Advice on a microphone for the Ax100, please

[Piotr Wozniacki]

If I wanted to use one of my shotgun mics on the AX100, how do you guys suggest to mount and connected it so that the balance of the rig is spoiled too much?

I realize there are options like the XLR-K1M XLR Adapter Kit, or one of Rode shotgun or stereo mics - but it's my goal to use the stuff I already have and avoid further spendings... Is the "intelligent" hot shoe OK for "dumb" mic holder fixing, and how about phantom power (none of the mics I have - some short and mid-size Sony shotguns, plus a very nice sound-quality-wise Edirol) have internal batteries...

Or should I just forget about re-using my already owned bits & pieces, and fork some cash for a dedicated solution? In which case which of the 2 options is better with this little cam:

- Rode on-camera mic (no balanced input, no line level option) - if so, which model is recommended?
- the XLR-K1M XLR Adapter Kit + one of my current mics?

PS. I think I've also hear about another model of the XLR-K1M XLR Adapter Kit (is it K2M?) - what's the difference?? Which one draws phantom power from the AX100's hot shoe?

PS Judging from K1M vs. K2M pics only, the K2M looks like it only occupies one hotshoe (so I guess it handles both phantom power to the mic, and the audio from the mic), while the K1M has its own shoe plus a short cable with a connector which also looks like it goes into the AS100's hot shoe. So clearly, the K2M looks like a more elegant and compact solution, why is the K1M price higher of the two?

[Paul Anderegg]

Tripod or handheld use? You could get one of those DSLR XLR adaptors with audio level controls that bolts onto the bottom of the camera via the tripod socket if you don't need to put it on a tripod.

Paul

[Paul Hardy]

The K1M attaches to the camera via a cold shoe & has an external cable that will connect to the Ax100's MI shoe, as the AX100 only has a single shoe, you would need to mount the K1M externally.

The K2M attaches directly to the AX100's MI shoe & would make the AX100 look roughly like an X70 with the XLR unit mounted directly to the camera!

On the face of it the K2M seems like the better choice however the K2M does NOT have another shoe attachment on top so there is no way to mount a light or mic receiver directly to the camera when using the K2M, whereas the K1M has a cold shoe on top.

Edit: Oops - I see you've already answered the question - sorry for the duplication!!!!!

[Piotr Wozniacki]

Thanks Paul for the confirmation on what differences I can see on the pictures of both devices - however it seems unlikely that the K1M higher price is only due to the additional cold shoe. What are the "internal" reasons for it being significantly more expensive?