DJI Mic 3 overview: Ease and flexibility for semi-pro producers

DJI‘s Mic 2 and Mic Mini rapidly turned commonplace gear for content material creators after their launch final 12 months. The beloved lapel mics are easy to make use of, versatile, and supply a big audio improve at an inexpensive value. 

Now DJI has upgraded its choices with the Mic 3, combining a few of the earlier fashions’ greatest options. Nonetheless, it additionally trims away a couple of important ones, which could possibly be a dealbreaker for sure superior customers. 

The DJI Mic 3 packs so much right into a tiny bundle

Left to proper: The DJI Mic 2, Mic 3, and Mic Mini.
Credit score: A. Yeo

The DJI Mic 3’s stamp-sized transmitter has a magnetic again which permits it to be affixed to garments by both sandwiching the fabric between the transmitter and included magnet, or utilizing the clip attachment. It is a sublime design, with the clip cradling the transmitter and holding it in place with notches. This offers a sturdy base when squeezing the clip open, and is extremely fast and simple to deploy. 

Utilizing the magnets to connect the transmitter is barely extra fiddly, nevertheless it provides the advantage of making the Mic 3 extraordinarily mild to put on. Although Mashable did not have any points with the Mic 3 detaching from our garments, it is value noting that each of its attachment strategies finally depend on magnets. A safer choice would definitely have been appreciated for better peace of thoughts, significantly because the transmitter comprises the microphone, so it must be positioned near the audio supply moderately than safely in a pocket.

In contrast to the Mic 2, the Mic 3 transmitter sadly would not have an onboard USB-C port. As such, customers are reliant on both the case or DJI’s proprietary magnetic charging cable, which is just obtainable in a few of the Mic 3 bundles. This may occasionally trigger points, as it is simple to lose such equipment or simply not have them readily available when wanted, and it would not seem as if DJI sells replacements individually. The Mic 3’s lack of a USB-C port makes grabbing recordsdata off the transmitters tougher as effectively. 

Luckily, really recording with the Mic 3 is comparatively easy, as it is simple to navigate menus and examine data on the receiver for essentially the most half. At the same time as a fan of bodily buttons and dials, Mashable sometimes defaulted to utilizing the receiver’s contact display, which was responsive and easy to navigate.

DJI Mic 3’s charging case retains every thing neatly organised

The DJI Mic 3’s carrying case shops nearly every thing.
Credit score: A. Yeo

DJI’s Mic 3 is available in a couple of completely different bundle configurations, providing completely different equipment in response to customers’ wants. Mashable checked out its hottest choice, which incorporates two microphone transmitters, one receiver, and a charging case. It additionally comes with a USB-C adapter, 4 fluffy windscreens, two clips, two magnets, a 3.5mm cable, and a USB-C cable. 

All of those besides the USB-C cable might be saved within the Mic 3’s charging case, which in flip suits inside an included padded carrying pouch. This case is considerably cumbersome, particularly when in comparison with the tiny items. Fortunately, its intelligent design retains every thing organised and streamlined, making certain the Mic 3 is simple to choose up and use in no matter method most closely fits you. You’ll be able to have a USB-C adapter hooked up to the receiver, a Lightning adapter (bought individually) on standby, and the receiver’s protecting cowl stowed neatly away — prepared for something with out the chance of dropping something.

That is not to say that the Mic 3’s charging case could not be improved. It will have been good to have a reassuring click on when storing the three.5mm cable, however as an alternative it slips into little notches and appears to be held in place with hidden magnets. The cable additionally needs to be eliminated to entry the magnetic clips behind it, which requires somewhat wrangling since they have an inclination to snap collectively. They’re solely magnets, in spite of everything. Even so, these are comparatively minor gripes contemplating the charging case’s total wonderful performance.

DJI additional claims that the charging case extends the Mic 3’s working time to twenty-eight hours, with the transmitters in any other case lasting eight hours and the receiver lasting 10. Most customers are unlikely to wish that sort of run time, although it is good to know you may at all times be charged up, with a five-minute cost reportedly offering two hours of use.

The DJI Mic 3 trades exterior lav mic performance for onboard recording

The DJI Mic 3 finally depends on magnets to connect to clothes.
Credit score: A. Yeo

The Mic 3’s smaller kind issue and lack of the USB-C port aren’t the one notable adjustments DJI made when in comparison with the Mic 2. Maybe controversially, the Mic 3 has eliminated the choice to plug an exterior lav mic into its transmitter, a characteristic which had been obtainable in its predecessor.

That is an surprising and shocking change. Whereas seen mic transmitters at the moment are commonplace in social media content material, broadcast shoots typically nonetheless use refined and even hidden lapel mics. Eradicating this selection might alienate a section of the market that the Mic 3’s options appear to court docket — those who dangle within the more and more blurred area between content material creation {and professional} manufacturing. The lack of such performance is much more complicated contemplating that DJI has launched timecode help, which pushes the Mic 3 additional towards knowledgeable market.

