Multimedia systems - Guide to the recommended characteristics of analogue interfaces to achieve interoperability (GMT)

This document gives guidance on current practice for the characteristics of multimedia
analogue interfaces to achieve interoperability between equipment from different
manufacturers. It is not a performance standard.
Recommendations for interfaces for equipment used in vehicles, and for analogue video
interfaces for broadcast and similar equipment, are not given.
Refer to IEC 60958 for the interconnection of digital signals.
Figure 1 shows in a diagram the possible interfaces of the audio and video sources and
destinations.

Multimedia Systeme - Leitfaden für empfohlene Charakteristika analoger Schnittstellen zur Erreichung von Kompatibilität

Systèmes multimédia - Guide des caractéristiques recommandées des interfaces analogiques permettant d'obtenir l'interopérabilité

NEW!IEC 61938:2018 est disponible sous forme de IEC 61938:2018 RLV qui contient la Norme internationale et sa version Redline, illustrant les modifications du contenu technique depuis l'édition précédente.

Večpredstavnostni sistemi - Navodilo za priporočene karakteristike analognih vmesnikov, ki omogočajo medobratovalnost

Ta dokument podaja smernice glede trenutne prakse za karakteristike večpredstavnostnih analognih vmesnikov, ki omogočajo medobratovalnost opreme različnih proizvajalcev. To ni standard učinkovitosti.
Priporočila za vmesnike za opremo, ki se uporablja v vozilih, ter za analogne video vmesnike za oddajno in podobno opremo, niso podana.
Za medsebojno povezavo digitalnih signalov glej standard IEC 60958.
Shema na sliki 1 prikazuje možne vmesnike avdio in video virov ter ciljev.

General Information

Status
Published
Publication Date
17-Mar-2019
Current Stage
6060 - National Implementation/Publication (Adopted Project)
Start Date
19-Feb-2019
Due Date
26-Apr-2019
Completion Date
18-Mar-2019

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SLOVENSKI STANDARD
SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
01-april-2019
Nadomešča:
SIST EN 61938:2013
Večpredstavnostni sistemi - Navodilo za priporočene karakteristike analognih
vmesnikov, ki omogočajo medobratovalnost
Multimedia systems - Guide to the recommended characteristics of analogue interfaces
to achieve interoperability (GMT)
Multimedia Systeme - Leitfaden für empfohlene Charakteristika analoger Schnittstellen
zur Erreichung von Kompatibilität
Systèmes multimédia - Guide des caractéristiques recommandées des interfaces
analogiques permettant d'obtenir l'interopérabilité
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN IEC 61938:2018
ICS:
33.160.60 Večpredstavni (multimedijski) Multimedia systems and
sistemi in oprema za teleconferencing equipment
telekonference
35.200 Vmesniška in povezovalna Interface and interconnection
oprema equipment
SIST EN IEC 61938:2019 en,fr,de
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019


EUROPEAN STANDARD EN IEC 61938

NORME EUROPÉENNE

EUROPÄISCHE NORM
March 2018
ICS 33.160.01; 35.200 Supersedes EN 61938:2013
English Version
Multimedia systems - Guide to the recommended characteristics
of analogue interfaces to achieve interoperability
(IEC 61938:2018)
Systèmes multimédia - Guide des caractéristiques Multimedia Systeme - Leitfaden für empfohlene
recommandées des interfaces analogiques permettant Charakteristika analoger Schnittstellen zur Erreichung von
d'obtenir l'interopérabilité Kompatibilität
(IEC 61938:2018) (IEC 61938:2018)
This European Standard was approved by CENELEC on 2018-02-16. CENELEC members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC
Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration.
Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC
Management Centre or to any CENELEC member.
This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by translation
under the responsibility of a CENELEC member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre has the
same status as the official versions.
CENELEC members are the national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic,
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom.


European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
Comité Européen de Normalisation Electrotechnique
Europäisches Komitee für Elektrotechnische Normung
CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2018 CENELEC All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC Members.
 Ref. No. EN IEC 61938:2018 E

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
EN IEC 61938:2018 (E)
European foreword
The text of document 100/2879/CDV, future edition 3 of IEC 61938, prepared by IEC/TC 100 "Audio,
video and multimedia systems and equipment" was submitted to the IEC-CENELEC parallel vote and
approved by CENELEC as EN IEC 61938:2018.
The following dates are fixed:
(dop) 2018-11-16
• latest date by which the document has to be
implemented at national level by
publication of an identical national
standard or by endorsement
(dow) 2021-02-16
• latest date by which the national
standards conflicting with the
document have to be withdrawn

This document supersedes EN 61938:2013.

Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. CENELEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.

Endorsement notice
The text of the International Standard IEC 61938:2018 was approved by CENELEC as a European
Standard without any modification.
In the official version, for Bibliography, the following notes have to be added for the standards indicated:

IEC 60027 (series) NOTE Harmonized as EN 60027 (series).
IEC 60130-9 NOTE Harmonized as EN 60130-9.
IEC 61293:1994 NOTE Harmonized as EN 61293:1994 (not modified).
IEC 62368-1:2014 NOTE Harmonized as EN 62368-1:2014 (modified).
2

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
EN IEC 61938:2018 (E)

Annex ZA
(normative)

Normative references to international publications
with their corresponding European publications

The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments)
applies.

NOTE 1  Where an International Publication has been modified by common modifications, indicated by (mod), the relevant
EN/HD applies.

NOTE 2  Up-to-date information on the latest versions of the European Standards listed in this annex is available here:
www.cenelec.eu.

Publication Year Title EN/HD Year
IEC 60038 -  IEC standard voltages EN 60038 -
IEC 60094-2 -  Magnetic tape sound recording and EN 60094-2 -
reproducing systems - Part 2: Calibration
tapes
IEC 60268-1 -  Sound system equipment - Part 1: General HD 483.1 S2 -
IEC 60268-3 -  Sound system equipment - Part 3: EN 60268-3 -
Amplifiers
IEC 60268-5 -  Sound system equipment - Part 5: EN 60268-5 -
Loudspeakers
IEC 60268-7 2010 Sound system equipment - Part 7: EN 60268-7 2011
Headphones and earphones
IEC 60268-11 1987 Sound system equipment - Part 11: HD 483.11 S1 1990
Application of connectors for the
interconnection of sound system
components
+ A1 1989  HD 483.11 S2 1991
+ A2 1991  HD 483.11 S3 1993
IEC 60268-12 -  Sound system equipment - Part 12: EN 60268-12 -
Application of connectors for broadcast
and similar use
IEC 60603-11 1992 Connectors for frequencies below 3 MHz - -
for use with printed boards - Part 11: Detail
specification for concentric connectors
(dimensions for free connectors and fixed
connectors)
IEC 60958 series Digital audio interface EN 60958 series
ITU-R BT.1700 2005 Characteristics of composite video signals - -
for conventional analogue television
systems


3

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019



IEC 61938

®


Edition 3.0 2018-01




INTERNATIONAL



STANDARD



















Multimedia systems –

Guide to the recommended characteristics of analogue interfaces to achieve

interoperability

























INTERNATIONAL

ELECTROTECHNICAL


COMMISSION





ICS 33.160.01, 35.200 ISBN 978-2-8322-5056-3



  Warning! Make sure that you obtained this publication from an authorized distributor.


® Registered trademark of the International Electrotechnical Commission

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
– 2 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 5
INTRODUCTION . 7
1 Scope . 8
2 Normative references . 10
3 Terms and definitions . 10
4 General conditions . 13
5 Power supply . 13
5.1 Alternating current (AC) power supply voltages and frequencies . 13
5.2 Direct current (DC) power supply voltages . 14
5.3 Power supply feed for microphones . 14
6 Interconnections . 14
6.1 Connections . 14
6.1.1 General . 14
6.1.2 Characteristics of cables . 14
6.2 Connectors . 16
7 Marking and symbols for marking . 16
7.1 Marking . 16
7.2 Symbols for marking . 16
8 Electrical recommended values . 16
8.1 General purpose output/input . 16
8.2 General purpose audio output/input . 16
8.2.1 Audio-only interfaces for consumer equipment . 16
8.2.2 Interfaces for professional equipment and consumer equipment where
audio and video signals are present on the same connector or cable . 17
8.3 General purpose video input/output . 19
9 Interoperability of microphones and amplifiers . 19
9.1 Microphones (excluding piezoelectric types) . 19
9.2 Power supply feed for electret microphones fed over a signal conductor
(“plug-in power”) . 20
9.3 Power supply feed for electret microphones fed by a separate conductor
("soundcard power" or "PC power") . 21
9.4 Phantom supply system . 21
9.4.1 General . 21
9.4.2 Supply voltage polarity . 21
9.4.3 Circuit diagram . 22
9.4.4 Value of the supply voltage . 22
9.4.5 Supply current . 22
9.4.6 Marking . 22
9.5 A-B supply system . 23
9.5.1 General . 23
9.5.2 Output impedance of the microphone . 23
9.5.3 Circuit diagram . 23
9.5.4 Connection of the power supply to earth . 23
9.5.5 Marking . 23
9.6 Polarity of the audio frequency voltage . 23
10 Interoperability of record-playing units (pick-ups) and amplifiers . 25

