Audio Technica ATV-SG1 review: this compact shotgun mic has changed the way I record on-camera audio, and I’m not going back!

It’s arguable that audio is more important than picture quality in any filmmaking project, so finding the best mic for your purposes is a key decision when choosing kit for your shoot but where do you start? This will depend on many factors such as crew size, environment, camera choice and so on. For many, a camera mounted mic will be best, as it allows for single shooters to capture sound and picture together. In these scenarios a shotgun mic, mounted on the camera is a great option and there are many available. Audio Technica has released the new ATV-SG1 and SG1LE with this in mind and they promise to deliver just what is needed for a range of tasks from vlogging to documentary and more. Both mics share a lot of the same build and features, with the LE version skipping a few to bring the price point. I’ll treat this review as one of the non-LE version but will be sure to mention any differences as they come up.

I studied commercial sound production, as well as film and photography, at university and have used countless mics over the years, so I was really keen to see if the SG1 could fit my needs and I was very pleasantly surprised by what I found.

Audio Technica ATV SG1: Specifications

Audio Technica ATV SG1: Price

$249/£175 is a great price for the quality and features on offer. The package is simple but effective, giving you all you need to introduce the mic into your kit. If you don’t need all the bells and whistles, then you could save a chunk of cash with the LE version, which is just $119/£85.

Audio Technica ATV SG1: Design & Handling

You get all you need in the box, including a windshield/dead cat, cables, and the mic itself. The SG1 is a small shotgun mic meant for hotshoe mounting, although it could be used with a boom arm; an extension cable would be needed. Most users will stick to mounting directly on their cameras, the way it’s intended.

While the SG1 is compact, it feels weighty, in part thanks to the solid construction and its metal grille, but also due to the fact that it has a USB-C rechargeable battery built in. It’s a device of two parts, with the mic, in its surrounding grille, sitting atop the IO and control section. Everything feels robust, and the switches and knobs feel positive and responsive. I particularly appreciate that the gain knob has a partial shield to prevent accidental adjustments. Nice touch.

My only niggle is that, with the wind shield fitted, you end up needing to move the fluff out of the way to see the mode switch. Not a big deal, and it's really the only issue I found with it.

You’ll find a power button, external input, and a low cut filter on the left, a USB-C port, 3.5mm headphone out, and volume control on the right, and the mode switch on the rear, next to the gain knob.

Another neat touch is the fact that the mount, which attaches to your hot shoe, is on a rail, allowing the mic to slide back and forward around 40mm. This means if you switch to a wide-angle lens, you can ensure the mic doesn’t intrude into the frame.

You may also have noticed that there’s a cold shoe on the top/rear of the mic. This could be used for anything, but it’s designed for use with a wireless receiver. I’ll talk more about this later, but it’s possibly one of the key features of the SG1.

The LE version is similarly designed but lacks some features, having only a single output on the body, which also doesn’t slide.

Vibrations can be a nuisance for microphones and can lead to unwanted noise that is tricky to eliminate in post, so many people opt for a suspension system of some kind, which can lead to a large setup and fragile mounts. The SG1 (and LE) has an internal shock mount, keeping unwanted disturbances to a minimum while keeping everything compact.

Audio Technica ATV SG1: Performance

In use, the SG1 couldn’t be easier. No apps to connect to, no menus to dive into, and not even a battery to replace. In fact, a single charge lasted me well over 24 hours, and there’s no need to even switch it on or off, as it does that for you when you power your camera on.

The only thing you need to do is decide on a mode and whether or not you need to engage the low-pass filter (great on a windy day), set your gain, and off you go. The mode options are Normal, for everyday recording situations, safe, and Ext. Safe is a fantastic redundancy option. It basically shifts the main audio to one track and records a separate track of the same audio but with a 6 dB reduction, meaning that should you end up capturing something unintended, like a passing train or a moment of traffic, you won’t have blown out audio, and you can edit them in post to keep your audio as clear as you need.

Ext mode is, I think, really exciting. This is where the cold shoe mount up top comes into play. Say you’re recording a piece to camera, but you want to be further away. In this situation, a shotgun starts to be less useful, as it will mean your vocal recording needs to be boosted. This will, in turn, boost ambient noise too. However, if you have a wireless mic, you can use that in conjunction with the SG1, recording the SG1 audio to one side and the external mic to the other. This makes it really easy to dial in the exact result you intended while not introducing harsh differences in audio tone, which could ruin a shot.

I mentioned ambient noise, while it does pick some up, the SG1 is very directional, which is a good thing. It easily eliminates sound from everywhere, not directly in front of it. Not entirely, which I prefer, as it keeps things sounding natural but enough to make whatever is in front of the camera centre stage.

When it comes to the technical side of things, the SG1 has a great range, sitting at 20Hz-20KHz, meaning it can pick up pretty deep bass to sparkling high end, and it does so in a really balanced way. It is slightly mid-focused, but I think that's a wise choice as it is aimed at the content creator, where vocal capture is most important. I recorded some acoustic guitar, too, which sounded great, but this really isn't the form factor for that, so I'd suggest keeping this on camera.

Some mics start distorting much earlier in the input range than I'd like, but thankfully, the SG1 doesn't do this. It has a maximum input level of 114 dB, which is the kind of volume you'd get at a loud rock concert.

This makes for a really good solution for content creators and vloggers, who spend a lot of time talking to the camera but want things to sound natural.

For monitoring, you may want to use an output from your camera, but there is a headphone output on the mic, with a volume control. I’m not sure what preamp is used here, but it sounds good, with decent levels of clarity in the highs and punch in the low end. The midrange is focused and clear too, perfect for vocals and everyday recording, much like the mic's capture itself.

Audio performance between the LE and non-LE versions is very similar, but if you want to gain control, a low-cut filter, and the fantastic external mic and safety, spending the extra on the non-LE version is well worth the cash.

Audio Technica ATV SG1 demo 001 - YouTube

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Audio Technica ATV SG1 Verdict

The SG1 is a wonderful mic for content creators and vloggers. Audio quality is excellent, and the balance between directional and ambient sound is just right, but what makes this a truly useful mic is the addition of the safety and external modes. Plus, the compact nature, versatile mount, and robust build make this a winner. The SG1 is highly recommended.

Alternatives

Sennheiser MKE 400

A very popular choice amongst videographers, the mke is built like a tank.