Low levels on XH A1

Jesse Morgan · May 3rd, 2008, 07:26 PM

I am having problems with low audio levels when using a dynamic microphone with my XH A1. The mic is the Sennheiser MD46. I tried with my evolution wireless and had very low levels and then hard wired and it was slightly better but still very low.

When I use my lav or shotgun I have no problems at all with levels in manual or automatic. But my MD46 and another lower end dynamic mic I always get low levels.

I tried the mic with another camera and it works fine so it's not the mic, it's the combo of the mic and the camera.

Any ideas?

Steve House · May 4th, 2008, 04:21 AM

Dynamics in general produce a much lower output than condensor mics such as your shotgun so that difference is to be expected. You didn't say what shotgun you were comparing it to but for example the MD46 is rated at 2mV @ 1pa SPL while the popular ME66 shotgun is rated at 50mV at the same sound level. Still, you should be able to get decent levels when the mic is close - 4 to 8 inches - from the mouth. The XHA1 specs say its XLR input sensitivity is -71dBv when set to mic level with the volume full up - the 2mV rating on the mic converts to -54dBv so it should work fine, though I would expect to need to set the level knobs in the upper part of their range. You might experiment to see if it improves when you switch on the camera's 12dB input gainup. If that doesn't help you might consider an battery powered preamp like the Sound Devices MP-1.

You're not by any chance feeding it through a "Y" cable to try to put the one mic on both left and right channels are you?

May 3rd, 2008, 07:26 PM	#1
Jesse Morgan Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Geneva/Toronto Posts: 42	Low levels on XH A1 - when using dynamic mic I am having problems with low audio levels when using a dynamic microphone with my XH A1. The mic is the Sennheiser MD46. I tried with my evolution wireless and had very low levels and then hard wired and it was slightly better but still very low. When I use my lav or shotgun I have no problems at all with levels in manual or automatic. But my MD46 and another lower end dynamic mic I always get low levels. I tried the mic with another camera and it works fine so it's not the mic, it's the combo of the mic and the camera. Any ideas?

May 4th, 2008, 04:21 AM	#2
Steve House Inner Circle Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Hamilton, Ontario, Canada Posts: 5,742	Dynamics in general produce a much lower output than condensor mics such as your shotgun so that difference is to be expected. You didn't say what shotgun you were comparing it to but for example the MD46 is rated at 2mV @ 1pa SPL while the popular ME66 shotgun is rated at 50mV at the same sound level. Still, you should be able to get decent levels when the mic is close - 4 to 8 inches - from the mouth. The XHA1 specs say its XLR input sensitivity is -71dBv when set to mic level with the volume full up - the 2mV rating on the mic converts to -54dBv so it should work fine, though I would expect to need to set the level knobs in the upper part of their range. You might experiment to see if it improves when you switch on the camera's 12dB input gainup. If that doesn't help you might consider an battery powered preamp like the Sound Devices MP-1. You're not by any chance feeding it through a "Y" cable to try to put the one mic on both left and right channels are you? __________________ Good news, Cousins! This week's chocolate ration is 15 grams!