For my documentary film work, I’ve been pretty聽satisfied聽with my Tram TR50s聽over聽the past few years. But when聽the mic capsule聽came聽loose for the second time on one of them,聽I was in the mood to try something new. After reading聽some reviews, I picked the DPA D:screet 4061 lav mic.

Why I chose DPA

1. It’s modular, using micro-dot connector adapters that allow the mic to work with virtually any professional audio device (i.e., XLR, Sennheiser, Lectrosonics, etc).
2. DPA makes聽a whole line of well designed accessories designed to make it easy to hide the mic.
3. It sounds great under clothing using the included聽capsule for boosting high frequencies. It also comes with a capsule that boosts the mid frequencies for use when outside of clothing.
4. The built quality is excellent, and it’s designed to withstand hours of sweaty performance.

The biggest surprise with the 4061 is how great it sounds under clothing when hidden. And how easy it is to hide using the聽 DMM0012 Miniature Concealer. DPA makes some special two-sided round tape ( ADH0002 Double-Sided Tape for Miniature Concealer), which is amazing stuff. You place the mic in the concealer, apply a piece of tape, then stick the mic anywhere inside your subject’s clothing, or on their chest directly. Using this setup, the mic us MUCH quieter under clothing than my聽TR50s ever were. I’m not sure why, exactly, but I can tell you that it just works. Something about the capsule of the TR50 makes it especially sensitive to clothing rustle.

One note: The聽DPA Microphones聽DPADH0004 double-sided tape costs $14 for 10 strips. When it arrived, I discovered it’s actually just Top-stick 1″x3″ toupe tape repackaged by DPA. You can buy 100 strips for the same price on Amazon.

DPA has made聽a聽video with some tips on how to hide their mics聽(or any others, really) under clothing:

I’ve taken the time to decipher some of the materials described in this video.

• Molton 聽cloth – it’s the European name聽for what we call Duvetyne here in the US.
• Double-sided tape – the brand he’s using in the video聽is called Ve-ge Double-sided transparent carpet tape and 2″ x 82′ roll costs $12 on Amazon.

DPA lav vs Rode lav

I’ve also had聽a Rode lav for a few years, and it’s another decent聽sounding mic for dialog that uses micro-dot connectors. However, Rode’s implementation of the connectors is聽much less robust聽than those found on the DPA mics. The DPA mic has a locking connector, which is thicker, while the Rode connectors do not lock, and feel pretty flimsy. But they have held solid so far.

The Rode lav is also easy to hide under clothing using their Invisilav silicon mic concealers. But聽in my experience the double-sided tape on these tends to come off very easily, and is very fiddly to apply. The double-sided taping system that DPA makes for their concealer聽is definitely superior.

Quality has a price

If you’re looking to save money, the 4061 probably won’t be your first choice. The 4061聽with microdot termination is聽$449. You’ll need to add at least one connector, and locking connector for Sennheiser Evolution wireless systems is $100; for an XLR connector it’s $115. The accessory kit padded case, pictured above, adds another $134 and includes a magnetic connector. The mic alone comes in a smaller clear, hard-plastic case. The concealer and it’s yellow double-sided tape stickers is sold separately.

The good news is that high-quality sound equipment evolves slowly (unlike cameras, which get upgrades every few months, it seems). It’s very likely that this mic will still be on the job聽10 years from now. If you look at it that way, it’s a bargain!