Anyone using the new Rode mics for smartphones?

MattinSTL

MattinSTL

Sound Modulator
Well... I'm intrigued. This seems potentially revolutionary. Just as I'm getting excited about the new Tascam recorder... and wondering what the next step in lower budget audio production will be... I see these. Rode has several mics that are made to connect directly with your smartphone. They provide the apps to turn your iPhone or Android into a portable recorder... and each offering is more compelling then the last.

rode_ixy_mic.jpg

This mic interests me somewhat... because of the Zoom and Tascam recorders that you could say have a similar form factor. The obvious advantage here is that you already have your phone. I bought a cheap Zoom recorder a year ago... but have never used it... for the convenience of grabbing some quick audio w/o my main kit. This could be a good alternative for an ENG type situation?

smartlav_05.jpg

The "smartlav" interests me because it potentially eliminates the need for a wireless mic or a little recorder like the Zoom or Tascam. Again, considering that you probably already own a smartphone... all you need is the lav and you can "wire" somebody up? This won't be for me... as I've got a full audio package... but when people on this site ask for budget solutions... I'm wondering if this might be it?

I found a link through google to a little video from Guy... not THIS ONE, but another which is more cinema verite'... Either way... $60? That's nothing for a lav. Is it "good enough"? Hmm... I guess it depends on what you're going to do with your production... but I've always been impressed when you can get decent results for peanuts.

For a normal gig I'm using pretty expensive lavs through expensive wireless... because of what we're doing... and it's got to be quick and easy to edit... so it's direct to cam with a recorded backup... but for a regular guy making independent films or videos for youtube? I'd like to know if anybody is using these?

But it's THIS THING that has me really interested. 16 mic capsules in one unit? 16 tracks of recording? And this statement, "In this way the i16 is even more effective at recording dialogue than a traditional shotgun microphone."

Huh? Really?

I'm going to get one and find out... if anybody has either of the other mics please post your experience with it.
 
MattinSTL said:
I found a link through google to a little video from Guy... not THIS ONE, but another which is more cinema verite'... Either way... $60? That's nothing for a lav. Is it "good enough"? Hmm... I guess it depends on what you're going to do with your production... but I've always been impressed when you can get decent results for peanuts.
Click to expand...

I have the normal Rode lav, and I really like it.
It's 199 bucks. Looks exactly like the 60 bucks lav - I wonder if it is actually the same mic - than it would be a real steal.
 
I really wish I'd ordered one a couple weeks ago, but I spent this month's budget on a GoPro.

I'm about to embark on atrip to a very remote place, and have challenged myself to see what I can do in a place with no WiFi, and with only an iPhone 4S and an iPad, with the allowance of a DR-40 and my GoPro.

No DSLR (well, I'll have it... but for stills only). No full field audio kit. No shoulder rig. No support. I may write a post about my experiences when I'm done.

In experimenting over the last week to see just how far I can push the technology, so that I'm not learning this stuff when I actually need to be using it, I'm finding that it's really not easy at all. The biggest challenge is with sound, since the iPhone and even the GoPro cannot record really usable audio on their own. And what I'm finding is that the app-based functionality of the iOS devices makes sharing media between apps virtually impossible without a base computer to do transfers with iTunes. GarageBand for iPad can share directly with iMovie for iPad (an editing app that sucks like the udertow at a TVA dam), but if you're using something else, good luck. If you have a laptop, why edit on an iPad? That defeats the purpose.

The DR-40 is almost strictly for gathering nats to enhance the soundscape, but there's no way to get the files onto the iPad with just the two devices in hand. So I wonder how using the iXY for iPhone would allow files to move. At least it puts media files on the same device, though that still doesn't necessarily solve the problem.

Oh, well... I'm committed, and no iXY with me on this project. But I have seriously considered getting one.

MattinSTL said:
But it's THIS THING that has me really interested. 16 mic capsules in one unit? 16 tracks of recording? And this statement, "In this way the i16 is even more effective at recording dialogue than a traditional shotgun microphone."

Huh? Really?
Click to expand...

April 1.
 
Postmaster said:
April aside, the question still stands, is it the same lav, they usually sell for 199 bucks?
Click to expand...
THAT is what I would like to know. I wonder if the head/capsule is the "bin 2" fallout from production of the flagship Rode Lav?
I am pondering buying one just to conduct this research.

April 1 is my birthday, and people come up with the greatest gags, thanks everyone! :grin:
Nice touch, tagging it with March 31 down there in Antipodia just across the International Date Line.
 
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