You won’t find a fleet of Mercedes-Benz at motor training schools. For most of us, it’s about learning to drive and then reaching one milestone after another. Usually it’s an entry-level car for those getting their early pay cheque but that doesn’t mean you can’t get a decent car. The same goes for those starting on their videography journey.

Microphones play a very important role while making vlogs or films and usually the on-device microphone doesn’t capture voices clearly. Microphones are necessary. Your video may need plenty of sound bites from the field. That’s where a wireless microphone system comes handy. It can be an expensive proposition. You may have seen a lot of vloggers sporting them.

A company that I have been following for sometime sent a review unit of a device that’s getting a good press globally. Maono WM820 is a compact wireless microphone set up which promises to be affordable. (I am eagerly awaiting its listing on Amazon India.) That a brand can pack in so many features into a device and bundle a lot of tools in the box is amazing.

Packed to the brim

Something I have noticed with other Maono products, they offer everything that’s required in the box. This time, there are two charging cables (one for the receiver and the other for the transmitter), both of decent length. Also included are two wind muffs, a lavalier microphone and two cables — one for connecting to the camera while the other is for connecting to a phone… and even a case to carry everything around. With many other brands, you usually wouldn’t get a lavalier microphone in the box, no wind muffs or cable that’s long enough.

Getting the device to work is very simple. There is a transmitter unit and a receiver unit. The transmitter has its own built-in mic, in case you don’t want to use the lavalier microphone. On the receiver there is an output and a headphone jack (using which you can monitor). Linking the receiver and transmitter hardly takes two seconds and the light goes solid on both devices.

Both the transmitter and receiver are quite light, which is helpful because you don’t want a heavy transmitter on you.

There are two other important aspects. First, the transmission range is 50 metres… that’s quite a lot for most outdoor use cases (live streaming, interviewing and so on) as well as indoor vlogging. Second, battery life is six hours, which should be fine for most users.

You can use the wireless microphone with your camera or mobile phone.

Let’s talk about sound

When you are using the microphone that’s on the transmitter itself, the sound is pretty clear and there is a degree of openness, which I like. In case you want a more focussed and concentrated sound, use the wired lavalier microphone. Depending on the situation, you can switch between the internal and the lavalier microphones. If you are in crowded, noisy spaces, it’s best to go with the lavalier because vocals will get prominence. Taking vocals a notch higher, use the wind muff that comes in the box, one can be used on the lavalier while the other on the transmitter’s internal microphone. Also, you may have your own lavalier microphone, which may give a completely different sound profile.

Thanks to the built-in omni mics, there is clarity in vocals while the noise cancelling technology that is being used ensures most unwanted noises are kept out (there is a signal to noise ratio of 82dB). You also get six-level mic gain monitoring to give your project a perfect gain level, which helps during the post-editing process.

Should you get it?

There are a lot boxes the device checks, right from the set-up instructions. Audio quality is quite good even in windy situations or in traffic. In case you are looking at professional-grade audio quality, obviously you need to spend more but there is a substantial base of young vloggers who want to get started on their journey. This is perfect, even for most newsroom-style content. Two things I would have liked extra — a 3.5mm adapter to iPhone connector in the box and a LCD screen to indicate audio strength. Perhaps both these features would be too much for the price segment. Having used Maono products before, once again I am impressed by the quality. Maono WM820 offers great return on investment. It’s a no-brainer of a choice to get one’s videography journey started.

At a glance

Device: Maono WM820

Price: $79.99 (on Amazon.com; Amazon.in listing is awaited)

High notes

• Excellent battery life and range

• Good sound quality

• Easy to set up

• There is a lavalier microphone in the box

Muffled notes

• You have to get a 3.5mm adapter to iPhone connector

• An audio level indicator would have been great