GH1 External Mic almost inaudible

J

jimmiesner

Well-known member
Hi,

I couldn't find anything about this in any threads and wonder if anyone else has experienced this. Basically I am going into my GH1 from a wireless Sennheiser EW100 G2. I know the microphone is fine, because it records fine to my H4N. When I plug the microphone into the camera however the recording is almost inaudible, and I get the message "Please make sure to turn on the power of external microphone."

I know my camera is recognizing the microphone, because I only get that message when the microphone is turned on, when it is plugged in and turned off that message doesn't appear.
So what am I doing wrong here? Is there a menu setting I could have turned off someplace? The audio from the on camera mic plays back fine on the GH1 too.

Jim
 
Maybe it's the 3.5mm>2.5mm adapter? Have you tried plugging in a different microphone (not wireless) using the same 2.5mm adapter to see if it works?

Look carefully where your adapter plugs into the GH1....the adapter may be rubbing the camera body, preventing it from plugging in fully. I got my adapter from B&H, and had to trim the plastic on it with a razor blade to get it to fit. It's still not very reliable...so I simply don't bother trying to plug anything into the GH1...that 2.5mm input really SUCKS...Panasonic were real jerks for putting that on the GH1!
 
You need a mic that has built-in power. The GH1 does not provide 48v phantom power like the H4N does. That's my guess. You may try changing the sensitivity settings of the EW100's receiver, though, as a test and see if you get any audio.
 
Yeah, the mic that I have going into it is battery powered, and its sensitivity settings are set high and sound fine on the H4N.

I am thinking it might be the 2.5 to 3.5 adapter but I have nothing else to test it with. That kind of worries me. Normally I just record straight to the H4N, but I won't be able to use it for something that is coming up. I may cut the adapter, but the idea of it being unreliable and no way of monitoring it, scares me.

Does anyone have any adapters that they would recommend, that are reliable?

Jim
 
jimmiesner said:
This is the adapter I am using by the way. http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2603246

Does that one look like it needs to be cut swyzlstyx?
Click to expand...


Looks like it should sit flush, but my guess is that it's simply not pinned right for the GH1.

Here's the one I have (I think)...which "works"...but you can see how it is necessary to trim this particular one.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/488047-REG/Hosa_Technology_GMP_467_GMP_467_Right_Angle.html

And if you wiggle it enough, it can become unseated. I definitely wouldn't depend on it for something critical.

PluralEyes has been a god-send for me with the GH1! I use three Yamaha CX digital recorders at weddings (gave up my Senn G2 wireless systems a long time ago...which is AWESOME), plus a stationary backup camera. PluralEyes will sync up all 5 sources in just a few minutes...saving me hours of frustration! I LOVE PluralEyes!! http://www.singularsoftware.com/pluraleyes.html

Maybe you could plug the wireless into the H4N, and then plug the headphone output of the H4N into the GH1. That way you'd have a backup recording on the H4N if the GH1 audio fails? I've thought about doing this with a camera mounted shotgun mic.
 
GH1 2.5 to 3.5mm adapter problem

GH1 2.5 to 3.5mm adapter problem

Yeah, the problem is, is that I am doing two weddings in one day. So one of my GH1's will be using the H4N, but the other camera operator at the other wedding won't be able to. I am trying to figure out a way to do audio straight to the camera to save me from buying another H4N for now.
 
jimmiesner said:
Yeah, the problem is, is that I am doing two weddings in one day. So one of my GH1's will be using the H4N, but the other camera operator at the other wedding won't be able to. I am trying to figure out a way to do audio straight to the camera to save me from buying another H4N for now.
Click to expand...


I hear ya...there's always something to purchase!

Is this setup for recording the vows off the groom's lapel? If so, I found my ultimate setup by getting a $25 Giant Squid lapel mic, with optional right-angle Neutrik plug, and only 1' cable. I plug that into a Yamaha CX set to high sensitivity and auto-gain. It records the groom, the bride, and even the minister pretty well in most cases. The CX is very small/light/flat...fits perfectly into a tux jacket pocket!

http://www.giant-squid-audio-lab.com/gs/gs-mono.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...POCKETRAK_CX_Pocketrak_CX_Digital_Stereo.html

698022475_tupqA-L-1.jpg
 
jimmiesner said:
This is the adapter I am using by the way. http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2603246

Does that one look like it needs to be cut swyzlstyx?
Click to expand...

That's the wrong adapter which is for cell phones and has an extra ring on it, I attached pics to show the difference.

I have the same Hosa GMP-467 adapter, 3 of them, and I didn't have to trim it to work consistently. It just needs to be angled up and make sure it is pushed in all the way, it should click in.

Also the pic of the Hosa adapter is not accurate, mine have an extra round narrow black extension on them. I got mine from the same link at B&H so it's not a different model.

Randy
 

Attachments

  • pRS1C-3473335w345.jpg
    pRS1C-3473335w345.jpg
    4.4 KB · Views: 0
  • 488047.jpg
    488047.jpg
    18.5 KB · Views: 0
Last edited:
Cavemandude said:
That's the wrong adapter which is for cell phones and has an extra ring on it, I attached pics to show the difference.

I have the same Hosa GMP-467 adapter, 3 of them, and I didn't have to trim it to work consistently. It just needs to be angled up and make sure it is pushed in all the way, it should click in.

Also the pic of the Hosa adapter is not accurate, mine have an extra round narrow black extension on them. I got mine from the same link at B&H so it's not a different model.

Randy
Click to expand...

I think the GH1 probably does have a TRRS (4 conductor) jack, since it accepts a TRRS shutter release, FWIW.


I think the one in the picture is exactly like the one they sent me. Maybe they changed it.

Here's the B&H pic:

488047.jpg


Here's mine, trimmed up to fit better:

888924385_dsB8P-L.jpg




Here it is plugged in. I really had to trim it to get it to fit....and it doesn't "click" in like yours does. :(

Obviously, my adapter isn't ideal for professional use like this:

888924405_qZTSE-L.jpg
 
Here is the one I got from B & H, ordered two more later and they are all the same. Notice the extra ridge? That's enough to make it fit all the way into the mic input. Also notice that the metal part sticks out and isn't flush with the plastic part either.

Randy
 

Attachments

  • PICT9739_fixed_sm.jpg
    PICT9739_fixed_sm.jpg
    209.5 KB · Views: 0
Last edited:
Cavemandude said:
Here is the one I got from B & H, ordered two more later and they are all the same. Notice the extra ridge? That's enough to make it fit all the way into the mic input.

Randy
Click to expand...


Ah, I see what you're talking about now. I think mine had that too. After ruining a bunch of audio due to a bad connection, I trimmed it down and it stopped causing the problem...although it will still slip out a little if the adapter gets turned.


I'd really like to see if I can find something like a Neutrik 2.5mm stereo plug to permanently replace the 3.5mm plug on my cheap Azden stereo shotgun mic, so that I can use it on the GH1 without a darned adapter. I have developed a pathological hatred towards adapters and bracketry of all kinds over the years. :Drogar-Mad(DBG):
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top