I decided that carrying a phone and a camcorder was a bit much when traveling.  So, I dumped the camcorder as I always have my phone.  But the phone is hard to steady.  So, I've had the OSMO Mobile for a few weeks now and LOVE LOVE it.  However, now I have something big to carry around again.  And, phone audio quality isn't the best, especially in the wind.  Was wondering if anyone has found a good solution for an external mic?  The OSMO Mobile almost covers the mic location on a Galaxy S7.  If I have to add a connector, then the phone has to be shifted to the left a half inch or more.  The OSMO seems to handle that ok.  I've seen some expensive solutions, but was wondering if any has found a good bluetooth external mic for the S7?  

I just ordered the Rhode VideoMic Me plus a dead cat cover. Seen good reviews. I plan on interviewing people and asking questions from behind the camera. I hope the rear pickup is strong enough.

Hello, I'd like to use an external mic too. Infact using my Honor 7 with the Osmo Mobile (the videos are fantastic!!!) you can hear a terrible buzzing in the audio track.
This depend, I suppose, on the fact that the phone mic is really close to the motor of the gimbal.
If you will find a good solution for this problem please post here your experience.

Good luck!

lcv69 Posted at 2017-1-19 00:03
Hello, I'd like to use an external mic too. Infact using my Honor 7 with the Osmo Mobile (the videos are fantastic!!!) you can hear a terrible buzzing in the audio track.
This depend, I suppose, on the fact that the phone mic is really close to the motor of the gimbal.
If you will find a good solution for this problem please post here your experience.

I was just about to ask if anyone else can hear the motors. I can too, which is unfortunate.

John M Flores Posted at 2017-1-19 08:31
I was just about to ask if anyone else can hear the motors. I can too, which is unfortunate.

Try putting your phone into airplane mode. Mics are really susceptible to mobile radiation.

Capt.Capture Posted at 2017-1-19 13:27
Try putting your phone into airplane mode. Mics are really susceptible to mobile radiation.

Thank you Capt.Capture, but the buzzing is still present in airplane mode. : (

lcv69 Posted at 2017-1-21 13:40
Thank you Capt.Capture, but the buzzing is still present in airplane mode. : (

That is odd. I have used an external mic with the Osmo and I didnt get the buzzing. It most probably must be coming from the motors/ESCs. Only thing you could do is connect it with an extension cable, to see if it still does it and/or record with a second phone and bring the mic closer to the gimbal and see how that affects the sound.

lcv69 Posted at 2017-1-21 13:40
Thank you Capt.Capture, but the buzzing is still present in airplane mode. : (

Now that I think about it my phone has the headphone jack on the opposing side of the S7. Therefore the motors will definitely be the cause since they themselves radiate EM waves which affects the mic. Only thing left to do (assuming the sounds are not mechanically generated) is shield your mic in a faraday cage.

Capt.Capture Posted at 2017-1-21 15:49
That is odd. I have used an external mic with the Osmo and I didnt get the buzzing. It most probably must be coming from the motors/ESCs. Only thing you could do is connect it with an extension cable, to see if it still does it and/or record with a second phone and bring the mic closer to the gimbal and see how that affects the sound.

Hi,

I don't use an external mic, I'd like to use the on board mic that is situated at the bottom of the phone near the gimbal motor when the phone is locked on the osmo.

Capt.Capture Posted at 2017-1-21 16:07
Now that I think about it my phone has the headphone jack on the opposing side of the S7. Therefore the motors will definitely be the cause since they themselves radiate EM waves which affects the mic. Only thing left to do (assuming the sounds are not mechanically generated) is shield your mic in a faraday cage.

How can I create a faraday cage for the on-board mic of the phone?

lcv69 Posted at 2017-1-22 11:06
How can I create a faraday cage for the on-board mic of the phone?

Anything that conducts electricity if wound up the inside will be shielded. In this case you could try aluminium foil, but the in built mic is harder to shield than external mic.
Have you tried putting the phone the other way around so that the mic faces away from the motors to see if it does the same?

Capt.Capture Posted at 2017-1-23 03:45
Anything that conducts electricity if wound up the inside will be shielded. In this case you could try aluminium foil, but the in built mic is harder to shield than external mic.
Have you tried putting the phone the other way around so that the mic faces away from the motors to see if it does the same?

