A1 Broken Mic, Need Help

[William Busby]

I don’t have any suggestions other than a trip to a Canon service center is probably in order. Btw… the built in cam mic was always supposed to be “loose” as a form of shock absorption. I have never had any use for the built in mic, so if mine ever broke like yours I wouldn’t really care, until I decided to sell it 🙂

[Michael Cummins]

A trip to a certified repair center would definitely be worth it, but if that’s just not possible, I’d carefully open it up. You can locate the screws yourself, but it might be a rewiring issue. My first guess was that the mic is held taught by the wiring, and some solder might’ve come loose. Thinking about it a bit more now, I’d be prepared for a much more complicated problem.

[Len Kaufman]

I had a similar problem, though it hadn’t gotten to the point of any broken wires.

There is a little plastic piece that (loosely) holds the mic to the camera. A little bit of play is normal…though not reassuring! When you see it, it will be no surprise that it broke. Not a great design!

I was able to order the part from the Canon parts department, and they are quite helpful. The parts are quite inexpensive. About $3 + shipping for the broken part. It takes a bit of courage, but it is doable. The biggest problem was loosening the screws that hold the “handle” on to the camera body. That handle must be removed…just enough to get at the offending part. I messed up a couple of screws because they just wouldn’t turn, even with the proper phillips head driver. So, I put a couple of drops of Liquid Wrench on each of the remaining screws that I had to remove. I didn’t spray. I put some Liquid Wrench in the cap of the Liquid Wrench can an applied the liquid with a toothpick. I then let it soak for about 1/2 to 1 hour. Finding a phillips head screw drive with a tiny point and a handle big enough to give you some torque is really the answer.

Once inside, if a wire is broken, shouldn’t be a major problem to resolder. Tiny soldering iron; not too excessive heat.

All of this instead of the $150 to $200 I was quoted to fix it. And who knows how long the camera would be unavailable. I bought several of the plastic pieces (same shipping cost) because it wouldn’t surprise me if it broke again.

Hope this helps. Be brave!

Len