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 3 –
11 Interoperability of loudspeakers and amplifiers . 26
11.1 Single unit loudspeakers . 26
11.2 Loudspeaker systems . 26
11.2.1 Loudspeakers with built-in amplifier . 26
11.2.2 Impedance-defined loudspeaker systems . 26
11.2.3 Constant voltage loudspeaker systems . 27
11.3 Voltage (or power) interoperability of amplifiers and loudspeakers . 27
11.3.1 Overview . 27
11.3.2 Interoperability requirements . 27
11.4 Polarity of the sound pressure . 28
12 Interoperability of headphones and amplifiers . 28
12.1 General . 28
12.2 Interoperability of headphones with stationary amplifiers . 28
12.3 Interoperability of portable audio headphones/earphones and portable audio
equipment . 29
12.3.1 General . 29
12.3.2 Portable audio headphones/earphones . 29
12.3.3 Portable audio equipment . 29
12.3.4 Recommended values and input/output values for portable audio
headphones/earphones and portable audio equipment . 29
13 Interoperability of amplifiers with other amplifiers. 30
13.1 Pre-amplifiers and power amplifiers for general purpose and sound
reinforcement . 30
13.2 Broadcast and similar line amplifiers. 31
Annex A (informative) Pairing and screening of conductors . 32
Annex B (informative) Phantom power variants for specialized applications . 33
Bibliography . 34

Figure 1 – Audio and video sources and destinations . 9
Figure 2 – Example of plug-in power system for a single microphone . 23
Figure 3 – Example of plug-in power system for a two-channel microphone . 24
Figure 4 – Example of soundcard power system . 24
Figure 5 – Example of phantom power supply system . 24
Figure 6 – Example of A-B power supply system . 25
Figure B.1 – Caution symbol . 33

Table 1 – Direct current (DC) power supply voltages and tolerances . 14
Table 2 – General purpose values for audio-only interfaces . 16
Table 3 – General purpose values for audio signals for professional interfaces . 18
Table 4 – General purpose recommended values for video signals . 19
Table 5 – Recommended values for microphones and amplifiers . 20
Table 6 – Required values for phantom supply systems . 25
Table 7 – Required values for A-B power supply systems . 25
Table 8 – Recommended values for analogue record-playing units and amplifiers . 25
Table 9 – Recommended values for impedance-defined loudspeaker systems . 26
Table 10 – Recommended values for constant voltage loudspeaker systems . 27

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– 4 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018
Table 11 – Recommended values for headphones and amplifiers in stationary
applications . 28
Table 12 – Recommended values for portable audio headphones/earphones and
portable audio equipment . 29
Table 13 – Recommended values for pre-amplifiers and power amplifiers . 31
Table 14 – Recommended values for broadcast and similar line amplifiers . 31

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 5 –
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________

MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS –
GUIDE TO THE RECOMMENDED CHARACTERISTICS
OF ANALOGUE INTERFACES TO ACHIEVE INTEROPERABILITY

FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity
assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any
services carried out by independent certification bodies.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other IEC
Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard IEC 61938 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 100: Audio,
video and multimedia systems and equipment.
This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition published in 2013. This edition
constitutes a technical revision.
This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous
edition:
a) electric tolerance is standardized;
b) recommended value of output source impedance is adjusted;
c) value of 6 Ω is additionally recommended to impedance-defined loudspeaker systems;
d) values in each table are chosen with respect to the state of the art and representative of
best practice in industry.

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
– 6 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018
The text of this International Standard is based on the following documents:
CDV Report on voting
100/2879/CDV 100/2996/RVC

Full information on the voting for the approval of this International Standard can be found in
the report on voting indicated in the above table.
This document has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The committee has decided that the contents of this document will remain unchanged until the
stability date indicated on the IEC website under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in the data related to
the specific document. At this date, the document will be
• reconfirmed,
• withdrawn,
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
A bilingual version of this publication may be issued at a later date.

