Re: Looking for feedback on Sony HVR-A1U

Hi Rick,

I'm a big fan of the A1 -- it's been my primary camera for the past year and a half, and I really like it. Actually, I just demo'ed an A1 for a client this afternoon, and he wants to buy it now, too...

To answer your question... Gain, no, it doesn't give any indicators what the f-stop or gain level is. However, if you record something, then watch the tape back with Data Code turned on, the camera will show you what the settings were at the record time. So, by trial and error, I discovered that to set the camera right at 0 db, turn the exposure the whole way up, then push it down 6 notches. Unless you're recording in standard-def DV mode, never ever let the camera go into gain -- the extra noise wreaks havoc with the HDV codec. Better to boost the brightness in your NLE's color corrector. It is not good in low light -- if you're going to be shooting a lot of plays or something, try looking at the EX-1 or PD-170.

Reliable, yes. Very very reliable. I almost always use cheap Sony mini-dv tapes with it, and I can only remember 3 times that I got dropouts in all that time. Haven't had any problems with it eating tapes, even in bad environmental conditions. I think I had to reset it once when it started acting weird, but that was 10 months ago.

For the price range, it's a great workhorse. Quality is decent compared to its bigger siblings, like the Z1 -- I've used both together on projects, and they compare relatively well. The ability to shoot in SD standard aspect or anamorphic (or output either from an HDV tape) makes it very flexible and useful for someone starting out. It's annoying that some settings, like shutter speed and white balance, are set with the touch screen. The form factor is nice, though. If you take off the lens hood and XLR box on top, it's about the size of the handheld HC1, but if you put all the accessories back in, it looks like a professional camera. The XLR inputs with phantom power are VERY useful -- I think that's the main feature that takes the camera from consumer to prosumer territory. The included shotgun mic is a little noisy, so you might want to replace that at some point, but it's fine to start with.

Let me know if you have any questions! I've spent a lot of time shooting with this camera to use in Final Cut. Like any camera, it does have a couple of quirks (like no gain meter). But overall, it's seriously a fantastic little camera for the price.