I finally did it. I figured out how to use an external power source to power my Go Pro Hero 5 Black and use an external microphone at the same time. You will still need to use the Go Pro Microphone Adapter because starting with the Hero 5, the firmware was designed to only allow an external microphone to work with that proprietary device. But let’s move on…..

First, let me clarify my goal. I wanted to power the camera from an external USB power source while video recording my rides, and at the same time still being able to use the external microphone mounted inside my motorcycle helmet to send audio to the camera.

I know there are any number of power packs on the market that will allow you to recharge devices such as cell phones, tablets and even cameras, but I was looking for a solution that would allow uninterrupted power for recording as long as the SD card had room to accept the video. Since my bike already has a few USB ports on it, it seemed silly to waste money on something I didn’t really need. Now on to what I did.

On one side of the microphone adapter there are two ports. One is a 3.5 mm port, commonly referred to as a headphone jack and the other is a USB-C port. On the other end of the adapter is a short cable that plugs into the side of the Go Pro Camera. By plugging a USB-C cable connected to my power strip and the microphone jack into the adapter and the other end into the camera I was able to record both video and audio with no problem. As a test, while recording, I opened the battery compartment on the camera and removed the battery completely. The camera continued to record, proof positive that it was not receiving power from the battery.

I’ll no longer have to worry about my battery dying on a long ride. I’ll just have to worry about the SD card running out of room. What I’m not sure of is if the battery will be charged while using the camera in this configuration. I’ll have to road test that to find out.