Fifine’s M9 Wireless Lav Mic
Fifine M9 Overview
It is often said that the most important component of a good video is good audio. In this video we’ll take a look at one easy way you can improve your videos – whether for YouTube, streaming, family memories or perhaps a school project.
Regardless of cost or quality, microphones need to be close to the speaker to get the best spoken audio for your video. That’s why you see sound specialists holding mic booms and pencil-style mics just out of frame when shooting movies.
That’s also why you’ll see your local TV news presenter with a small lavaliere mic. Both techniques put the microphone close to the speaker’s mouth resulting in the best audio.
When mics are further than about 18 to 24 inches from the speaker, they tend to pick up more of the background sound causing the speaker to sound like they are speaking into a barrel.
As a YouTube viewer, you’ve probably noticed that you will click away from a video after only a few seconds when there’s a lot of echo or wind noise.
Fifine M9 To the Rescue
As we’ll see, the Fifine M9 wireless microphone kit will help you solve that problem.
I need to let you know that Fifine provided this mic set for the review. They don’t get any input, nor do they see the review before it’s published. The opinions are my own. My goal is to show you how it works, provide some video using and not using the M9 mic and let you decide whether this mic kit will meet your needs. Unless noted, the audio has not been processed in post production besides perhaps, adjusting the volume.
As always there will be an affiliate link in the video description that provides me with a small commission if you choose to buy via the link.
Fifine M9 Key Features
There are a couple of key features I need to mention as we get started.
First, the kit has a couple of handy controls. You can adjust the mic’s output to high, medium, or low. This allows your recording device to capture the audio at the proper level. The mics also have a noise reduction button that will help pull you voice out from the ambient sound. You can also mute the mics to help save battery power.
Second is battery life. Fifine claims up to 6 hours for the transmitters and 12 hours for the receiver. That’s going to cover most recording situations with room to spare.
Also related to the batteries, is that they can be charged directly via a USB-C cable at about twice the rate of the charging case. The case should charge your kit in about 2.5 hours while direct charging will get it done in about 1.5 hours.
Fifine M9 Kit Contents
The M9 comes in a nice hard case that has room for several connecting cables, a USB-C charge cable and the hard plastic storage box/charger combo. This a very nice collection and as a big case guy, I’m always pleased when components come with protective cases.
Fifine M9 Video Highlights
The linked video review covers several important functions and give examples of what you can expect when using the M9 in several different settings. These include:
Outdoor vlogging
Outdoor wide camera shots
Noice Reduction
Indoor vlogging or studio use
Each example includes clips both using and not using the M9.
Fifine M9 Closing Assessment
There’s a lot to like about the M9 mic. Here are just a couple of my favorite features:
First, it operates in the 2.4 gigahertz range which means there are no channels to match and the likelihood of interference is low.
Second, the hard charging case both protects the mics and receiver while ensuing they’re always charged. The fact that it set comes with two transmitters allows you to have two speakers as with an interview, or switch them out during a long day of recording.
Last, the several short wires allow you to connect to a wide variety of recording devices as demostrated in the video.
While the mics has some volume adjustment capability, you’ll want to monitor your recording device’s external microphone settings to make sure things aren’t too loud or too soft. Monitoring a test recording before starting a big project is a good idea.
U/V meters or other visual audio level displays can also be very helpful.
The only serious negative aspect I found on the M9 is the noise reduction. As you heard, that feature still needs some work. The good news is that the mic’s overall quality and adjustability makes onboard noise reduction unnecessary in most situations.
A little audio post production editing will do a much better job. I use Audacity and find its noise reduction feature is very good.
Closing
As I mentioned earlier, good audio is the foundation of a good video. Fifine’s M9 wireless mic kit is a reasonably priced way to up your game when it comes to improving your video’s audio.
When compared to other well known brands such as Synco, Rode and DJI where the prices range from $120 dollars to about $350 dollars, the Fifine’s sub $100 dollar price makes this a good value for the new creator or as a back-up in your audio kit.