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 7 –
INTRODUCTION
The first edition of IEC 61938 was derived from IEC 60268-15, IEC 60574-4 and IEC 60933-1
and also from related proposals which had been submitted up until the date of this revision.
IEC 60268-15 was the first standard to address 'interoperability' – the ability of equipment
from different manufacturers to be assembled into a system with full compatibility at every
'interface'. The aim of the previous revision was to make the intention of this document easily
comprehensible by using widely used terminology in the title and text of the document. The
purpose of this revision is to expand the measurement frequency range in step with the
progress of recent equipment.
The features of the revision are the following:
a) unification and arrangement of existing related standards, including effective proposals
which have been submitted;
b) extension of the measurement frequency range.
NOTE The standard numbers mentioned above correspond to the revised numbers, if applicable.

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
– 8 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018
MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS –
GUIDE TO THE RECOMMENDED CHARACTERISTICS
OF ANALOGUE INTERFACES TO ACHIEVE INTEROPERABILITY



1 Scope
This document gives guidance on current practice for the characteristics of multimedia
analogue interfaces to achieve interoperability between equipment from different
manufacturers. It is not a performance standard.
Recommendations for interfaces for equipment used in vehicles, and for analogue video
interfaces for broadcast and similar equipment, are not given.
Refer to IEC 60958 for the interconnection of digital signals.
Figure 1 shows in a diagram the possible interfaces of the audio and video sources and
destinations.

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 9 –
Low voltage
0,5 V rated level Power level
or RF level

9.1
Microphone

Pre-
10
Record player
amplifier
High/low sensitivity

12.2
12/1 GHz Digital satellite
Headphones
converter radio tuner

8.2

12/1 GHz Satellite TV tuner Active
13.1
8.3
loudspeaker
converter analogue or digital
boxes

8.2

Terrestrial TV tuner

8.3
13.1
Audio power

analogue or digital
amplifier


Auxiliary
11

8.2

AM/FM radio tuner Loudspeaker
boxes



8.3
Video camera or
8.3
camcorder
Video monitor


8.2

Video tape recorder
8.3


Audio tape cassette 8.2
recorder analogue

9.1
Digital audio tape
8.2

Microphone recorder: DAT, DCC,
Minidisc, …

CD writeable recorder
CD/CD-i/CD-ROM
8.2
SACD DVD BD
Laservision player

Auxiliary
USB-DAC
Still picture camera
System Printer
control
Personal/home
bus
computer
OTT
12.3
Portable audio
Portable audio
equipment headphones/earphones

Remote
Equaliser or
Digital sound Digital video processor
reverberation unit
control
processor and memory
(analogue)
emitter

IEC
NOTE The numbers indicated above the arrows refer to the appropriate clause or subclauses of this document.
Figure 1 – Audio and video sources and destinations
Peripheral equipment Real time signal sources Low voltage source
or pre-recorder signals

Real time signal sources
Radio or TV broadcast
Switchbox/source selector

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
– 10 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their
content constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition
cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including
any amendments) applies.
IEC 60038, IEC standard voltages
IEC 60094-2, Magnetic tape recording and reproducing systems – Part 2: Calibration tapes
IEC 60268-1, Sound system equipment – Part 1: General
IEC 60268-3, Sound system equipment – Part 3: Amplifiers
IEC 60268-5, Sound system equipment – Part 5: Loudspeakers
IEC 60268-7:2010, Sound system equipment – Part 7: Headphones and earphones
IEC 60268-11:1987, Sound system equipment – Part 11: Application of connectors for the
interconnection of sound system components
IEC 60268-11:1987/AMD1:1989, Sound system equipment – Part 11: Application of
connectors for the interconnection of sound system components
IEC 60268-11:1987/AMD2:1991, Sound system equipment – Part 11: Application of
connectors for the interconnection of sound system components
IEC 60268-12, Sound system equipment – Part 12: Application of connectors for broadcast
and similar use
IEC 60603-11:1992, Connectors for frequencies below 3 MHz for use with printed boards –
Part 11: Detail specification for concentric connectors (dimensions for free connectors and
fixed connectors)
IEC 60958:2016, Digital audio interface – ALL PARTS
ITU-R BT.1700:2005, Characteristics of composite video signals for conventional analogue
television systems
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following
addresses:
• IEC Electropedia: available at http://www.electropedia.org/
• ISO Online browsing platform: available at http://www.iso.org/obp
3.1
luminance signal
electrical signal representing the luminance of the television picture elements
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-723:1997, 723-05-56, modified – Note has been deleted.]

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SIST EN IEC 61938:2019
IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 11 –
3.2
chrominance signal
electrical signal that is associated with the luminance signal to convey colour information; in
practice this signal is made up of two components
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-723:1997, 723-05-57]
3.3
Y" signal
VBS signal
combined signal consisting of
– a luminance signal;
– blanking and synchronizing signals.
Note 1 to entry: The Y" signal is the composite video
...

