SYNCO D2 Shotgun Microphone
The Synco D2 professional level shot gun mic is a fairly new entry in the shotgun mic category. In fact, it showed up on Amazon in September of 2019 and I was pleased when Synco asked me to review it.
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Synco refers to this as a professional level mic and I agree. At about $250 US it’s moderately priced and certainly not in the low cost beginner mic category. Additionally, its XLR connectors and need for external 48 volt phantom power place this mic in the professional category.
SYNCO D2 Features and Use
This means if you’re an enthusiast level content creator, you’ll need a mixer and preamp like the Comica LinkFlex AD3 or other small camera mounted mixers from Comica and Saramonic. These devices will allow you to accept an XLR connector and will provide the required phantom power required for this condenser mic.
You’re other alternative is to record audio separately into a digital recorder with XLR connectors and the ability to output phantom power. These are available from TASCAM and Zoom starting at about $180 dollars going up to over $300 dollars.
If you’re looking for a mic in this price range, you probably already have one.
The D2 set comes with the mic, a foam wind cover, a small XLR cable, a mic stand mount, instructions and a nice protective case to store the stuff in. What it doesn’t include is a hotshoe-style camera mount or a fuzzy dead cat wind cover. You’ll need to provide those yourself.
I purposefully didn’t go into all the specs. If you’re comparing products, you’ll need to have them in front of you, anyway, so you’ll need to refer to the mic’s product page. Let’s just say they are competitive with other mics in this price range.
I thought the mic had a good sound quality and was pleased with outdoor performance. As with any professional level mic, you’ll need to bring some headphones and make your adjustments on site to achieve your desired sound.
As you move up the quality level, it’s often assumed that you have the time and underlying skill to tune your tools to meet your specific need. That’s the case here too.
All in all I was impressed with the D2 from Synco.
Video Review
My video review includes some audio samples for you to get a better sense of sound quality.
