Sony ECMCS3 Clip Style Omnidirectional Stereo Microphone, Silver,Wired

This is a Stereo microphone with two inputs (L & R). This microphone works nicely and records my voice with minimal background noise. The audio level is descent with some fine tuning. Feels like an economy microphone and it is plastic. But overall a good value for money. This mic requires only the power provided from the line level (the 3.5mm jack). No need for batteries. Make sure you're connecting this to an output that provide that power. I use this for making simple instructions videos and to do live commentary on my video games. I shall update this with a video review later. This is a good value for money if you want to use 3.5mm microphones. You can step-up from here by using microphones with XLR interface, and although those are relatively cheap, you would need some sort of a sound card/audio recorder or a camcorder that has XLR input. You will also need to be wary about power requirement like Phantom Power, or battery power (some of those mics come with batteries in them!) COMPATABILITY Compatible out of the box with my Canon 6D. I added an extension cable ( C2G / Cables To Go 13787 3.5 mm M/F shielded Stereo Audio Extension Cable (6 Feet/1.82 Meters) to get more range! Does not work directly with MacBook Pro. I got this to work with MacBook Pro 15 Retina by using a cheap adapter Mobile Phone Audio Splitter Cable with one 3.5mm Male (TRRS) and two 3.5mm (TRS) Female connectors, one for external 3.5mm Speaker and one for external 3.5mm Microphone by ZaxSound UPDATE: I have successfully used this with TASCAM DR-40 4-Track Portable Digital Recorder by using an XLR male to 3.5mm female adapter CamDesign Stereo 3.5mm Mini Female to Male XLR Audio Adaptor for Tascam recorder, Zoom H5N , Rode Videomic ,Videomic Pro , Sennheiser Mke400, Canon XA20 XA25 . However, you will have to set TASCAM DR-40 to Mic + Phantom Power. Do NOT use Phantom power with 1/4" male to 3.5mm adapter. This could damage your microphone. I think the adapter adapts phantom power to line power. Not sure.

First off let me say this mic has been out for a few years. At first I was apprehensive about purchasing it for this reason. But it is built with sony quality. I see sonys philosophy. Its not broke so theres no need to fix it (or make a new model) just for the sake of making a new model. Build quality - Top notch, the wire is just the right size in my opinion, you dont want a lavaler mic cable too thick for the sake of rubbing feedback. It has a right angle plug which adds to the durability of the cable. Sound - Stereo sound , its crystal clear. I've had mics that cost 3 times the price of this sony lavaler and they barely sounded better or they were on par with this model. Looks - Its a little flashy. Sometimes you want flashy sometimes you dont. I guess thats up to each persons preference. I dont mind either way since its so small. Cost - Its a steal at this price, if you can get it for less that $20 dollars. Go for it! Possible deal breakers - It will not work out of the box for cell phone use. You will need a TRSS adapter. That can cost you about 10 - 20 dols more so be aware. Still totally worth it im my opinion. The wires is about 3 feet so if you need more length add another adapter Also the stereo sound can be abit distracting if you plan on using it for simple Video logs. Conclusion - Even with these possible short comings. This mic gets 5 stars easily. Its a hell of a bargain. Trust me

I've been in search of a decently priced Lavaliere that also has decent quality to it for use in interviews as well as the occasional use in film. My first try was the atrocious Audio-Technica ATR-3350. This was a nice step-up, but still has pretty major issues. Pros: -Good sound quality and has plenty of volume. The biggest disadvantage with the ATR-3350 was it's insanely low volume, which was so low that I had to boost it up about 40+dB. This has a very nice volume. Still require a boost, but only in single digit decibels. -The sound quality was pretty impressive for the price. Due to it's very nice volume, there is an acceptable noise level. It's there, but not too loud. -The plug-in power is convenient in that I don't have to worry about battery changes, however it appears to have some cons as well. -The stereo abilities are a nice added bonus, but doesn't really bring anything significantly better than mono, Cons: -The plug-in power, part of the downside about this is that it appears to not work with some devices that offer it. It won't work on my TASCAM DR-40 and I couldn't get it get to work with the ZOOM H4N either, but it might work with a bit more tinkering. Not a BIG deal though. (Minus half a star) -Here's the big one, the cord. The cord for this mic is RIDICULOUSLY short for a lav mic. I for one, will definitely need an extension cable (if that will still work with the plug-in power feature). The only way to use this properly on-camera in it's out of the box state is to plug it into a digital recorder and keep in it the performer's pocket. It is EXTREMELY inconvenient for a lav-style mic to be made with a cord that is THIS short. I'm docking an entire star and a half just for that. Overall: It captures nice sound and it's loud, and despite the convenience of not having to replace batteries, it's plug-in power being incompatible with devices that support it is annoying and last, but not least, the very very short cord makes the device very hard to use properly. EDIT: I tried again with my H4N and it successfully works, which means I can get much more use out of it than I initially expected. I added a star back on, however the cord is still VERY short. If the cord was longer then it would be a far more valuable product for the price.

