Published By: Daniel Weadley. Date: 11th November 2024. Filed at: Reviews. Disclosure: I earn commission from purchases made via links, read more.

Over the last 6 months, I’ve been using the Rode ME wireless microphone when creating YouTube videos for my Bald Scrambler channel.

So far, my experience has been great and I feel the microphone is good value for money but it isn’t perfect.

On this page, I’ll cover:

• Range test.
• Performance in woodland.
• Battery life.
• Pros and cons.
• Missing features you’ll find on the more expensive Rode Go 2.

Me wearing the microphone on Atlantic Slab

Range Test

I tested this microphone in an area without any obstacles.

Here’s what happened:

1. The quality of the sound was great, up to over 100m, when I was facing the receiver. This was a surprise and I wasn’t expecting good sound at this range.
2. At about 50m, the quality was poor and cut out intermittently when I faced sideways.
3. At about 30m, the quality was poor and often cut out when I faced away from the receiver.

In dense woodland, I found it struggled to connect at about 20m, most likely due to the interference from the wood.

I think 99% of users aren’t going to stand 100m or even 50m from the camera/receiver so the range tests probably aren’t that crucial. But in a nutshell; the microphone works very well when facing the receiver, even at long distances.

Rode Me Wireless transceiver and receiver

Rode ME Wireless receiver connected to the Media Mod on my GoPro 11

Battery Life

For this review, I tested the batteries by leaving the device switched on and the transmitter around 4 metres from the receiver.

I got 6 hours and 5 minutes against the claimed 7 hours.

Do bear in mind that several factors can affect the battery life including temperature and how many recharge cycles it has experienced.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• It’s lightweight, compact and the transmitter has never come unclipped from my clothing.
• My GoPro Hero 11 automatically detects that it’s a powered mic and I don’t need to manually change any settings in the GoPro camera.
• Good battery life.
• There is an option to switch the microphone on the receiver on or off (I have it off but it would be great for recording the cameraman’s voice).
• The dead cat wind muffler is effective, easy to put on and secure.
• Good range.
• I can merge the audio from the two mics into one channel or keep them as separate channels (one in the left ear and one in the right). This allows for flexibility in post-production, for example when editing an interview.
• Gain assist controls the audio levels and the Rode ME Wireless has three options; off, auto and dynamic. I use auto and it works just fine.
• My Rode ME Wireless came with 2 black stickers that can be used to cover up the Rode logo on the devices.
• The app is easy to use and simple.
• There are different cables for connecting to a camera or a phone and both are included.
• It comes with a modern USB-C to USB-C cable (note: no USB-A connector).

Cons

• To change any of the settings, I have to use the app, there aren’t any menus or buttons on the devices (other than an on/of button.
• The carry pouch is made from material and offers no protection. A hardshell case would be better.
• There’s no documentation about how to set up the microphones although I found plenty of guides online and on YouTube.
• The microphone on the receiver is of limited use as it must stay attached to the camera. The Rode Go 2 has 2 transmitters and 1 receiver and thus both transmitters can be located far from the receiver.
• There’s no display on the receiver – unlike the Rode Go 2 which shows lots of info such as battery life and recording status of connected transmitters.
• The LED lights are obscured by the dead cat wind muffler.

Overall I feel the pros vastly outweigh the cons for this microphone.

Channel options