After all, DJI needed to make some trade-offs to maintain its items so small whereas nonetheless together with on-board recording. Every Mic 3 transmitter has a large 32GB of storage, which may accommodate every thing from the default 24-bit recordings by to bigger 32-bit float recordsdata. (32-bit float is a file format that may seize a wider dynamic vary, enabling you to get well audio that may in any other case clip if too loud or hiss if too quiet.)

There’s even sufficient area for twin file recording, which is a considerably distinctive characteristic within the Mic 3. Twin file recording allows the transmitter to document and retailer two completely different audio tracks concurrently: each a uncooked recording and an “algorithm-enhanced model.” That is only a model with whichever on-board results you have turned on, similar to voice tone presets, adaptive achieve management, noise cancellation, and low reduce. 

Such performance makes the Mic 3 stand out, providing the potential to streamline your workflow whereas nonetheless maintaining the pliability of lossless recording. Lossless recordsdata present the scope to manually tweak the sound of your audio, however having a model that is already gone by some fundamental processing could possibly be an actual time saver if the results are to your liking. Whereas having a lossless file to fall again on is at all times an awesome backup, all most creators want is for his or her audio to sound good. 

The DJI Mic 3’s sound high quality delivers

The DJI Mic 3’s reciever might be immediately hooked up to your digicam.
Credit score: A. Yeo

Like its predecessors, the DJI Mic 3 presents strong sound high quality. The microphone is surprisingly delicate and may decide up every thing with readability, although this does embrace background noise. Luckily, the Mic 3’s on-board results embrace two ranges of noise cancellation, which work impressively effectively. The robust setting may cause artefacts once in a while, nevertheless it’s nonetheless ok for fast and simple capturing. 

Alternative and adaptability appear to be the secret for the Mic 3, with a variety of settings and results obtainable. The three voice tone presents (common, wealthy, and vivid) are comparatively easy and refined, and really feel extra fitted to stylistic tweaking moderately than corrective equalisation. 

In the meantime, the Mic 3’s adaptive achieve management presents two modes: computerized and dynamic. That is mainly compression, with computerized turning down sudden bursts in quantity to stop clipping, whereas dynamic additionally will increase the achieve on quieter sounds to make every thing extra degree. 

Like all the Mic 3’s results, its adaptive achieve management works very solidly. It additionally looks as if a extra helpful baked-in “security” choice than the Mic 2’s security monitor, which merely used the proper channel to document a model at -6dB in case of clipping. This made for a messy workflow, requiring customers to separate the channels and splice within the -6dB model wherever there was clipping. In distinction, the Mic 3’s adaptive achieve management automates the method to ship a single monitor that needs to be good to go (or very near), whereas twin file recording offers a clear backup.

The Mic 3 is about to internally document 24-bit single recordsdata by default. When requested why, DJI advised Mashable that 24-bit is extra generally used, makes use of smaller recordsdata, and is extra user-friendly for newcomers, whereas using 32-bit requires extra post-production and technical talent. It is one other instance of the Mic 3 in search of to supply as near set-and-forget as doable, whereas nonetheless giving loads of choices for flexibility. 

After all, all that is solely good in the event you really bear in mind to hit document on the Mic 3 transmitters, as inside recording is not triggered by digicam recording. Should you’re more likely to neglect, the receiver display clearly highlights when a transmitter is recording internally, and you’ll set them to robotically begin recording as quickly as they activate.

For many who favor to not marry video and audio recordsdata in publish however are nonetheless chasing excessive res, you can too choose to ship the receiver 48kHz 24-bit lossless audio. In any other case, the Mic 3 transmitter sends encoded 24-bit when lossless audio is turned off, with 32-bit float reserved for inside recording. DJI states that lossless audio reduces the transmitter’s battery life by roughly two hours, and its 400m (1312ft) most transmission vary by 50 p.c.

Do you have to purchase the DJI Mic 3?

The DJI Mic 3’s charging case is neat, however nonetheless has room for enchancment.
Credit score: A. Yeo

Should you solely movie content material in your cellphone, you may probably be higher off choosing up the DJI Mic Mini and saving your self some money. It nonetheless has some type of noise cancellation and adaptive achieve management — the Mic 3’s two most helpful results — and is a fraction of the associated fee. You’ll have to sacrifice inside recording, although most individuals who document and edit on their telephones are much less more likely to want it anyway.

Nonetheless, in the event you shoot something extra complicated, and significantly in the event you movie with each a cellphone and a devoted digicam, then you definately’ll drastically profit from what the DJI Mic 3 has to supply. The receiver’s touchscreen makes performance fast and simple, with data prepared at a look, whereas the 32-bit float inside recording is a precious backup. The timecode help might be very welcome for multicam shoots as effectively. 

The DJI Mic 3 is a fantastically designed, well-made lapel mic that gives spectacular audio high quality, whereas additionally providing important versatility no matter what you are utilizing to movie.

DJI’s merchandise have turn into tougher to get your arms on within the U.S., because the federal authorities poses important challenges to the corporate’s enterprise stateside. Even so, these within the U.S. should have the ability to procure the Mic 3 through unofficial third events, and naturally it is nonetheless simply obtainable in different elements of the world.