I ordered this microphone mainly for online conference calls and Zoom meetings. I wanted it to be fairly discreet, as my other video mic would either have to be in my video or mounted in some way that would take some time and money to make it look organized. This mic, from an aesthetic standpoint, does a really good job, as you can clip it to your collar and run the cable under your shirt. You can see the silver mic and black clip, but it won't be very noticeable. Not as low profile as other lavs, but does a good enough job for a lower price. It's also very light, so you may tend to forget it's even on. The quality is excellent for those who are using it for calls and meetings online, as it does an excellent job blocking out other noises like chair squeaks, people moving around in the background, even the AC running. I haven't noticed any issues with cable noise, but I haven't necessarily tested it. Vocal clarity is great with these as well, with crispness throughout all the frequencies. I've had many compliments on my audio quality with these. I have not been able to test this outdoors in a videography session yet, so I can't speak on it's performance outdoors. It doesn't come with a deadcat, nor does it appear that Sony makes one for it, so take that into consideration. Build quality is clearly cheap with everything being plastic, but for WFH, it is more than enough. For media creatorson a budget who may be looking for something to carry around to shoots, I would take caution, as I feel it would break if someone were to step on the mic or other gear could crush it.

After reading the reviews I decided to buy this mic as a replacement from my previous mic. I got the mic and connected to my camcorder Canon HF 100, Go pro 3 black edition, and even my cellphone to see if it works, and IT DIDN'T! At one point I thought I received a non working mic, but after reading more about this mic, and why it was not working. I found out that this mic needs a source of power. Sometimes it uses your camera as a source of power, but in my case it didn't for any of the 3 devices. I was able to find online an adapter that it made the mic work with my samsung s4, and the audio quality is good; however, I have spent hourssss looking for an adapter that will make this mic work with my GoPro Hero 3 or my Canon HF 100, and I haven't found any yet. #SONY PLEASE HELP ME, AND LET ME KNOW WHAT ADAPTER I SHOULD BUY IF I WANT THIS MIC TO WORK WITH MY HERO3 AND MY CAMCORDER CANON HF100.

This is hard to beat for price/performance. What to like? Cost. Does not require batteries. Great sound pickup. Stereo not mono. What not to like? Silver color makes it harder to cover up/conceal and stands out too much, the clip is weak and doesn't hold on tightly. The cord is long enough to run under shirt and into a recorder in a pocket. You will need tape or some means of strengthening the clip if you are attaching this in anyway except at the top of a shirt collar (where the clip faces down and and doesn't have to work to hold on). Connected to a Zoom H1 or H2: set at recording volume 60 and placed under a sweater to conceal, you will not only pick up your voice and someone else you're talking to, but even some good ambient such as a dog barking in the background or even birds chirping, but will not get wind interference (sweater will be a natural wind buffer). BIG PLUS. It allows for a natural sound without the negatives of wind noise. Set to 30 and you'll get pretty much just your voice unless it is indoors/quiet. Anything from recording volume 30-60 is very usable. For the price, there are only 2 ways to beat this microphone (black color and stronger clip for the same price). Using battery powered lav mics you get great sound pick up but you have to deal with batteries and if the battery dies during filming you're going to get a nasty surprise in post when you find your sound died. Non-battery powered lav mics are usually low sound pick up and a lot of times, mono. This mic is a wonderful combination of stereo and great sound capture without batteries. The silver color was a horrible choice from Sony IMHO but it is what it is and not a deal killer, just something you work around (paint/gaffers tape/conceal).

I love this mic, it's inexpensive, small and has great sound quality for the price. Only real con of it is that it's cheap feeling (which I guess is fitting since it is inexpensive). I've bought one a few years ago, never had issues, and just bought it again. So It might be more durable than I thought. It is true stereo, if your device supports it. For those on Android (since that's all I can speak on, since i'm an android user), you'll need a 4 Pole Y splitter to 3 pole mic, 3 pole audio: ENVEL 3.5mm Jack Cable Adapter Kit Mutual Convertors for PC Mac PS4 Xbox one headset and Smartphone Tablet Earphone with Headphone/Microphone Simultaneously Y Splitter Audio 2 Female to 1 Male (Cable) The real problem comes in finding an app on android that actually allows true stereo input, I haven't found one, only ones that duplicate the channel. Though I've tested the stereo feature on my laptop. If you do use this on a Windows PC (since again, that's the one I use, can't speak on Apple), with Realtek audio drivers and one 3.5mm 4-pole input, a box will come up and you'll want to choose mic, though if you use the Y adapter I listed on your PC, then you need to choose "headset" for it to work, that even goes for 4-pole lavalier mics. Common issue people have when plugging stuff into their PC. In Audacity a free open source and rather amazing audio program for Windows, you can see that it's stereo. I bought one for my car, to make a handsfree kit out of a y-splitter, aux cable, and a 4-pole extension cord. It works well and the audio quality is really nice.

