Hollyland Lark Max 2 at a glance:

• Ultimate Combo: $223/£245 | Standard Combo: $199/£216
• Wireless mic set
• Up to 4 TX units
• Wireless earphones
• 32-bit float
• 8GB internal recording
• hollyland.com

Not all microphones are equal, but neither are ears. And while plenty of listeners can tell good from bad, many fail to pay enough attention to notice. I’m glad I don’t develop microphone systems, as I’d imagine it’s hard to sell them on audio quality alone. The kind of spec that camera manufacturers can plaster on boxes does exist in the audio world, but not enough people know what it all means to make it an obvious selling point. 

Having 32-bit float is an easy one, as is internal recording space in transmitter units, and range is a nice one as you can almost make it up. But beyond that, leading on actual spec in the ‘videographer/creator’ market is a tough one. Hollyland has a great history of very good audio quality, but not everyone can see that. However, everyone recognises the appeal of a nicely designed kit and unique monitoring earpieces that connect wirelessly to the receiver and/or your phone. 

Key points

• Noise cancellation: Each TX has cancellation settings of between 5-20dB, adjustable in 1dB steps
• Tiny transmitters: The TX units are small, light and designed to be easily hidden with no bright logos in sight
• Wireless earphones: The Ultimate Combo kit includes wireless earphones with a range of 100m from the RX

Hollyland Lark Max 2 – Features

Stand-out features of this Holyland Lark Max 2 include the ability to connect four microphones to a single receiver, so one camera can record four voices across two channels. The kit comes with two transmitters, but extras are available individually. The transmitters are tiny but conceal 8GB of built-in storage so they can transmit audio to the receiver and record it at the same time. 

As is almost essential these days for self-respecting microphone systems, 32-bit float is available, enabling wide dynamic-range recordings to the transmitter’s own storage. And 8GB allows 10 hours of chat to be held, or 14 hours if you elect for 24-bit sound. It isn’t always the case that 32-bit enabled recorders can also transmit in that bit depth, but this Hollyland Lark Max 2 can. Before you get excited though, you can only output the 32-bit signal via USB-C, to an iPad, iPhone or Mac computer – not to a camera. 

The one receiver can accept audio from up to four transmitters at the same time, and then process them all into a single mono channel or into a pair of stereo channels carrying signals from two of the mics each. Unlike the recent DJI Mic 3 we can’t send the signals to more than one camera, though I suspect Hollyland won’t be far behind on this development. 

Somewhat ahead of DJI is the choice of noise cancelation levels, with options between 5 and 25dB in 1dB steps. Noise cancelation is AI-driven, we’re told, and has been trained to recognise and cut, among other things, road noise, restaurant chatter and the hum of machinery. We also have EQ pre-sets for Hi-Fi, Low Cut and Vocal Boost, and gain settings of +/-20dB or Auto for individual mics.

For matching audio clips to each other and to camera footage, the Lark Max 2 offers Timecode recording and output via the TRS jack and the USB-C port on the rear of the receiver. Hollyland says the Transmitter and Receiver will communicate when up to 340m/1115ft apart, and we should get up to 11 hours of recording in one go. The charging case that the TX and RX units come in will charge them 2.5 times, giving us a total of 36 hours play before the case needs to be charged itself.

The transmitter units have no 3.5mm port for Lavalier mics themselves. But they come with little caps that slip onto the bottom of the unit and connect via the USB-C port, which allows Lav mics to be connected. It’s a neat solution. 

Hollyland Lark Max 2 – Wireless and Wired Monitoring

The Ultimate Combo kit includes a pair of wireless earphone monitors that connect to the receiver unit via Bluetooth, and then allow us to hear what the microphones are recording/transmitting without having to plug headphones into the camera. The arm of the OWS Monitor Earphones sits between the top of the ear and your head, and the speaker hovers by the tragus and over the concha to direct the sound down your ear’ole. The earpieces are very lightweight, and while they feel as though they are balanced somewhat precariously, I found they remain nicely in position and become comfortable very quickly.

As they hover over the ear, and are not thrust down it like earphones often are, I wondered if they would deliver isolated sound effectively. Remarkably, they do, while, like open backed headphones, we can still hear what’s going on in the environment. The OWS kit is factory paired with the receiver so they just work straight away, but you can also pair them manually. They will also pair with the Bluetooth on your phone to act like regular wireless earphones. 

For some reason, the OWS kit isn’t compatible with four transmitter set-ups. So then you’ll need to use the 3.5mm port on the receiver unit to hear what the receiver is hearing, or the 3.5mm port on your camera to hear what your camera is recording. It’s great to have a port on the RX unit itself. 

Hollyland Lark Max 2 – In Use

Perhaps one of the things you’ll notice first about this kit is that it just feels nice. Everything feels nice, as the case, the TX/RX units and the OWS earphones have a smooth velvety finish to the plastic bodies. Not important especially, but a nice touch – literally. 

The next thing you’ll notice is that the transmitters are really small and lightweight. Their long, thin design allows them to be concealed easily and means they don’t pull at clothes when they are clipped on. If you like to show your transmitters, as so many heathens do these days, you can, but if you prefer to preserve the mysteries of your art, only a small plain clip or a tiny supplied magnet will be left on show – unless you use a lav mic and then nothing will show. 

The smooth finish of the TX unit reduces rustling when inside a shirt, and it feels nice to the skin on a long shoot. Each TX unit weighs just 14g, and measures 23.4×10.2×45.1mm – so they really are easy to hide. 

Inevitably the control panel on the RX unit is pretty small, but for all that it is surprisingly usable as the interface is straight forward and we have buttons, a touch screen and a control wheel for navigation. Even when four TX units are connected, the display is more than sufficient for controlling each of them in turn. 

The wireless range is very good, and as usual is better with a static camera and a moving TX than it is when the TX is static and the RX is on the move. I was impressed the TX can still be picked up when 80m away and behind a block building, and it coped well with a body in the way too when at distance. Even with a moving camera the range is more than sufficient for most needs. With a body in the way I measured 75m with my roving camera test. 

Hollyland Lark Max 2 – Verdict

This is a really nice wireless mic kit, whether or not you get the wireless earphones and extra transmitters. It also costs significantly less than similar kits that offer some of the same features and similar sound quality. I’ve been very impressed with the audio and the abilities of the noise cancellation, and particularly the way the cancellation can be tailored to suit a wide range of environments and the degree to which we want to include or exclude background sound. 

The 32-bit built-in recording feature is great, and allows recording even without an RX unit. Files are easy to get off the TX unit directly, but it would be nice if we could access them via the charging case too.

It’s brilliant to have wireless monitoring earphones, as we can walk away from the camera without pulling it over, and everything is just a whole lot neater with fewer cables. The OWS unit works remarkably well.

The clincher on top of all that though is the size, shape and weight of the transmitter units, and how easily they can be hidden away or positioned in plain sight, and how we can add Lav mics if we want to. It’s a really practical kit, beautifully designed and it all sounds very good to boot. 

Ultimate Combo: what’s included

• Charging case
• 2x TX
• 1x RX
• Phone/PC RX
• OWS earphones with charging case
• 2x windshield
• 2x TRS cable
• 2x USB cable
• 2x lav mic with clips
• 2x lav mic adapter
• 2x magnetic silicone sleeve for TX
• 2x Magnet for TX
• Carry case for all above

Full Specifications

Follow AP on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.