Mark Schlicher

Anthony, Thanks for the additional info and perspective. I mainly want to get the listen-only thing happening for my Lectro IFB. Thanks to advice from Robert S as well as a local truck owner, I think I have my adapter needs sorted out to interface with a typical beltpack. (4-pin, 5-pin, male/female.) I'm looking into a custom earpiece, too. I'll post again once I get things wired up and tested. Definitely owning a small wireless comm system would be an elegant solution!

It sounds like you have the standard def monitor. If so, it is composite only and the SDI camera output won't work. You need to feed the camera's composite SD signal to the sled's video input and it should feed to the multi-pin connector on the monitor. As for the t-handle wrench...yes, that should have been included.

I would imagine that a mafer clamp and extendable painters pole might be a good place to start... As Janice said, have fun!

Thanks, Jerry for going out of your way to help as much as you can, given the constraints of your legal agreements with Tiffen. I don't fully agree with Tiffen's approach to protecting their R&D investment and intellectual property, but I understand and respect why they do it. I also get that, as a licensor and contracted developer, Jerry's not in control of Tiffen's marketing or manufacturing decisions. I have had my frustrations in dealing with Tiffen. Sometimes significant annoyances. But never from folks like Jerry, Garrett or Peter, who have been unfailingly helpful and who walk the walk when it comes to passion, vision, and generosity. I've benefited immensely and directly from them in my brief history as an operator. I appreciate Tiffen for risking what I am sure is considerable capital, to bring to market innovative tools for various price points and market niches, including but not exclusively the big rig market. Thank you for providing choices.

I've had conversations with Peter about the battery holder, here's what I know. For the Zephyr it adds a second battery holder, with the purposes of providing more 12v runtime, hotswap and adding the promised 24v capability. I want to be careful to note that I have only confirmed that it will provide 24v capability, but I can't imagine that Tiffen would have not provided the other capabilities. A prototype was shown at NAB. It is aluminum and grabs onto the bottom dovetail, essentially putting the battery under the post. Not super lightweight but as Peter pointed out to me, you are going to use this item for heavier cameras anyway. Don't know if it can slide back and forth. I've not seen a picture. Anybody snap one? I hadn't heard if they are for sale yet.

Thanks, Jerry. Not concerned about critical dimensions. Not planning to try to fabricate my own dovetail...it's a grabber I'm interested in. (and for the narrow dovetail, anyway. I just was curious so I could call it an "88mm dovetail" or whatever it is. I'll just call it "big rig dovetail".) Tiffen literature on the Zephyr lower dovetail is incomplete and misleading...seems to suggest that it's a "standard" or common width and doesn't specify that it's different from the big rigs' lower dovetail. Glad you clarified that. Was hoping someone makes the equivalent of the base for the the Manfrotto quick-release, (or the catgriller) but in the proper width to grab the Archer/Zephyr dovetail, that could then be bolted to a longer slab of aluminum or a cheeseplate (which in turn would provide mounting options for aks via screws an/or velcro.) I'll probably just find a cheeseplate and screw it to the 1/4-20 in the bottom of the sled and call it good for my current purposes.

Jerry, thanks for the info. Brings up some questions: 66mm is the rough width of both the camera dovetail on my Zephyr as well as the solid bottom dovetail. How wide is the bottom dovetail on big rigs? Is it the same as the big rig camera dovetail? So all the conversation above about the catgriller and other "female" clamping bases is moot if they are all for big rig dovetail plates, true? I just want a simple, flat slide-on or clamp-on plate that I can velcro a Decimator or wifi transmitter, etc. onto from time to time. Are you saying that I would be able to buy an Antlers dovetail clamp and adapter separately from a set of Antlers?

It's a way to untether from the beltpack comm system. Listen only, except some ops have attached mics to the back of the camera for the occasional time they need to talk.

Yes, sorry "Optitek" not "Opitek". Here's another one to test: it has 12V power, advertised a long range and low latency and has component and composite inputs as well as HDMI. HD Flow

