View Full Version : DVX 100 audio ...


Dean Harrington
August 19th, 2010, 07:00 PM
I noticed audio cutting in and out on my last shoot with this camera. Anyone else have this problem?

Jay Massengill
August 20th, 2010, 11:52 AM
Give us many more details about the situation... From this description it could be any of 1000 possibilities and we don't know how to narrow it down.

Dean Harrington
August 20th, 2010, 03:46 PM
The situation is simple ... during recording the audio cuts out and then back in almost like a glitch. I had a shotgun mic on camera in channel 1 and the internal mic on channel 2. I was taking ambient sound during the shoot. It cut out and back in at regular intervals.

Jay Massengill
August 23rd, 2010, 09:53 AM
Is this audio problem noted while monitoring during shooting, or is it only heard during tape playback or capturing to a computer?

Dean Harrington
August 23rd, 2010, 03:53 PM
I hear the audio while monitoring.

Jay Massengill
August 24th, 2010, 02:02 PM
OK, then you'll need to start changing things one variable at a time and see if you can isolate it to one particular setting, cable or mic.
It still could be many different possibilities that make it hard to guess from afar.
Let us know what you try out and if you make any progress at isolating the problem.
Also do you have ALC activated on the camera and are you recording in a loud environment?

Dean Harrington
August 24th, 2010, 04:45 PM
what's ALC?

Jay Massengill
August 25th, 2010, 07:22 AM
ALC is the automatic limiter control for mic input signals. It's set in the camera's Recording Setup menu along with other audio choices.

Dean Harrington
August 25th, 2010, 08:30 AM
ALC is the automatic limiter control for mic input signals. It's set in the camera's Recording Setup menu along with other audio choices.

It's not a laud environment but I'll check ALC settings on the camera. The recordings come through a mixer via XLR inputs.

Jay Massengill
August 25th, 2010, 11:30 AM
How long are the cables feeding from the mixer to the camera? Could the cables be damaged or are being stepped on at regular intervals?
Do you have another device you can connect to these cables and monitor for problems on the feed from the mixer? That way you could isolate the camera from the situation.

If the XLR cables that feed from the mixer are fine, but they are at full professional +4db line level, it will likely be too hot for the line level input setting on the DVX-100, even if it's not a loud environment. The DVX-100's line level input was a bit odd, being lower than full level and might require an inline XLR attenuator to bring it down a bit.

Of course you must correctly select Mic or Line level depending on what's feeding the camera, as well as correctly choose phantom power On or Off depending on what is connected. Phantom power should only be On if you're using a mic directly connected to the camera and that particular mic needs phantom power.

Dean Harrington
August 26th, 2010, 05:56 PM
How long are the cables feeding from the mixer to the camera? Could the cables be damaged or are being stepped on at regular intervals?
Do you have another device you can connect to these cables and monitor for problems on the feed from the mixer? That way you could isolate the camera from the situation.

If the XLR cables that feed from the mixer are fine, but they are at full professional +4db line level, it will likely be too hot for the line level input setting on the DVX-100, even if it's not a loud environment. The DVX-100's line level input was a bit odd, being lower than full level and might require an inline XLR attenuator to bring it down a bit.

Of course you must correctly select Mic or Line level depending on what's feeding the camera, as well as correctly choose phantom power On or Off depending on what is connected. Phantom power should only be On if you're using a mic directly connected to the camera and that particular mic needs phantom power.
Thanks Jay,
I'll check out these processes and try to get to the bottom of this little glitch. In general, the cables were not long and reseeded on the spot ... they have worked in many other situations without a hitch.
I'll check out the attenuator suggestion ... basic set-up on phantom power to line-in was mixer only.