I spend money everyday, and for this mic to be only $13 at the time of purchase I would recomend to anyone. You can use this mic for almost anything. Now don't expect it to be the most clear mic ever but for $13 this mic sounds like a $50 mic. I own an apogee cardiod condenser mic and it deffenitly sounds better but that mic was $200. This Sony mic is omnidirectional and picks up little ambient noise but is still sensitive. Works great for picking up voice and instruments in close range. I tested the mic by using the FL Studio app on my iPhone with a Star Tech headphone/mic splitter cable so I was able to monitor the sound from this mic. Considering the mic is powered by my phone and my phone had to power both my sennheiser HD 380 headphones and the mic, Id say you can use this mic for any device that takes 3.5mm Jack. This mic would preform best for online game chat and Skype chat. But you can use it for whatever you desire. Your not getting studio quality for $13 and the cable does feel a little cheap but if the cable broke after awhile Id have no problem buying another one for $13. I wish more products featured removable cables so you can use higher quality cables but what can you ask for with a low price like this. For people wondering the mic signature Id say it picks up a broad range pretty good, high frequencies sound very clear and mids and lows sound decent. If you were thinking of buying the more expensive CS-10 I would just go with this one as it's cheaper and I don't see the CS-10 sounding much better plus it takes batteries.

It works as intended. Good for Skype calls, Zoom, etc. Quite hardy too although it seems to be made of cheap plastic. Dropped it a few times but it works fine!

Micro de qualité - certes, vu la proximité des deux micros, et selon la source, la stéréo n'est pas toujours optimale, mais c'est un peu la contrainte du format. Il faut évidemment le brancher dans un appareil avec prise stéréo adaptée, sinon un seul des micros fonctionnera, et le son ne parviendra que d'un côté. Rien à redire sinon.

The Sony ECM-CS3: In short, this is a great product and, if it's all you're looking for, then, yes, I do recommend this for anyone wanting to improve the quality of their videos by upgrading their audio gear. Sony have positioned it at just the right price point (around £20) which just about suits the budget of anyone with a YouTube channel or website and trying to improve the quality of their videos. It can plug straight into the 3.5mm microphone jack of your camera or audio recorder and I have not tested for a laptop and I do know I will not record straight into a phone - you will need some sort of adaptor from TRS-TRRS. Another feature of this microphone is that it has an excellent frequency range from 50-15000 Hz. This is excellent for recording a wide range of sources and is especially useful for those wanting to record vocals of a song, for example. The ECM-CS3 is a truly omni-directional microphone which is what all lapels should be. This means it is excellent for interviews. A downside of this though is that omni-directional polar patterns are usually associated with high self-noise and this is definitely present in the ECM-CS3. This does not bother me though because it is very simple to correct this in most editing software. It clips easily onto shirt or jumper and records great vocal tones. One of the downsides to this microphone is the short 1 metre cable. It would definitely have been a nicer touch to have a cable of maybe 2 metres but it can be easily extended. In conclusion this mic is great for the money with some great tones, nice frequency range and omni-directional pick up pattern. There should be a sound test, unboxing and comparison coming up shortly on my YouTube channel so for that the link will be at the bottom. Thanks for reading my review, now go out and improve your sound quality! [...]

Gostei tanto que virei "garoto propaganda", muito resistente, retira o ruido do ambiente "como ventilador por exemplo", a voz fica clara e limpa, recomendo 100% esse produto, ainda mais agora em tempos de homeoffice, onde tudo está via videoconferência, só tem um detalhe. ATENÇÃO: para utiliza-lo em notebooks que só tem uma saída, aqueles de 3 pintos, é necessários a compra de uma placa de som externa, (coloca ai no google placa de som usb externa, ou 3d sound usb ) que você vai achar, custa cerca de 15 reais. O MICROFONE É PERFEITO. para uso profissional, não sei dizer, eu uso para gravar aulas, para reuniões, para tudo e vejo como ficou a gravação depois, ele corta todo o ruído. OTIMO, RECOMENDO.

Por curiosidad busqué este artículo recientemente y me acabo de sorprender con lo mucho que le subieron el precio. Esperen a que aparezca una oferta. Yo compré este micrófono a un tercio del precio actual. Enfocándome en el micrófono he de decir que el cable sí es algo corto pero queda perfecto con action cams (especialmente si consiguen el adaptador de una que empieza con Go y termina en pro) y también con cámaras reflex. Ahora una cosa muy importante es ver si ustedes pueden hacerle o conseguirle un filtro para viento, en otros lados los conocen como gato muerto (es una funda como de peluche para el micrófono). Consigan una o háganla ustedes, con eso ya se pueden ir a la calle a grabar sin que el viento esté invadiendo el audio. En general es un excelente producto, lo recomiendo si van empezando a hacer vlogs o podcasts (yo lo conectaba a una grabadora pequeña de mano) además de no verse tan intimidante al momento de grabar. Si son mujeres, y me pasó cuando estuve grabando durante mi graduación, procuren que este micrófono no esté pegando con la joyería para evitar interferencia en el audio final.