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ATR6550 Condenser Shotgun Microphone

Crisp & intelligible pickup—far away or up close. In its “Tele” range setting, this cardioid condenser is engineered to pick up dialogue and sound effects at a distance, while bypassing ambient noise such as traffic, air-handling systems, room reverberation and mechanically coupled vibrations. Designed especially for use with video cameras.

  • 3.5 mm connector plugs into your video camera

  • Two range settings: "Normal" for close & medium-distance; "Tele" for long-distance

  • Includes camera-mount, stand clamp, foam windscreen, battery



SPECIFICATIONS
ELEMENT Condenser
POLAR PATTERN Normal: Cardioid
Tele: Supercardioid
FREQUENCY RESPONSE 70 – 18,000 Hz
OPEN CIRCUIT SENSITIVITY Normal: -56 dB
Tele: -45 dB
IMPEDANCE Normal: 1,000 ohms
Tele: 2,200 ohms
WEIGHT 113 g (4 oz)
CABLE 1 m (3') long, permanently attached cable with 3.5 mm (1/8")
mini-plug
ACCESSORIES FURNISHED Camera mount; microphone stand clamp; foam windscreen; AA battery



Conditions
ATR6550 Condenser Shotgun Microphone
Overall rating 
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
Open Ratings Snapshot
Rating breakdown 3 reviews
5 Stars
2
4 Stars
1
3 Stars
0
2 Stars
0
1 Star
0
Reliability 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Audio Quality 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Durability 
4.3 / 5
4.3 / 5
Ease of Use 
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
3
3 Crisp & intelligible pickup—far away or up close. In its "Tele" range setting, this cardioid condenser is engineered to pick up dialogue and sound effects at a distance, while bypassing ambient noise such as traffic, air-handling systems, room reverberation and mechanically coupled vibrations. Designed especially for use with video cameras.
Overall rating 
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
Open Ratings Snapshot
Rating breakdown 3 reviews
5 Stars
2
4 Stars
1
3 Stars
0
2 Stars
0
1 Star
0
Reliability 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Audio Quality 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Durability 
4.3 / 5
4.3 / 5
Ease of Use 
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
Product Reviews
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Ratings summary
Overall rating 
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
Open Ratings Snapshot
Rating breakdown 3 reviews
5 Stars
2
4 Stars
1
3 Stars
0
2 Stars
0
1 Star
0
Reliability 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Audio Quality 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Durability 
4.3 / 5
4.3 / 5
Ease of Use 
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
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Product ReviewsWrite a review
Overall rating 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Great for use with DSLR cameras.
PostedDecember 27, 2011
Customer avatar
FineArtVideo
 
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from South Florida
Environment:Videographer
Expertise:Intermediate
How Long:Less than a month
Reliability 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Audio Quality 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Durability 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Ease of Use 
4 / 5
4 / 5
User submitted video
The ATR6550 comes with a permanently attached 18 inch coiled cord with a 1/8 inch stereo audio plug at the other end (wired for mono sound). Since the cord can't be unplugged from the mike, it's really designed for on-camera use. To use it on a boom pole, you'd need to use an extension cable with 1/8 inch connectors. Extending an unbalanced line such as this can introduce unwanted electrical noise into your audio.
This is really the perfect mike to be used on top of any DSLR, because it is self powered and plugs directly into the camera's external mike input without the need for any cable adapters. While it will not match the audio quality of a phantom powered XLR balanced line mike, it also costs only a fraction as much. The sound quality is crisp and intelligible for voices, but it does sound a little thin in the bottom end when used on a Nikon D5100. It does sound much better than the stock in-camera mike, and so it fills the needs for small budget film projects using DSLR cameras.
It has much better low end audio response and high end crispness when used with a dedicated video camera like a Panasonic TM700. On that camera, the sound quality more closely matches that of mikes in the 300 dollar range. In summary, it's perfect for the hobbyist or student film maker with a DSLR or small camcorder, but a pro will need an XLR mike.
Pros Film/Video Production, Ambience, dslr
Cons unbalanced line, can not be unplugged from mike
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Overall rating 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Great value for better audio!
PostedOctober 20, 2011
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MeanGene
 
