Sound equip questions from a n00b (bear with me)

[An odd one]

Hi
I am looking into getting some kind of mic, because up until now we've had to hear the annoying hum of my canon zr-85, and I'm not sure what to look for.
I'd like something that will hook right up to the camera, but not sure if anything like a boom for mini dv's exists..
Just something not too expensive that I don't have to get a whole lot of other equip for; i'm only making short vids right now, nothing too serious

 

[doo doo butter]

I know Azden has a mic with shoe mount for about $60. Ecz-90 or something like that. There are a couple of other cheapo mics out there but this one aint half bad. It has long and short range.

 

[An odd one]

Thx, I just checked it out and it looks quite nice...
When I plug that into my cam, it'll cancel the cam's mic and use only this one right? I wonder if the cord can come any longer

 

[doo doo butter]

yes the internal mic gets turned off when the external mic is plugges in. I went out and bought a 6 foot extension for my mic and it works fine. Also, make sure that your camera has an input for an external mic or else you're SOL.

 

[An odd one]

Well it turns out my cam doesn't have a port for external mics, so I have to go with something else. Is there such thing a standalone mic that you can plug into a PC via USB? I know they make those little memo recorders with USB ports but I'd like to know if they made something bigger, like a boom. thx

 

[funkbomb]

The widely understood alternative to recording directly to the miniDV camera is a DAT recorder/Minidisc recorder. Froogle it and you'll get a minidisc recorder about the size of a deck of cards that can record high quality audio via a mic-in jack. The downside? You'll have to import that audio as a separate file into your computer and sync it up later with your video, a huge hassle. But if it's your only alternative...

And a USB microphone? Don't be silly. Haha. It made me laugh. All mics are "standalone", it's called a 1/8" headphone jack and a mic-in port.

 

[Blkmamba]

I know this is probably a terrible option but my Canon Optura 20 (which has gone down in price) has so many manual features at such an inexpensive price. 300-500 dollars can get you a traditional focus ring (something I use a lot) and a mic-in port.

Otherwise go for what other people are suggesting- make sure you get a clapper or do something of the sort so you can accurately sync up the video.

 

[An odd one]

I think what I'm going to do is get the Ecz-90 and my friend is getting a cam with the mic input, they aren't too pricey.