options for GH3 external mic?

[Erik Naso]

I just plugged it in and set the levels in the camera. Since the GH3 now has a headphone jack audio is so much easier to capture.

[Guy Smith]

Any issues with broadband noise (hiss) in quiet settings? This has been an issue for me with all but one mic.

[Alan Halfhill]

I agree the VideoMic Pro works well. Here is a new story shot with the GH2 and the Rode.

Sequim Ballon Festival - Paraplegic Balloonist - KSQM-News - YouTube

[QUOTE=Erik Naso;1775587]The Rode VideoMic Pro is one great little shotgun mic. Shot this little nat sound piece with only the VideoMic on the GH3. Also used the Lumix 35-100 and the 12-35.

[Ron Fabienke]

I've been using this Sennheiser MKH 50 for 8 years on my large shoulder camcorders. It's a super cardioid and handles voice and the high sound pressure of reception speakers great with tight base as well. Plus it is very short. Has -10db switch and also bass roll off cut that is handy in wind. But it is pricey.... $1,200.

Shot with it on GH3 for the first shoot about 6 hours ago last night, with the camera picking up the spoken words of a company's annual sales awards party plus loud but tight music from the speakers used, with a video presentation as each person walked up. I used the -10db because the meters earlier in evening were deflecting into red. The sound in my footage is great!

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/79497-REG/Sennheiser_MKH50_P48_MKH_50_Microphone.html

[Philip Fass]

I put this decision on hold for a while....but now I need to deal with it.

If I use the kind of setup Bill described, basically making the connection from an XLR mic to the GH3, do all of the camera's internal audio settings still work as they would for the Panasonic mic?

[Larry Becker]

I'm not sure which "internal options" you're asking about. The cool thing about the Panasonic mic is that you can switch it from shotgun to stereo in camera. That internal option wouldn't work with another brand of mic, but they should function as a normal mic ok with volume controls.

I have a couple of RODE shotgun mics but opted for the Panasonic mic made for the GH3 because I didn't want to fiddle with mic holders, adapters and cord converters (XLR to stereo mini), and I wanted it to be quick and easy to use. I got all that with the Panasonic mic. It pops on quick, is matched to the camera, is controllable by the camera, and works well. And it came with a matching 'dead cat' as well.

Larry Becker

[Bill Bruner]

Originally Posted by Philip Fass

I put this decision on hold for a while....but now I need to deal with it.

If I use the kind of setup Bill described, basically making the connection from an XLR mic to the GH3, do all of the camera's internal audio settings still work as they would for the Panasonic mic?

Hi Philip - the answer is yes. The camera sees a standard mic input at the proper impedance, as long as you use something like the

Hosa line matching XLR to 3.5mm adapter

 

Hosa line matching XLR to 3.5mm adapter

.

Yes, the mic is mono only, but I'm recording voices, not music. And I can run a long, shielded XLR cable from the balanced output of my mic to the camera if I choose to. Something I would not do with the unbalanced 3.5mm output from a

$229 Rode Videomic Pro

 

$229 Rode Videomic Pro

or a

$260 Panasonic

 

$260 Panasonic

microphone.

Since my last post, I have become an even bigger believer in buying used professional mics and adapting them instead of buying more plastic consumer equipment. I'm not that rough on my gear, but I have broken the mic guard on my H1 and cracked a plastic lens hood in the last few weeks. My AT835b is all metal and built like a tank - there's not an ounce of plastic on it. There's one on eBay right now for $150 or best offer plus $12 shipping.

Good luck,

Bill
Hybrid Camera Revolution

[Philip Fass]

It just kills me that when I got my high-end shotgun, a Sanken, I didn't give a thought to ever needing battery power. It's phantom only. Nothing like 20-20 hindsight!

[Bill Bruner]

Perhaps you should get an in-line phantom power supply. Maybe something like the $95 Denecke PS-1A?

That would cost a lot less than buying another pro mic (which would probably not be as good as your Sanken :))

Good luck!

Bill
Hybrid Camera Revolution

[Dennis Vogel]

Originally Posted by Bill Bruner

It costs a lot less than the $349 Panasonic shotgun - and sounds pretty darned good.

FWIW, that mic is going for $259.95 at Amazon now and an even $259 at B&H (but it's out of stock right now): http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/907000-REG/Panasonic_dmw_ms2_External_Stereo_Mic_For.html.

D