OM SYSTEM Microphone Cable (ME15)

The lavalier microphone that came with my wireless Audio-Technica Pro 88W wireless microphone system stopped working. A replacement microphone from Audio-Technica (AT829MW) lists here for $44. After some more research for alternatives, I decided to try this Olympus ME-15 microphone for half the price. After some thorough testing, I'm happy to report not only does it work perfectly with the Audio-Technica 88W wireless transmitter, it sounds better and is built better than the Audio-Technica lavalier microphone! The Audio-Technica microphone appears to have a cable that is easily broken and is soldered onto the jack with a removable, screw-on cap like you'd buy at Radio Shack for home projects. The Olympus microphone appears to be all factory molded and the wire seems more flexible and less prone to breaking. Understand that when the wire breaks, it's not obvious. The Audio-Technica microphone looked just fine to the naked eye, but it just stopped working. The wire apparently broke somewhere in the middle. The way this Olympus ME-15 is built, it does not appear to be susceptible to the same kind of failure and its HALF the price!I do wish the alligator clip was black, rather than bright silver. However, I re-used the clip from the Audio-Technica microphone. The clasp is a bit smaller in diameter, but it does hold the microphone just fine, even though it only snaps on about half-way. I also wish this microphone included an external pop filter. Perhaps it is not needed, but I just took the pop filter off my old microphone and it fit on this one like it was meant to be there.Minor quibbles aside, the sound quality is excellent and I could buy two of these for the price of the Audio-Technica replacement (that would probably just fail again.)By having the alligator clip bright silver, it is very obvious when wearing it on camera. That is really my biggest complaint. Granted, the unit was designed to be used by a sound recorder, not a video recorder, but still, why not add more value and flexibility to the product if all it takes is a little paint?

I used this with an Olympus WS-823 voice recorder with the intention of transcribing what I said in Dragon Naturally Speaking v12.5 (DNS).I clipped it to my shirt about six inches below my mouth and spoke carefully in a normal voice.With only five minutes training of DNS, my transcription of carefully enunciated dictation was 100% accurate. Taking less care while speaking resulted in lower accuracy rates.The microphone captures the human voice well.I used it in quiet environments for my testing, except for a couple of controlled sessions where I had an audio feed playing in the background, There is no question that this is a sensitive and omni-directional mic, something that should be kept in mind when you are in the field.Why they made the clip of bright metal is beyond my comprehension. I will spend a little time and cover the exposed chrome plated parts with matte black tape. The clip is also extremely smooth and slippery and a pain to open and affix to clothing. Not showstoppers, to be sure, but indicators of sloppy design (in my opinion).Overall, I think the ME15 is a pretty good performer at a reasonable price.Jerry

The media could not be loaded. .Stop and notice the difference between icky sound and quality sound. Then do something about it. This mic is an inexpensive first step.I use it for video reviews. A $100 "LDC" desk mic might be better, but I like this solution. You don't have to worry about: Turning your head away from the mic. Pop filters. Breath noise. Stands. Isolation mounts. Phantom voltage.This "lavalier" style mic is typically plugged into a wireless system such as the Azden WMS-PRO Wireless Microphone System. But since I'm always recording from about 10 feet away, I prefer direct wiring. I use the very heavy duty Monoprice 15ft Premium 3.5mm Stereo Male to 3.5mm Stereo Female 22AWG Extension Cable (Gold Plated) - Black.- - - Works with... Doesn't work with... - - -The owner manual warns: "Do not use this microphone with any recorder that cannot supply power to an external microphone. If you are using this microphone with a recorder not made by Olympus, we cannot guarantee the specified sensitivity." Well, it would be nice if that was disclosed in the product description before purchase.I'll guess they are not talking about the "48 volt phantom power" that larger condenser microphones require. I plugged this into the "Mic" input on my PC's sound card. It seemed to work fine after I set the Realtek Audio Manager's "Microphone Boost" to +10 dB. I don't know if it's working below par, but it seems to work pretty well (See video.)It works fine with my Olympus WS-802 Voice Recorder.It does NOT work with my Canon HF-M500 camcorder (directly connected). Apparently many camcorders require a battery powered mic such as the Audio-Technica ATR-3350 Lavalier Omnidirectional Condenser Microphone (or an energized interface).PROs:- Good quality sound- Affordable- Easy to set up and use- Almost invisible (except for silver clip)OKs:- You can easily paint or replace the silver "tie pin" clipCONs:- Unclear what devices are fully compatible.- Olympus does not explain compatibility issues very well.- - - Specs from Owner Manual - - -Type: Electret condenser microphoneDirectionality: omni-directionalSensitivity: -42 dB at 1 kHz (0dB = 1V/Pa)Output impedance: 2.2 K ohmsPower Supply: Plug-in-power system (1.5V - 10V)~~~ Comments & questions welcome ~~~