Azden SMX-20Compact Directional Stereo Microphone

The SMX-20 is a compact directional stereo microphone built for DSLR video, where the alternative is the camera's own internal mic picking up the lens motor and the operator's hands. It uses a stereo electret condenser element with a directional pickup that favors what is in front of the lens, running 100 Hz to 20,000 Hz. The low end starts at 100 Hz by design, which keeps handling rumble and traffic out of a track that a small camera preamp has no headroom to fix later.

It is self-powered, so it does not tax the camera: a single LR44 cell runs it for roughly 150 hours. A coiled output cable ends in a 3.5 mm stereo mini-plug and goes straight into a DSLR mic jack, and the whole mic weighs 72 g with the battery in it. It mounts on the included shock-mount holder with a shoe, and ships with a windscreen and the LR44 battery. This one is a closeout: Azden no longer lists the SMX-20 in its current lineup, and quantities here are limited.