Hollyland Lark M2S Wireless Lavalier Microphone
design
When RODE launched the original Wireless GO back in 2019, it felt like a technological marvel. Getting a full wireless mic to be so small with all the necessary transmitters on board? Magic. Skip forward a few years and it’s a behemoth by comparison, the Hollyland Lark M2S is shockingly small. The visible portion of the microphone itself measures just 13 x 6.3mm – that’s down to shirt button size, remarkable. The entire transmitter weighs 7 grams, which Hollyland proudly claims makes it the industry’s lightest. I can’t claim to have tested them all but I’ll take their word for it, having clipped various wireless mics to my clothing over the years, this almost feels like nothing’s there at all.
Beyond weight, what makes the M2S unique is the complete absence of branding on the front-facing side. There’s a small Hollyland logo on the reverse that clips to your clothing, but when you’re wearing it properly, all anyone sees is a tiny grey disc. It’s the kind of design decision that seems obvious in hindsight but has seemingly taken the industry years to figure out – or swallow their pride with. Finally, a wireless mic that doesn’t look like you’re being sponsored by the manufacturer, it’ll be impactful for some and a complete non-detail for others.
The titanium clip is where things get interesting, and it’s a proper trade-off from the previous M2 model it supersedes. The old system used magnets which meant you could position it anywhere and even hide it completely inside clothing. The Lark M2S trades that flexibility for a more secure, professional-looking clip design. The titanium construction gives it structural stability that works – I ran around my house between rooms and upstairs without a single hiccup in positioning or audio consistency. It stays put even during heavy movement, though you do need to clip it over a collar or shirt edge rather than having more control with hiding it away.
In the box you get two transmitters, a camera receiver with cold shoe mount, a USB-C plug-in receiver for phones, a USB-C to Lightning cable if you’re still rocking an older Apple device, a couple of furry windshields, and a charging case. It’s a comprehensive kit, though I’d have appreciated if the windshields actually had somewhere to live inside the charging case rather than requiring the included carry pouch. Build quality on the devices themselves is decent, though the charging case itself feels a touch cheap in comparison, particularly around the lid. It creaks and rattles slightly with a harsh, hard plastic construction, but it does the job it needs to.
A thoughtful touch on the USB-C receiver, it has extra spacing built in that means it actually works with phone cases. I could plug it straight into my iPhone with my case on and it still sat comfortably without feeling like it was under strain or wanted me to take the case off. It’s a minor detail but the kind of thoughtful design that only comes from someone who’s actually tried using these things in the real world. The camera receiver is compact with a volume knob, LED indicators, and the ability to switch between mono and stereo modes. There’s no screw adjustment to make sure it’s a firm fit to your camera, but it all felt reasonably secure.
performance
We’ll dive into detail in a moment, but the simple summary is the Hollyland Lark M2S sounds decent. Not amazing, not transformative, just properly decent. On the technical side, it captures 24-bit audio at 48kHz with a 70dB signal-to-noise ratio and 116dB maximum SPL. In practice, it captures voices clearly with minimal background interference and enough headroom to handle loud environments without distortion.
They’re not dissimilar in price, but compared to the Rode Wireless Micro, there’s an audible difference. The RODE delivers that full, rich vocal quality that makes you sound like you’ve got a full studio setup. The M2S gives you clean, natural voice reproduction that’s certainly better than any phone’s built-in mic, but it doesn’t have quite the same depth or polish. It’s the difference between sounding professional and sounding properly professional, if that makes sense.
Where the Hollyland Lark M2S impressed me was connectivity and consistency. Much like chair manufacturers all trying to one-up each other on armrest dimensions, microphone brands seem to want to report the most ludicrous wireless range. Nobody is genuinely going to use a wireless lapel mic from 300 metres away, but that’s what Hollyland says you can do. I’ll take their word for it. Instead I conducted a far more technical and helpful test, I ran around my house. Upstairs, downstairs, between rooms, into the garden – the M2S stayed rock solid with zero dropouts. That’s impressive for a 2.4GHz system where obstacles can often cause havoc. The omnidirectional pickup also handled movement and changing acoustics surprisingly well, maintaining consistent audio levels whether I was in my more echoey kitchen or plush and carpeted bedroom.
The Environmental Noise Cancellation works, though like most digital noise reduction it can introduce subtle processing artifacts if you’re listening carefully. I found myself leaving it off most of the time in controlled environments and only enabling it outdoors or in particularly noisy situations. It’s there when you need it, which is all you can really ask. You’re given a little control over this via the HollyAudio app, though it’s nice to see physical controls included on the receiver too.
Battery life is excellent for real-world use. Each transmitter and receiver runs for 9 hours on a charge, and the charging case bumps total runtime to 30 hours. That’s a full day’s shooting with multiple recharges before you need to find a wall socket. Charging is quick too – under 90 minutes for the full set, which means you can top up over lunch and keep going.
summed up
The Hollyland Lark M2S is the wireless microphone content creators have been quietly asking for – one that actually disappears on camera. The completely logo-free design combined with the tiny form factor means this is the first budget wireless mic that looks professional in shot rather than like a sponsorship gone wrong.
Audio quality is decent rather than exceptional. It won’t match the richness of RODE’s offerings, but it delivers clean, natural voice reproduction that’s miles ahead of any built-in phone mic. Connectivity proved impressive in testing, handling multi-floor recording sessions without dropping signal, and the omnidirectional pickup maintained consistent quality through movement and changing acoustics.
Don’t get me wrong, there are compromises. The charging case lid feels cheap, the camera receiver’s shoe mount could be finicky on some cameras, and you’re not getting advanced features like backup recording or 32-bit float. With a price bumping around £115-125 for the Combo version, the Hollyland Lark M2S sits alongside a whole heap of other options, though it’s worth going deal shopping as I’ve seen both the DJI Mic Mini and RODE Wireless Micro cheaper when on sale.
