recording communications

[Casey Webster]

i recently got access to a sony digital camcorder, and am going to take it
up for a flight (passenger recording of course), and i wanted to patch in
the intercom to its audio inputs. What is neccessary to adapt what comes
out of the intercom to make it suitable for line level inputs to a
camcorder? If anyone has made such a cable, or knows a place that sells
them, i'd be interested in hearing from you. thanks.

-casey

[John T]

"Casey Webster" > wrote in message

>
> What is
> neccessary to adapt what comes out of the intercom to make it
> suitable for line level inputs to a camcorder? If anyone has made
> such a cable, or knows a place that sells them, i'd be interested in
> hearing from you.

http://tinyurl.com/2jq5x

I've heard of folks having success simply plugging a direct patch cord (no
in-line resistor) available from Radio Shack directly into the Sony camera.

I personally use a portable intercom with an audio out jack.

--
John T
http://tknowlogy.com/TknoFlyer
http://www.pocketgear.com/products_search.asp?developerid=4415
____________________

[Craig Prouse]

In article >,
"Casey Webster" > wrote:

> i recently got access to a sony digital camcorder, and am going to take it
> up for a flight (passenger recording of course), and i wanted to patch in
> the intercom to its audio inputs. What is neccessary to adapt what comes
> out of the intercom to make it suitable for line level inputs to a
> camcorder? If anyone has made such a cable, or knows a place that sells
> them, i'd be interested in hearing from you. thanks.

If you pull a few key words out of your post and Google the r.a.*
archives, you'll find lotsa lotsa suggestions.

[Hilton]

Hi,

Plug a tiny microphone into your camcorder and stick it in the cup of your
headset. Works amazingly well, cheap, no messing with wires/impedences etc,
and you get both the intercom and ambient (engine etc) sounds.

Hilton

[Newps]

Hilton wrote:

> Hi,
>
> Plug a tiny microphone into your camcorder and stick it in the cup of your
> headset. Works amazingly well, cheap, no messing with wires/impedences etc,
> and you get both the intercom and ambient (engine etc) sounds.
>

Yes, but you don't get what the pilot says over the radio or intercom.
I have a Sony camcorder and you simply get a cord with a stereo minijack
at either end if your camcorder is stereo, if it's mono get a mono plug
on either end. You will need a mini to regular jack adapter for the
airplane end. If someone will be sitting in the copilot seat then also
get a Y adapter so the audio can go to both the passenger and the camera.

[Casey Wilson]

"Newps" > wrote in message
news:En6Wb.265751$I06.2851145@attbi_s01...
>
>
> Hilton wrote:
>
> > Hi,
> >
> > Plug a tiny microphone into your camcorder and stick it in the cup of
your
> > headset. Works amazingly well, cheap, no messing with wires/impedences
etc,
> > and you get both the intercom and ambient (engine etc) sounds.
> >
>
> Yes, but you don't get what the pilot says over the radio or intercom.
> I have a Sony camcorder and you simply get a cord with a stereo minijack
> at either end if your camcorder is stereo, if it's mono get a mono plug
> on either end. You will need a mini to regular jack adapter for the
> airplane end. If someone will be sitting in the copilot seat then also
> get a Y adapter so the audio can go to both the passenger and the camera.
>

Eh? Are you sure you don't hear yourself when you talk on the intercom or
radio? My intercom has a sidetone that carries my voice quite nicely into
the Radio Shack ceramic button mike that I have plugged into a digital voice
recorder. The tiny mike is unnoticable when stuck into the headset cup. It
could be plugged into the camcorder just as well as the voice recorder.

[CFLav8r]

> I personally use a portable intercom with an audio out jack.
> John T
>
John,
I have a portable David Clark intercom with the audio out jack,
but when I picked up a cable at Radio Shack and plugged it into my
Sony camera (mic input) it didn't pickup any sound.
The camera does however state (plug in power) just below the mic
input but I'm not quite sure what that means.
Any suggestions?

David (KORL)

[John T]

"CFLav8r" > wrote in message
m
>
> I have a portable David Clark intercom with the audio out jack,
> but when I picked up a cable at Radio Shack and plugged it into my
> Sony camera (mic input) it didn't pickup any sound.
> The camera does however state (plug in power) just below the mic
> input but I'm not quite sure what that means.

I don't use DC headsets, but I can think of a couple things to check.
First, are the DCs stereo? That *may* affect the audio out jack, but I
wouldn't count on it. Also, make sure the volume is turned up on the
headset (kinda hard to miss that one if you're wearing them :).

Second, make sure the audio cable is plugged in to the red mic/power jack on
your Sony. My model has a green headphone jack and a red mic/power jack as
you described.

--
John T
http://tknowlogy.com/TknoFlyer
http://www.pocketgear.com/products_search.asp?developerid=4415
____________________

[Hilton]

Hi,

Excellent results are achieved by buying a tiny microphone, plugging it into
the camera, and placing it in your headset's ear cup. You get the intercom
and ambient sound in a good ratio. It works great, is fool/failure-proof
and doesn't have you messing with impedences etc etc etc.

Hilton

[Dylan Smith]

In article >, Casey Webster wrote:
> i recently got access to a sony digital camcorder, and am going to take it
> up for a flight (passenger recording of course), and i wanted to patch in
> the intercom to its audio inputs.

I had excellent results by making a cable with a small jack for the
camcorder at one end, and a large jack that plugged into the intercom at
the other. Concealed within the large jack was a 47K ohm (IIRC) variable
resistor. It turned out it needed all 47K ohms to get the levels
right. I'm sure there is more correct ways of impedance matching, but
analogue electronics is not my thing :-)

I built the cable by buying a mono-to-stereo cable at Radio Shack and
chopping off the mono end and putting my custom jack on that end.

--
Dylan Smith, Castletown, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Frontier Elite Universe: http://www.alioth.net
"Maintain thine airspeed, lest the ground come up and smite thee"

[Paul Sengupta]

"CFLav8r" > wrote in message
m...
> The camera does however state (plug in power) just below the mic
> input but I'm not quite sure what that means.

Isn't that to power the external light you put on top of the camera
to film in the dark?

Paul