XHA1 Mics hiss?

[Timothy Carr]

Hello,
I have never really needed a external mic for my projects until a few weeks ago.
So anyways i purchased a NTG-2 and a blimp.
I connected it and tried out sound quality. To my surprise i got a really bad hiss.
Now, I'm no noob, so i didn't use auto gain, and i used a shielded XLR cord. I tried it with Phantom, without Phantom (AA battery) but still no luck.
So here i am thinking that i have a bad mic, and so i go to try another mic, and just before i plug it in i still hear a hiss through the headphones. I recorded it and it was there on the tape.
So obviously its not the mic, but the camera makes a hiss when its not connected to anything.
Is there something I'm doing wrong?

[Allan Black]

If you used the XH-A1 internal mics without trouble, then it seems the hiss is related to the external mic controls. Turn the 48V and both gain controls full off and try it, switch to line in and try it. Rode warns about connecting theirs or any mics, with the 48V already switched on, could that have caused some damage to your A1 power supply?

Have you registered your NTG-2 on line at Rode for its 10yr free warranty? A low charge AA battery in the NTG-2 will result in hiss, but try taking the whole rig to your nearest video shop, they may be able to help.

Cheers.

[fde101]

As a quick counterpoint, since this wasn't indicated, if it DOES happen with the internal mic, you might want to check the headphones too.

EDIT: less likely if you got this with no mic plugged in, but cables can go bad too... and even shielded cables can often be low-quality if you bought a cheap one... don't know, just pointing out possibilities.