Kenwood Mobile and Portable Microphones
Kenwood makes a few different microphones for every radio they manufacture. For the mobile radios out there Kenwood has made quite a few that are interchangable between models. The thing about Kenwood is that if they design a new microphone the pinouts on the connector do not change. For example, ANY 6 pin Kenwood Commercial Microphone will work on any 8 pin Kenwood commercial radio! I have taken the time to document which mics were intended for what radio and the associated part number of the microphones.
Kenwood Handheld Radios
KMC-17
This mic is a 2 pin microphone. The Mic was intended for use on the TK-431 and is a no frills straight up speaker mic.
KMC-25
The KMC-25 microphone is intended for use on the NX-411 and TK-481. There are 2 programable buttons that can be set in the programming software; KPG-111D/KPG-111DN for the NX-411, and KPG-35D or KPG-49D for the TK-481. These mic's are becoming more commonly found on eBay from sellers located in the US and Asia, they are NOT OEM Kenwood mic's and should not be bought because they are of poor quality.
KMC-41 and KMC-42
The KMC-41 microphone is intended for use on the NX-411 and TK-481. There are 2 programable buttons on the KMC-41 and KMC-42 that can be set in the programming software; KPG-111D/KPG-111DN for the NX-411, and KPG-35D or KPG-49D for the TK-481. The KMC-42 microphone is the exact same microphone as the KMC-41 except that it has an IP-67 rating; meaning it is submersible in water. Please note: the NX-411 and TK-481 do NOT have an IP-67 rating. This mic is a newer version of the KMC-25, and looks almost identical to the KMC-25.
KMC-47GPS
The KMC-47GPS microphone is intended for use only on the NX-411. There are no programmable buttons on this microphone; only a PTT button. This mic has a built in GPS receiver. The KMC-47GPS mic looks almost identical to the KMC-25.
Kenwood Base Station Microphones
KMC-9 and KMC-9C
The KMC-9 has a 6 pin RJ-12 connector and was intended for use on the TK-931 and TK-941, but this desktop microphone will also work on the TK-981. The KMC-9C has a 8 pin RJ-45 connector on it and this desktop microphone was intended for use on the TK-981 and looks identical to the KMC-9 6 pin RJ-12 desk mic.
Kenwood Mobile Microphones
KMC-14
The KMC-14 has a 6 pin RJ-12 connector and was intended for use on the TK-931 and TK-941, but this microphone will also work on the NX-901 and TK-981 as well. The mic is a no frills mobile mic.
KMC-18 and KMC-18A
The KMC-18 and 18A was intended for use on the TK-931, it is a 6 pin RJ-12 connector and has full DTMF capability. This microphone will work on the TK-931, TK-941, and TK-981. The KMC-18A has programmable backlight: off/dim/bright, programmable DTMF during PTT or disabled, beep on/off when keypad is pressed, amongst a few other programmable features that the KMC-18 does not have.
KMC-22
The KMC-22 has a 6 pin RJ-12 connector and was not originally intended for use on the TK-931 and 941 but works great for use on the TK-931 and TK-941, this microphone will also work on the NX-901 and TK-981 as well. The mic is a no frills mobile mic.
KMC-27A and KMC-27B
The KMC-27A
and KMC-27B microphones have an 8 pin RJ-45 connector and are intended for use on the NX-901 and TK-981. The KMC-27A microphone is a noise cancelling mic and is intended for use in noisy environments, the KMC-27B does not have the noise cancelling feature. Both the KMC-27A and KMC-27B microphones look identical to one another.
KMC-28A
The KMC-28A has a 8 pin RJ-45 connector
and was intended for use on the NX-901 and TK-981. The mic has full DTMF capability.
KMC-30
The KMC-30 has a 8 pin RJ-45 connector and was not intended for use with the TK-981 but works rather well and is an attactive subsitute to the KMC-27A/B, this mic looks identical to the KMC-32 but without the full DTMF pad. These mic's are commonly found on eBay from sellers located in the US and Asia, they are NOT OEM Kenwood mic's and should not be bought because they are of poor quality. Knockoff KMC-30's look somewhat like the real deal, but upon opening them up to inspect the insides you will see that they are poorly and cheaply manufactured. A real Kenwood KMC-30 mic is VERY RARE on the new and used market in the United States, if you do see one it will be around $30-$60.
KMC-32
The KMC-32 has a 8 pin RJ-45 connector and was not intended for use with the NX-901 or TK-981 but works rather nice and is an attractive substitute to the KMC-28A and has full DTMF capability. These mic's are commonly found on eBay from sellers located in the US and Asia, they are NOT OEM Kenwood mic's and should not be bought as many have serial data noise in the TX audio; a "ticking/tapping" sound or "woodpecker" noise. Knockoff KMC-32's look somewhat like the real deal, but upon opening them up to inspect the insides you will see that they are poorly and cheaply manufactured. A real Kenwood KMC-32 DTMF mic is VERY RARE on the new and used market in the United States, if you do see one it will be around $50-$70.
KMC-35
The KMC-35 has a 8 pin connector and was intended for use on the NX-901, it was not intended for use with the TK-981 but but works rather well and is an attactive subsitute to the bulky KMC-27A. This mic is curvy and very comfy to hold in your hand.
KMC-36
The KMC-36 has a 8 pin connector and was intended for use with the NX-901, it was not intended for use with the TK-981 but but works rather well and is an attactive subsitute to the bulky KMC-28A. This mic is curvy and very comfy to hold in your hand with full DTMF capability.
Kenwood Microphones Not Pictured
KMC-2A
This microphone has a 6 pin RJ-12 connector on it and was intended for use on the TK-931 and TK-941, but will work on the TK-981 as well. This microphone is a noise cancelling mic and is intended for use in noisy environments.
KMC-21
This mic is a 2 pin microphone. The mic was not intended for use on the TK-431, and is a no frills straight up speaker mic. The KMC-21 is a more attractive substitute to the KMC-17. These mic's are commonly found on eBay from sellers located in the US and Asia, they are NOT OEM Kenwood mic's and should not be bought because they are of poor quality. The real deal KMC-21 is not very common, but not terribly rare. The manufacturers of the knockoff mics have gone to great lengths to make them look like the real thing by even going as far as to make a somewhat authentic looking Kenwood packaging for them, which when placed next to the real deal are obviously faked too.
KMC-23
The KMC-23 has a 6 pin RJ-12 connector and was not originally intended for use on the TK-931 and 941 but works great for use on the TK-931 and TK-941, this microphone will also work on the TK-981 as well. This mic has full DTMF capability and looks identical to the KMC-22 but with a DTMF keypad.
KMC-45
The KMC-45 microphone is a 2 pin microphone. This mic was not intended for use on the TK-431 but will work, and is a modern looking version of the older KMC-17. This microphone is a no frills straight up speaker mic.
KMC-51 and KMC-52
The KMC-51 and KMC-52 mic's are intended for use only on the NX-411. There are 2 programmable buttons that can be set in the NX-411 programming software; KPG-111D/KPG-111DN. The KMC-51 and KMC-52 DSP noise cancelling mic's look identical to the KMC-41. The KMC-52 DSP noise cancelling microphone is the exact same microphone as the KMC-51 except that it has an IP-67 rating; meaning it is submersible in water. Please note: the NX-411 does NOT have an IP-67 rating. Both the KMC-51 and KMC-52 have programmable custom noise cancellation using the KMC-51/52 programming software; KPG-147NC. By default these mics are set up for noise cancellation but they can be individually tailored to any environment using the KPG-147NC software!