Hi, I’m stubat, you may remember me from reviews such as the Genesis Radium 300 XLR Microphone and the SaharaMic 2 video review. So, you’ve guessed it, we’re back today with yet another microphone review. This time, it’s something a little bit different.
So far every microphone I’ve reviewed for FULLSYNC has been wired. But today’s product is a wireless microphone, however, it comes with one receiver and two microphones. The product in question is the LARK C1 microphone, from a company called Hollyland. Let’s just get straight into it.
First is the unboxing experience, the LARK C1 comes in a pretty solid box and doesn’t look cheap which is a good thing considering the price, but we’ll get to that a bit later on. When you open the box you’re presented with the nice grey, fabric-covered hardshell carry case. No loose documents or anything inside the box which is a nice touch. Inside the case, you’ll find everything else.
Inside the LARK C1 case, you’ll find the case for the microphones & receiver, this item does come in TWO variants, a solo mic pack and a duo mic pack. The one we got our hands on is the duo pack. You’ll also find 2 attachable wind protectors, a USB C charging cable and the product guide, all neatly packaged together.
You’ll notice the case looks different in the picture above to the pictures below, this is because it comes with plastic wrap to protect it from any potential scratches. It does come in a white OR a black colour, ours is the black version. So, that’s the package, how is the product?
The LARK C1 case feels well made, and the hinge leaves a little bit to be desired, but unlike a set of wireless earbuds this isn’t something you’ll just be “throwing in a bag” or a pocket so realistically that shouldn’t be a problem. But it’s something to keep note of.
The microphones themselves are pretty cute can’t lie, below is a picture of the mics themselves (makes my mouse mat look disgusting but I assure you it’s hoovered daily) they come with clips so you can attach them to a shirt or a collar, I also took the pleasure of attaching one of the wind protectors to one so you can see how that looks also, they are just a rubber attachment for the end, pretty cool.
The LARK C1 does come in an iOS variant with a lightning adapter instead of USB-C, so if you’re part of the whole Apple ecosystem you can still get on board with this product. Hollyland does have a list of phones that this is compatible with and while it isn’t on there, I can confirm that the LARK C1 does work with the Google Pixel 6 Pro.
So the LARK C1 is packaged well, and it looks good, but how does it sound? Before I get this out there it needs to be said that a WIRED MIC will almost always be better than a wireless mic, that’s just how this works. However, this microphone has a purpose, it’s purpose is so you can have your phone set up to record a video interview or whatever it is you’re recording, with the adapter plugged in you the interviewee can have a mic attached and ALL vocals will be picked up clearly and at a GOOD volume with no fiddling required.
Above is a playlist featuring all of the microphone tests I’ve done so far, compared to some of the wired mics I have reviewed/owned in the past, of course, the quality isn’t QUITE as good. But, considering the sound quality compared to the built-in microphone of my phone and the potential use cases for a product like this, in terms of interviews, content creation etc. The LARK C1 opens up a lot of possibilities and given the small package it comes in I think it’s a very solid-sounding and handy package all around.
You guys can be the judge however on that one and this is where the judging will truly start. Considering everything we have said above, a well-designed, well-built product that sounds decent compared to some quite stiff competition, how much would you say a product like this is worth? I’m going to go ahead and tell you right now you’re almost certainly wrong, if you got near it, however, well done. The LARK C1 is currently on sale, as a dual pack for £191 on Amazon.
Now that may seem like a lot, but it seems like the price of ANYTHING made for content creation is given an immediate bump on the higher end. I really do think there’s a lot of value in this product, I did a little interview with my 3-year-old daughter and for obvious reasons, I’m not going to share that, but she was standing across the room from me and my phone was in the dining room and honestly, it was great, each mic only picked up our own voice and purely based on convenience I think there’s a lot of potential with this.
Would I advise buying the LARK C1 for £191? Well, that depends, if you’re regularly doing interviews and you use your phone to record them as opposed to a proper recording studio, absolutely. Are you a content creator who, perhaps, does make-up or cooking videos? This kind of thing is a very solid option also and if you get the dual pack it means you can place a mic on your subject for make-up or your assistant in the kitchen and have all vocals picked up clearly.
Overall thoughts on the Hollyland LARK C1
Overall, I think the LARK C1 is a great product and while sure the price is a little steep, I think for those that need a product like this, it really will be a game changer, as an example, when I attended the RLCS Spring Major in July, I only had my phone to record interviews on and because of that, I ended up just typing out parts of the interviews in my coverage. This however will be an immediate step up for the content as I’ll have much clearer interviews now to work with, meaning audio/video is a possibility without having to lug around a whole load of kit.
Based on everything I’ve said here, I think I WOULD recommend this product if you’re one of the people that could truly get the right amount of use out of it for the price if you’re just beginning your content creation journey, then maybe look for something a little bit cheaper that will do a similar job. It’s all going to come down to WHAT you need and WHY you need it, but this is definitely something worth taking a look at.
For more reviews like this, check out our Hardware section.