Which AT897 Adapter?
 

Im new to external audio. Ive always used irivers for audio but recently i decided to save some time and go with a shotgun i can boom. I purchased a AT897 off ebay which came with a xlr to 3.55 adapter (Idont know which kind). I plugged it in to my camera (HDR-FX1) and was getting no audio. I pilled the 3.5mm half way out of the camera and wala....I got audio. So i know the whole channel thing is screwed up. Ive been searching posts all morning looking for advice on which type of adapter i need to buy but havnt found anything. All ive found is CONFUSED! There are some adapters with pin 2-3 connected, no resources on Audio Technica.

In short does anyone know which xlrm adapter to 3.5mm stero adapter i would use to run sound to both the left and right chanels?


Thanks in advance.

I think you need one of these:
Hosa Technology | MIT-156 Low to High Impedance | MIT-156 | B&H
(Read the user reviews at the link above to see what this cable does)

It takes the XLR mic output, puts it through a matching transformer then sends it through the 1/8" stereo plug.

You can use a regular XLR cable from the mic to the adapter.

There are also more sophisticated ways to do the same thing using such items as a Beachtek adapter, JuiceLink adapter, SignVideo adapter, etc. There are many threads on all of these.

If you detail exacty how you are using the mic (how far from camera, recording what, etc.), I am sure there will be some specific advice on what would be best for your situation (and budget).

Thanks. I just want to go from my mono AT897 to stero 3.5mm in on my HDR-FX1 using the mono signal on both channels.

(Later im getting another AT897 and will use one for right side and one for left side for the 3.5mm)

I want about a 100ft cord to give me a good distance when filming.

Thanks for the help

XLR pin2 to miniplug tip and ring both jumpered together, XLR pin 3 to miniplug sleeve, XLR pin 1 to cable shield, shield to miniplug sleeve. Some sources suggest leaving the shield unconnected at the mini end.

I posted this then saw you want a 100 foot cable run - very BAD idea! When you unbalance the cable at the camera end through a simple adapter wired as I've described, the entire sytem becomes unbalanced and you lose much of the noise immunity a balanced system provides. With an unbalanced cable, runs much over 10 to 15 feet are risky. If you really need 100 feet, you should keep it balanced all the way to the camera, then go through a transformer such as Jack suggested or even better, an active converter such as a JuicedLink.

Thanks for the link. Buying the cable now. For my extension cable should I use an xlr cable or a stero cable?

Absolutely XLR

what would be the easiest way to split the channels when i run two mics?

I was thinking 3.5 to dual rcas?

I think some of these have phantom power:
Camcorder XLR Audio Adapter/Preamp: Buy Direct and Save from juicedLink

or, though the mics must have their own power:
XLR-PRO XLR adapter

There are other options and I'm sure many have advice based on what they do themselves.

I'm confused - do you want to split the channels or do you want to send one mic to the left channel and a second mic to the right?

Assuming you want to do the latter, this is where something like the JuicedLink or a full-blown field mixer starts to show its value. In the 2 or 4 channel Juicedlinks, for example, each XLR mic input can be selectively routed to either just the left or right channel, or sent equally to both.

Absolutely get a decent XLR adapter, like this -- Sign Video | XLRPRO Universal Audio Adapter | XLRPRO | B&H Photo

Whichever one you get, it should be sturdy metal and maintain a balanced connection at the XLR inputs. The faders on the one I posted are great for managing the levels. It also has the ability to route your signal as a dual mono or stereo signal. I wouldn't bother with the cheap adapters that feature gain. You'd be better off getting a decent mixer than investing in those things.

One problem with those cable adapters is that sooner or later somebody is going to trip on the wire and bam, there goes your fragile miniplug input. Also, they don't always have capacitors to block plug-in power voltage which is carried on the inputs of some cameras. I don't know if the FX1 has plug-in power, but I believe some previous Sony cameras have had it.