New Sample Shots with AG-DVX102BEN

[BaconLettuceTomatoes]

The PD 170 is a horrible. It was the first camera I used 3 years ago and it sucks balls compared to what you can get from a DVX or XL2. For one, it does not have 24p. This is a MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR pitfall if you're going into the indie moviemaking scene. I can think of a hell lot of other reasons why you shouldn't get it but I can't be bothered to type it up. Trust me, for that amount of money, just get a DVX.

 

[MalcolmOng]

OH and the DVX is made of magnesium alloy too ya know

 

[danel]

wah so many hardcore anti pd people here ar? haha :sweatsm:

 

[kreepymoon]

Hi All!

I'm new to this forum. I have a hvx202 & the main reason for me using it is for its 25p look & cine-like settings, which are absolutely amazing to achieve the "film look". And of course the DVCproHD codec for HD video.

The camera does amazing interlaced video as well.

In terms of design and button layout, it is well thought out, and intuitive to use as any prosumer cams out there. There are 5 recording formats available (dv, dvcpro, dvcpro50, dvcprohd 720p, dvcprohd 1080i), flexible for different production needs.

The pd170/150 is definitely a good cam with good lowlight ability, if you don't mind being restricted to interlaced video and SD only recording.

The DVX makes very sweet "filmlike" images, and is very popular among indie filmmakers. It's also widely used for broadcast, weddings and event videography.

If you're considering a long term investment, you might want to consider the HVX202 for its high quality HD recording and versatile recording formats. HD is definitely up and coming, you might need it for your projects soon.

Just my 2cents worth. Cheers.

 

[porcupine]

The PD 170 is a horrible. It was the first camera I used 3 years ago and it sucks balls compared to what you can get from a DVX or XL2. For one, it does not have 24p. This is a MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR pitfall if you're going into the indie moviemaking scene. I can think of a hell lot of other reasons why you shouldn't get it but I can't be bothered to type it up. Trust me, for that amount of money, just get a DVX.

The PD-170 and the DVX is 2 entirely different thing altogether. The PD-170 is designed for run and gun production and thus the exclusive interlace only capability (as most broadcast will output interlace anyway). It's good low light and professional audio features make it a favourite among documentary shooters and on location rush news type footage. That does not mean that you can't use it for indie film production.

The DVX on the other hand with it's progressive output and cinegamma features are very popular among independant and low budget / aspiring / budding filmmakers out there who needs to output their footage (from DV transfer) to film out (usually through a film transfer post production facility) or which they sometime call "telecine" process. The reason being, progressive footage shot at 24fps (NTSC) can easily be transferred over to film which is also running at 24fps (progressive). If you use the 24pa (the advanced pulldown of the DVX), it's even cleaner due to the cleaner pulldown to true 24fps of film. In actual fact, when we shoot with the DVX, the progressive signal is converted back to 2:3:3:2 pulldown on to DV tapes. Unlike the HXV 24pN (native progressive mode) which retains the true frame without pulldown.

Anyway, all these does not really make any difference if you are NOT outputting to film (which I don't intend to do anyway). The motion of 24p (NTSC) or 25p (PAL) however, makes the DVX looks "similar" to film motion and thus gives it that "filmic look" and couple with Panasonic's popular cinegamma settings, it's amazing what this little cam can achieve. In the end, it's a personal decision, I decided to go for the DVX as I want to do short film (which may not end up as film out), just DVD output. Furthermore, I have a couple of friends who has a DVX and it's cheaper than the PD-170 which may be great if I do mostly documentary work or do work for broadcast house that needs DVCAM instead of MiniDV.

In the end, the DVX is cheaper than the PD-170 but neither is better than the other, they are just different. Having said all this, I want an HVX real bad but I probably need to sell my cats, personal belongings, clothings, house to afford those P2 cards or the firestore just yet. (haha) ;p

 

[BaconLettuceTomatoes]

That does not mean that you can't use it for indie film production.

I've actually tried it for about a year or so before I switched to the DVX-XL2 combo. For what its worth, the XL2 has excellent low light performance too; courtsey of its rather large lens. I was filming a birthday party the other day at Beverly Hills at virtually 0 lights but the images still managed to come through (Albeit grainy)...

I would personally vounch for a 24p camera such as the XL2 or DVX. The HVX or JVC HD1101 clearly win hands down. I'm very anti-Sony cuz I personally feel they jack up their prices on every single product they have.

And yes, in case you're wondering, I have indeed used Sony Viao Laptops before...

 

[Faiz]

Sony wants to take over the world lah........ hehehehe thats y they jack up the prices! anyway DVX when using 25p mode it can shoot in full open when fully zoom in where as the sony and canon brudders can't it loses more than 1 or 1 and a half stop, figure it out 1 and half stop is alot !

 

[Johnaturn]

I've actually tried it for about a year or so before I switched to the DVX-XL2 combo. For what its worth, the XL2 has excellent low light performance too; courtsey of its rather large lens. I was filming a birthday party the other day at Beverly Hills at virtually 0 lights but the images still managed to come through (Albeit grainy)...

I would personally vounch for a 24p camera such as the XL2 or DVX. The HVX or JVC HD1101 clearly win hands down. I'm very anti-Sony cuz I personally feel they jack up their prices on every single product they have.

