MKE 600

I liked this shot gun mic! It is very solid and feels professional indeed (an entry level, but very, very respectable). I actually was interested in a less expensive shotgun mic at first, but ended up getting Sennheiser MKE 600 and Sony PCM M10 portable recorder. I was able to compare Sennheiser with several other microphones side by side when keeping the gain constant, and I used 2 different recording devices - Sony recorder and Nikon digital camera. Please check my video review on YouTube to listen to Sennheiser MKE 600 mic in comparison with some other mics (Please search for "Microphones compared: Sennheiser MKE 600, Bronstein BRN-900, BRN-400, Sony PCM M10, Nikon D7000" on YouTube or follow the link in the comment below for this review). This test was designed to compare the ability of the microphones to record a distant (or quiet) misic. I intentionally placed the mics fairly far amd compensated by increasing the gain on the Sony recorder, so the noise level relative to signal is higher compared to when speaking directly to mics. Of these microphones, I liked PCM M10 onboard omnidirectional stereo mics for the high sensitivity, very low self noise and fuller, crisper sound (but it records every ambient noise), and I also liked the MKE 600 shotgun that can help isolate the sound that is natural, loud enough and has a relatively low background hiss. I used this Sennheiser mic with both 48V phantom power from a Mackie mixer and 2 AA batteries (required an XLR to 3.5mm adaptor). The performance was comparable (it is supposed to be slightly better with phantom power, according to the specs). It is a real boon to use AA batteries for such a mic, as I can use it with my Sony recorder or plug directly into digital camera. In addition, the mic comes with a nice pouch. Good job Sennheiser! The microphones I was comparing are not in the same price price category, of course, so it may be not a fair comparison. But I was wondering if cheaper mics will do just fine for my purpose or I need a more expensive one. I initially purchased a relatively cheap mic (BRN-200), but ended up returning it, and then I got a Sony personal recorder and also tried more expensive shotgun mics to supress back/side noises and pickup more distant, fainter sounds from the target source. At the time of each purchase (January-March 2014), Sennheiser was sold at Amazon for $330, Sony PCM M10 for $210, BRN-400 for $130, BRN-900 for $70 and BRN-200 for $50. The price for BRN-400 recently dropped nearly 25%, and the price for Sony increased. Although the more expensive microphones (Sennheiser and Sony) performed much better recording low volume sounds, if you would place any of these, even cheaper mics very close to the source and also optimze the gain on the recording device, the quality of captured sound will likely improve. I personally liked PCM M10 onboard omnidirectional stereo mics for the high sensitivity, very low self noise and fuller, crisper sound, and, of course, I also enjoed the MKE 600 shotgun mic. I think the low frequencies, especially for voice recording, appear to be more faithfully rerpoduced by Sennheiser, compared to Sony recorder, so the voice from MKE 600 sounds a little fuller. But the sound is a little crisper when recorded with Sony recorder without a shotgun mic.

The quality of this mic matches other mics in the $800-$1000 range. If you need a truly professional mic and cannot afford to go above this price point then this is the one to get. This is also the only battery powered mic I would consider. The Rode NTG2 sounds weak on AA power and you will notice a decrease in input volume on the Rode. The MKE-600 will still sound punchy and cut through on AA power and one battery provides 150 hours of operational time. I find the MKE-600 mixes well in post production with other common on-set production mics from DPA, Schoeps, Audio Technica. Of course the next level up MKH-416 is more than double the price and has also has a characteristic with a big bump on the high end frequencies which this mic will not capture, but that is unique the 416 over other almost all other Shotgun mics. If I had to compare, the MKE-600 sounds closest to a DPA 2017 which is a $999 mic. You can't go wrong with the MKE 600 and its versatile, nimble, quality capabilities as both an on-camera mic or boom mic.

I shoot with a Sony A6400 and was looking to upgrade the onboard microphone as I’m planning to shoot more video to capture my newborns special milestones. I didn’t want to spend a ridiculous amount of money, so I found this Sennheiser to be a good deal, especially with the phone mount and mini-tripod. I’ve had the Sennheiser mounted on my A6400 for about one month. It doesn’t add a significant amount of weight and it’s low profile enough to just stay on my camera. Even when I do remove it, it’s quick and easy. Shooting video side by side with this and my iPhone 17 Pro shows a significant difference in audio quality with the Sennheiser being much clearer with less ambient noise. Anybody looking for a bump in audio quality for home video or vlogging, you’ll be happy with this.

Very good build quality and the sound is great. It’s quite expensive, but honestly it’s worth the money for the performance you get. The only downside: it eats battery very fast for a mic like this. If the battery life were better, it would be perfect.

great product quality. compact size. very nice design.

I'm a voice actor who works out of a home studio, and unfortunately I have a neighbor who's obsessed with her leaf blower, blowing her front yard multiple days a week for several hours at a time, and I can still hear it even in my sound treated studio. I bought the Sennheiser MKE 600 shotgun microphone after doing a lot of research about microphones with noise cancelling qualities versus affordability. It seemed to be the best of both worlds. It arrived well packaged, and everything seemed to be in order when I plugged it in for a sound check, but I noticed there was an absolutely awful buzzing sound when I put my cans on. I checked the connections, I checked the interface, I even switched interfaces, and still the buzzing sound persisted. I knew it wasn't the cable itself, because my other microphone, an Audio Technica condenser mic, works perfectly fine on it. I searched YouTube for a solution to the buzzing, and I found a video that explained it might be a tiny screw in the chassis that supports the grounding of the mic, and it might need to be tightened to get rid of the buzzing sound. Alright, that's fine, I don't mind doing that. I unscrewed the chassis... and the screw was missing. Not even rattling around or popped out or anything... just plain gone. I expect a much, much higher quality control out of Sennheiser than this. I will be fair though, through the buzzing sound I did a sound check anyway, and the microphone sounds absolutely amazing, and is exactly what I've been looking for as a female voice actor, since most mic review videos are done by male voice actors and don't really apply to me. Essentially, this mic is fantastic for the price, but I will be returning this one and buying another of the same model, and this time there better be a screw in there!

The sound of dialogue in my videos becomes too good for me i am not use to it haha , its just perfect and i dont need to do much in post

At the price I paid, fantastic. Weather i want to enhance my cell phone video audio or for my dslr. Mic works great.

Muy buen artículo todo de gran calidad el micrófono mejora muchísimo la calidad de audio

Per migliorare l’audio della vostra videocamera o del vostro smartphone e’ a mio avviso il miglior microfono che possiate acquistare

Heb deze microfoon besteld en ben uiterst tevreden. Heb hem ook op een boompole geïnstalleerd met volledige voldoening. Top product