GEAR SONY FX2
SONY SHRINKS THE SHOTGUN MIC Whether you own a Sony camera or not, the Japanese mega-brand wants you to ignore market leaders like Sennheiser’s evergreen MKH-416 and choose its new ECM-778 XLR shotgun mic. It’s a perfect match for the new FX2 if you pair it with the Sony XLR top handle. Costing £930/$1199, the ECM-778 is
designed to balance a more compact, lightweight form with high-end audio performance so it will produce results for decades. At just 176mm/6.9in long and weighing 102g/0.22lb, it’s notably shorter and lighter than many classic long booms, yet retains strong forward directivity and studio-grade clarity. The ECM-778 is equipped with a freshly designed electret capsule in a precision-machined brass acoustic tube and a custom circuit to preserve fidelity. The frequency response is from 40Hz to 40kHz, with a sensitivity of -31dB (1kHz, 1V/Pa), signal-to-noise of 78dB A-weighted and a dynamic range of 117dB, plus a maximum SPL handling about 133dB or more. Its tonal response is smooth and clean, with a controlled bass presence and great consistency across distance. Sony built in a recessed high-pass/ low-cut filter switch to reduce rumble, wind and handling noise, which is good for practical location use. The foam and fur windshields are solid quality, and the mic’s short body helps it stay out of frame when mounted on cameras. Because it’s shorter, the ECM-778 won’t match extremely long booms in maximum off-axis rejection, though it still outperforms many mics in its size class. Also, because it’s XLR and requires phantom power (44-52V), you’ll need compatible recording gear. The Sony ECM-778 is an impressive mic for its size and suits boom use, camera-mounted work, documentaries, interviews and content creation where space and weight matter. It’s not cheap, but for professionals seeking high quality in a compact form, it’s a strong contender.
body, it gives creators a reliable way to compose in bright light or use eye- level framing. It is comfortable and very useful but can get obstructed by accessories mounted on the top. At the heart of the FX2 is the 33-megapixel back-side illuminated Exmor R sensor, shared with Sony’s A7 IV and paired with the Bionz XR, plus a dedicated AI processing unit. This configuration gives serious firepower: 10fps continuous stills, and a video architecture that supports 10-bit 4:2:2 All-Intra, XAVC S-I and multiple recording profiles including Log and S-Cinetone. The FX2 delivers 15+ stops of dynamic range when shooting in S-Log3, with Dual Base ISO of 800 and 4000 and expanded video sensitivity up to ISO 102,400 for difficult light conditions. One of the FX2’s new features is the ability to capture stills while recording video, or to take stills in Log mode. These aren’t mere thumbnails or grab frames from a video but full-resolution images matched to your video colour workflows. It’s truly a hybrid tool rather than a cinema camera with a token photo mode, differentiating it from other Cinema Line models. For this, you start recording video then simply push the shutter button and a full-size photo is taken without any interruption to video recording. If this was available on Sony’s faster sports cameras, such as the A1 II or A9 III, it could be a game changer
SHARP SHOOTER The camera shoots high- quality stills, something many creators demand from their cameras
XLR-ATE YOUR AUDIO The new ECM- 778 is a high-end mic that produces crisp sound and is built to last
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