2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.Multimedia Systeme - Leitfaden für empfohlene Charakteristika analoger Schnittstellen zur Erreichung von KompatibilitätSystèmes multimédia - Guide des caractéristiques recommandées des interfaces analogiques permettant d'obtenir l'interopérabilitéMultimedia systems - Guide to the recommended characteristics of analogue interfaces to achieve interoperability (GMT)35.200Vmesniška in povezovalna opremaInterface and interconnection equipment33.160.60WHOHNRQIHUHQFHMultimedia systems and teleconferencing equipmentICS:Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z:EN IEC 61938:2018SIST EN 61938:2019en,fr,de01-april-2019SIST EN 61938:2019SLOVENSKI
STANDARDSIST EN 61938:20131DGRPHãþD



SIST EN 61938:2019



EUROPEAN STANDARD NORME EUROPÉENNE EUROPÄISCHE NORM
EN IEC 61938
March 2018 ICS 33.160.01; 35.200
Supersedes
EN 61938:2013
English Version
Multimedia systems - Guide to the recommended characteristics of analogue interfaces to achieve interoperability (IEC 61938:2018)
Systèmes multimédia - Guide des caractéristiques recommandées des interfaces analogiques permettant d'obtenir l'interopérabilité (IEC 61938:2018)
Multimedia Systeme - Leitfaden für empfohlene Charakteristika analoger Schnittstellen zur Erreichung von Kompatibilität (IEC 61938:2018) This European Standard was approved by CENELEC on 2018-02-16. CENELEC members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration. Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre or to any CENELEC member.
This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by translation under the responsibility of a CENELEC member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre has the same status as the official versions. CENELEC members are the national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom. European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
Comité Européen de Normalisation Electrotechnique Europäisches Komitee für Elektrotechnische Normung CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23,
B-1040 Brussels © 2018 CENELEC All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC Members.
Ref. No. EN IEC 61938:2018 E SIST EN 61938:2019



EN IEC 61938:2018 (E) 2 European foreword The text of document 100/2879/CDV, future edition 3 of IEC 61938, prepared by IEC/TC 100 "Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment" was submitted to the IEC-CENELEC parallel vote and approved by CENELEC as EN IEC 61938:2018. The following dates are fixed: • latest date by which the document has to be implemented at national level by publication of an identical national standard or by endorsement (dop) 2018-11-16 • latest date by which the national standards conflicting with the document have to be withdrawn (dow) 2021-02-16
This document supersedes EN 61938:2013.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent rights. CENELEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Endorsement notice The text of the International Standard IEC 61938:2018 was approved by CENELEC as a European Standard without any modification. In the official version, for Bibliography, the following notes have to be added for the standards indicated:
IEC 60027 (series) NOTE Harmonized as EN 60027 (series). IEC 60130-9 NOTE Harmonized as EN 60130-9. IEC 61293:1994 NOTE Harmonized as EN 61293:1994 (not modified). IEC 62368-1:2014 NOTE Harmonized as EN 62368-1:2014 (modified). SIST EN 61938:2019



EN IEC 61938:2018 (E)
3 Annex ZA
(normative)
Normative references to international publications
with their corresponding European publications
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
NOTE 1
Where an International Publication has been modified by common modifications, indicated by (mod), the relevant EN/HD applies.
NOTE 2
Up-to-date information on the latest versions of the European Standards listed in this annex is available here: www.cenelec.eu.
Publication Year Title EN/HD Year IEC 60038 -
IEC standard voltages EN 60038 -
IEC 60094-2 -
Magnetic tape sound recording and reproducing systems - Part 2: Calibration tapes EN 60094-2 -
IEC 60268-1 -
Sound system equipment - Part 1: General HD 483.1 S2 -
IEC 60268-3 -
Sound system equipment - Part 3: Amplifiers EN 60268-3 -
IEC 60268-5 -
Sound system equipment - Part 5: Loudspeakers EN 60268-5 -
IEC 60268-7 2010
Sound system equipment - Part 7: Headphones and earphones EN 60268-7 2011
IEC 60268-11 1987
Sound system equipment - Part 11: Application of connectors for the interconnection of sound system components HD 483.11 S1 1990 + A1 1989
HD 483.11 S2 1991
+ A2 1991
HD 483.11 S3 1993
IEC 60268-12 -
Sound system equipment - Part 12: Application of connectors for broadcast and similar use EN 60268-12 -
IEC 60603-11 1992
Connectors for frequencies below 3 MHz for use with printed boards - Part 11: Detail specification for concentric connectors (dimensions for free connectors and fixed connectors) - -
IEC 60958 series
Digital audio interface
EN 60958 series
ITU-R BT.1700 2005 Characteristics of composite video signals for conventional analogue television systems - -
SIST EN 61938:2019



