OM SYSTEM Olympus ME52W Unidirectional Mono Microphone Set

My first reaction to this microphone was astonishment at is its small size. It's larger than most lapel microphones, but that's because of the physical requirements for noise-cancellation. Still, it's very small, especially for a true "cardioid" (noise-cancelling) microphone. The performance is superb! As Jim wrote, it is very sensitive. I tested it in a quiet room at distances up to 10 feet away. At about 3 feet, my voice was strong and clear. At 10 feet, it was obviously remote, but the sound was good and very clear, with no echo. Off-axis, the sensitivity drops rapidly. At about 70 degrees, the sound weakens noticeably, and beyond 90 degrees, it is almost inaudible. M. L. Strickland is correct in warning that the microphone requires external power. The instructions on the box specify 1.5 - 10 volts. Writers who reported that the microphone was very weak were almost certainly using a recorder that does not provide the necessary excitation voltage. This energizer voltage draws negligible power from the recorder's batteries. However, he is wrong when he writes, '... the noise "cancelation" is only provided by a directional shield. True cancellation is obtained by using a stereo mike with the two pickups wired to cancel noise that arrives at both equally.' Noise-cancelling microphones have existed almost from the start, long before stereo ever existed. The close-up photo on this page clearly shows a slot ("port") in the side of the microphone's body. There is another on the other side. These ports channel sound to the back of the transducer (the sound-sensitive element) so that it is 180 degrees out of phase with the sound striking the front. These opposing signals cancel each other acoustically, but there is always some sound "leakage" through the case and because of imperfect cancellation, resulting in a weak output. This microphone is intended for recording sounds at a distance, which is the purpose of all cardioid (unidirectional) microphones. Its output level is higher than on most microphones, so there is a possibility of distortion, especially if the sound source (such as the speaker) is too close. For a normal voice, I suggest it be held 8 to 12 inches from the speaker's mouth. This microphone was bought to be used on an Olympus DS-330, a six-year-old monophonic digital voice recorder. The internal microphone is sensitive and effective, but because it is omni-directional, recordings in a noisy environment, or at a distance from the speaker, are unclear. The ME-52W mic worked equally well in the "Dictation" (low-sensitivity) and "Conference" (high-sensitivy) modes, but the "Dictation" mode is preferable. It's almost identical in sensitivity to the "Conference" mode, and omits residual background noise, such as radios and air conditioners. With a rated frequency range of 100 - 15,000 Hz, and depending on your equipment, the ME-52W makes excellent voice recordings, and respectable, but not perfect, music recordings. It essentially eliminates echoes, and strongly reduces background sounds. If it's compatible with your equipment, it should be a winner. Edit; 16 Jun 2012: Several inquiries regarding the use of this microphone on stereo recorders prompt me to add this comment. This microphone is monophonic, and two-channel recording from this mic requires one of two conditions: 1: The recorder has a "mono-input" or "mono-recording" mode, which delivers the signal from the microphone to both recording channels, or 2. A mono-to-stereo adaptor must be used. These adaptors are available at Radio Shack stores, and usually in the electronics departments of Wal-Mart and Best Buy stores. The "plug" end of the adaptor will have two contacts: the tip, and a "ring" below it. The plug on this microphone has only the tip contact. These adaptors usually cost about $2 to $3. Stereo hand-held recorders have become very popular, but most of the less-expensive models do not have cardioid microphones. A couple of notable exceptions: TASCAM TASCAM DR-07MKII Portable Digital Recorder Zoom H1 Handy Portable Digital Recorder Both recorders cost about $100. When searching for stereo recorders, be sure to look for "cardioid" or "uni-directional" in the descriptions of the microphones Edit; 19 Jul 2012: This microphone will not work with the iPad, iPhone, or iPod, as many users have discovered, for two reasons: 1: The jacks on these devices are non-standard 2: The microphone requires power from the device to which it is connected. While browsing through the comments today, I came across a reference which I immediately checked out, and I learned that these Apple devices do have excitation power available for external electret microphones, but a special adaptor is needed to access the power connection. One supplier of such adaptors is <kVconnection.com.> Their web-site describes the configuration of the jacks in the Apple devices, and lists a number of adaptors and cables to connect unpowered electret microphones, such as this Olympus ME-52W, to them.

