Rode NTG-3 vs Sony ECM-678

A

andrew00

Well-known member
Hey,

So, late to the party as ever, I just noticed the Rode $1 blimp deal. This is intriguing as I wanted to get a blimp anyway. In the UK the NTG-3 is £400 and the blimp is £200 new. The Sony is £650, the Senn416 £850.

I've seen comparisons of the NTG-3 to the Sennheiser, comparable and a good option for those at a price.

For me, I already own the Sony and was wondering people's opinions of it vs the NTG-3.

In essence, since I need a blimp anyway, do I buy the blimp and use the Sony or sell the Sony and buy the NTG-3 and get the free blimp. If I were to sell the Sony I could probably pay for the NTG-3/blimp combo and not be out of pocket.

Hence this post - can anyone please let me know their thoughts on the quality of these two mic's side by side. I've checked online and even the audio samples of this forum and the Sony seems to get excluded from comparisons.

Typically I feel Sony is generally priced high so I'm curious on if there's any great pull to hold onto the Sony + get a blimp separately, or if the quality difference is neglible or even in favour of the NTG-3, which would suggest getting the $1 deal option.

Oh and as an addendum - I also already have an NTG-2 I was going to sell as it's a barely used backup!

Thanks!
 
Sony is priced to high.

It's at this price range and quality, its more of what you would rather work with. I've never heard the Sony, but I know the quality of Rode microphones and highly recommend them. I would even go so far to say that by looking at the price, I can make a good prediction that the Rode would be better.

BTW, look on youtube for some videos that have used each mic, and decide for yourself. Thats what I did and how I decided to get the NTG2. I know there's gotta be a good video for sound reference of the NTG3.
 
Thanks for the replies.

Aye I watched that video,, it was great to hear there's little difference between them.

Alas there's very little out there comparing the Sony to the rivals, hence the decision here. If I can sell the Sony for the price of the NTG-3 and blimp, on paper it seems a good decision if the mic quality is equal and I get a blimp out of it.
 
I'm a great Sony fan (video, audio, and even computers) but I don't see much (any?) reference to Sony shotgun mics in professional circles. They don't seem very notable.
 
The Sony ecm-678 isn't popular because it's an electret condenser and it should be priced in the range of other electret condensers, meaning less then half the price (and probably about 1/3)... I'd expect almost any good, true condenser shotgun to sound a lot "fatter" and more natural in comparison. I'd love to hear a direct comparison similar to the one I did... I doubt anyone will argue that it's even close in performance. The NTG-3 will most likely blow the Sony away.
 
MattinSTL said:
The Sony ecm-678 isn't popular because it's an electret condenser and it should be priced in the range of other electret condensers, meaning less then half the price (and probably about 1/3)...
Click to expand...

Electret by itself is not an indicator of "quality" or performance. Note that one of the highest-rated, highest-performing and highest-priced brands of microphones, DPA (spun-off from Brüel & Kjær calibration equipment) make only electret condenser microphones.
 
Yeah I'd love to hear a side by side, it's annoying, from reading the replies here it seems that the Sony is overpriced for what it is and the Rode is underpriced for it's ability (compared to rivals), and since you get a blimp for 1 buck too it's a steal.

But with no real comparison side by side it's hard to tell for sure, meaning it's a tough decision to replace one mic with another.
 
I did not mean to imply that the Sony ECM-678 was particularly good. By all accounts, the Sony shotgun mics seem to be average at best, and probably below average. It doesn't appear that Sony is putting much effort into making standout shotgun mics. I would feel pretty confident in guessing that the NTG-3 is clearly superior, even without the free blimp deal.
 
Richard... I'm sorry to imply that simply being "electret" could mean that a mic is inferior... but in GENERAL terms, it's not a typical sign of quality. DPA is an exception in the otherwise "general trend". Take a few shotguns for example:

Electret:

Sennheiser me66
Sennheiser mke300
Beyerdynamic mce 86
Azden sgm-2


As a GENERAL RULE... "electret condenser" is not a "higher end" technology... although... yes, agreed... DPA is... IS... high-end, but generally, for larger diaphragm microphones... "electret" is not something you want to see in the specs.
 
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