SYNCO D2 XLR Shotgun Microphone, Hypercardioid Condenser Mic for Camcorder, DSLR, Audio & Video Recording, Professional Directional Mic with XLR Output

First off, this review is written from a voice over perspective. I have no experience using this mic on a boom pole or with a camera, so look elsewhere for that info. But, if you are planning to use this in a home studio for voice recordings, read on!Most folks are comparing this mic to the Sennheiser 416 - a very popular voiceover mic - but I don't have one of those. If you want to see a great comparison between the two, look up Booth Junkie on youtube. What I do have is a Rode NT2A, another popular - although mid level ($400) - voiceover mic. This isn't a review of the Rode, but to give you some perspective on how I feel about the Synco, I want to tell you what I like and dislike about the Rode, why I wanted the Synco to replace it, and how the Synco stacks up to it.Rode NT2A pros: Very low self noise, Very clean soundRode NT2A cons: Too bright for my taste, mic is large and obtrusive making scripts more difficult to readMy main motivation for getting the Synco was to have an unobtrusive mic so I could read my copies easier. Naturally I also wanted it to sound as good or better than the Rode, and also have a comparable amount of self noise. I also liked the idea of a mic that was slightly less bright or "harsh" than the Rode. So, how does the Synco stack up?Great! In my opinion, of course.-The mic has a mostly flat EQ curve with only a slight boost on the top end, which sounds very pleasant to my ears. Some are saying that this mic doesn't have as nice of a high end as the 416, to which I say: It's all preference. I like the way the top end sounds. It's not hyped, but it's not dull either. I'd say it sounds much better than the Rode on the top end, due to the fact that it's more balanced. Some may like a brighter mic, again it's preference.-The self noise is very comparable to the Rode . I'm not doing a scientific test here, simply looking at my meter and listening back to recordings of room noise. Where the Rode didn't even register on my meter, the Synco will spike ever so slightly above the bottom at times, and I have noticed that the room tone is a bit more audible in recordings. It's likely that the increased noise is being picked up through the mic stand though - I haven't tested it with a shockmount as it did not come with one. It's likely that with a shockmount, this mic will be every bit as quiet as the Rode. One is on the way and I will update this review with my findings.-The build quality is great. If you handed this to me and asked me to guess the price, I wouldn't say anything lower than 500 bucks.-For me, the convenience of being able to read my copy unimpeded was worth a compromise. But there's no compromise here: I like everything about this mic better than my previous one.A couple of notes: As I said, the mic doesn't come with a shockmount, so I'd recommend getting one when you order the Synco. Do you really need a shockmount though? Yes. Yes you do. I can see how some folks might have negative first impressions of this mic's performance using the included clip. Also, the included foam cover is not great for voiceover. It changes the sound quite a bit, and not in a good way, to my ears. I would recommend getting another pop filter or windscreen to use with it. I'm using the stedman metal pop filter and it's working great. The best recordings I've gotten so far were with the mic above my head, pointed down at my mouth. Aim closer to the chest than the nose for a less nasally sound.Closing statement: This mic is great. I don't know of anything in this price range that compares. If this mic were $1000 I might nitpick about the windscreen and clip, but at $250 I just can't. It's well worth it. Buy a mount and pop filter when you buy this!

Ignore any negative words in reviews and comments, especially YouTube, about this mic. Like a lot of people, I was interested because of Mike Delgaudio’s (Booth Junkie) review, and Earl Hall's praise for it. Mostly, I was intrigued by the comical embitterment of the Sennhieser MKH-416 owners, and I own one. Of course, the 416 blows the Synco away out of the box, and it should. BUT: The Synco is as close to a 1K microphone as a $250 microphone can be. When I read words in the comments like, "Muddy," or "muffled," and so on and so forth during the 416 comparison, I understood that the listeners were defensive, for some strange reason, because I only heard a great sounding, budget condenser with badass side rejection and a killer build, and I knew the Synco would be good. No, great. And it is. FOR THE PRICE, I mean. Next to a 416, of course it sounds a bit cheaper, because it’s a lot cheaper, but a great mic if you can’t afford a thousand dollars, or if you simply don’t need to spend that much. Synco did more than well with the build and sound of the D2. One thing, the foam is awful, hands down, or it sounds awful to me, or with my voice, let's say. I use an Octo-842S, and it sounds fantastic, though I did try the Sennheiser 416 windscreen for it, and it sounded worse, or it did to my ears. There are complaints about the clip that comes with it, but get another clip, or a shock mount. For the money this costs, and the performance it gives, any little nit-pick complaint can be ignored when you consider this microphone is every bit as good as ones double its cost. I hope anyone reading these reviews for a decision reads this one, and gets the mic. You will be quite happy. By the way, I use it to narrate audiobooks from my house. Another plus about it is you can be a bit more laid back about your recording environment because of how well it only picks up what's in front of it, as well as working flawlessly off-axis. And if you're really into a clean sound from home, get a Fethead Phantom for it, though you don't really NEED one, I don't think. I use a DBX-286S and a 2i2 3rd gen, and the Fethead Phantom, just because I liked the idea, I guess, and it's awesome. I rarely write reviews, but I felt like this microphone and Synco deserved some more good words.

I am not an audio expert by any means but I make YouTube videos that have voice over and I was looking for a mic to replace my Deity VMic D3 Pro, not that is isn't a great mic I just wanted something that didn't have an internal battery that I needed to charge or risk my audio cutting out in the middle of a recording. This Synco Mic-D2 sounds amazing. It's mostly neutral and natural sounding which means you can pretty much add any processing you would like after the recording.Pros:Great PriceAmazing SoundGreat build qualityAwesome case and packagingSolid but fairly light weightCons:A bit more expensive than my Deity mic (but worth the extra cost)I couldn't be more impressed with a mic in this class and at this price. I have heard it compares very well to the Sennheiser 416 which I don't own due to the cost. I have used this in my YouTube videos if you want to hear it check out the Tamron 24-70 f/2.8 Lens review on my channel Photo Gear Fun

This Microphone picks up audio very well. I like it. The Sound quality is really nice as well. The only thing that seems to be an issue for me is the microphone mount - but that is something I need to check into. need a stand or a boom for the mic.