The wireless mic category is growing fast as the number of content creators explodes

My main set-up was for years, a Sennheiser transmitter /receiver system and a Tram-50 or Sanken mic, both lavs, to get that personal; sound. Then Rode joined the pack and a ton of people jumped on board, even my local news station in NYC. DJI joined in earlier this year, and so many more have joined.

Ankerworks showed off the M650 wireless mic system at CES, and since working with it a bit, I have a def opinion and will go through the plusses and minuses

First off, from a physical perspective, having everything you need in a compact, charging case is brilliant. Well built, great design, and even with the included bag, it’s an easy carry. as you include the headphones, lav mic, connecting cables.
As you open the case you see the LEDs, letting you know how charged up you are, and these 3 parts will last about 7 hrs.
( BTW, I switched out one of the color caps on a transmitter, so you can see a diff. Very easy to do.)

Here you see the carry bag, with a set of headphones, and a Rode lav mic, kept separate from the charging case by sewn pockets, below:

Then we get into the transmitter mics: The pairing was immediate to the receiver, so that’s a plus.
On the ability to attach to your subject, having the option to either clip to wardrobe, or use a magnetic connection to place where it’s best, is useful. You can’t see it, but there is a magnet inside the pocket, holding the transmitter.  Good for a suit jacket as well.

Admittedly, I’ve used it mainly as a clip on.

One use I’ve found useful for the magnet attachment is when I plug an external mic into the transmitter, and then hide the round unit somewhere on the person.This way, you can keep it in a breast pocket, and the magnet keeps it in place, so the transmitter isn’t moving around.

A little less obtrusive.

Both the built in mic and the external mic, I introduced, worked great in this setup.
I did have to make sure I had a TRS cable end and not use a TRRS, for the lavelier mic
Realized that the lav needs a TRS, not a TRRS plug.

Good for my Sanken/Tram Mic but the Rode, less expensive mic, needed an adaptor to go from TRRS to TRS.
Also, picked up an extender so I don’t have to take off the case on the phone to make a connection.

On the receiver, you do get a lot of pertinent info, and being able to make adjustments right on the unit is helpful. All touch screen activated.

Change from Stereo to Mono, which is perfect you are doing a one person interview. Otherwise, in sterom youll only get the one channel.
Additionally, as a backup, the M650 allows users to record a local copy of the audio in the transceiver with 4GB of built-in EMMC storage, for up to 7 hours of recordings in the event that there is wireless interference between the transceiver and receiver. Once the transceivers are placed back into the case and it is connected to a computer, this local audio file can be downloaded from the app and inserted into a video in post-production as needed.

As far as a connection to a recording device, you do get the 2 ways:
To a camera, you use the included 3.5 cable. Here you see in red and a set of headphones also connected to the Fujifilm H-2. The clip on the bottom fits perfectly into the hotshoe on the camera, while making it a cold shoe, or simply the holder.

For a phone, I found that I needed to add a lightning extender, so I didn’t have to take off the case every time.
Once the extender was added, Filmic Pro was able to read the receiver, and all was good. Yep, Filmic Pro is my phone vid program of choice. Always test out your lightning connection to the receiver, by seeing what is recognized by this app.

Additionally, as a backup, the M650 allows users to record a local copy of the audio in the transceiver with 4GB of built-in EMMC storage, for up to 7 hours of recordings in the event that there is wireless interference between the transceiver and receiver. Once the transceivers are placed back into the case and it is connected to a computer, this local audio file can be downloaded from the app and inserted into a video in post-production as needed. The AnkerWork M650 offers users the ability to output digital audio from the transceiver to a computer at 24-bit/48 kHz using the included USB-C to USB-C cable or to a digital camera using the included 3.5mm audio cable.
However, for mobile phone users, audio can also be transferred directly using the included USB-C and Lightning adapters stored in the charging case.

The transceivers can be set to output a stereo signal, with each unit only recording on one side of the audio track (Left or Right), allowing each voice to be edited independently and then merged in post-production. Alternatively, and by default, the audio of one or both units can be output as a single mono audio recording combined into one track.

What did I love?
Sound recording quality.
Connection to app
Compact packaging
Charging case
Receiver options

What did I NOT love:
With a small footprint having the brand name across the product was distracting, which also drove me to the lavalier solution. Takes a little longer to set up, but cleaner look.
I reviewed a crème colored version, and although there were color changing caps, it was still where your eye went when shooting a vid.

Here is all that you get in the package.

Here is the comparison chart of the top contenders:

And Now, this set-up is $50 off! At $200, it’s a no brainer!

Highly recco, but def get the black!