MICROSEVEN Compatible M7WP-MIC Waterproof Outdoor Microphone for M7B77-W, M7D77-POE, Any IP Network Camera & PTZ IPCamera with Interface -an IP Camera External Microphone

I installed and tested the Microseven microphone onto a Sunba 405 PTZ IP camera and along the way also tried 2 other microphones because I was unhappy with the quality of the audio and I thought the microphone was to blame. We use the mics is to listen to backyard sounds from the birds and other wildlife through several backyard cameras all managed through a Network Video Recorder and displayed on a TV. We can select any camera and hear the audio through the TV. After much testing, we discovered the Sunba IP camera was the issue, greatly limiting the audio bandwidth. The external microphones, all 3 of them were decent performers with the MicroSeven being the best of the three (Microseven, USA SALES and Tonto were there 3). Read on for our test results. The Good: -- EASY INSTALL: The Sunba 405 camera came audio-ready with an audio RCA connector and a power connector on a dongle to attach to the mic. Just plug and play. Also, the body of the microphone has a bracket with a hole to attach to a surface. -- NICE IT INCLUDED RCA ADAPTER: The kit came with an RCA male to male adapter barrel which was great as that was necessary to connect the mic to the Sunba camera. -- SOUND SENSITIVE: The mic picked up quiet high-frequency sounds. For example, I have ultrasonic mole repellers stakes in the ground that give off a high-frequency chirp every 60 seconds. The chirp is very quiet to the naked ear and the mic pics those up easily. -- EASY TO HEAR NATURES SOUNDS: I could hear doves, birds chirping, hummingbirds squawking at other hummingbirds and owls at night -- MISTAKENLY BLAMED THE MIC FOR POOR FIDELITY: I measured the audio bandwidth of the camera-external microphone system and after much testing using special audio analysis software and a special test microphone, came to the conclusion that the IP camera was causing the poor audio fidelity, NOT THE MICROPHONE! The Sunba IP camera cut off audio bandwidth at about 4KHz while the microphone bandwidth extends well past 12 Mhz. See the attached plot showing the narrow camera bandwidth and the much larger microphone bandwidth. The IP camera digitizes the analog audio from the mic and this particular Sunba camera uses a low sampling rate resulting in very poor fidelity when you listen to it through the IP camera. The bandwidth through the camera provides an audio quality more like an old dial-up analog princess phone. The microphone performance by itself, while by no means Hi-Fidelity is very functional and provides plenty of reasonable bandwidth to 12KHz and beyond out to 20 KHz to get good quality audio....... Im don't know if there is an IP camera that will provide good bandwidth but I know the Sunba 405 IP camera does not. -- THE BEST OF THREE MICS: I tried 3 different mics during my adventure to improve the IP camera's audio and while they were also reasonable performers, the MicroSeven had the best bandwidth over the audio range. The Bad: -- NO POWER "Y". There is not a power "Y" cable connection to allow one to share the camera's DC power. Conclusion: The microphone performs well on its own with bandwidth out to 20 Khz and very reasonable levels out to 12 kHz. If you feel your audio is not up to par, look at the camera first as the likely limitation.

great mic for the price, but it really needs a beefy windsock if you want to use it outdoors. the slightest breeze clips the mic without one. i ended up making myself one out of foam and it works great. i can hear conversation fine at over 30 ft away.

Great outdoor microphone. Using this mic in conjunction with Night Owl 8 Camera HD DVR. Use this Audio cue to hear when the delivery truck from Amazon gets near - look up to the monitor screen and the Camera confirms the delivery person before they ring the bell. Mount with mic facing down so moisture and dust won't get into the mic. Stars: * High sensitivity. Will pick up dog panting from 30 feet away. Only need one mic if your cameras are less than 30 feet apart. * Easy to connect, use the regular BNC cable fitted with BNC-RCA connector. * Power cord splitter comes with the mic and just plug and play. * Reasonable price for a good performing mic. Works well with Night Owl 8 Camera HD DVR. * Rugged Aluminum body to protect the mic unit from outside elements. Strike: - Will let you know as only time will tell about durability. NONE working good after 2 years in outside environment very sensitive mike. Bird built nest above it still works well. Will buy one more of this mic for interior audio recording for all (4) indoor Video Camera. Amazon has great delivery and customer service. Wished I bought Amazon stock way back then.

This is a no-brainer install, so that wasn't an issue. I installed it with the power "y" cable, got nothing. The Dericam has audio inputs in and out. I tried disconnecting the power, switching inputs just in case, powered back on, still nothing. The Dericam software allows you to select microphone or line inputs..this is powered, so I tried both (similar to phantom power, you can't hurt the mic if you connect the mic THEN power it up), got nothing either way. Bought a separate Dericam 12v power supply, one for the camera, the other for the mic in case amps were too low. Still got nothing. Covered all the variables except one...I just happen to have ANOTHER Dericam S1 in the back yard so I tried it all on that one, too. Same amount of nothing. Tried the it on a Tascam 701D, with both line and microphone settings (I use that for podcasts), got nothing out of it either. You can hear a very faint crackling on either setting when the camera starts recording but that's it. I tried the input and output volumes at different levels throughout the range, didn't do anything either. I'm a good enough tech that I know what I don't know. But I've exhausted every avenue and spent every second I plan on to try and make this work with this camera (which is the best of the four PTZ's I've tried, bar none). I've no doubt it likely would have worked with my old CCTV set up, but I'm done. Input from seller? Use 12V power supply. Seriously? This is going back. I'd try the Dericam dome mic that says it's for this camera but the reviews scream "cheap junk". And this mic doesn't feel or look cheap, so the problem is with the interface, or somethings broken. I bought a different Dericam branded mic that I'll try tomorrow, and I'll bet I have exactly the same experience.

Finally getting around to the review. I bought this like 10 years ago and it worked perfectly for my home security system. Now a days, every camera has a built in microphone.