what am I missing with audio?
 

I'm about to engage in my first shortfilm project. I'm working with the XL1, and for audio, the AT897 shotgun mic.

What are the different options with respect to recording audio through the shotgun mic? Can I connect the shotgun to the XL1 with an XLR to RCA adaptor, or should I go with a separate recording, and then sync it later on my computer? And what other equipment do I need, i.e. field audio mixer, if I choose to do the latter?


Any help appreciated.

Arthur

Whether you record to the XL1 or an external recorder for synch later is your decision based on your audio needs, budget, crew, etc. You can always add/change the sound later in post. Note that while not quite up to the quality standard of an external professonal DAT, the XL1 audio recording is very good for a camcorder.

As to XLR adapter, a simple XLR-to-RCA adapter works, but most are simple devices that give up the electrical noise cancelling benefit of balanced audio. This may not be an issue, especialy with short cables in electrically quiet locations.

pre-amps and DAT
 

Thanks Don for your reply,

I've been reading up on previous posts and its clear I'll need a preamp for the AT897, so I'm thinking beachtek or the sound design mp1.

I still don't know if I should use an external dat. The short is meant for viewing online and as a promotional item. Might even burn a few CDs to distribute. I'm not expecting nuance or 5.1 surround details, but it should be on par with high quality shorts as a small budget can afford.

What is the audio quality on the Xl1 with respect to these needs?

I'm also going to lay down a soundtrack in post.


Arthur

The XL1, in 16-bit mode, providses the potential for about the same frequency response as as 48 kHz DAT.

The point of interest are the quality of the internal A/D converters and preamps. In a dedicated professional audio system you can expect to find higher quality components with a lower noise floor and lower distortion.

I've not measured the distortion level of the XL1 audio, but the noise floor is good for a camcorder, especially using line or MIC ATT input level. The numbers have been noted in past posts here; e.g.,
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2966