Hollyland LARK M2S Announced – Mini Concealed Wireless Microphone Set

Audio News

by Jakub HanToday

Hollyland LARK M2S is a new 2.4GHz wireless microphone system with dual transmitters and multiple options for receivers. There is a camera receiver with 3.5mm analog output and USB-C output, along with minimalistic receivers for mobile phones (USB-C and Lightning versions). The transmitters are designed to be minimalistic without a logo and are capable of recording up to 24-bit audio, but there is no 3.5mm input and no internal recording.

The Chinese company Hollyland known for wireless video and audio devices just announced an affordable 2.4GHz wireless microphone system, the LARK M2S. There is one particular feature of this new audio kit that I find quite interesting – the concealed design approach.

What’s that box with a huge logo on your shirt?

With a lot of online video content in recent years, affordable 2.4GHz wireless mics have become very popular. One problem with this is the common interference issue of the 2.4GHz frequency, which often needs to be fixed by using the transmitters’ internal recording.

The other intrusive aspect of using these mics is how present they are in the frame. Sure, most of them (but not all) have a 3.5mm connector for a lav mic, but let’s be honest, most of the creators do not use this option. Just slapping the mic transmitter on a shirt is easier and faster. The issue is, that most transmitter units are rather large and they often feature a huge logo of the manufacturer. Personally, I don’t like this and try to cover the logo somehow when using the transmitter alone, but I reckon most have gotten used to seeing this.

That is the reason I find the Hollyland LARK M2S wireless microphone system quite interesting as the design of its transmitters tries to make them as concealed as possible.

Hollyland LARK M2S wireless microphone system

The design of the transmitters features a titanium alloy clip. On the “visible side” of the clip there is only the built-in microphone capsule which measures 1.3cm x 0.63cm and does not include any visible logo. On the other “hidden side” of the clip, there is an enclosure that includes the rest of the electronics of the transmitter along with the built-in battery. The idea is to clip the mic on the shirt so that only the tiny microphone is visible in the frame. The whole TX unit weighs only 7 grams.

Hollyland claims that the LARK M2S has a maximum range of 300m (984 ft., unobstructed line of sight). As I mentioned above, the 2.4GHz frequency often gets too crowded and introduces interference. The manufacturer further says, they equipped the LARK M2S with a so-called RF interference-resistant circuit to minimize interference in the populated 2.4GHz bandwidth. I am curious if this gets confirmed in real-world reviews.

Unfortunately, the audio transmitters do not support internal recording, so I hope the anti-interference system works well.

When it comes to battery life, according to Hollyland, each transmitter can operate for up to 9 hours. With a fully charged charging case, the total maximum operation time is 30 hours.

The LARK M2S has a sampling rate of up to 24 bit/48 kHz, a 70dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and a 116dB maximum sound pressure level (SPL). The system also supports an environmental noise cancellation (ENC) to minimize background noise. This can be activated by a button located on the transmitter or the receiver.

The new dial design of the camera receiver in the combo version gives easy access to power, pairing, mute, and volume controls, with options for high, medium, and low levels. The camera receiver unit supports dual output so you can record the audio simultaneously via the analog 3.5mm jack connector in the camera and the USB-C output on a second device if needed.

With the LarkSound App, you can take full control, checking audio settings, volume levels, noise reduction (there are two levels – strong and weak), and battery life.

Price and availability

The LARK M2S Microphone System is now available and comes in three pre-configured kits:

• LARK M2S Combo (with camera RX + USB-C RX + USB-C to Lightning cable) is priced at $149
• LARK M2S Mini Combo with camera RX + USB-C RX is priced at $139
• LARK M2S with USB-C is priced at $119

Do you use one of the 2.4GHz wireless audio systems for your work? Do you try to conceal your transmitters or leave them in the frame with the logo visible? What do you think about the new Hollyland LARK M2S? Let us know in the comments section underneath the article.