8 Best Microphones for Content Creators

What are the best microphones for content creators?

The best microphones for content creators clip on fast, back themselves up and sound like the person in front of the camera. Here's how we'd rank them, starting with the gear we use on our own jobs and finishing with the two kits worth buying:

1. Sennheiser EW 112P G4: best wireless kit to hire
2. DPA 4060 Core: best lav
3. Sennheiser MKH 416: best shotgun outdoors
4. Schoeps MK41: best mic for interiors
5. Lectrosonics LT and LR: best pro wireless
6. Sanken COS11 D: best lav to hide
7. DJI Mic 3: best wireless kit to buy
8. RØDE Wireless GO III: best kit to buy that takes a lav

Desk mics for podcasts are a different job. If you're recording at a desk, our list of the best microphones for podcasting covers those.

Which microphone suits which kind of content?

Hire pro wireless, a good lav and the right boom mic when the shoot is for a client, the room is tricky, or the radio link can't drop. Buy a compact wireless kit for everyday content on your own channel.

1. Sennheiser EW 112P G4: best wireless kit to hire

Best for: interviews, corporate video and YouTube content shot for a client.

Two clean radio mics for a straightforward interview day shouldn't cost a fortune. The G4 is the updated version of the kit camera crews have used for years. The bodypack goes on the talent with a lav, the receiver sits on the camera hot shoe, and the output cable runs into the camera or recorder. It has 1680 frequencies, an automatic scan to find a clean one, and runs on two AAs each end with no menus to get lost in. Want a better lav? A DPA 4060 can go on the pack.

Watch out: check batteries and frequency before the talent is already standing there waiting.

2. DPA 4060 Core: best lav

Best for: interviews, presenters and quieter voices.

A good lav is where interview sound is won or lost, and the 4060 sounds like the person talking in the same room, not like a mic under a shirt. The capsule is about 5 mm across, so it hides in a collar, a hairline or behind a button. It's omnidirectional with a neutral sound, so the voice stays even when the talent turns their head.

Watch out: it uses a Microdot connector, so book the right adapter for your wireless pack. Loud voice? The DPA 4061 is the better match.

3. Sennheiser MKH 416: best shotgun outdoors

Best for: exterior dialogue, run and gun, and camera top mounting.

Shotgun mic hire usually starts and ends with the 416. It reaches for the voice and ignores what's off to the side, and its RF design shrugs off humidity, which is why it keeps working on a cold Melbourne morning when other condensers start crackling. It's short enough to sit on a camera and light enough to boom all day.

Watch out: inside a small room, swap to the Schoeps MK41. Booming outside, add a proper windshield, because foam alone won't survive a Melbourne day.

4. Schoeps MK41: best mic for interiors

Best for: sit down interviews and dialogue in small or echoey rooms.

This is the mic for when a shotgun makes a small room sound like a tin can. Indoors, a shotgun's tube picks up the room's reflections and voices go hollow. The MK41 is a supercardioid with no tube, so the voice sounds like the person is standing there, and it rejects what's behind and beside it, which keeps the air conditioner and the crew out of the take. It's the mic our recordists choose for sit down interviews.

Watch out: booming it? Ask for a Rycote shock mount when you book, and wind protection if any of your day is outside.

5. Lectrosonics LT and LR: best pro wireless

Best for: documentary, drama, broadcast and busy locations.

This is what professional sound recordists book when the radio link can't drop. Lectrosonics' Digital Hybrid Wireless tunes across up to 3072 frequencies, and the LR receiver has a spectrum scanner and SmartTune to find a clean channel on site. The LR sits on a mirrorless or full frame camera, or in a sound bag, and the kit comes with a Sanken COS11 D lav. It's the wireless we trust in Melbourne's crowded spectrum, where cheaper kits struggle.

Watch out: RF doesn't care about optimism. Tell us the location and we'll check the spectrum before the kit leaves.

6. Sanken COS11 D: best lav to hide

Best for: drama, documentary and any shot where the lav must not be seen.

The COS11 D is the lavalier on most film and TV sets. It's 4 mm across and about 16 mm long, so it tucks under a collar, a lapel or a strap and stays hidden on camera, and its water resistant mesh copes with sweat and drizzle. Every sound recordist knows how to hide one. It's the lav that comes with our Lectrosonics kit, and you can hire extras for a bigger cast or as a backup for the one that goes through the wash.

Watch out: it comes wired for Lectrosonics or Lemo transmitters, so pick the right connector when you book. Using a Sennheiser pack? Tell us and we'll put the adapter in the case.

If you film every week for your own channel and would rather own a kit than hire one, these are the two worth buying. We don't hire either of them.

7. DJI Mic 3: best wireless kit to buy

Best for: vlogs, talking head videos and phone shoots.

The Mic 3 is tiny. DJI lists the transmitter at 16 g with its magnet, and it records a 32-bit float backup internally, with a dual file option that saves an original and a processed version. DJI rates each transmitter at about 8 hours, and up to 28 hours with the charging case. It switches between 2.4 and 5 GHz to dodge interference.

Watch out: there's no 3.5 mm lav input, so you're using the built in mics clipped to a shirt. Fine for vlogs, less fine for an interview you want to look clean.

8. RØDE Wireless GO III: best kit to buy that takes a lav

Best for: creators who want room to grow into a proper lav.

The Wireless GO III comes with two transmitters, each recording a 32-bit float backup onboard, plus GainAssist to ride the level going into your camera, and range up to 260 metres line of sight. The big difference from the DJI is the locking lav connector on each transmitter, so you can plug in a better mic later. It's also made by RØDE, an Australian company.

Watch out: it runs about 7 hours on a charge, so a long shoot day needs a recharge plan.

Should you buy a wireless kit or hire pro gear?

Buy a compact wireless kit if you film every week for your own channel. Hire pro wireless and a proper lav for a client shoot, a broadcast job or anywhere the signal is crowded.

The creator kits are brilliant for what they're built for. But on a paid shoot, the backup recording is a safety net, not a plan. A pro kit that holds the link all day, with a lav that sits properly on the talent, means you're not fixing sound in the edit. And if you'd rather not think about it at all, book a sound recordist and we'll run it.

Do you need a lav, a shotgun or a wireless kit?

Usually a wireless kit with a lav for interviews, and a shotgun on a boom for dialogue when mics need to stay out of shot. A wireless kit is just the transmitter and receiver. The lav is the mic itself.

Our guide to boom mics vs lav mics covers when to use each, and why we usually record both on separate tracks.

Questions we get asked