Hollyland
Lark M1 Wireless Lavalier Microphone
- Bottom Line
-
If you don’t need the most advanced features, the Hollyland mic hits the sweet spot of great audio quality with an easy plug-and-play setup for an extremely affordable price.
- Pros
-
The Hollyland Lark M1 is a simple and straightforward mic that is perfect for beginners or those who don’t want to fuss with complicated settings. Our audio recording was always crisp and clear when we tested it. Navigating the buttons is simple when you want to adjust settings. It also has a 656-foot range and great omnidirectional sound quality. If you’re a YouTuber who doesn’t want to break the bank with a mic, the Hollyland Lark M1 is an excellent option.
- Cons
-
A touchscreen to adjust settings is more user-friendly than only buttons, but the Lark M1 doesn’t have one. The noise-cancellation feature can also be a bit aggressive, but this feature can be turned off.
About the product
We tested this Hollyland microphone to see if it’s worth it
A simple plug-and-play lav mic that’s easy to take on the go, the Hollyland Lark M1 is designed for anyone who doesn’t want an overly complicated mic kit. The Hollyland brand is known for offering a variety of audio/video solutions, and the Lark M1 is the midrange option in their Lark series (“tiny but mighty” is the Lark M1’s slogan).
In the BestReviews Testing Lab, we got our hands on this sleek microphone kit to see how “mighty” it truly is compared to its competitors. Overall, we were impressed by its sound quality, transmission range and ability to adequately control ambient noise both indoors and out, rivaling mics that cost twice as much.
What is the Hollyland Lark M1?
Product specifications
Polar Pattern: Omnidirectional | Frequency Response: 20 Hz to 20 kHz | Connector: USB-C | Dimensions: 0.8” W x 0.4” D x 1.9” L | Weight: 0.4 oz | Material: Metal | Accessories: Charging case, storage case, 2 furry windshields, USB cable, 3.5 mm TRS patch cable and 3.5 mm TRS to TRRS patch cable
With its no-fuss setup and compact size, the Hollyland Lark M1 lavalier mic is tailor-made for streamers, vloggers, YouTubers and other content creators who need something simple and easy to operate. An omnidirectional mic, it offers active noise cancellation (ANC), which many of its competitors do not, and does a good job in all conditions. With its wireless receiver connection, you can be up to 650 feet away from the receiver without any transmission interruption. Though it doesn’t have an onboard display, it does have LED indicators that light up according to the different mic settings. Its handy charging case can provide up to 20 hours of battery life on a single charge, so you always feel confident taking the Lark M1 on the road.
Besides the Lark M1, which was released in 2022, Hollyland offers three other Lark mics (the Lark 150, the Lark C1 and the Lark Max) that differ in a number of ways. For instance, the Lark 150 has a larger battery capacity, a security-track feature (which allows you to record a backup track with the second transmitter) and real-time monitoring, but the transmission range is reduced to 300 feet; it also has digital signal processing instead of ANC for noise cancellation, meaning it may not be as effective. The newest (and mightiest) of them all, the Lark Max offers an 820-foot range, a higher maximum SPL, backup recording storage and a display screen that can be screen-locked. However, all these premium features come with a much higher price tag.
Pros
- Good noise control
- Lightweight and easy to travel with
- Affordable
- Great audio quality
- Easy to use and a quick setup
- Large receiver range
Cons
- The ANC can be almost too strong at times
- No touchscreen display
- No onboard recording
Testing the Hollyland Lark M1 microphone
We ran the Hollyland Lark M1 lav mic system through a series of tests to find out if was worth the investment. We recorded by speaking in different environments and across various distances and performed the same tests with other popular lav mics to compare quality.
Overall, the Lark M1 did extremely well in our tests, picking up our voice and keeping ambient noise at a minimum. Its ANC can be switched on or off (a green light indicates that it’s on and a blue light means it’s off); however, this feature is not customizable, so it sometimes didn’t pick up subtler noises or made voices sound unnatural due to the frequency. We liked that the settings were simple to adjust once we acquainted ourselves with the user manual. Without a touchscreen to the adjust settings, though, there was a learning curve in manipulating the mic by using its buttons and only having multicolor LED lights to confirm choices.
That said, we were impressed with how easy it was to use right out of the box. The devices power on and pair as soon as they are removed from their charging case. When taking it on the go, the carrying case can fit inside most pockets, and it is very lightweight and sleek.
Hollyland Lark M1 price and where to buy
You can buy the Hollyland Lark M1 for $129 (and often much less) on Amazon.
Hollyland Lark M1 setup and ease of use
The packaging the Lark M1 comes in is fairly straightforward. Once you open the box, there’s a convenient travel case to unzip; this has compartments to hold all the cables and windshields plus a small charging case, which has the two transmitters and receiver inside.
