Soundman OKM II Classic/Studio Solo

micro stéréo omnidirectionnel, en forme de mini ecouteur auriculaire, ce qui le rend trés discret. Conçu pour être utilisé principalement en prise de son binaurale ( les micros, placés dans les oreilles, enregistrent exactement à la manière d'une tête Schoeps, procurant une étonnante sensation 3D de l'espace sonore lorsque l'écoute se fait au casque), le micro peut etre utilisé de plusieurs manières (en micro de surface, monté sur une barre de couplage, "épinglé" sur une veste....).
Cependant les meilleurs résultats que j'ai obtenu étaient dans le cadre d'une prise de son binaurale; dans ce cas la légèreté du système est un grand avantage, le placement dans les oreilles ne pose pas de problème et le système laisse passer les sons extérieurs sans gène.
Les résultats produits sont d'une qualité étonnante et extrèmement naturelle, couplé à un enregistreur de type Zoom H2.
L'utilisation du module de préamplification et d'alimentation A3 fourni (alimenté par pile 6 volts 4LR44) permet de délivrer un signal de niveau ligne, sans souffle ni bruit de fond.Cependant, il est possible d'utiliser le micro directement sur une entrée mini jack alimentée.
La construction semble assez légère (je n'ai jusque là eu aucun problème), notamment le cable utilisé est trés fin et les soudures à la tête du micro sont à ménager (ne pas tirer sur le cable....)
Ce micro est la solution idéale pour la prise de son discrète d'ambiance ou de concert. la qualité du son délivré est proprement étonnante avec des graves profonds qu'il faudra dans certains cas atténuer (directement sur le module d'alimentation, qui dispose d'un coupe bas et d'un atténuateur) et des aigus clairs et timbrés. De nombreux exemples sonores existent sur le site de OKM Soundman sur le net.

Il est important de bien choisir la version du micro en fonction de l'utilisation prévue, pour éviter les saturations (version OKM II trés sensible aux hautes pression acoustiques, il existe 2 autres versions moins sensibles)
Ayant utilisé également la version non studio (capsules non appairées) de l'OKM II KLASSIK je n'ai pas constaté de différence de qualité flagrante.

Pour l'enregistrement audio d'une video, c'est une solution idéale car les mains restent libres, et le micro extrêmement discret ne se remarque pas.
ATTENTION, dans ce cas, il faut impérativement utiliser la version OKM ROCK ou OKM I , si l'on ne dispose pas d'un réglage manuel du niveau d'enregistrement sur la caméra ou l'appareil photo sous peine d'obtenir une saturation permanente inexploitable.

These are a great pair of binaural microphones and, if binaural recordings interest you I definitely recommend getting these.

Upon receiving the microphones, they came in a solid wood box,suppose to the usual cardboard sleeve you get with most microphones at this price. Inside the box the microphones came in a handy plastic case which allows you to collect the cable quickly without tangling it.

I bought the model with out the A3 adapter as I bought the Xlr variant instead. I did this as it allows me much more freedom in where I use the microphone as the regular Model requires plug in power and a 1/8 jack input.

Regarding sound, the microphones have a very transparent signal that's very close to the physical sound. The binaural effect is very noticeable but it becomes very chaotic when there multiple sound sources.

The big negative I have with these microphones is the noise floor. While recording with These microphones connected to a zoom H6 the noise floor is very noticeable when the gain is set to between 6 and 7. While i rarely need to push the signal this hot, it's definitely something to consider when recording quieter sources.

The Soundman OKM II microphones are truly excellent binaural microphones. So far, I've recorded street ambience, a choir in a Cathedral and done some nature recording with them and have been really pleased with the quality of the results. The noise floor is slightly noticeable for extremely quiet nature recordings (as you might expect) but, in practice, when playing back the recordings in a real-world environment I find it acceptable. For louder recordings, even for quiet street ambience, the noise floor is barely noticeable. I would, however, definitely recommend getting the Soundman windshields to go with them to avoid any wind interference and I have been using them with the A3 XLR adaptor. This set-up has given me great results free from wind noise and full of clarity and immersive directionality.

I bought these to get portable binaural recordings using my own head (I'm an artist and like acknowledging the presence of the sound recordist) and this set-up is perfect. I can walk around surreptitiously capturing audio that sounds extremely close to the sounds my ears capture. The Soundman mics are great for capturing the body sounds I want (footsteps, clothes sounds, deliberate breathing) and are good for excluding the sounds I don't want (pulse, unwanted breaths, swallowing, etc.), so I can choreograph my own movements to emphasise (or not) my own presence during the recordings according to what I want. The frequency response, to my ears, sounds very open and gives an accurate representation of traffic rumbles, high bird calls, and literal airiness as the wind moves through trees, etc.

Especially for the price, I would definitely recommend them to anyone interested in binaural recording or for simply and easily creating high quality ambient recordings. I've already had lots of compliments from sound recordists and others on the recordings I've made with the OKMs and I've only had them a few months! These seem to be a popular choice for theatre (and other) sound designers and I can see why. I also believe these do extremely well compared with the Neumann head (which isn't as easy to walk around with as your own head!).

The way you use them is to put the microphones in your ears just like headphones and thus create the recordings exactly as you heard them while recording. An alternative is to clip them on your shoulders to create the so called pseudo-binaural recordings. For quite an affordable price you get an excellent sound. About the reliability I'm not so sure. The cheaper Solo model didn't last me for very long time, let's hope the Studio model with a bit better cable will last me a little longer.