All OKM Classic varieties are suitable for this purpose, as that is the sensitive version. When recording natural sounds, the microphone must accurately record the acoustic impressions of the person doing the recording. The sensitive Classic version is needed when attempting to record bird songs, for example, as the person doing the recording is not able to get as close as s/he wants to the source of the sound without scaring the bird away. With very quiet sources of sound and/or very large distance, the sensitive microphone jack of the recording equipment must be used, but, depending on what equipment is used, a certain amount of microphone preamplifier feedback may not be able to be avoided.
No, the respective solo version is sufficient, since the 96 dB distortion threshold is rarely reached in these recordings.
Almost all portable recording equipment has a T-feed, which supplies the microphone with 1.6 V power. However, this voltage is only sufficient for a volume of 96 dB. For higher decibel levels, the the microphone must be supplied with higher voltage, which is supplied by the adapter.
This is volume of a woodwind instrument at 1 meter distance.
The energy supplied to the microphone via the T-feed is not sufficient to process the bass tones. Either the adapter must be used, or, for very high volumes, the "Rock" version must be selected.
It is very rare, but there is recording equipment that is not equipped with power supply for microphones (T-feed - plug in power -). In this case A3 must be used both for the Mic jack and for the LINE IN jack.
Unfortunately not, since, to our knowledge, the OKM microphone, together with the A3 adapter, is the only "Elektret" microphone that works via the Line-in jack. The adapter is coordinated with the OKM microphone, and will only work was a preamplifier together with it.
All Pop/AV OKM microphones are 3 dB less sensitive than the Classic version, allowing them to be used for higher volumes, where otherwise only the "Rock" version would provide undistorted recordings.
The new digital camera technology presented many users with the problem of obtaining sound quality that was as good as the picture quality. Since all digital cameras (except for professional versions) are only equipped with an automatic sound regulators, this automatic regulation has caused problems especially for highly sensitive microphones such as the OKM Classic, particularly when dealing with highly dynamic sound sources. Here, the somewhat less sensitive OKM II PoP/AV, without the A3 adapter, should be used, as long as there is T-feed via the microphone jack.
The respective Studio variants are selected microphones with channel synchronisation of less than 0.5 dB between the left and right. This selection takes place in the frequencies relevant for stereo listening. The result - minimised channel deviation - provides more transparent sound, particularly in recordings made in areas with good acoustics.
Unfortunately, yes. The "Rock" version is only made for very high volumes, and should only be used for such volumes.
Yes, the Sony SBM 20 Bit adapter performs the functions of the A3 adapter, and the OKM can be used directly in the microphone jack without the adapter.
Generally, you should stand near the mixer, which is normally located in the centre of the room. Since all Original Headset microphones make spatial recordings, room acoustics is a substantial determinant of recording quality.
No, the microphone capsules hang freely, and have no direct contact to the ear.
The microphone jacks of sound cards are generally equipped with T-feed, as with MD recorders. Therefore, OKM microphones will also work with sound cards.
The adapter only needs to be equipped with a 3.5 mm coupling on 2 x chinch in order to be connected to all Line-In jacks on a home stereo system. The adapter can be run on a power supply instead of with the battery. In order to do this, just remove the battery, and connect 6 - 10 V power (banana clamps) to the battery springs. If possible, a stabilised power supply unit should be used, so that interference is avoided.
On the cable of the microphone you will find a small colored stripe, which will show you the type of the mic.
| Type | Color |
|---|---|
|
OKM I |
yellow/green |
|
OKM II Klassik solo |
blue |
|
OKM II Klassik incl. A3 |
blue |
|
OKM II solo pop/AV |
blue & transparent |
|
OKM II incl. A3 pop/AV |
blue & transparent |
| OKM II Studio Klassik solo | red |
| OKM II Studio Klassik incl. A3 | red |
| OKM II Studio pop/AV | red & transparent |
| OKM II Rock incl. A3 |
blue & red |
|
OKM II Rock Studio incl. A3 |
red & red |
Recommended settings for OKM II K with A3 on portable recorders.
|
SPL [dB] |
SP [Pa] |
estimated loudness |
Input |
ATT. (Recorder) |
A3 ATT |
|
100 to 120 |
2 to 20 |
loud |
LINE |
- |
20 dB |
|
82 to 102 |
0,25 to 2,5 |
medium |
LINE |
- |
0 dB |
|
63 to 83 |
0,03 to 0,3 |
low |
MIC |
20 dB |
0 dB |
|
43 to 63 |
3 to 30 |
very low |
MIC |
0 dB |
0 dB |
You can connect the Soundman OKM binaural microphones to studio mixers and pre-amps with 48V phantom power using the optional Phantom Power Adapter (PPA). The PPA provides optimum voltage for the OKMs and transformer isolated balanced microphone level outputs. The improvement in signal to noise is significant, when compared to the A3 adapter (around 10dB), and the headroom is slightly improved. The unit is housed in a box with a 3.5mm stereo jack for the microphones, and gold plated XLRs on the outputs. The unit requires no battery, but uses the mixer/pre-amp's 48V to power the circuitry that provides the bias voltage for the microphones. The microphones are isolated from the 48V by two mini audio transformers.
The Phantom Power Adapter is available as a special order item directly from N.Nyman Oy. For ordering or enquiries please contact us via email at soundman@nnyman.com.