And yes, in case you're wondering, I have indeed used Sony Viao Laptops before...

ME ME!!! VAIO!!! hahah.. o yea.. sony jacks like jack.. it s crazy their mark up ..

 

[porcupine]

Sony wants to take over the world lah........ hehehehe thats y they jack up the prices! anyway DVX when using 25p mode it can shoot in full open when fully zoom in where as the sony and canon brudders can't it loses more than 1 or 1 and a half stop, figure it out 1 and half stop is alot !

Haha !, but alas Sony has always been there at the right time at the right place (with Betacam SP, digibeta) in the broadcast industry. A friend of mine has the XDCAM PDW-f350 which is simply amazing ! (again, I think this will takeoff compared to Panasonic's P2 system). Don't get me wrong, I'm still a pro-panasonic guy simply because I like their prices and feature sets but P2 is simply too costly and I don't think it can beat the flexibility and robustness of XDCAM blueray type format). Damn !

 

[MalcolmOng]

I beg to differ - Bigger P2 cards are coming out, and the prices will inevitably fall. Also, not to mention the fact that P2 cards can be reused an unlimited number of times, and you'll never ever have dropouts again due to the solid state technology. The merits are just too many for me to list here.

 

[BaconLettuceTomatoes]

Said like a true DVX hardcore fan :thumbsup:

 

[Faiz]

PDX 350 has it's flaw ! it's more suitable for Electronic news gathering (eng) due to its flexibility in editing , but for the hustle bustle of handheld shots e.g fighting scenes or reality series it's writing capabilities are still in question mark , coz the so called shock proof probe can't seem to write when it's knocked , but the upside of it's affordable for a broadcast HD camera , buts it's button are amazingly confusing !

 

[danel]

hey guys anyone know if xl2 the 16:9 is it true 16:9 or its 4by3 with black bars?

 

[porcupine]

I beg to differ - Bigger P2 cards are coming out, and the prices will inevitably fall. Also, not to mention the fact that P2 cards can be reused an unlimited number of times, and you'll never ever have dropouts again due to the solid state technology. The merits are just too many for me to list here.

Very good points ! Again, don't get me wrong, I'm pro P2 and Panasonic and I'm a diehard DVX users :devil: hehe, but if you think about archival medium, the blueray XDCAM based media has a slight edge. Firstly, think about this, on a P2 based system, after ingesting, what do you do with your media (where do you offload those media to for archive ?), with the XDCAM, the disc is your media (just like tape) but the difference is that it's nonlinear (similar to P2) that I think is more advantageous. In terms of copying and ingesting media to and from both media (both are non-linear) and can be used as computer based file (this is the revolutionary part of P2 and XDCAM). In the end, for broadcast stuffs, ppl tend to go XDCAM but having said all these, I'd probably spring for an HVX when the prices hit the sweet spot and we can get 16gb or bigger P2 cards for cheap.

 

[porcupine]

hey guys anyone know if xl2 the 16:9 is it true 16:9 or its 4by3 with black bars?

I am pretty sure the XL2 is true 16:9 (not 4:3 letterbox). I'm sure anybody out here more familiar with XL2 can correct me if i'm wrong.

 

[BaconLettuceTomatoes]

Yeah its native 16:9 as with most professional cameras.

 

[compro_1975]

i like them man...

 

[MalcolmOng]

Very good points ! Again, don't get me wrong, I'm pro P2 and Panasonic and I'm a diehard DVX users :devil: hehe, but if you think about archival medium, the blueray XDCAM based media has a slight edge. Firstly, think about this, on a P2 based system, after ingesting, what do you do with your media (where do you offload those media to for archive ?), with the XDCAM, the disc is your media (just like tape) but the difference is that it's nonlinear (similar to P2) that I think is more advantageous. In terms of copying and ingesting media to and from both media (both are non-linear) and can be used as computer based file (this is the revolutionary part of P2 and XDCAM). In the end, for broadcast stuffs, ppl tend to go XDCAM but having said all these, I'd probably spring for an HVX when the prices hit the sweet spot and we can get 16gb or bigger P2 cards for cheap.

I agree that the XDcam format would be great for broadcast work, as they'll need to record long periods of time at a stretch, and it can be quickly archived for the edit.

As for the P2 card archival issue, a workflow i've seen that i'd like to emulate should i ever buy a HVX would be having two 4gb cards handy. Get an assistant with a laptop, and shoot a card until its full, then hand it over to him and he'll dump the clips in the computer, and burn it to a dvd(just nice, since its 4gb), then reformat the P2 card, while you're filming on the other P2 card. When you're done, he'll just have finished with the P2 card and you just swap it in. Wash, rinse, repeat. I can see where this will have issues for event videography though, seeing as aforementioned each card only records 10 minutes worth of footage, however, hot swapping is possible, or you could even forgo the P2 cards altogether and record directly into a laptop or a firestore....but that'll be pretty troublesome, and the latter kills the advantages of using a P2 card in the first place.

 

[Shawn The Farmer]

gives a new meaning to the role LOADER :bsmilie:

 

[porcupine]

Updated with some recent footage (see the first post in this thread - link posted there)