# Does an external mic override the on-board mic?



## sniper x (Jan 9, 2017)

I have a 5D MKII and am going to shoot my first video project on it tomorrow. I have a couple nice mics for it and have wondered if just plugging one in, and setting the camera for manual audio levels turns off the on board mic. In a nutshell, does simply plugging in an off board mic into the mic input override the on-board mic? I usually shoot video on a pro HD camcorder and everything is totally different setting them up....thanks!


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## TCampbell (Jan 11, 2017)

Yes - the built-in mic is not used if an external mic is present.


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## 480sparky (Jan 11, 2017)

Yes.

The only way to use two mics is to not plug an external mic into the camera but record the audio track from it to another device.  Synching the two isn't difficult, but adds another step in post.


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## sniper x (Jan 14, 2017)

That doesn't work for ENG style shooting like I did on this shoot. But, the short shotgun and lav I used worked perfectly. The shoot went great and made me realize what I already knew, ENG with a DLSR is NOT the way to go! I'll continue to use my Panasonic P2 camera and EFP equipment for these shoots, and use the DLSR for my more filmic uses. WHen not using the RED or the Panasonic AJ-HD27V camera.


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## 480sparky (Jan 14, 2017)

sniper x said:


> ........ But, the short shotgun and lav I used worked perfectly. The shoot went great and made me realize what I already knew, .........



Errrrrrrrrrrrrrrr............ then why did you even ask?


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## sniper x (Jan 14, 2017)

I asked BEFORE I did the shoot......preparation.


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