So I send my A1 back to Canon since the internal wiring could be seen (1-2 mm), they checked the whole camera and found that all functions, including the mic movement, were within the range of the specs. Even though the wiring was visible. The mic is working well so I decided to leave it this way and covered the 'joint' with black isolation tape to prevent damage by rain / dust etc. Still able to move the mic but it feels a little bit tighter now, imo more comfortable. No effect on the sound.

RW

My Mic really does wobble up,down, left and right. It is more than, it can flex as in shock mount, it is loose. Can you tell me how to secure it.?
Lew

If it doesn't actually audibly rattle, it's probably not loose. It should move quite a bit.

still odd though
 

You can actually see a very slight gap between the rubber shock mount at the handle. I just moved up from a GL2 to a used XHa1 and am a little nervous about my new baby. Canon's manual is a little sparse, any suggestions on where to find a user friendly practical how too?
Lew

Once again -- the mic is supposed to be loose -- it should flex up and down, and it should rotate a bit clockwise and counter-clockwise. That's intentional, by design. We don't offer a "how-to" on how to change this, because we firmly believe the old axiom "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." If you're still not sure, then the *only* recourse we recommend here is to send it in to a Canon factory service center. Again... it's supposed to be loose; it's supposed to wobble and flex. Hope this helps,

The loose microphone on my XH-A1 has given me something no other camera has, my own stickie at DVinfo! (I'm honored...Thanks Chris...Lol)

While I agree with the minimal movement for shock absorption, the play on the mic I have is beyond that. It's actually got a slight downward slope and a noticeable/sizable gap where it meets the handle. It will somewhat flop back and forth if I turn the camera upside down and then right side up. Enough to actually MAKE A NOISE while recording. Totally counter productive to the supposed shock absorption it's intended for.

Loose Mic
 

So after reading 7 pages of this discussion I was pretty surprised no on had actually just troubleshot the loose mic. While shooting in China we noticed the mic starting to droop more and more until one day it stopped working. Before any of you start in with "why are you treating the camera like that" I will tell you my crew is very careful with equipment. Shooting on location like that has its wear. Anyway we simply removed the two screws on the base arm below the start stop button, the two screws under the eye piece (which allows access to the control ribbon plug in the back. Then remove two screw under the control ribbon plug are removed allowing the whole handle to be removed. Once you have the handle off there a several screw mounted underneath the handle. Remove those and the handle assembly comes apart. The Mic wires are simple ribbon that slide into a slot plug. The shock absorber is assembled using two plastic plates held in place behind the handle casing. Unless these plates break apart the mic WILL NOT FALL OFF. We replugged in the the ribbons and everything was back to normal. To say the least we have a few wraps of gaffers tape wrapped around the base of the mic now to ensure the play does not lend to loose mic ribbons again. I hope this helps.

That's because it's purposefully designed to be that way for a good reason... in other words, it doesn't need troubleshooting. It's *supposed* to be loose! I thought this thread bore that out.

Using a shotgun mic
 

The A1's built in mic design is actually very good. As others have said, it is built "loose" as a shock absorber, so it doesn't pick up every little sound.

If you attach a shotgun mic in the holder, be ware, it will pick up most of your movements. I would love to be able to record XLR on one channel and the built in mic on the other (mono), however the A1 doesn't seem to allow that, which can be a draw back when you are recording a mono line out, and you want BG from your camera mic. But if you use the shot gun mic XLR in one channel, you can still record a line in on the other channel.

The newer versions of these cameras, the XH A1S and XH G1S, can do this.

that just makes it worse
 

Really eh? Well that makes me feel much worse! Oh well...

The intention wasn't to make you feel bad, but to let you know what the new "S" models are
capable of doing. You could always sell off your older A1 and put that money toward an A1S.

how about shotgun mic holder on A1s, Chris?
It seems very loose, too.
I get the built in mic part. That's really good to have.
I checked the screws and they were all tight.
I searched the forum, but there weren't any thread about loose shotgun mic holder.
Thank you for all your help, Chris!

JJ

Hi J.J...............
 

If it's loose (the mic holder, that is) and the screws are done up tight, somethings broken.

However, you could simply be seeing the normal flex of the holder clamp assembly. It is quite flexible, by design. If it didn't flex, with a good whack it would have to break.

If it's flex, forget it. If it's loose, it's back to Canon.


CS