This definitely increase the quality of my recordings (I use an Olympus brand voice recorder). I record class lectures on the lowest quality setting and they come out great. Sometimes ill spend 5 minutes removing background noise with audacity (very easy, just look up a tutorial on Google) and the result is amazing.The microphone is directional so you want to aim it at the thing you are recording, but it tilts up and down so you can leave the recorder flat on a desk and aim the mic towards the speakers mouth. Remember, Olympus voice recorders have a microphone sensitivity setting. Use "dictation" if you are going to be recording yourself or someone right in front of you (within a few feet of the microphone) and use "conference" to increase the sensitivity to record things like a lecture where the speaker is more than a few feet away. Audacity can be used to remove background noise and make the voice clearer, and also eliminate the noise of yourself or someone else typing notes if that's a problem in your recording. I've also used this on my mac book to video conference and my voice was MUCH clearer than using the tiny built in microphone. It works great buy you need a cheap USB audio adapter because the mac book audio port doesn't work correctly with this microphone For the price, this is worth every penny. Unless you have a really high quality expensive voice recorder, this microphone is going to be better than the one built in.

I got this microphone to do a little motovlogging. It plugs into my GoPro Hero2 (or the Hero3+ with the adapter) and has enough cable to reach from wherever the camera is on the helmet to the inside and in front of my face. It comes with a little foam "windscreen" and an alligator clip which actually comes in handy... not for inside the helmet though. For general use, the mic does a pretty good job and the sound isn't all bad. Reminder: it only records on the left channel so unless you have editing software that can turn it into a mono channel, you'll need to get a mono adapter. It's nice to have sound from one place and the camera in another. It's also nice to have something this small since you can put it pretty much anywhere, like in a pocket or the back of a hat - and still pick up good sound. For motovlogging, I'm going to keep looking for another mic. This one has a "pop pop" as it clips from too much sound - a combination of my bike's exhaust, the wind noise, and my voice. I can use a noise gate and compressor and other effects in my editing software to clean it up, but nothing eliminates the sound of a mic clipping. Also, when the surrounding environment has that much noise, the mic exhibits its tendency to sound like a cellphone since it's picking up everything and compressing your voice to what's loudest in front of it; lower and higher frequencies get drowned out. The windscreen is not tolerant of even mild abuse, so I quickly fashioned a new windscreen out of a strip of T-Shirt and a zip tie, and the alligator clip is useless in a helmet, so plenty of Gorilla Tape does the job there. I put the mic behind the left cheek pad with the opening of the mic almost in front of my mouth. All in all, I'm happy with it because I'm doing what's important: sharing my rides with YouTube. However, I'm a stickler for improving the quality of my videos, so I'm still on the hunt for another microphone. This one was at a great price, is a great size, and does what I need it to. I wouldn't look past it or fail to recommend it to another person in a similar situation.

Je possède déjà un micro de ce type, j'en suis toujours très satisfait : exemple enregistrement de conférencier ( le mono suffit ) sans trop accrocher les bruits de l'assistance ( attention, si en fin de conférence ils y a des questions posées par l'assistance, on ne les entend pratiquement pas et il faut prévoir une deuxième source d'enregistrement ). Petit détail : la bonette qui faisait partie du lot il y a 2 ans n'est plus fournie ( elle était de piètre qualité il est vrai ). ATTENTION : n' achetez pas les bonettes mousses Rycote 105501 qui sont beucoup trop petites pour ce micro, ( je viens d'en faire les frais ).

I installed third party chinese car android, for bluetooth hands free calls, i tried many mics but no use, after so much searching i found this mic, moment of truth the noise cancelling mic worked, it tried eliminating thee car background noise, my phone calls are much better. High price, but the noise cancelling worked.

Awsome mic use it wiht my aftermarket car screen as a phone mic, no road noise in my phone calls!

Schnelle Lieferung! Hochwertiges Produkt! Ehrlicher Verkäufer!

excelente la calidad del micrófono, a pesar de solo ser mono y no estéreo, funciona de maravilla, no elimina completamente el sonido de la habitación, pero si lo disminuye de manera notoria.