Top recommended external microphones for video on Canon EOS R6 V?

Question

I am so fed up with the internal audio on my new Canon R6 V it is actually embarrassing at this point. I spent so much money on this body and I am beyond excited to finally start using it for my travel vlogs but the onboard mic makes everything sound like it is muffled by a thick wool blanket. My logic was that the built-in tech would be decent enough for quick clips but man was I wrong... it picks up every tiny movement of my hands on the grip and the autofocus whine is just unbearable in a quiet room.

So I was thinking about just grabbing a Rode VideoMic Pro+ because that seems to be the standard for everyone but then I started looking at the Sennheiser MKE 400 and now I am just spiraling with all the options. I have a 300 dollar budget and I really need to get this sorted before my trip to Iceland in three weeks because I am NOT coming home with unusable audio after flying all that way. I want something that is super plug-and-play because I hate menu diving while I am trying to catch a shot but it has to be way better than this trash internal setup.

Does anyone have a specific recommendation that pairs well with the R6 V preamps? I am worried about getting something that still has that annoying floor hiss. Is a dedicated shotgun mic better or should I look into those tiny wireless go kits even if I am mostly just doing run-and-gun stuff by myself?

bodegabesties · Accepted Answer

I totally get the frustration with the internal audio... it is basically just there for syncing clips in post as far as I am concerned. I went through the same headache with my R6 setup and finally settled on a solution that has me very happy with the results. For your Iceland trip, you really want something that just works without you having to baby it. Honestly, I have been super satisfied with the <a href=" https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt= Sennheiser+MKE+400+Compact+Shotgun+Microphone&BI=8941&KBID=10361&SID=2222&DFF=d50" target="_blank" rel="nofollow sponsored">Sennheiser MKE 400 Compact Shotgun Microphone for my run-and-gun travel stuff. It works well because it has a built-in shock mount that actually does its job at dampening that handling noise from the grip. The best part is the auto-power feature. It turns on and off with the camera so you wont accidentally leave it on and kill the battery, or worse, forget to turn it on and get no sound at all. Regarding the floor hiss, that usually comes down to gain staging. My trick is to go into the R6 menu, set the recording level to manual, and drop the internal gain way down to just one or two clicks above zero. Then I set the mic to the +20dB boost. This lets the clean preamps in the mic do the work instead of the noisy ones in the camera. It sounds way cleaner than the Rode VideoMic Pro+ On-camera Shotgun Microphone in my experience, tho that one is decent too. I would skip the wireless kits like the Rode Wireless GO II Dual Channel Microphone System if you are mostly vlogging alone because clipping a mic on every time you hop out of the car is a total pain in the cold.

CosmicWombat · Answer

Been thinking about your Iceland trip and ngl, the wind there is gonna be your biggest enemy. Like someone mentioned, the internal preamps on the R6 series are unfortunately pretty noisy when they have to do the heavy lifting. I've wasted so much money on mics that look good on paper but have a terrible signal-to-noise ratio in the real world... it is super frustrating. To save your sanity, you need something with its own gain control so you can keep the camera levels at basically zero. Here are my picks for your budget:

<a href=" https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt= Sennheiser+MKE+400+On-Camera+Shotgun+Microphone&BI=8941&KBID=10361&SID=2222&DFF=d50" target="_blank" rel="nofollow sponsored">Sennheiser MKE 400 On-Camera Shotgun Microphone

It has a 3-step sensitivity switch which is a lifesaver for the R6 hiss.

Deity V-Mic D3 Pro Super-Cardioid Directional Microphone

The stepless gain knob is actually amazing for fine-tuning on the fly. Just dont forget a proper deadcat for those waterfalls. Without one, even a 300 dollar mic will sound like trash in that Iceland breeze... stay away from those cheap foam covers if you want decent audio.

leah.castro · Answer

I nearly ruined a shoot once... dont trust those preamps.

Tascam CA-XLR2d-C XLR Microphone Adapter for Canon uses the digital shoe to bypass hiss.

Sony PCM-A10 High-Resolution Audio Recorder works great for stereo ambiance.