KM 74

Common name: Neumann KM 74

Production Status: Discontinued / Vintage

KM is the acronym for “kleinmikrophon” meaning “little microphone”. Georg Neumann GmbH  first introduced this type of microphone in 1953 with the KM 53. The KM 74 belongs to the “fet 70” series, the first transistorized microphones family manufactured by Neumann. The KM 74 is electro-acoustically identical to the KTM (the first transistorized microphone) that didn’t fit the usual reference size for KM microphones (21 mm diameter) The KTM had a short market life (1965-1966) for this reason. The microphone preamplifier circuit was designed around the newly developed FET (field effect transistor) that provides the very high input impedance required for condenser capsule coupling. The microphone features the high quality KK 64 cardioid capsule developed for the KM 64 tube microphone. The microphone is powered according to DIN 45 595 (today known as DIN IEC 268 15) that is a 12 V DC powering via modulation leads, also known as A-B, T- powering or modulation lead powering. The KM 74 is a transformer-less microphone. The KM 74 was manufactured from 1966 to 1976.