I will do some experimenting this week and also thought I would ask the pro's, I have 2 different (I think) issues:

1) Azden wireless lav mic, connect receiver to Beachtek adapter and all is fine. If I plug Azden wireless receiver directly to mic-in, I get all sorts of static and noise?

2) Again using wireless, I notice sometimes when its quiet and my talent begins to speak, its sounds different for a split second, then sounds normal. I believe this may be some "automatic" mode that searches for audio then adjusts as audio comes in?

Both of these issues are with cam in the audio-auto mode, so far the only way I have used it, but will be trying some manual adjustments this week.

<sigh...>

Page 42.

Your BeachTek manual also talks about this. Unless you have the most expensive one, it probably doesn't come with a preamp. Both BeachTek and Azdens are inherently noisy. Switch the cam to Manual and set it on 3. Always use the BeachTek and adjust the volume until it is just below going into the red on your cam's lcd.

The cam is trying to gain up the audio and is just amplifying noise.

Anything with anything 'auto' as in levels and compression works in real time, so they can only react to events, not predict them. Compressors are especially unpleasant if they are set to auto, as most in this kind of kit are. Proper compressors have adjustable attack time - but this needs setting for each example of input source. The voice setting won't work nicely if the sound is percussive, but a percussive setting chops speech up very nastily. Gates can do even worse things, and limiters on some audio sources just squash the audio to death! Manual works (coupled with decent ears) but is often impossible with self-shooters.