Re: Thoughts on Sony HVR A1?

Wow. Not often I want to challenge anyone really hard, but this post begs for it....

1. A1 uses mini-dv tapes. Buy one brand only, and stick with the same brand. Different brands sometimes use slightly varying lubricants and mixing brands sometimes, sometimes, causes problems.

This is no longer true. Years ago, yes. Today? No.

A1 headphone volume is low. I use a Boostaroo headphone amp. $20. Kicks up the sound really well.

Used with a quality low impedance headphone, the A1 is no different than any other camcorder by any relative value. Granted, we use Sony MD 7506(industry standard) or Etymotic ER 4 for everything but we also own every HDV and several other camcorders, thus enabling comparison. I've never measured the voltage to provide a specific comparison, however.

Good wide angle and 2x lens adapters screw onto front. B&H sells Tiffen and Raynox and others inexpensively. I have Kenkos and they work fine.
Tiffen does not make a high resolution lens. Neither does Kenko. Raynox has two; The 5050 and the 3030, in a 37mm thread. The 5050 is a .5, the 3030 is a .3. These are not a 1080 lens, but they do resolve in the upper 600's. Century/Schneider make great high resolution lenses, for a .3 (very wide) the Baby Death is the industry standard.


Suggestion 1: Get a CitiDISK HD recorder. Attaches via firewire to your camera and records directly to internal hard drive. Perfect tape backup.

There is a reason you cannot find many reviews of what most call the "Sh***yDisk," they fail. They fail royally. Sony, Nnovia, Firestore all make rock-solid products. I strongly advocate looking at any other brand first. Google around, you'll find myriad threads on problems with the Shining Technologies product. We have two; bought one for testing, and was given one by a retailer wanting us to review. Very different models over time, one DV and the other HDV, both are junk, IMO.

Apologies if I offend, but someone is going to use this information to potentially make a purchase. Given that we have, and regularly use several A1U camcorders, it's a great camcorder in many scenarios, as long as there is adequate lighting.

Douglas Spotted Eagle
VASST

Certified Sony Vegas Trainer
Aerial Camera/Instructor