Are there any alternative mics that can be plugged into the same dual mic inputs as the original mic? (trying to avoid running rca jacks back to the rear of the camera.)

Also I'm looking for a mic that has a recording pattern that is very narrow- such as in picking up sounds almost directly in front of the mic's direction and filtering out surrounding sounds as much as possible (trying to video tape small birds)..anyone know of such a class of mic?

Thanks everyone.

Just about any self-powered mic with a mini-phone (3.5mm) jack can be plugged in as an alternative to the XL1 standard mic. (The only reason for the second connector on the Canon mics is to provide power to the mic.) FWIW, Canon has offered several mics that could be used with the XL1, but they tend to be consumer-class mics.

The Sennheiser MKE300 is a prosumer-class mono shotgun mic designed for camcorders that can be used with the XL1. If you plug it in as is it will record on the left channel only.

If looking for a tight shotgun mic, look for quality professional products and use an XLR adapter.

I've used the Sennheiser MKE300 and can confirm that it's a pretty good narrow pattern (cardiod) shotgun mic, particularly for the money. It mounts to the shoe at the top of the veiwfinder head.

Sennheiser's ME66 medium shotgun (with the K6 power module) is a good step-up for a super-cardiod mic. You'll need XLR audio connectors (ex: MA-100 or another XLR adapter such as the Studio1 or BeachTek units). I've never used mine on the camera but to do so you will also need an isolating shoe mount such as those from LightWave Systems.

When you look at the QuickTime video of Steven Soderbergh shooting "Full Frontal" at http://www.fullfrontal.com, you can see that he's using a different mic from the standard, and that it's plugged into mini jack. Might be along the same lines as what you're looking for.

Anyone venture a guess on what model that mic is?