Sony ECM-B1Mchat_bubble_outlineFrom real comments

Multiple commenters criticize the mic's proprietary connection, noting it only fully works with specific Sony camera models and lacks a standard XLR or 3.5mm option. Some report inconsistent digital/analog behavior even across different Sony bodies.

@horaceho3642

According to Sony Hong Kong technical support department  when the a7c2 connects to the ecm-g1 microphone, it can only use analog input.  If you use a7c2 with other higher-end microphones, you can use digital input or analog input.  So when g1 connect to a7c2, there is no fully automatic audio leveling function.  However, on other Sony camera models such as the a74, the camera can continue to use digital input and use the fully automatic volume leveling function.\n\n\nRegarding this issue, I sent three emails to Sony's technical support department in Hong Kong, China and Japan.  Reflecting my dissatisfaction, why do the same microphone have different reactions in different camera models.  \n\nI use the a7c2, a relatively entry-level camera, because I hope that using an entry-level microphone, I can adjust the volume completely automatically, without having to spend time manually adjusting the volume.launch

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July 1, 2024

@ChoicesHabitsAttitudeLuck

After watching it 2 weeks ago. I came back here and made me think that this have a disadvantage over the Rode mic. Once you ruined the pin it’s done. Hoping that there’s a substitute like a cable just in case. And once you plan to sell it in the future. It will be exclusive for Sony users only not unlike the Rode.launch

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May 20, 2023

@SamChaneyProductions

Thanks for the video. Could you please do some tests with this mic in analog mode? I'm considering getting it for an a6600 which does not have the multi-interface hot shoe so I would have to use it in analog mode and I'm wondering if it would still be worth the price.launch

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June 19, 2020

@skakdosmer

Another proprietary microphone from Sony that won’t fit any other system. Frankly I don’t care if it’s the best mic in the world - which it is clearly not! - I’m never going to buy a mic that doesn’t have some standard connector like XLR, 3.5mm minijack, USB etc.\nBOO, Sony! BOO!\nP.S. This is the first time I've seen that guy (sorry, I don’t recall his name) from TAOP where he actually seemed natural and sympathetic. If that’s a new trend from him, I might start watching his videos again. By the way, his analysis of the sound seems spot on! So if you’d like toilet atmosphere wherever you go, maybe this could be for you.launch

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August 8, 2019

Several users describe the high frequencies as exaggerated or shelved, causing sibilance that can be headache-inducing indoors and often needs correcting with a de-esser in post. This was cited as a reason to prefer Rode's warmer sound instead.

@miguelmoreno6552

I went out to record with it on the street and the ambient sound is really bad. People's voices don't sound natural. It has a really disappointing sound. The camera's microphone sounds much better and even my phone picks up better sound. It's just that the microphone has a really strange sound and it sounds muffled.launch

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June 14, 2025

@RealRaynedance

It was _really_ clear which one was the Rode and which was the Sony. The Sony had way too much sibilance for me. Like actual headache-inducing sibilance. But I do also have good headphones, so it's a lot easier to tell. It was tolerable while you were outside, but inside? No.\n\nI know you can get rid of it in post. But it'd be nice to not have to. I would pay the $50 less and deal with the cable and battery.launch

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August 20, 2019

@joshbobby

Just want to correct something, the 3 options on the Sony, starting at the top, is Shotgun (very directional), cardioid (picks stuff up from the front, with a bit of the sides and back), and omnidirectional (pics sound up from all directions). My thoughts on the mics: \nRode - very transparent and clean sound, seemed to pick up sounds fairly accurately. The shock mount seems more substantial, and looks a better quality shock mount as there's hardly any of the mic itself in contact with the camera. The camera used with this mic makes quite a lot of difference, depending on the built in pre-amp for the mic, but the Sony, being digital and having the preamp fully built into the mic, will (or should) have the same sound for all cameras (oh wait... it can only be used on one camera at the moment....)\n\nSony - high frequencies sounded as if they had a high shelf, which could cause problems with \"s\" sounds, needing a de-esser in post. The noise cancellation sounds to be software based, not actually very much hardware based, which sounds pretty awful, and as if someone has put a phaser on it, or as if there are comb filtering issues.\n\nI personally prefer the Rodelaunch

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August 19, 2019

@kane01337

RODE: Better mids and lows + ambient - gives you some low end depth to voices.\nSONY: Better highs + but less low end, removes the low frequency so it sounds more transparent but lacks depth / bass. Slightly clearer - but also tinnier / thinner sound.\nBoth are good - but the RODE offers more utility & flexibility, Also RODE has a replaceable battery - the Sony mic pulls battery power from the camera battery via hotshoe - reducing battery life.launch

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August 19, 2019

Because the mic mounts only on the hot shoe, users say it can't be boomed, rigged remotely, or used off-camera the way cable-based mics can. This is called a significant limitation for anyone who doesn't keep the mic directly on the camera.