You really can’t get much simpler than the Lark M1’s setup. In fact, the two transmitters and receiver come precharged and are ready to go right out of the box. They power on and automatically pair with each other as soon as they’re removed from the charging case, and the appropriate cables only need to be plugged in to get going. The mics can easily be clipped onto a lapel while the receiver is connected to a phone (iPhone or Android) or camera.
The only thing that slows down the process is understanding how to adjust settings. But once you’ve read the manual and have the controls memorized, it’s an uncomplicated lav mic that gets the job done.
Transmitter and receiver
One of the things we like most about the transmitters and receiver is how easy they are to use, making this system ideal for beginners. We had no issue with audio quality even at the maximum transmission range of 650 feet. Content creators who are often on the go will love that they are lightweight and durable — not to mention sleek. With a frequency range of 20 hertz to 20 kilohertz, omnidirectional capabilities and a sampling rate of 48 kHz/16-bit, the Lark M1 offers exceptional value for its price. We found the transmitter and receiver to be on par with much more expensive competitor microphones.
Sound quality
The Lark M1’s audio quality is all-around great. During testing, it had no issue picking up our voices in different situations and at varying distances, no matter how the mic was oriented. However, the ANC feature can be troublesome due to its lack of customizability; it is either “on” or “off,” giving no middle ground. This caused it to kill noise above certain frequencies, so though the recording is free of distractions, it also made our voices sound strange in certain conditions.
Plus, it doesn’t allow you to keep any background sounds you may have wanted to keep in the recording. Fortunately, we found that it did a fine job with noise control when ANC was switched off. Overall, the audio quality is easily comparable to microphones that are more expensive.
Settings and accessories
In addition to the ANC setting, it offers options for volume control and stereo or mono modes. Once we reviewed the user manual and understood how to adjust these settings, it was easy — though a display screen would have made it more intuitive. It has a three-level volume preset at Low, Mid or High, so it can be customized based on the noise of the environment you are in. It comes with cables to use with your camera, iPad, iPhone, Android or computer. However, note that not all phone models are compatible (Hollyland provides a comprehensive list on their website that is updated periodically).
Hollyland Lark M1 vs. other mics
The Lark M1 is impressive for its price. It’s uncomplicated, sleek and has exceptional sound quality compared to some more expensive microphones on the market. For instance, the Saramonic Blink500 T2, which we also tested, is about $70 more and picked up so much ambient noise outdoors that we could only recommend it as an indoor lav mic. The Lark M1 also has an impressive 20-hour battery life, while many competing systems average six to 10 hours.
The Lark M1 is especially ideal for those unfamiliar with the world of lav mics due to its ease of use straight out of the box. Its versatility and portability make it great for a range of audio needs. It’s also extremely lightweight and compact compared to its competitors; the popular Rode Wireless Go II, for instance, weighs 1.1 ounces and is 1.7 inches wide, which is more than twice as heavy and big as the Lark M1. However, the Lark M1 lacks more complex features that the professional may want. It’s not compatible with external mics, there is no backup recording feature for peace of mind, and there is no app support.
Hollyland Lark M1 benefits
The Lark M1 truly stands out for providing a high level of quality at an affordable price point. Its plug-and-play design makes the setup quick so you don’t have to fuss with an app or a variety of settings. The hardshell carrying case and compact design of the mics make the Lark M1 one of the most portable interview kits on the market today.
Because it’s wireless, it’s more appealing than mics like the Rode Go, which has a cable that must be concealed. It also has a somewhat more impressive transmission range than the Synco G2(A2) (650 feet compared to 492 feet). Its long 20-hour battery life and extra accessories are some of the other perks it offers that similarly priced lav mics don’t.
Hollyland Lark M1 drawbacks
Unfortunately, the Lark M1 may be too simple for some. The excellent audio quality is undermined by featuring only the bare-bones essentials. The ANC can attack sounds you prefer to have in your recording, and the inability to tweak its strength is frustrating. The lack of a touchscreen display leaves you to wonder if you have the settings chosen correctly. Hollyland’s other Lark mics, particularly the Lark Max, offer many more features, while competitor Comica offers a range of lav mics that boast more dynamic features as well.
Should you get the Hollyland Lark M1 mic?
The Hollyland Lark M1 hits the sweet spot of affordability without sacrificing much in terms of quality. The simplicity and reliability of the Lark M1 are ideal for new users or those who don’t want complicated functions — just remove the mics from the charging case, clip them on and forget about them for hours.
Though it would be better if it had a display to show you the settings (rather than indicator lights) and a way to tune the ANC to your liking, those weren’t deal-breakers for us, especially since it handled ambient noise well with ANC switched off. With strong audio quality, long battery life and a great transmission range that put some much more expensive options to shame, the Lark M1 is a joy to use and well worth the investment.