Re: 24 Frame Sync for Muliple Camera Shoots

Jesse,

It is my understanding that the recorded video signal can also be disturbed by just daisy chaining TC (as we're all used to doing with Betacams) and that Genlock must be applied for this purpose.

I have had disrupted video both with Varicam and Cine Altas when I did as you suggest and have made it my policy to always use trilevel sync when daisy-chaining tc thereafter.

The alternative, which I've done when it was inconvenient to hook sync up (such as mobile cameras and no Lockit Boxes) is to slave the codes and drop the connection. For editorial convenience in the case of slipping code, it's also a good idea to hit sticks at the head or tail of the shot.

Some cameras, like the F900R and HDX can output the Y from the test connector and that can be daisy-chained as the sync to the next camera's genlock in connector, but I don't believe you can get that signal out of the Varicam.

This technique, and description of the problem, is taught at Varicamp by CJ and others, and confirmed empirically by my own experience, so I would be very careful in proceeding as Jesse suggests, just linking TC out to TC in. Even a short test that does work would not necessarily reveal the problem, and the resulting error, namely disrupted video, is catastrophic!

JS