(Happy New Year 2010 everyone! A new decade just began! [the 2nd one of the new millennium])
Another piece I am going to need to shoot a short movie and/or an interview, is a lavalier microphone wireless system. I did my research asking friends, but mainly through B&H and Dvinfo.
I would say my perception is that 95% of the professional sound people say that Lectrosonics is the very best brand (particularly the 400 series). In fact some said that some directors won't even consider work with them unless they user Lectrosonics (I don't know how real that is, but I read that). Again, that is great, but a good Lectrosonics with 2 mics is also around 5k. Way out of my budget!
Some more affordable brands are Sennheiser, Sony and Audio-Technica.
I narrowed down to these three options:
Sennheiser G2 (they also have their new G3 line)
Sony UWP-V1
and
Audio-Technica 1821 (from their 1800 series)
From all those 3, the very best reviews in terms of quality and number on people happy with them, were the ones from the Audio-Technica 1821.
Why? Well. That was a long time researching. I do not want to bore you with all the technical reasons and comparisons; but basically the AT1821 is the one system most people agreed is the best for the buck and the closest in quality (for the buck!) to the Lectrosonics 400 series.
Remember you also need a nice good quality lavalier microphone or you won't get great sound regardless of the wireless system!
Which omnidirectional Lavalier microphone?
Well, again for the buck it seems like the Audio-Technica AT899 or the Countryman B3 are the best bets. The B3 is just slightly smaller but they are both about the same quality and cost just about the same. Make sure to order the microphone with the right connectors for you wireless system or you might need to exchange them! For example an AT1821 system uses Hirose 4-pin microphones.
That is my 2 cents on lavalier microphones and wireless microphone systems!
Have fun researching more if you like!
^_^
