Thanks for the info, Jim. I have always been a little leary of audio (because I knew nothing, and that made me more afraid!). I am forcing myself into understanding it, and am learning a lot of what and how, if not always why.

Can you refer to me to a source/website where I can learn about using mixers with a camera and transfering to Final Cut Pro?

Also, I have a lav mic with a 20 ft cable. Is there a better/worse way to use the lav mic given the unbalanced signal? Does having the camera closer to the mic improve/worsen things, or does the length of the cable dictate my quality, or none of the above?

Diane, just did a search to locate at least a graphical represention of what is being discussed . .found one . . cleared it up for me:

http://www.nullmodem.com/Audio.htm

Grazie

Thanks, Graham! I love stuff explained in pictures (odd, considering that I am a writer by profession...)

Diane

. . but did it help you?

Well, when most audio people talk of long runs they're talking 20 metres rather than 20 feet, but it is wise to keep unbalanced cables as short as possible. It is also possible to get hold of high quality unbalanced cables with improved shielding if you're worried.

In terms of a mixer, you either need one with a mic-level output or you'll need an attenuator to drop line level signal to mic level. This is because the XM-2 only allows audio input through the mic input while recording and not through the line level AV port. Who knows why, but in my view it is THE biggest design fault of the camera.

The other way to shorten the runs is NOT to use the camera for recording audio. There's a little gadget called the mini-disc which is going out of fashion, but it shouldn't be. It's the ONLY compact digital recording method on the planet. Bung your sound onto an MD and then synch it in post. It's dead easy and it saves you all the trouble of trying to get your sound from your source to the camera. You can hide a minidisk anywhere, and they are as cheap as $150!

One really cool thing is to turn down the gain on the on-board mic and use it to pick up ambient. Remember an audio track is just an audio track. In post you can sample it out of the DV, mix it with whatever you got on your MD recorder, paste it back onto the video, and Bob's your mother's brother.

You might find some useful info here http://homerecording.about.com/libra...y/aa082697.htm

I use the Minidisc option as a backup at shoots ie weddings where you do not want to lose that vital speech etc. I use a tie clip microphone attachment and the groom puts the minidisc in his inside pocket.

Recommended by the supplier of my XM2 2 weeks ago. Just make sure you get one that accepts the mic input.

In summary a well designed XLR adapter does NOT eliminate the noise cancelling benefit of balanced leads from the mic to the adapter. However, any wires onthe unbalanced side of the adapter are subject to noise pickup. For short leads this is not usually a problem. How short is short depends on the amount of electrical noise in the environment about you.

A simple XLR adapter that does not provide balanced-to-unbalanced conversion can eliminate the noise cancellig benefit. Concersion can be doen done with special audio transformers or with electronic circuits. The Canon MA-series uses electronic circuits.

Recording using Beachtek DXA-4p Dual XLR
 

I'll be videotaping a Christmass ball at a large hotel next month. The event is basically a short awards presentation from the podium and dinner and dancing. I purchased the Beachtek DXA-4p Dual XLR adaptor to help capture audio with my GL2. I'll be able to get a direct audio feed from the Sound people at the hotel. I'll be physically located next to the mixing board. Should I ask for a mike or line level if they are able to give me both? I've never used the adaptor so I'm not sure what settings to use. Also in the camera's audio menu is there a setting I should select to use with the Beachtek adaptor?
Thanks!

concert, music mixing.
 

Most Music boards will output line, but your beachtek will handle it and convert it to mic level for your camera. There is no fidelity difference between the two. MIC level is used for shorter distances and line for longer (generally) But I would warn of another issue that you might not be thinking of. Most sound engineers for concerts position themselves at the apex of the sound, somewhere within or behind the audience and adjust the levels of the various instruments accordingly. Your mix will reflect their ears and the mix you get will be short of some instruments and heavy on others. as an example, a flute will be heavily amplified, while a trombone will be slightly amplified.

In addition, the mix they give you might be a group output which is a auxilliary output and they might simply give you 'some' audio of each channel.

I've recorded concerts for television. I've found that High Quality microphones positioned at the location of the sound engineer, or somewhere within the audience will work best if you can't mix the audio yourself.

Good balanced XLR input accessory
 

Is there any good balanced XLR input accessory, preferably with phantom power but not necessarily, for the GL2? I was hoping for something that would send the audio straight through the camera digitally as opposed to going through the 1/8" unbalanced microphone jack.

I need something to record the output of a mixing board and I could buy a separate digital recorder but I already have two perfectly good ADCs in the GL2 that I would utilize. However, if the adapter costs just as much as a Korg or Roland recorder, then maybe it's not worth it.

See the Beachtek DXA-4p.

Thanks,
Is there a certain setting in the gl2's audio menu that needs to be selected such as the attenuator or does the beachtek run independently from the camera?

No GL2 setting requirements are necessary. The beachtek takes balanced XLR audio at mic level and passes it thru to the 1/8" stereo connector which simply plugs into your camera.

I set my camera in audio 'auto' and leave the pots on the beachtek fully UP. That lets the camera compress the audio.

If you get LINE level from someone, simply place the mic/line toggel switch on the beachtek to line and it will attenuate the audio to mic level.

If you get one channel, place the toggle to MONO and it will put the left channel on both on the feed to the camera.

Get a good set of headphones. I can't tell you the number of times when thought we had a good mix or audio only to be disappointed.

I use a set of earplug stereo headphones i found at radio shack. They have foam compressible pads you roll between your fingers and then place in your ears. They are like ear protection foam plugs. The block everything except that provide by your GL2s headphone output.

Great, but it outputs via a stereo mini. Doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose?

No, it doesn't defeat the purpose. The DXA essentially acts as the terminus of the signals from the XLR side. The cable from the DXA to the GL2 is also very short and not susceptible to noise. That aside, there would be no other way to get a sound signal into the camera (short of the hot shoe that the DM50 uses).

Search the "Now Hear This" forum for more info on the topic of XLR adapters. There are many threads and posts.