A/V RCA out jacks on XL1
 

I use a Canon XL1 from time to time on freelance projects.The TV station I work for has one and I have a friend who has one I borrow when I need it.I'm not too familiar with prosumer cameras as normally I shoot with a Sony DNW7.Last time I used an XL 1,I wanted to play back what I had just shot on a standard TV with RCA inputs.I couldn't get it on the screen.I looked for a menu function to see if there was something that would enable it to play through the RCA outs,but to no avail.

What am I doing wrong?Was I not holding my mouth right?Should I stand on one foot while facing east on a night of a full moon?What's the deal here?

The RCA video out, coded yellow, on all Canon XL and GL cameras (which need the cable adapter) is standard composite NTSC video. To view the video on a TV, the TV must be set to receive a video (not broadcast channel) signal. This is sometimes referred as AUX, or Video 2, 3, etc.

Talk to your engineers or camera operators at your TV station, they should clarify any other issues you might have.

Just to be complete, the video input is sometimes labeled "Line In" or "Line" also.

I believe the XL1, XL1's and the XL2 are all the same. There is a tiny black switch, right by the RCA & BNC connectors, and it selects which one is outputting the signal. If you are connecting to the BNC connector the switch goes up, and if you are using the RCA jack the switch goes down.

Otherwise, hook to the viedo input of the tv and select the right input or channel 3 or 4, or whatever. Then face South! :)

Mike

Sorry Mike, that's not quite right. That little switch debuted on the XL2 which was the first XL camera to have BNC video output capability built in. With the XL1 and 1s, you would need the MA-200 which added 4 XLR audio inputs as well as a BNC composite jack. ;-)

Anyway, to answer Marty's question, I would guess that the tv wasn't set for the correct input as was mentioned or, if it was the sequence was wrong. What I mean by that is that some tv sets will ignore an input signal if you connect the device after selecting that input. IOW, make sure you have a live signal from the XL1 before you switch the tv set to that input.

There is no special setting on the original XL1 for getting video out of the RCA jack. It should have a signal all the time. The camera live signal if in camera mode, or tape playback if in VCR mode.

-gb-

Darn, I could have sworn it was on my XL1s. My Bad-----:)

I had the TV set for line in and confirmed this by hooking up a VCR and playing a tape.It played video fine from the VCR,but not from the XL 1.I even tried hooking the XL 1 to the VCR's inputs and seeing if that would work.It didn't.From what I was experiencing,I could not have made a VHS dub if I had wanted to.
So you're saying the device has to be connected first,before selecting the input or the TV will ignore it????Strange,never had that happen,but hey you learn something new every day.Didn't notice any little black switches by the AV outs,but I'll look next time I have the camera.

BTW,I did mention the problem to an engineer and he too was baffled.We didn't have time to set it up in the shop and duplicate the situation,not a big priority,just curious.

Besides the video output (Yellow), did you also hook up at least one audio channel (White - Left) to your tv?

I have found that some tv's will not show video unless there is an audio connection also. I find this very strange, but it has happened to me.

If you have a stereo tv (both left and right audio channels), the left one (white) is usually the one that the circuitry detects, so if the one channel is hooked up to the right channel (red), then it may not work.

Yes.I was using an older,non stereo TV.

If a signal from a vcr played fine on a TV and the same cables were used to connect to the XL1....then there is an internal problem with the video out on the XL1. Send the camera to Canon for repair or use a different mini DV camera to play back the tape.

Does the s-video output work?

Don't know,the TV I was using didn't have an S video in.

Dear Marty,

I recommend that you test the XL1 again before you send it in to Canon.

(Note: The following is incorrect, please see Don's post below. Dan)
The XL1 audio and video jacks are both input and output, depending on the selected mode of the camera. During playback, of course, they should be ouputs.

Due to the nature of some televisions, it is important to also hookup the audio cables, as some televisions will not show a picture if the audio is not connected.

The XL1 video jacks are output only. The original XL1 does not have analog video input capability.

The analog video output should also work when in camera mode, not just VCR mode, so you should see what the camera is seeing.

Check the s-video output too if you can find a newer TV with s-video inputs. That can help isolate the problem.

Dear Don,

Thank you for the correction. I am more familar with the XL1s and was not aware of the difference.