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from Fairhope, AL, USA
Environment:Videographer
Expertise:Intermediate
How Long:Up to a year
Reliability 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Audio Quality 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Durability 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Ease of Use 
5 / 5
5 / 5
The "Tele" setting on this mike does a great job of picking up audio from a distance, almost as good as a lav mike. Easy to use, also, easy to forget to turn on but you only make that mistake once. An LED indicator when the mike is switched on would be a nice reminder to turn it off before storing. Battery life is very good. I use a NIMH rechargable battery and carry a charged spare. Accessory foot does not fit Canon Vixea Mini-Advanced Shoe. All-in-all a great buy!
Pros Film/Video Production, light weight
Cons a little large for camcorders
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Overall rating 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Great Budget Microphone!
PostedOctober 20, 2011
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filmguy0
 
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Expertise:Intermediate
Reliability 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Audio Quality 
4 / 5
4 / 5
Durability 
5 / 5
5 / 5
Ease of Use 
5 / 5
5 / 5
For the price of this mic you really cant go wrong. It is an awesome mic with great performance. You do get some background noise / interference but it is not noticeable at all unless you really amp up the sound.
Pros Film/Video Production, cheap
Cons unbalanced
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2 answers

Very Quiet?

I recently received the ATR-6550 and have been attempting to use it with my Tascam DR-07 handheld recorder. It does seem to pick up something but only when you shout down the end of the mic - why is it so quiet?
Also why is there no manual for this product?
User Type: Other
Experience: Amateur
3 months, 1 week ago
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UK
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Answer: 
Any solution to this problem? I also have the dr-07, with the ATR3350 lav mic the levels are usable.

But with the ATR6550....terrible. It's brutally quiet. The noise that comes from having to amplify the audio in post makes any recordings useless.
Age: 25-34
User Type: Live Sound
Experience: Amateur
2 months, 3 weeks ago
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Answer: 
Thank you for your inquiry. You may want to contact our Audio Solutions department at (330) 686-2600 ext. 5000 for help troubleshooting your issue.
Age: 45-54
Experience: Pro
3 months, 1 week ago
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Stow, OH
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2 months, 2 weeks ago
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Answer: 
This mike would run for 5 or 6 weeks if left on continuously.
Age: 55-65
User Type: Live Sound
Experience: Pro
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1 month ago
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South Florida
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Answer: 
Thank you for your inquiry. Typically this mic gets around 1000 hours on one battery.
Age: 45-54
Experience: Pro
2 months, 1 week ago
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Stow, OH
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specifications ATR-6550

I'm interested in the ATR-6550 specifications (in special the Polar Patter). Could you send it to my e-mail?
Thanks

Alejandro Blenkmann
Age: 25-34
User Type: Other
Experience: Novice
6 months ago
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Argentina
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Answer: 
The polar pattern of the ATR6550 is: Cardioid in normal mode and Supercardioid in tele mode.
Age: 45-54
Experience: Pro
5 months, 3 weeks ago
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cable length

Is there a recommended maximum length of an extension cable that can be used to the camera?
5 months ago
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Answer: 
Thank you for your inquiry. Since this an unbalanced connection on the microphone, I would try to keep the cable length under 15 feet. The longer the cable the more likely you are to pick up noise
Age: 45-54
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5 months ago
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Stow, OH
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Age: 45-54
User Type: Studio
Experience: Pro
5 months ago
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New York, NY
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Answer: 
Thank you for your inquiry. If these camera's have a stereo, 3.5 microphone input the ATR6550 should work.
Age: 45-54
Experience: Pro
5 months ago
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Stow, OH
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ATR6550 : Condenser Shotgun Microphone
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ATR6550 : Condenser Shotgun Microphone

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