SIST EN 61938:2019



IEC 61938 Edition 3.0 2018-01 INTERNATIONAL STANDARD
Multimedia systems –
Guide to the recommended characteristics of analogue interfaces to achieve interoperability
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
ICS 33.160.01, 35.200
ISBN 978-2-8322-5056-3
® Registered trademark of the International Electrotechnical Commission ®
Warning! Make sure that you obtained this publication from an authorized distributor. SIST EN 61938:2019



– 2 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 CONTENTS FOREWORD . 5 INTRODUCTION . 7 1 Scope . 8 2 Normative references . 10 3 Terms and definitions . 10 4 General conditions . 13 5 Power supply . 13 5.1 Alternating current (AC) power supply voltages and frequencies . 13 5.2 Direct current (DC) power supply voltages . 14 5.3 Power supply feed for microphones . 14 6 Interconnections . 14 6.1 Connections . 14 6.1.1 General . 14 6.1.2 Characteristics of cables . 14 6.2 Connectors . 16 7 Marking and symbols for marking . 16 7.1 Marking . 16 7.2 Symbols for marking . 16 8 Electrical recommended values . 16 8.1 General purpose output/input . 16 8.2 General purpose audio output/input . 16 8.2.1 Audio-only interfaces for consumer equipment . 16 8.2.2 Interfaces for professional equipment and consumer equipment where audio and video signals are present on the same connector or cable . 17 8.3 General purpose video input/output . 19 9 Interoperability of microphones and amplifiers . 19 9.1 Microphones (excluding piezoelectric types) . 19 9.2 Power supply feed for electret microphones fed over a signal
conductor (“plug-in power”) . 20 9.3 Power supply feed for electret microphones fed by a separate conductor ("soundcard power" or "PC power") . 21 9.4 Phantom supply system . 21 9.4.1 General . 21 9.4.2 Supply voltage polarity . 21 9.4.3 Circuit diagram . 22 9.4.4 Value of the supply voltage . 22 9.4.5 Supply current . 22 9.4.6 Marking . 22 9.5 A-B supply system . 23 9.5.1 General . 23 9.5.2 Output impedance of the microphone . 23 9.5.3 Circuit diagram . 23 9.5.4 Connection of the power supply to earth . 23 9.5.5 Marking . 23 9.6 Polarity of the audio frequency voltage . 23 10 Interoperability of record-playing units (pick-ups) and amplifiers . 25 SIST EN 61938:2019



IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 3 –
11 Interoperability of loudspeakers and amplifiers . 26 11.1 Single unit loudspeakers . 26 11.2 Loudspeaker systems . 26 11.2.1 Loudspeakers with built-in amplifier . 26 11.2.2 Impedance-defined loudspeaker systems . 26 11.2.3 Constant voltage loudspeaker systems . 27 11.3 Voltage (or power) interoperability of amplifiers and loudspeakers . 27 11.3.1 Overview . 27 11.3.2 Interoperability requirements . 27 11.4 Polarity of the sound pressure . 28 12 Interoperability of headphones and amplifiers . 28 12.1 General . 28 12.2 Interoperability of headphones with stationary amplifiers . 28 12.3 Interoperability of portable audio headphones/earphones and portable audio equipment . 29 12.3.1 General . 29 12.3.2 Portable audio headphones/earphones . 29 12.3.3 Portable audio equipment . 29 12.3.4 Recommended values and input/output values for portable audio headphones/earphones and portable audio equipment . 29 13 Interoperability of amplifiers with other amplifiers. 30 13.1 Pre-amplifiers and power amplifiers for general purpose and sound reinforcement . 30 13.2 Broadcast and similar line amplifiers. 31 Annex A (informative)
Pairing and screening of conductors . 32 Annex B (informative)
Phantom power variants for specialized applications . 33 Bibliography . 34
Figure 1 – Audio and video sources and destinations . 9 Figure 2 – Example of plug-in power system for a single microphone . 23 Figure 3 – Example of plug-in power system for a two-channel microphone . 24 Figure 4 – Example of soundcard power system . 24 Figure 5 – Example of phantom power supply system . 24 Figure 6 – Example of A-B power supply system . 25 Figure B.1 – Caution symbol . 33
Table 1 – Direct current (DC) power supply voltages and tolerances . 14 Table 2 – General purpose values for audio-only interfaces . 16 Table 3 – General purpose values for audio signals for professional interfaces . 18 Table 4 – General purpose recommended values for video signals . 19 Table 5 – Recommended values for microphones and amplifiers . 20 Table 6 – Required values for phantom supply systems . 25 Table 7 – Required values for A-B power supply systems . 25 Table 8 – Recommended values for analogue record-playing units and amplifiers . 25 Table 9 – Recommended values for impedance-defined loudspeaker systems . 26 Table 10 – Recommended values for constant voltage loudspeaker systems . 27 SIST EN 61938:2019