@BerndKistenmacher

Great review. Thank you. This mic is definetly worth watching. But imo the pro is a con at the same time because of powering up with the hot shoe. I for example use a top handle on my A7S iii. This makes it impossible to use the hot shoe. So I will still use my Rode Pro mic mounted on the top handle but for some purposes the Sony will be a better choice.launch

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May 9, 2022

@MIRAAAS

I have had the Rode for a while, the sound is amazing - but only when it's sitting on my table on the camera. The moment the camera started to shake, I had the wobbling sounds on my footage. And it's very hard to catch that sound when monitoring. It's so long as well, that the foam bit would get into the frame. Especially because overtime the foam would slide out too easily. Lastly, it started to show some whistling sound - so I am never going back to that Rode shotgun again.launch

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November 7, 2021

@andreasbuder4417

There is one last con: You can't use it off camera, like on a boom pole or plugged in a recorder. But it's a great mic nonetheless.launch

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November 6, 2021

@james1939-s1c

Sony appeared to have an edge, until you removed foam from the Rode mic, but in the end not having the freedom to take it off the camera and mount it remotely his a huge negative. I rarely have my Rode on the camera. I would have been more intrigued if they went Bluetooth.launch

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August 19, 2019

Several users note the ECM-B1M costs noticeably more than alternatives like the Rode VideoMic Pro Plus, questioning whether the price difference is justified given similar audio quality, especially in markets like Australia where Sony accessories run expensive.

@trogdor

Great review and tests. My review is simply it’s convenient. Not the best quality and needs some work in post. It’s a bit over priced for the sound recorded but the multi directional options are nice. If you really hate having a short 3.5 cable then this is your only option.launch

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November 4, 2021

@nermaldigital

Sony this year did a limited run of a soft bundle of this microphone and the shooting grip VpT2BT on discount. was about £240 for both together, instead of £330 here in the UK. That's how I picked up. It's an excellent microphone and perfect for my a7C and ZvE10 set up.launch

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November 4, 2021

@mervynjack4108

Price is definitely a con in Australia. (Nov 2021) Rode videomic pro plus AU$348 Sony ECM-B1M AU$549 (AU$499 with $50 cashback sale.) Sony love to overcharge in AU for all accessories and don't even bother to sell a lot of products. Having said that, nearly all my gear is SONY 😃launch

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November 3, 2021

@RealRaynedance

It was _really_ clear which one was the Rode and which was the Sony. The Sony had way too much sibilance for me. Like actual headache-inducing sibilance. But I do also have good headphones, so it's a lot easier to tell. It was tolerable while you were outside, but inside? No.\n\nI know you can get rid of it in post. But it'd be nice to not have to. I would pay the $50 less and deal with the cable and battery.launch

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August 20, 2019

Multiple commenters describe the built-in noise cancellation as software-based and unnatural, producing phaser-like or hollow-box artifacts especially during loud transients like bumps or bangs.

@ZenGeekDad

3:59 - the noise cancelling is interesting. Imperfect, but interesting. Based on your test audio here, it sounds clearly more invasive than a shotgun's inherent analog interference / cancellation effect. That is, there is less area sound to complete with the vocals, but the vocals sound more digitally manipulated. I notice the ECM-B1M avoids that burbly sound that Adobe Audition noise reduction software creates. That tells me the Sony is not doing noise sampling, Fourier transforms, to subtract noise the noise sample in that transformed \"space\", then converting back to the original audio form. That's good. You mention it's more like Bose noise-cancelling headphones, ... but such a design seems tricky, since Bose headphones have utterly distinct regions: ambient sound outside the headphones, and driven sound inside the headphones, so creating an inverted signal copy of the extra-headphone sound pattern is straightforward. But what does Sony invert in this mic? They must be running the shotgun math in reverse to get an audio track for the sound coming from behind (and perhaps around) the mic, then digitally subtracting that from the front-collection audio track. I would expect that give more more-clipped vocals, but less area cacophony competing with the vocals, which is exactly what I heard in your samples.launch

