After listening to me complain about not being able to monitor sound on my Canon 60D without spending another $400 on a JuicedLink box, my roommate the engineer lent me a simple stereo splitter he had lying around. This was pretty much a game-changer, and I feel incredibly stupid for not thinking of such a simple solution before.
Previously, I wasn’t able to monitor sound with headphones because the 60D doesn’t have a headphone jack, which is way lame. So if I wanted to monitor sound, I had to record it externally on my Zoom H2 and then sync it later in Final Cut. This was a pain in the ass.
So here’s how I can now monitor audio with my 60D in six convoluted, still-hard-to-carry-it-all steps:
I pipe the stereo output of my RODE Videomic (1) into the mic input (2) on the Zoom H2. The stereo splitter now plugged into the line out (3) creates two female stereo slots, and I can plug a pair of headphones into one (4), and a male-to-male stereo cable into the other (5), feeding the other end into the 60D’s mic input (6).
The bonus here is that now I have the sound recording directly on the 60D, with more manual controls using the Zoom’s audio interface. I also have a higher quality WAV version being recorded on the Zoom if I want to get fancy later.
It remains to be seen how I will manage all this in the field without a third arm. Get on that, science.
Just tried it and works! Thanks for posting this.
I also made a little bag that you drop the zoom into. You can hang it around your neck or have it dangle off of the knob on the tripod if it has one. That way you don’t need a third arm and can still be mobile.
Dude, what a coincidence: I used this set up last night covering a local election and I used a little draw-string bag to hang the Zoom from my tripod.
Glad you found it useful. I usually don’t expect anyone to read these things but me, but I guess I’m search engine optimized. Thanks for stopping by!
Would this work with a lavalier instead of a rode?
It would, as long as your lav was self-powered and had an 1/8th inch stereo jack instead of XLR.
Question: I have a mKE400 similar to Rode videomic (self-powered).
It does create a big hiss sound directly into 60D.
I checked it was the 60D’s fault – by going in via H2 (or H4n), would it make any difference? Thanks!
Hey Mo. I have read that one solution to this problem (best suited for a BeachTek adapter) is to set the 60D’s audio level controls to manual, and to tick down the volume on the camera. Then, when you feed it into the Zoom, turn that device up as far as it will go. The reason for this is you’ll get a lot less hiss out of cranking up the sound coming into the Zoom than you would if you just took the substandard sound out of the camera. Of course, the sweet spot depends on the quality of the external recorder and how much you can boost the sound with it.
Let me know if that helps.
Thanks for posting this. Was googling to see if I could use the A/V OUT DIGITAL in some ways for a headset – guess I can’t nor does it probably give any sound out whilst recording.
Anyway – I’ve got issues with a lot of noise and weird sounds using my Zoom 4H, mini-jack-splitter, mic etc. Have you experience noise during recording with this a-tiny-bit-hard-to-carry-setup?
Cheers,
Haakon
It’s definitely not ideal in terms of noise. As I mentioned earlier, the 60D introduces a lot of noise to the sound it gathers, so if you have an external device (ideally a Beachtek) that can boost sound, it’s better to bring down the on-camera sound and boost it with the external device.
One fairly simple way to monitor sound is with a Zoom H1, which runs for about $100, can easily be mounted to the shoe mount, and has a headphone jack. I just got one for work but haven’t played around with it yet, but will share my impressions when I do.
I tried this today and it works, but it’s still so cumbersome. Hoping Canon will introduce some kind of firmware update in the new year so we can monitor out of the HDMI jack. Like others, there were too many weird sounds with the Zoom, mic splitters, etc.
Does this work the the zoom h1?
Yep!
Problem is : you don’t hear what the Canon records… Too bas if you have some interferences, or other sound defaults.
Your right it is a conmeowluted solution to this problem.
After reading so many comments about using headphones while recording in college I tried getting a female/female y spitter that could connect to the mini AV out. Doesn’t work. It flashes 999. I guess I’ll have to get a Zoom h1 or h4n.
This is great! I’m a college student in broadcasting, and I recently got an internship in New York… I go to school in Florida, so I’m not going to be able to have access to my school’s equipment for my projects while I’m away. I have everything I need to make my 60D work for this except audio. I was terrified of having to spend $1000 on equipment that I can’t afford! I have a question though… can the RODE Videomics double as handhelds as well? I can’t quite tell from the picture.
I know this post is a little old, but hopefully I’ll get a response.ha
Hey Kat, sorry I’m just seeing this. I wouldn’t recommend holding a RODE videomic without a pistol grip, which is a handle accessory they sell separately for about $30.
If you are looking for a mic to do broadcast news-style stand-ups, you’d be better off getting yourself a cheap omnidirectional mic for like $100, because you may look a little odd holding the Video mic like an omni.
Hope that helps.
–Sean.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnEtj5l3acs
Hdmi to headphone amplifier