GH2 Need some microphone help.

C

craigbuckley

Active member
I have the azden sgm 2x , and have only used it with my old canon vixia camera. Now this is going to be such a newb question, but I did search all over the internet and my manual,

but where is my mic jack in? And what about headphone jack so I can listen? With my canon vixia I just plugged the shotgun mic into the mic jack, and then my headphones into the headphone jack, and boom it worked. Something tells me this wont be this easy with the gh2, what do I need to do?
 
craigbuckley said:
I have the azden sgm 2x , and have only used it with my old canon vixia camera. Now this is going to be such a newb question, but I did search all over the internet and my manual,

but where is my mic jack in? And what about headphone jack so I can listen? With my canon vixia I just plugged the shotgun mic into the mic jack, and then my headphones into the headphone jack, and boom it worked. Something tells me this wont be this easy with the gh2, what do I need to do?
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There is no headphone jack. You have to wait for the GH3 to get that. The mic input is the under the small rubber flap on the left side of the camera (lens pointing away from you) but it uses a smaller connection that usual, so you may need an adapter-don't know what the plug is on the Azden.
 
Thank you Awel!

My Xlr goes to a typical 1/8 inch jack, but its too big for the input on the GH2 (like you said)... I will get an adapter, but how do you suggest listening to your audio to hear if its too loud or not?
 
Like stoneinapond said... wait for the GH3 to come out :)

As for headphones... there's no real solution (to my knowledge) that will actually let you monitor what your camera is actually recording. If need monitoring, separate system sound is probably your best option.
 
craigbuckley said:
Isn't this a little crazy, no headphone jack? How do people get around this recording video with the gh2?
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Welcome to DSLR shooting, my friend.

In the Canon world, there's a firmware patch called Magic Lantern which will allow headphone monitoring live off the A/V jack during recording (that is of course, until the 5DmIII finally introduced a headphone jack). That sort of held me over when I initially switched from larger camcorders, and insisted on recording audio internally for run-and-gun shoots. But after a while (especially doing multi-cam gigs) I learned to appreciate external sound recording. By the time I switched to the GH2, I didn't even miss monitoring so much anymore.

But it would still be great if a patch like Magic Lantern were available for Panasonic. Ptool's hacks unlock some serious video and even sound quality, but as of yet it seems that we aren't able to change any of the camera's functionality with the hacks. Yet.
 
craigbuckley said:
Ok thank you for your responses. It just seems silly to have no audio jack. I have a camcorder from the 90's that has a headphone jack..
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You have to keep this in perspective. These are DSLR cameras. Read: these are stills cameras. They just happen to have some video recording features as well. Yes, people use them for HD video or "digital film" production. Yes, they can make some impressive images. But when it comes down to it, these are stills cameras that happen to shoot HD video. Audio functionality with DSLR cameras is improving, but slowly and only to a certain extent. So, audio is kind of an afterthought and certainly is not a top priority for the manufacturers. If you want decent audio recording with full control, monitoring, XLR inputs, and good metering... either invest in a camera made first and foremost for video recording, or use second-system recording.

craigbuckley said:
But would this cable allow me to monitor the audio with the gh2 and my azden shotgun mic?

http://www.amazon.com/Sescom-LN2MIC-...eywords=Sescom

Or do you need a zoom h4n to do it?
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No, that cable will not allow you to monitor straight from your Azden. The mic doesn't generate a signal that's strong enough to drive a pair of headphones, and that's what would be needed to monitor with that cable. You need to go with a second system to get what you want/need.
 
I'd definitely recommend picking up a H4n. There are a ton on eBay so you can save $50-60 or so on a used one. You're going to get better quality on separate system sound, and as mentioned, syncing with Pluraleyes is as painless as it gets.
 
jmw said:
I'd definitely recommend picking up a H4n. There are a ton on eBay so you can save $50-60 or so on a used one. You're going to get better quality on separate system sound, and as mentioned, syncing with Pluraleyes is as painless as it gets.
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As a side-note... if you're considering an H4n, take a serious look at the DR-40 from Tascam. Less expensive, better quality.
 
Alex H. said:
You have to keep this in perspective. These are DSLR cameras. Read: these are stills cameras. They just happen to have some video recording features as well. Yes, people use them for HD video or "digital film" production. Yes, they can make some impressive images. But when it comes down to it, these are stills cameras that happen to shoot HD video. Audio functionality with DSLR cameras is improving, but slowly and only to a certain extent. So, audio is kind of an afterthought and certainly is not a top priority for the manufacturers. If you want decent audio recording with full control, monitoring, XLR inputs, and good metering... either invest in a camera made first and foremost for video recording, or use second-system recording.



No, that cable will not allow you to monitor straight from your Azden. The mic doesn't generate a signal that's strong enough to drive a pair of headphones, and that's what would be needed to monitor with that cable. You need to go with a second system to get what you want/need.
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So how's the Audio on a Red Epic or Scarlet camera...........
 
I was going to say DR40 also. After watching every video I could find the DR40 vs h4n is Smaller, more durable, 4 tracks (Same as h4n),sounds on par especially using the external mics and its cheaper. One feature I thought was incredibly awesome is it allows you to record at different levels on both mics.

to the op: A way you can set it up is you attach the dr40/h4n to the flash shoe and on the side you get all the outputs you would like. You can even feed one back into the camera, then your video has an audio track on it.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/user/BHPhotoVideoProAudio?v=ibtDYRS0M-8&feature=pyv&ad=9186929232&kw=dr-40[/video]
 
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I use the Tascam DR-100mkII and love it. It's more expensive than the DR-40, but it has a rechargeable battery AND a separate slot for AA batteries. So it can seemlessly switch over to your backup batteries in a pinch. And since these things eat batteries, the rechargeable battery has saved me all kinds of money.

Supposedly the mkII has a lower noise floor as well, but i haven't tested that out yet. But I'm sure any of these recorders is capable of getting great sound.
 
Jim Simon said:
How so?
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The pre-amps in most of these little recorders are, generally, lousy. But when it comes down to it, the DR-40 is much cleaner than the Zoom. I've had crapping-out issues with Zoom recorders that I've not had with Tascam. Also, the DR-40 can do pretty much everything that the H4n can do, and does many things much better.

One of the biggest advantages is that the DR-40 can actually accept a balanced +4dBu (professional line-level) signal. The Zoom cannot do that as its 1/4" inputs are unbalanced instrument level. That alone, at a lower price, makes the DR-40 a wise purchase when comparing these two recorders.
 
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I did a ton of research about your microphone challenge with the GH2. I shoot on-the-fly documentary stuff, and I found using separate audio, like my Zoom h4n, to be a bit too complicated, and unwieldy on a shoot. There's a related topic on this here: XLR adapters for GH2

I ended up using a Juicedlink DT454 external preamp (now discontinued). It has inputs for up to 4 mics, and a good headphone outlet. I found the box used on eBay for about $225. I mount it under the camera and though bulky, it's doing the job for me. You can see a short test of mine here:



Juicedlink has a bunch of new boxes with a variety of options here: Juicedlink.com
 
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