Today, we talk about audio.
We are going to review the brand-new Hollyland LARK MAX - a very affordable and professional-sounding
Lavalier Microphone.
We will compare this with my other brand new LAV: the Rode Wireless ME, and both of my
32-bit float professional MIC - the Tentacle Track E and the Zoom F2.
And I will explain why I think the new Hollyland might be better for run-and-gun immersive
content creators that require ambisonic spatial audio for both YouTube VR and Meta Quest delivery.
Audio is as important as Visual, no matter what kind of content you are creating.
If you are a traditional video creator who just want to learn about the LARK MAX, feel
free to jump to this timecode for the review and comparison.
As an immersive content creator, we do have a higher standard on Audio.
On Meta Quest, we are required to deliver 2nd order ambisonic spatial audio, or at least
1st order - for both YouTube VR and Meta.
Yes, you can use a spatial mic like the Zoom H3VR here to capture environment spatial audio.
But for people talking, this mic is not gonna pick it up.
So you need to overlay the talking in post with a very clear dialogue recording.
Obviously, in 360 or VR180, you can not use a shotgun mic, so a LAV is required for each
people in your immersive video.
The benefit of a professional 32-bit float LAV, as I mentioned in this video, is that
you don't need to set the volume on recording anymore.
It can capture even the very quiet sound source that you can easily bring it back in post.
And it never clips your recording.
But the disadvantage, a reasonable one, is the price.
Each Tentacle Sync TRACK E here costs $349 US dollars.
Even the less expensive Zoom F2 costs $229 each.
So TWO of them with accessories, are well over $500.
That is lots of money for just audio.
So I pickup the brand new Rode Wireless ME.
They cost only $149.
But I quickly found out the RODE battery SUCK.
They run out so fast.
And then, we have this middle-tier price point here.
The HOLLYLAND LARK MAX.
It targets professional creators but only costs $299 US dollars with 2 LAV and a receiver.
DJI wireless Lav is above the price point I want to pay for only 24-bit.
For above $300, I rather invest in a 32-bit like the Tentacle Sync right here.
So, I end up picking up the Hollyland LARK MAX, still a little bit expensive, but the
best decision I ever made as my audio SECOND Unit when I have more than 4 talents.
Here are the specs of Hollyland Lark MAX.
Three things you need to pay attention.
It has a 22-hour battery life, compared to 15-hour of DJI mic; this is a significant
increase.
Rode is way less without a charging case.
The signal range is 250 meters over 820ft.
And the most important of all, and it is probably why I pick up this instead of DJI or RODE,
or even another Tentacle sync Track E, is this new feature - ENC - Environmental Noise
Cancellation.
I believe they are the first manufacturer has this kind of tech, very similar to the
new Apple Airpod Pro.
As a solo content creator, Audio Quality is the key to me.
So let's do a real-world test to see which microphone sounds the best.
Here, I am in Santa Monica Pier, the noisiest environment around my studio.
We will first compare the normal mode to the ENC noise-canceling mode.
As you hear, you can not really tell the differences in my voice between the normal and the ENC,
which is great.
This is exactly what we want.
If you look at the waveform, you see the ENC effectively took down the environmental noise
- so my voice sound clearer.
How is that compared to others?
Let's take a listen.
In this situation, where you need to raise the volume and save your recording b/c of
your quiet talking talents - Hollyland Lark MAX ENC really shines and comes in handly.
ENC in LARK MAX does not remove all the noise.
It kept the environment sound but just at a lower volume.
In contrast, it makes the dialogue pop more.
It makes the result more believable than AI-denoising solutions like the lalal.ai or Adobe Podcast.
HOLLYLAND is not AI, just noise canceling and smart engineering, which is why this is
so great.
Nowadays, many creators rely on AI to clear up their audio, which is why everyone sounds
like robots.
Don't be one of those creators.
Spend time capturing the best audio possible and avoid post clear-up altogether.
Tentacle Track E, Zoom F2, and Hollyland Lark MAX all have the Internal recording feature.
I like it and rely on it.
But most of the creators hate to sync audio and video in post.
why they love having the receiver send the audio directly into the camera in perfect
sync.
That is why Rode Wireless Go or Me is so great.
Let's do that test.
Okay right there, I am still in line of sight, about 200m away from the camera or less but
in a crazy signal interference area b/c of the density of population around me, the audio
actually dropped in the Wireless Me.
Here is what it really sounds before I turn back.
... ... Hollyland LARK MAX has 250-meter range.
Sometimes I can go even further than 250-meter without losing signal, which is pretty insane.
If you need to go further, there is always an internal recording.
I just wish they also have a timecode sync feature like Tentacle Track E so we can have
frame-level sync in post.
But well, this is under $300 dollars so I can not ask for too much.
Hollyland LARK MAX also has other fancy features like the Magnetic design.
I can use my Insta360 GO3 accessories to mount the mic on me, as you see here, which is very
convenient for a documentary filmmaker like me.
It has a 1.1 inch touch screen, and you can control everything on your TWO transimitters,
including formating.
So I don't need to take it off from my talents.
This is a timesaver for a forgetful solo creator like me.
The little thing does matter.
This is NOT a 32-bit float mic and does not have AI to help with Audio Gain.
So make sure to dial your Mic input accordingly.
Usually, minor 3 is what I go with most people.
Lucky, you can control all that on the receiver, and you can check audio level on your phone
speaker in real time, which is amazing when you do not have a sound guy with you.
I hope this review helps you to pick up the best affordable LAV system for your next creative
journey.
Any of these lav will be great for your production.
You don't have to get a Hollyland or the expensive Tenchle Track E. Just get something rather
than your onboard camera microphone.
If you like to see more reviews like this, don't forget to subscribe and help us out.
Give this video a thumb up and drop me a thank you comment down below.
Insta360 just dropped a new camera, the GO 3, which I used on this video.
Check out my review right here.
It is a great consumer vlogging camera that you don't want people to know you are filming.
If you interested to learn Spatial Audio workflow, how to create that 8D audio sound in immersive
media, check out this playlist here.
And I will see you in the next video.
Stay creative my friends.