No I didn't try , in that way the camera will point the gimbal arm, but just to make a test I'll try and let you know, thanks for the suggestions...
I'm pretty sure that the problem is an interference with the motor and my honor 7 infact I tryed other phones (a Nexus 5 and a Huawei p8 lite) and the buzzing there is not : (

Capt.Capture Posted at 2017-1-23 03:45
Anything that conducts electricity if wound up the inside will be shielded. In this case you could try aluminium foil, but the in built mic is harder to shield than external mic.
Have you tried putting the phone the other way around so that the mic faces away from the motors to see if it does the same?

I put the phone upside down but the buzzing it is still present...

lcv69 Posted at 2017-1-23 12:44
I put the phone upside down but the buzzing it is still present...

Hmm and when the gimbal is off there is no buzzing? That is really odd. If its not the phone itself that has a problem...I have also tried several phones and none of them had the buzzing you are reporting. At what proximity does the buzzing start from the gimbal?

Capt.Capture Posted at 2017-1-27 05:19
Hmm and when the gimbal is off there is no buzzing? That is really odd. If its not the phone itself that has a problem...I have also tried several phones and none of them had the buzzing you are reporting. At what proximity does the buzzing start from the gimbal?

Hello,
no when the gimbal is off there is no buzzing in the video shooted by the honor 7.
When you use the gimbal with the phone, you can't hear the buzzing directly, it is prensent in the video captured on the honor 7 only, using others phones no problem.
So I'm pretty sure that you are right: there is an interference between the gimbal motors and the microphone of the honor 7.

Thank you for all your support!

Ciao

Here's a YouTube Live video with the DJI Osmo Mobile + Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge + Rode Video Mic Me (with dead cat) mounted on the extension arm (using the Rycote Lyre Shock Mount)



I'm using the DJI app for YouTube live streaming. The Rode Video Mic Me has a headphone jack on the end but you can't monitor as you record. It's live only on playback unfortunately.

Regarding audio quality - I'm not sure if the YouTube live streaming compression affected audio. I'll shoot additional footage not live and with other apps (i.e., Filmic Pro) to compare.

This may seem crazy but can you not put your phone in upside down so the mic is at the opposite end?
The phones S/W should know the phone is upside down and invert the video - my S7 Edge does this no problem!

@John M Flores, great videos and thanks for sharing that live youtube video. BTW how did you attach the Rode VideoMic Me to your Osmo Mobile? You mentioned you had it mounted on an extension arm, do you have a photo that you can share of your setup?

John M Flores Posted at 2017-2-1 09:49
Here's a YouTube Live video with the DJI Osmo Mobile + Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge + Rode Video Mic Me (with dead cat) mounted on the extension arm (using the Rycote Lyre Shock Mount)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09c5WXY9P8k&t=1630s

@John M Flores, great videos and thanks for sharing that live youtube video. BTW how did you attach the Rode VideoMic Me to your Osmo Mobile? You mentioned you had it mounted on an extension arm, do you have a photo that you can share of your setup?

The key with an external microphone is to be able to place the microphone away from the smartphone/osmo. Thereby e.g. attaching the mic to the speaker. Is there any chance to input the audio from a wireless mic, e.g. by bluetooth?

Will it be possible to connect a Rode Videomic Me with a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge on a DJI Osmo Mobile, despite Osmo seems to block the mic jack of the S7?

I don’t have an OSMO, but I do have a Zhiyun Smooth Q3… and it’s SO cool! The Rhode Smartlav has excellent sound quality, and it’ll work with the Galaxy S7. I plug the Smartlav into an LG V20 phone, put it in my pocket and record audio. Then I record video on multiple devices from multiple angles. It's extremely easy to synch audio and video with almost any video editing software.  I chose the LG because it has a removable battery, the “best DAC” AKA best sound quality of any phone, and it can hold an obscene amount of data. It has three cameras, and shoots stills and video in 4K. I bought the refurbished “unlocked phone” on eBay for less than $200 USD. I haven’t activated it, I only use it to record audio and video.