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October 5, 2019

@joshbobby

Just want to correct something, the 3 options on the Sony, starting at the top, is Shotgun (very directional), cardioid (picks stuff up from the front, with a bit of the sides and back), and omnidirectional (pics sound up from all directions). My thoughts on the mics: \nRode - very transparent and clean sound, seemed to pick up sounds fairly accurately. The shock mount seems more substantial, and looks a better quality shock mount as there's hardly any of the mic itself in contact with the camera. The camera used with this mic makes quite a lot of difference, depending on the built in pre-amp for the mic, but the Sony, being digital and having the preamp fully built into the mic, will (or should) have the same sound for all cameras (oh wait... it can only be used on one camera at the moment....)\n\nSony - high frequencies sounded as if they had a high shelf, which could cause problems with \"s\" sounds, needing a de-esser in post. The noise cancellation sounds to be software based, not actually very much hardware based, which sounds pretty awful, and as if someone has put a phaser on it, or as if there are comb filtering issues.\n\nI personally prefer the Rodelaunch

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August 19, 2019

@Sp12er

The Sony definitely has lower noise floor, the Rode has those electrical sound on the background, is that the circuitry having to go through changed to analog and then to digital again ie double amping, I dunno.\n\nFor the sound tho, must say the Rode dampen voice better, the Sony has slightly more sibilance like it put focus on the S note more, maybe that's the foam helping the Rode a bit, maybe something else but so far when it's simple podcast only style yes the Rode is better damped, while less detailed, it feels less annoying. \nOr maybe I ts just that the Rode's already quite popular that I'm so used to listening to it. \n\nambience tho?\n\nJust from this, the Sony does quiet down the noise of the clock better, while not compromising focus on his voice. The NC is... As expected I guess? That feels like a live NC from a good ANC headphone right there.launch

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August 19, 2019

@richardgraham65

Interesting video again, thanks. Which microphone are you using to do your voice overs \"off camera\" in this video, because to me, the sound from your voice over mic. is streets ahead of the Sony. The noise cancelling mode sounds pretty awful when a loud bump or bang breaks through - like a hollow box effect. Not something I would buy I have to say.launch

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August 8, 2019

A few users report the mic capturing focus-motor vibrations from lenses during autofocus, plus handling noise when the camera or tripod is touched. One user gave up on the mic entirely due to persistent handling noise.

@madetomuve

Have you encountered the Sony ECM-B1M picking up the sound of the focus motors of your lens?\n\nI’m using a Sony FE 1.4/24 GM lens which I thought was silent until I mounted this microphone right above it.\n\nI bet it’s brilliant at capturing audio when doing macro work.\n\nI’ve only just tried the mic for the first time, in a relatively quiet environment, but it seems super sensitive but everything below it, even when my fingers touch the tripod I can hear them thump.\n\nAny suggestions on how I might fix this?launch

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November 27, 2024

@MoonbeamArcade

I had that mic some time ago but I was never able to film with it without getting all manner of handling noise. So I gave up, sold it and reverted back to my old trusty XLR-K2M.launch

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November 4, 2021

@brentemerson3870

My Sony ECMB1M Shotgun Mic is picking up the vibrations from\nthe xd linear motors of my new Sony FE 35mm F1.4 GM lens. It took a lot of\ntesting and tweaking of the mic settings to make the sound less noticeable.\nWhen looking at the audio in Audition it is a clear and repeatable sound that\nit makes when it transitions focus fast. Is this to be expected?launch

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April 8, 2021

Users wish for a 3.5mm external input for transmitters or lav mics and the ability to record two separate channels, saying the current single-input design restricts flexibility for multi-source recording.

@romanmachanec2467

Can you use this electronic shoe mic simuntaineously with jack mic (for example micro port reciever) and record each input into separate channel? (left: hot shoe mic, right: ports) ? or its one or the other and not both? \nBecause i want to have onboard mic still on (for better sound than internal camera mic) and also be capable to capture another track from my micro ports, at the same time.launch

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February 21, 2023

@directoremod8075

Three features I would like to hear from new Sony Hotshoe Microphones\n1. The ability to 3.5 External input jack due to poor sony microphone inputs. For transmitter & external mic. Mine has already broken\n2. The ability to record from 2 channels separately to stereo track (I usually use a pair input wire to avoid loosing sound from lavellier issues)\n3. Built quality improvement.launch

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November 7, 2021