– 4 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 Table 11 – Recommended values for headphones and amplifiers in stationary applications . 28 Table 12 – Recommended values for portable audio headphones/earphones and portable audio equipment . 29 Table 13 – Recommended values for pre-amplifiers and power amplifiers . 31 Table 14 – Recommended values for broadcast and similar line amplifiers . 31
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IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 5 –
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION ____________
MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS –
GUIDE TO THE RECOMMENDED CHARACTERISTICS
OF ANALOGUE INTERFACES TO ACHIEVE INTEROPERABILITY
FOREWORD 1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications, Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by agreement between the two organizations. 2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any misinterpretation by any end user. 4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in the latter. 5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any services carried out by independent certification bodies. 6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication. 7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other IEC Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is indispensable for the correct application of this publication. 9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. International Standard IEC 61938 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 100: Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment. This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition published in 2013. This edition constitutes a technical revision.
This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition: a) electric tolerance is standardized; b) recommended value of output source impedance is adjusted; c) value of 6 Ω is additionally recommended to impedance-defined loudspeaker systems; d) values in each table are chosen with respect to the state of the art and representative of best practice in industry.
SIST EN 61938:2019



– 6 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 The text of this International Standard is based on the following documents: CDV Report on voting 100/2879/CDV 100/2996/RVC
Full information on the voting for the approval of this International Standard can be found in the report on voting indicated in the above table. This document has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2. The committee has decided that the contents of this document will remain unchanged until the stability date indicated on the IEC website under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in the data related to the specific document. At this date, the document will be
• reconfirmed, • withdrawn, • replaced by a revised edition, or • amended. A bilingual version of this publication may be issued at a later date.
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IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 7 –
INTRODUCTION The first edition of IEC 61938 was derived from IEC 60268-15, IEC 60574-4 and IEC 60933-1 and also from related proposals which had been submitted up until the date of this revision. IEC 60268-15 was the first standard to address 'interoperability' – the ability of equipment from different manufacturers to be assembled into a system with full compatibility at every 'interface'. The aim of the previous revision was to make the intention of this document easily comprehensible by using widely used terminology in the title and text of the document. The purpose of this revision is to expand the measurement frequency range in step with the progress of recent equipment. The features of the revision are the following: a) unification and arrangement of existing related standards, including effective proposals which have been submitted; b) extension of the measurement frequency range. NOTE The standard numbers mentioned above correspond to the revised numbers, if applicable.
SIST EN 61938:2019



– 8 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS –
GUIDE TO THE RECOMMENDED CHARACTERISTICS
OF ANALOGUE INTERFACES TO ACHIEVE INTEROPERABILITY
1 Scope This document gives guidance on current practice for the characteristics of multimedia analogue interfaces to achieve interoperability between equipment from different manufacturers. It is not a performance standard. Recommendations for interfaces for equipment used in vehicles, and for analogue video interfaces for broadcast and similar equipment, are not given. Refer to IEC 60958 for the interconnection of digital signals. Figure 1 shows in a diagram the possible interfaces of the audio and video sources and destinations. SIST EN 61938:2019



IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 9 –
NOTE The numbers indicated above the arrows refer to the appropriate clause or subclauses of this document. Figure 1 – Audio and video sources and destinations IEC Low voltage or RF level 0,5 V rated level
Power level
Microphone Record player High/low sensitivity 9.1
10
Pre- amplifier Low voltage source
13.1
Headphones
Digital satellite radio tuner 12/1 GHz converter 12/1 GHz converter 12.2
13.1
Active loudspeaker boxes
Satellite TV tuner analogue or digital 8.2
8.3
8.3
8.2
Terrestrial TV tuner analogue or digital Audio power amplifier Auxiliary
8.2
AM/FM radio tuner
Real time signal sources Radio or TV broadcast 11
Loudspeaker boxes
Video monitor 8.3
8.3
Video camera or camcorder
8.2
Video tape recorder Audio tape cassette recorder analogue 8.3
8.2
Digital audio tape recorder: DAT, DCC, Minidisc, … 8.2
Microphone 9.1
Switchbox/source selector
CD writeable recorder 8.2
CD/CD-i/CD-ROM SACD DVD BD Laservision player Printer Auxiliary USB-DAC System control bus Real time signal sources or pre-recorder signals Remote control emitter Peripheral equipment Still picture camera Personal/home computer OTT 12.3
Portable audio equipment Portable audio headphones/earphones Equaliser or reverberation unit (analogue) Digital sound processor Digital video processor and memory SIST EN 61938:2019



– 10 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 2 Normative references The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies. IEC 60038, IEC standard voltages IEC 60094-2, Magnetic tape recording and reproducing systems – Part 2: Calibration tapes IEC 60268-1, Sound system equipment – Part 1: General
IEC 60268-3, Sound system equipment – Part 3: Amplifiers IEC 60268-5, Sound system equipment – Part 5: Loudspeakers
IEC 60268-7:2010, Sound system equipment – Part 7: Headphones and earphones IEC 60268-11:1987, Sound system equipment – Part 11: Application of connectors for the interconnection of sound system components IEC 60268-11:1987/AMD1:1989, Sound system equipment – Part 11: Application of connectors for the interconnection of sound system components IEC 60268-11:1987/AMD2:1991, Sound system equipment – Part 11: Application of connectors for the interconnection of sound system components IEC 60268-12, Sound system equipment – Part 12: Application of connectors for broadcast and similar use IEC 60603-11:1992, Connectors for frequencies below 3 MHz for use with printed boards – Part 11: Detail specification for concentric connectors (dimensions for free connectors and fixed connectors) IEC 60958:2016, Digital audio interface – ALL PARTS ITU-R BT.1700:2005, Characteristics of composite video signals for conventional analogue television systems 3 Terms and definitions For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply. ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
• IEC Electropedia: available at http://www.electropedia.org/ • ISO Online browsing platform: available at http://www.iso.org/obp 3.1
luminance signal electrical signal representing the luminance of the television picture elements [SOURCE: IEC 60050-723:1997, 723-05-56, modified – Note has been deleted.] SIST EN 61938:2019



IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 – 11 –
3.2
chrominance signal electrical signal that is associated with the luminance signal to convey colour information; in practice this signal is made up of two components [SOURCE: IEC 60050-723:1997, 723-05-57] 3.3
Y" signal VBS signal combined signal consisting of – a luminance signal; – blanking and synchronizing signals. Note 1 to entry: The Y" signal is the composite video signal (CVBS signal) without the C" signal. 3.4
colour signal C" signal chrominance signal with burst signal included, modulated on a subcarrier 3.5
composite video signal CVS signal combined signal consisting of – a luminance signal; – a colour signal. 3.6
composite video, blanking and synchronization signal CVBS signal combined signal consisting of – a luminance signal; – a colour signal; – blanking and synchronizing signals. 3.7
blanking signal signal used to control the suppression of the signal conveying picture information during certain parts of the scanning period, for example, during fly-back [SOURCE: IEC 60050-723:1997, 723-05-37, modified – Example has been deleted.] 3.8
synchronizing signal signal used to determine the timing for the scanning processes in transmission and reception [SOURCE: IEC 60050-723:1997, 723-05-36] 3.9
interface shared boundary between two pieces of equipment, defined by functional characteristics, common physical interconnection characteristics, signal characteristics and other characteristics, as appropriate SIST EN 61938:2019



– 12 – IEC 61938:2018 © IEC 2018 [SOURCE: ISO/IEC 2382-9:1995, definition 09.01.06, modified – Definition has been adapted.] 3.10
minimum output voltage voltage measured across the rated load impedance of a piece of equipment, and related to a minimum input signal limited by signal-to-noise ratio 3.11
maximum output voltage voltage measured across the rated load impedance of a piece of equipment and related to a maximum input signal limited by non-linearity 3.12
rated source impedance internal impedance, stated by the manufacturer, of the source supplying the signal to the piece of equipment Note 1 to entry: Unless otherwise specified, the rated source impedance is assumed to be a constant pure resistance. Note 2 to entry: The manufacturer may also give the range of source impedances which he considers tolerable in practice. Note 3 to entry: Multiple values, or a range
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