Synco G1(A1) a wireless microphone for wildlife photography

When a small device can be really helpful!! Starting making videos, I realized that the GoPro Hero 8's audio wasn't so good, or at least not as I'd expected, despite I'm using the Media Mod that has a stereo built-in microphone. And in my wildlife photography sessions, I often had the need to record the video with decent audio quality, even using a low voice to not scare animals.

The package

The package has a professional feeling, and inside the sensation continue with a sturdy little bag that contains the transmitter, the receiver, some cables, a little manual and a clip for resetting the units. Starting from the cables, I have to say that there is everything you need, even though it's my first microphone of this kind, so I don't know very well what there should be. Then there is a small lavalier microphone with its clip to attach it somewhere, like a shirt or a jacket, and it's really light, so you don't realize to wear it in any way.

With the microphone, there's a fur windshield to reduce the wind-noise. So fa I've never used it, even because its clip for attaching it to the microphone is a bit strange, and it looks fragile.

Then there are two cables for connecting the receiver with two different kinds of devices: a camera or a mobile phone. Be careful to not use the phone's cable with a camera, or a GoPro as I did, because it doesn't work. In fact, during a wildlife photography session, I used the wrong cable to connect the receiver to the GoPro Hero 8 black, with the result to not record my voice for the whole session. Only at home, I realized that the audio wasn't recorded. So, pay more attention to use the right cable. In theory, you wouldn't make mistakes because every cable has a small icon in the plug, so it would be quite easy to recognise, not much in the dark  At the end there is the recharge cable, that has a really useful feature, I mean that you can recharge the transmitter and the receive both a the same time with only one cable. Very useful, even with a power bank, even though the internal battery of the two devices lasts a long time.

Test on the field

So far I had the opportunity to use this wireless microphone in not many situations, but every time It worked well, giving me the freedom to speak freely without worry about cables and other hand-stuffs.

The transmitter

The transmitter is tiny, as the receiver. It has a built-in microphone, so in theory, you might not use the lavalier, but in my opinion, doing so you're going to lose the lightness of the lavalier, even though the transmitter is really light. On the two sides of the device, there are some button and connectors: the button to turn on/off the transmitter, the microphone connector (for the lavalier), the micro USB plug to recharge the transmitter, a reset hole, a low-cut button (180Hz) and the pairing button. The first time you'll turn on the devices they'll be pairing automatically, but in the case they'll lose the pairing, pressing this button, and pressing the same button on the receiver, they'll be pairing again. In the front of the transmitter, there are two LEDs, one used to show the charge and one to show when it's working. On the other side, there is a clip to attach the transmitter somewhere, even in the hot-shoe of the camera.

The receiver

The receiver is really similar to the transmitter, at least as a shape. Of course, there isn't a built-in microphone but two connectors for connecting the receiver to a camera/mobile phone and to headphones. Then there are some buttons, like the turn on/off button, the pairing button, the volume button, the recharge connector (micro-USB) and the mini-hole for the reset. 

Test with the GoPro Hero 8 black

Mainly I use the wireless microphone with the GoPro, even using the MedaMod that has a built-in stereo microphone, which usually works pretty well but using the external microphone the audio is better. Staing some meters far from the receiver I didn't have any issues and the audio quality has been always good. To use the microphone with the GoPro you need to use the MediaMod by GoPro, because it has a connector for an external microphone (maybe they knew that their internal microphone wasn't so good ). Then you have to enable the microphone in the setting of the camera (GoPro) and select the right microphone.

Test with the Sony A7RII

Connecting the receiver to the Sony camera has been really easy, and the camera has recognised the microphone without any problem.

Conclusion

I didn't think that such electronic stuff could be so useful in wildlife photography, and landscape photography as well. But I have to admit that now I can't stay without it, and every time I go out for taking pictures, I bring with me the microphone. Not only I use it outdoor, but also in indoor situations, like a review where I need to speak without having a hand-microphone or using the GoPro microphone. To end I can tell you that it worths the price it costs, at half price in comparison to the other, and more famous, brands, but always with good quality. I also made a short video of the Synco G1(A1) microphone, in order to evaluate how it works.

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Cheers and thanks for reading.