SONY ECM-M1 Shotgun Microphone Instructions
- October 31, 2023
- Sony
Table of Contents
SONY ECM-M1 Shotgun Microphone
Product Information
- The Shotgun Microphone ECM-M1 is a versatile microphone that allows you to record high-quality sound in various recording conditions. It offers different directivity modes to suit different recording needs, including Super-directional, Uni-directional, Omni-directional, Super-directional (Rear), Super-directional (Front+Rear), Super-directional (Front/Rear) separate, Stereo, and Ultra-directional.
- The Super-directional mode is ideal for indoor recording, as it minimizes reverberations and picks up sounds in a specific range from the front of the unit. This mode is recommended for taking or streaming videos where the subject is speaking in close proximity to the microphone.
- The Uni-directional mode is suitable for recording conferences and meetings, as it captures a wide variety of sounds from the front of the unit.
- The Omnidirectional mode evenly picks up sounds from all directions, making it perfect for recording environmental sounds or capturing a complete audio landscape.
- The Super-directional (Rear) mode captures sounds from the rear of the unit with fewer sounds from the front. It is recommended for taking scenery videos with narratives.
- The Super-directional (front+ rear) mode captures sounds from both the front and rear of the unit, along with less sounds from the left and right. It is suitable for recording interview videos, allowing you to capture the voice of the subject in front of the unit as well as the voice of the videographer.
- The Super-directional (Front/Rear) separate mode captures sounds from the front (channel 1) and rear (channel 2) of the unit equally, along with less sounds from the left and right. This mode enables individual volume adjustment of the front and rear audio after video recording, making it useful for editing purposes.
- The Stereo mode provides realistic video recording by clearly localizing the left (channel 1) and right (channel 2) sound sources. It is recommended for capturing moving objects or music performances.
- The Ultra-directional mode allows clear sound pickup when the subject is located close to the microphone.
Product Usage Instructions
To select the desired directivity mode:
- Locate the directivity mode dial on the microphone.
- Rotate the dial to choose the directivity mode that best suits your recording needs.
Note: Depending on the recording environment and sound source, there may be certain issues with specific directivity modes. In such cases, it is recommended to switch to Super-directional mode.
If you encounter any of the following issues:
- Recordings are made in spaces with strong echoes, such as a small room.
- The subject is located at a distance from the microphone.
- Sounds from the subject are buried in surrounding noises.
- The subject is not facing directly toward the front of the microphone (facing downward or sideways).
You can try the following solutions:
- Change the ATT switch setting.
- Set the AUTO/MAN switch to MAN and adjust the recording volume level with the AUDIO LEVEL dial.
- Adjust the distance to the subject from the microphone or change the pointing direction of the microphone.
Remember to consult the user manual for detailed instructions on how to make these adjustments.
Selecting the directivity
By operating the directivity mode dial, you can select the directivity that is best suited for the sounds to record or the recording conditions.
Super-directional
Sounds in a specific range from the front of this unit are picked, enabling equally clear sound pickup. Super-directional mode enables recording with less reverberation and is suitable for indoor recording. Super-directional mode is recommended for taking or streaming videos where, for example, the subject is speaking in close proximity to this unit.
Uni-directional
A wide variety of sounds from the front of this unit are picked. Uni-
directional mode is recommended, for example, for recording conferences and
meetings.
Omni-directional
Sounds from all directions are equally picked. Omni-directional mode is
recommended, for example, for recording whole sounds including environmental
sounds.
Super-directional (Rear)
Sounds from the rear of this unit are picked, along with less sounds from the
front. Superdirectional (Rear) mode is recommended, for example, for taking
scenery videos with narratives.
Super-directional (Front+Rear)
Sounds from the front and rear of this unit are equally picked, along with less sounds from the left and right. Super-directional (Front+Rear) mode enables recording of sounds from the subject in front of this unit as well as the voice of the videographer, and is recommended, for example, for recording interview videos.
Super-directional (Front/Rear) separate
Sounds from the front (channel 1) and rear (channel 2) of this unit are
equally picked, along with less sounds from the left and right. Super-
directional (Front/Rear) separate mode enables individual volume adjustment of
the front and rear audio after video recording, and is recommended when there
is a need for editing the recorded audio.
(Stereo)
Realistic video recording is possible by clearly localizing the left (channel
- and right (channel 2) sound sources. Stereo mode is recommended, for example, for taking videos of moving objects, such as racing cars and trains, or videos of music performances in theaters.
Ultra-directional
Because of the adaptive beamforming technology employed by this unit, the
target sound from the front of the unit is captured while any other
unnecessary sounds are significantly reduced at the same time. Ultra-
directional mode is recommended for making recordings with minimum unnecessary
sounds at close range, such as voices around the subject, while keeping
moderate environmental sounds at long range, such as the sound of a stream and
a chirping bird, in the recordings.
For details about the adaptive beamforming technology, see About the adaptive
beamforming technology
Hint
The closer the subject is located to this unit, the clearer the sound can be
picked.
Note
- In the following cases, the sounds from the subject in front of this unit may not be recognized and the audio in recordings may sound lower compared with the one recorded in other directivity modes.
- Recordings are made in spaces with strong echoes, such as a small room.
- The subject is located at a distance from this unit.
- Sounds from the subject are buried in the surrounding noises.
- The subject is not facing directly toward the front of this unit; it is facing, for example, downward or sideways.
- Try one of the following that suits the condition.
Change the ATT switch setting.
- Set the AUTO/MAN switch to “MAN” and adjust the recording volume level with the AUDIO
LEVEL dial.
- Adjust the distance to the subject from this unit or the pointing direction of the unit.
- Change the directivity to Super-directional mode.
- Depending on the environment and sound source, the following issues may occur. If they seem annoying, change the directivity to Super-directional mode.
- The audio volume and quality of the surrounding sounds from other than the front of this unit are unstable.
- The audio quality is unstable. For example, the abrupt clapping-like noise echoes in the audio.
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References
Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
Read User Manual Online (PDF format) >>