During IBC 2022 we had a chance to visit the Rycote booth and talk to Megan Davies from Rycote about the company’s latest line of Pencil Microphones.
New Pencil Microphone lineup
After the release of their first two microphones about a year ago (which we reviewed here extensively), Rycote is pushing ahead with 3 new mics showcased for the first time to the public on IBC 2022 last month.
Unlike the HC-22 and HC-15 which are shotgun mics (22cm and 15cm respectively), the three new mics are significantly smaller at just under 8cm long with a weight just short of 70g earning them the apt title of pencil mics.
The tiny OM-08 Omni pencil mic
According to Rycote, all three mics “are all built using the same capsule and preamp design as the Rycote HC Shotgun Microphones. This gives each of these mics a similarly low self-noise for their polar patterns, but more importantly, a tonal and sonic signature that makes them cut together seamlessly”.
So what differentiates the new CA-08, SC-08, and OM-08 mics from each other? there is one simple answer: polar patterns. Here is the breakdown of each mic:
- CA-08 Cardioid – The Rycote CA-08 is a cardioid pencil condenser microphone designed for both studio and field recording and provides slight directionality with an almost flat frequency response from 70Hz-20KHz gradually dropping off below 60Hz.
- SC-08 Supercardioid – The Rycote SC-08 is a supercardioid pencil condenser microphone that provides high directionality with a virtually flat frequency response from 70Hz-20KHz, with a slight drop-off below 60Hz.
- OM-08 Omni – The Rycote OM-08 is an omnidirectional pencil condenser microphone designed for a range of applications in studio and field recording when there is a need to capture audio for every direction with a solid low-frequency response that has no drop-off at 20Hz.
Different pencil sizeed mics
All three mics have gold-plated Neutrik XLR connectors and are designed to be resistant to RF interference and are made in Rycote’s UK factory. Each mic comes with a Rycote mic clip and 5cm foam included inside the kit with a box (which is a smaller version of the pen-like box the larger HC Rycote shotgun mics come in).
Official Rycote video on the pencil microphones
Pricing and availability
All three new mics should be available very soon for a price of just under $800 each.
For more of our coverage on LensVid from IBC 2022 – please visit the following link.
Iddo Genuth 
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