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Creating amazing YouTube content doesn’t start and end with just talking into a camera. Sure, it might start that way. However, there are tons of things that you have to grasp, such as editing, scripting, SEO, and more. However, from what I have found, one of the biggest things that can help just about anyone looking to get into content marketing is to have awesome audio, and you can’t do that without some awesome microphones.
I have gone through quite a few different microphone setups, from using my iPhone 12 mini’s onboard mic, to dedicate lapel style of mics. In this article, I’m going to go through every mic I have tested, and let you know which you probably should get.
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1. RODE Wireless ME
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- The quality of the sound is fantastic.
- Easy to set up at a moment's notice.
- Fantastic battery life.
- It has great build quality and is quite durable.
- The camera-based portion is also a microphone.
- Accessories are included to make it work for anyone.
- The sound is a bit too quiet, regardless of the settings used.
- I wish I had upgraded to having two lapel mics.
- The mics like to unpair, and repairing the devices can be a pain.
After buying plenty of other microphone setups, I have officially landed on the RODE Wireless ME as my permanent solution. While you can read my whole review of this microphone here, it shines in so many categories.
I primarily chose this setup because it is able to wirelessely connect to just about any device have (works with phones, DSLR cameras, computers), allowing me to be any distance from my iPhone (which is mainly what I use), without losing sound quality. No matter if I’m sitting at my desk, or reviewing a car, I know I won’t have to adjust my sound every time a new scene or day happens.
Another huge benefit is the quality of the sound itself, it does a fantastic job at cutting out background noise, and brings my voice to the front of the video without any problems.
That said, the major concern I had was that the volume was too low, meaning I had to raise the volume of the video every time I went into editing to make sure it was the same volume as other content creators. There, of course, were other concerns, like wishing it had two lapel mics and the fact that it likes to randomly unpair from each other and my phone every once in a while.
2. RODE VideoMic ME-L
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- Very high quality
- Awesome audio quality from close up
- Plug and play (easy to use)
- Lower audio quality when farther from microphone
- Can only work with iPhones 14 and older
While I never had a chance to build out a full review of RODE’s VideoMic ME-L before I returned it and bought the RODE Wireless ME we talked about earlier, it was still a fantastic option.
If you are someone who primarily is vlogging, where you hold the camera at arm’s length while walking and talking, this is an amazing setup. You don’t have to mess around with pairing microphones, and no software is needed to adjust everything. You just plug and play with this boom-style microphone.
However, the reason behind my switch to the Wireless ME is that you want to start filming farther away from your device. It struggles with gathering audio from a distance, making this a poor choice for anyone who does that form of filming. Vlogging, yes; other types, not really.
Quick Note: This microphone was specific to iPhone 14s and before, as it only had a lighting connector (you can also buy a USB-C version).
3. iPhone 15 Pro
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- Incredible Camera and High-quality video
- It is so incredibly fast.
- The 120hz Frame Rate
- Apple's Ecosystem
- The battery life is impressive.
- Night photography
- The screen size
- The always-on display
- Not as customizable
- The price point
By far, the best microphone (and video camera for that matter) is the one that you have on you. While it is nice to be able to have dedicated microphones for your videos, you can’t go wrong with a high quality phone that has a built in microphone (meaning you likely won’t forget it).
My iPhone 15 Pro has been an awesome choice for that! Over the years, microphones on devices have gotten better and better with cutting out background noise, and making your voice more hearable (is that a word?).
Now, am I suggesting everyone go out and buy a $1000 phone to get better audio? No. You will be much better off spending far less for a dedicated setup like you find above; however, if you are buying a new phone, you might be pleasantly surprised at how much better microphones have gotten on them.
