Topic: Is the new Rode Wireless Micro high SPL stereo device stealthworthy? Yes! But...

[Ozpeter]

Rode have just announced a new wireless mic kit.  Think earbuds, but it's mics.  Its receiver is tiny and plugs into the bottom of your phone.  It comes with two very small transmitting mics.  It has no inbuilt recorder.  But it can record in stereo from the two mics and quotes max SPL of 135dB.  So on the face of it you could clip the mics either side of a baseball cap, or one on each shoulder, press record on your phone, and there you go.  Downside might be that it sets its own level.  Whether that would lead to compression effects remains to be seen.  Anyway, although I never use the two radio mic systems I already have, I have ordered one for release in mid December and will report here.

[VibrationOfLife]

I believe you can adjust the gain in 3 steps in the app.

[TheJez]

It would be interesting to know what data compression and bit rate is used for the wireless transmission. AAC? It’s hard to imagine the sound is not compressed at all by some lossy algorithm…

[Ozpeter]

At last I managed to get hold of this device this afternoon.  I plugged the very small USB C equipped receiver into my Android phone.  I clipped the mics either side of my baseball cap.  And I went out into the street and used the relevant Rode app to record the suburban ambience and occasional passing traffic.  Bingo.  Lovely binaural stereo image, good frequency response, very quiet sounds and a large and noisy passing truck recorded very nicely.

At dusk I went down to the local lake park and recorded the frogs as I walked across the lake bridge.  Then I walked back to my car and recorded the drive home.  Oh... At the far side of the bridge I had turned off the phone screen, not realising that would stop the rather basic Rode app recording.  Still, on replay the frogs and footsteps and birds sounded just fine.

I have just been testing the rig with the "Field Recorder" Android app at home.  That has more configurations and settings than any other app I have used for any purpose.  Stupidly good.  And it records the rig just fine, and isn't affected by the screen being turned off.

Tomorrow first thing I have a couple of hours spare, with my studio at hand, and I will try to create and rapidly upload a YT video showing the hat rig and sharing some new tests. As far as I can see, nobody else has spotted this possibility of using this device as a wireless binaural low profile recording rig able to handle 135dB levels.  I'm excited!  And it is so easy to use - no buttons, plug and play.  And cheap.  Watch this space...

[Ozpeter]

I've now managed to get to my own house and do some further initial tests there, where I have more ancillary gear to be deployed as required. 

Although it's now after 1am here I can't help posting this before sleep. 

These tiny mics with their tiny receiver are simply gobsmacking when used as a stereo pair.   The frequency response is full and uncoloured.  The stereo image with the simple cap mount is very accurate.  I am not hearing any undesirable compression or self noise.  I suspect this setup will become my go-to portable recording tool, not least because it's so compact- the charging case is like the case you'd store your earplugs in, slightly bigger, but still pocketable.  I've tried it with a range of audio and video apps on my phone (Pixel 7a) and it's generally fine with almost any of them.  Basically the mics can be treated as an omni pair and mounted by clip of magnet either to one's person, or I guess they could be mounted in a good place near a stage in a suitable configuration, and then the recording can be made from the back of the auditorium!   This opens up a whole new range of possibilities it seems to me.  But maybe it's an old hat approach.  Or old baseball cap....

The only reservation I have is whether the receiver, powered by the phone's usb socket, will drain it too quickly.  Certainly its battery level is much lower than normal right now but I didn't start my tests with it anything like full.  I'll have to try to check that aspect more carefully.

More tomorrow.

[grawk]

how long does a charge last for the microphones?

[Gutbucket]

^ Yeah that!  Also, can you do a check to help determine reliable transmission distance?

I was at a show last Fri where I ran the tiny Deity PR-2 as a head-worn pseudo-binarual glasses rig from the optimal open recording location of a venue I know well, mostly just to compare against the open rig recording made simultaneously which included the same model mics along with a few others.  However, if I'd had two PR-2 recorders available I would have tried a strategy we've discussed here at TS, which the Rode setup would be even better suited for as long as transmission works reliably over a distance - which in this particular case is about a ~50 foot (~16m) triangle.

