BeachTek DXA-6vu Front Panel Controls and Indicators Mounting and Connection, BeachTek Inc

Front Panel Controls and Indicators

Mounting and Connection

Mount the DXA-6vu securely to the tripod bushing on the under side of your camcorder. Connect the cable from the DXA-6vu to the camcorder’s microphone jack. The camcorder’s onboard microphone should now be disabled. You are now ready to attach external audio devices to the adapter.

Adapter Controls and Connectors

1.) Power

Install a fresh 9 volt alkaline battery in the adapter if you wish to use phantom power (battery is not required to pass the audio signal). Turn on the unit to activate the phantom power supplies. The Power LED should light to indicate good battery power. Turn off the power when not in use to conserve battery power.

2.) Phantom Power

If your condenser microphone requires 48 volts phantom power to operate, first connect the microphone to the adapter. Activate the PWR ON switch and then the PH ON switch for the channel it is connected to. The LED above the corresponding channel trim control should light to indicate that 48 volt power is present. Do not plug dynamic microphones, unbalanced devices, wireless receivers or feeds from mixing boards into the adapter with the phantom power activated as it may damage the connecting device.

3.) MIC / LINE Switches

To connect a microphone to either channel of the DXA-6vu, set the corresponding MIC/LINE switch to MIC. To connect a line level output from a mixer to the DXA-6vu, set the MIC/LINE switch to LINE to activate a 40 dB pad. This attenuates the signal to the proper level so that it will not overdrive the input of your camcorder.

4.) Trim Controls

Each channel has a passive trim control that attenuates the input signal from unity to no output. Adjust each trim control to give you a maximum reading

of -36 dBu on the level meter. The yellow LED should not activate. This will give you the ideal recording level for the highest signal to noise ratio on most camcorders

If your camcorder allows you to switch the Auto Gain Control (AGC) off, you can use this option for manual control over the audio levels. Initially set the camera gain to about 30% of maximum. You can then fine tune the camera gain control to the proper recording level as recommended by the camera manufacturer.

As a guide, the recording levels should be no higher than -12 dBFS (Full Scale). Please refer to your camcorder’s user manual for more information on setting the proper recording levels.

Rear Panel Controls and Connections

5.) LED Level Indicators

The meter will show the signal levels of each channel going into the camcorder. You can use this as a guide to monitor the levels for optimum recording quality. The ideal setting is for the signal to be as high as possible without activating the yellow -33 dBu LED.

6.) MONO / STEREO Switch

The MONO setting mixes both channels together and sends the audio to both the right and left channels which is ideal when only one microphone is being used. Stereo keeps both channels separated when two microphones are connected to the adapter for two discreet audio channels. When in MONO mode, be sure to keep the trim control on the unused channel fully clockwise to reduce the loading effect on the working channel.

7.) Ground Lift Switch

Set the G1/G2 ground switch on the DXA-6vu to the position that gives you the least amount of noise. This switch allows the input and output grounds to be isolated to prevent ground noise on some Sony camcorders.

8.) XLR Inputs

The two XLR inputs can accept balanced or unbalanced connections. To

convert the input to unbalanced, simply ground pin 1 to 3 on the XLR input

cable. We recommend the use of sensitive condenser type microphones for

the best results. Dynamic microphones usually do not have sufficient output

levels and may result in an excessive amount of hiss from the high level of

amplification necessary by the camera’s audio preamplifiers. Microphones
with a sensitivity rating of greater than -40 dBV are	ideal.

9.) AUX Input

To attach audio devices with mini-jack connectors, use the AUX input on the adapter. This sends the signal to the right input and you should therefore disconnect any cables from the right XLR connector to avoid interference.

10.) Output Cable

The attached shielded cable terminates in a gold plated, stereo mini plug connector. Plug this into the microphone jack on your camcorder.

©2006 BeachTek Inc.