I would recommend this for anyone with a 5.1 capable camcorder made by Sony.

I read the positive reviews for this prior to purchase. For home video/audio recording it might work fine. We were trying to use it for recording "how to" demonstrations and it was not suitable for that use. It has an overly sensitive, built-in audio limiter and as soon as the microphone picks up additional sound (glass beads in a vase, etc.) it lowers the overall audio level sharply, causing the level of the speaker's voice to drop very noticibly. Then when the background noise ends, the speaker's voice level pops back up. There is no manual adjustment to the audio limiter - that would solve this problem. Because of the over reactive audio limiter we had to return this product.

I recently used this mic to record a wedding. I placed the mic inside the Preacher's coat pocket. And other than some rustling sounds, it worked great. I was able to hear the preacher, the bride and the groom almost perfectly. Even when the bride and groom would whisper!

The only complaint I have is the light on the mic and on it's receiver. There is this distracting blue bar that seems really bright. It's purpose is to confirm the connection between the two. It can be solved with a strip of dark tape, but it looks a little tacky.

Overall, great product...and a must have!

I bought this for my Sony DVD-505 because I wanted all the gadgets I could get my hands on. After using it once, I want to use it all the time. It does everything the sales pitch says it does. Works great over 100 feet away. On the 505, comes through as center channel while on-board 4 mics pick up everything else. (A very cool effect).
The remote mic isn't as cumbersome as some other reviews I have read said it was. In fact, it's easy to conceal.
I would recomend this wireless mic to anyone who wants to get every drop out of their surround sound camera. Playback on surround sound theater set-up makes your movie way more interesting.

I have used this product in many different applications and have been very impressed with its performance. The range meets or exceeds the specified range. I bugged a church van during a scavenger hunt and they never knew it was there and I was able to capture their teamwork for a video of our youth program. The range was great. The audio quality is great too. I have used it for an interview as well as many other applications. The wind does get picked up a little even with the wind screen on (but it is still the best performing microphone I have used for my Sony DSR-300 video camera). I would recommend it over a shotgun mic any day of the week. Having a microphone separate from the camera also removes any mechanical noise that the camera makes (motor drive of the tape or any minor bumps that the camera takes. It makes your camera look a little strange with the receiver but it is well worth it. The light is a little annoying on the receiver but if you put the wind screen on you cannot see it at all. A must have for anyone who wants to improve their audio quality on their videos.