That idea is to run two mono-rigs, each placed on opposite sides of the room, close to being in line with the PA stack on either side.  This particular room features room-length second level balconies along each side, with the PA line arrays on either side of the stage hanging at the same level, facing out into the room land projecting more or less in parallel with the balcony railings.  Could easily gaff tape a small rig or mic to the railing on either side, far enough back to get an appropriate balance of direct PA sound verses room and audience.  This could be ideal for that, requiring only the little self contained mics to be taped in place unter the railings, with both channels being recorded wirelessly to the same device.

[Ozpeter]

how long does a charge last for the microphones?

Full specs here - https://rode.com/en/microphones/wireless/wireless-micro?variant_sku=WIMICROC#section-specs

7 hours is the answer to your question.  They say that with the case you can get a total of 21 hours (3 recharges I suppose).

I don't know that much about the competition but the specs seem impressive to me for this type of device.  And Rode should know what they are doing when it comes to mic
Gutbucket, there are a lot of imaginative uses for such devices indeed!  The range of these is supposed to be 100m.  There are some YouTube reviews which confirm that in the open air.  I'm not quite sure how I can test in gig conditions readily.  I'll try to think of a way...

[Ozpeter]

Here you go.  I had to create and upload this on a very tight timetable but I think it gives a pretty good account of this device.  It seems to me to be perfectly adequate for a range of location recording purposes, and very good value.

https://youtu.be/AVsnyFbRVPM

[dyneq]

Thanks for the info, Peter. Is it possible to defeat the Intelligent GainAssist feature?

[Ozpeter]

No, there is no Gain Assist control.  But although these samples have plenty of loud transients (actually went into the red at one point in the recording app) I'm not hearing any limiting or compressing or AGC symptoms.  You might!  I suspect that if the output level is set to 'low' or 'medium' there might be less likelihood of the Gain Assist feature feeling like it has to kick in.  I have heard evidence of it in some demos where guys are talking far to loud and far too close (at unknown gain levels) but like  I say, not here.  Would it sound ok with loud rock bands live?  I'm too old to find out... but the 135dB peak figure seems to indicate that it's not just for folk music...

[dyneq]

Because of the non-defeatable ‘features’ (auto gain and bass rolloff beginning at 70Hz), I wouldn’t choose to use these for live music. Shure’s similar offering also rolls off (even earlier).

If a full frequency, manual gain option in a similar design becomes available I would be very interested.

[Ozpeter]

Because of the non-defeatable ‘features’ (auto gain and bass rolloff beginning at 70Hz), I wouldn’t choose to use these for live music. Shure’s similar offering also rolls off (even earlier).

If a full frequency, manual gain option in a similar design becomes available I would be very interested.

Gain has 3 settings (high, medium and low) but "Gain Assist" can't be turned off.  However, in my own (relatively short) use so far, I can't hear it working.  It's certainly not an old world AGC thing. 

As for the low end, the specs say it goes down to 20Hz but without some kind of indication of how much that level is attenuated compared to 1kHz, the claim doesn't mean a lot.  I'm not aware of a bass rolloff value, and throughout my test I was actually very surprised at how well the bottom end of both music and street scenes was captured.  But I have no ready means of testing its real performance under gig conditions.  Maybe I should get out more.

[adrianb]

When it comes to stealthy field recordings I would still prefer to wear some wired buds in the ears. I have done this often and never had any strange looks since the assumption is that I am simply listening not recording.

I have never worn binaural mics to record live music though, because I suspect they would look odd and draw attention. I don’t think I would use these either for the same reason, but interesting nonetheless.

[Ronmac]

Here you go.  I had to create and upload this on a very tight timetable but I think it gives a pretty good account of this device.  It seems to me to be perfectly adequate for a range of location recording purposes, and very good value.

https://youtu.be/AVsnyFbRVPM

Peter, thanks for the detailed description and demonstration, I am impressed, especially at the price point. Do you have experience with the Sennheiser Ambeo? If so, can you offer comparison, please?

For certain situations I can see this being more practical/acceptable than carrying a full rig of Sennheiser 30/40 in a cyclone tethered to a field recorder for crowd ambience.