Range Video and others sell cheap, transmitters in the 900ghz and higher ranges. They are bare-bones and usually have no housing. The problems to be overcome with these transmitters include: 1. Mounting. No mounting brackets, and heat tends to make adhesive velcro fall off 2. Heat. Related to over-voltage and the improperly-sized antennas they are shipped with 3. Range. Also related to the antennas they ship with. 3. Power. They should have 9-12V power. 14.4 (up to 17V) will cause them to heat up significantly and may cause early failure. You need to wire your own power solution, including connectors 4. Interference from microwaves and other 900mhz devices, which clobbers your range 5. Potential interference with 900mhz follow focus devices. 6. These devices are subject signal blockage by walls and other obstacles 7. Must be paired with a receiver, unlike UHF systems that can be viewed on any TV that can receive analog UHF over-the-air channels. Once you solve these problems and/or accept the limitations, you have a passable composite SD wireless setup, with limited range and uncertain reliability. Here's what I did: 1. Mounting: I use heavy duty adhesive velcro, and did what I could to handle the heat problem (see below). I end up replacing the velco from time to time. 2. Heat: added a heat sink and replaced the antenna on both tx and rx with a properly-sized one like this: 900mhz antenna. An improper antenna wastes the RF being generated and it converts to heat-buildup. 3. Range: replacing the antennas helped a bunch. 4. Interference from environment: just live with it 5. Interference with ff: don't use the system on a job with a wireless ff. Rent a proper tx unit 6. Mount the tx up high, on the camera stage. Put the receiver as close as practical to the tx. By all means, have a go at it. I have one and it comes in handy in my kit from time to time. But I have a regular client that is cool with the limitations (and sometimes not, so then we go tethered). If I was working with a client who needed the best possible reliability I would rent a professional kit from a fellow operator and pass along the rental cost to production.

When weighing the camera, be sure to remove the battery. Also remove the viewfinder, you won't need it. Do put the P2 cards in, and any other accessories you may need. Also the Panasonic quick-release plate, which adds about a pound. Tiffen spec's "net camera weight" (they used to call it "payload"), which is the total weight of camera and accessories on the top platform (the "topstage"). You add weight at the bottom to balance things out, but this is not included in that calculation. Nor do you count the Zephyr monitor. If the 300 is indeed 17lbs configured how you anticipate needing it, then the 23lb net camera weight of the Zephyr should be fine. In fact, at 17lbs you are really in the "sweet spot" for the Zephyr. But as Andrew points out, it is quite easy to jump above the weight limit if not careful. In my experience, you don't want to fly more than 24lbs on a Zephyr, that's about the max of the arm. The Zephyr is the smallest rig I would recommend. You will always be bumping up on the top end of the (discontinued) Flyer (or the new Scout) capacity. The Zephyr is pre-wired for HD and you can order it with an HD monitor or buy the SD version and for $2000 get a real nice Marshall HD monitor (search the forum for details). The Zephyr offers a LOT of bang for the buck. Scout is SD only. Your next option, the Archer 2, costs 2-3 times what the Zephyr does, but with much greater capacity. The Zephyr should handle 90% of broadcast cameras unless you go crazy with prompters, ring lights, directors monitors, transmitters, etc. As for purchasing, if B&H is selling for list price anyway, then why not go direct through Tiffen? They can give you much more informed answers to your questions. Zephyrs are primarily sold through dealers, though Tiffen will sell you one, but you'll pay full list price. If you prefer working with a dealer, you may want to check with Showcase, Inc., depending on where you live. I have received excellent service and pricing from their Atlanta location and I'm know they ship. Denny Crysler is the manager there, great guy.

Dave, Thanks for the field report. Saw an HD Zephyr at Showcase Atlanta last week. The HD monitor supplied was a Marshall V-LCD70XP-3GSDI. This is their latest non-transflective, 450 nit 7" monitor, not the 6.5 transflective. It's Steadicam branded but displays the Marshall model number. Around $1000 if you bought one direct from B&H. Don't know if Tiffen has modified the monitor in any way. So, to clarify, it appears that the Steadicam-branded HD monitor on Joel's rig is the 7" non-transflective 450nit (a beautiful image and very nice features but not a true daylight monitor), rather than the 6.5" you have. Still good advice to buy an SD rig and buy the Marshall 6.5" separately. There is a brand new version of the 7" monitor (don't recall the model number) that has a high-bright 800nit panel, but no transflective. It's about $200 more than the 450nit version. Another option.

I've just booked my flights for Cine Gear Expo. Wondering if there are any get-togethers planned...would love to meet some folks while I'm in town. I get in Thursday evening and leave very early Monday. Planning to pretty much devote full days Friday and Saturday to the event.

Second the recommendation for John Ritter. Mention the forum and he will, I believe, offer a discount, too.

Thomas, Thanks for the link to the cat-griller. Concept looks great, I could bolt on a cheeseplate easily enough. Out of stock, unfortunately. How heavy is yours? Andrew, the Manfrotto plate I hadn't considered, but I have a spare one so I will play with it. Seems like something could be MacGuivered out of that. Thanks for the thought. Ron, thanks for your insights and suggestion to contact Greg. I'll do that. Brings up a somewhat-related question: are the Tiffen plates all 66mm wide? If not, which ones are? What about other makers' plates? I've been thinking about extra plates, particularly with rod mounts, but I don't have deep history with CP/Tiffen rigs and don't know anything about what plates play well with what topstages. Is a concise rundown possible?

Appreciate any help I can get on the question of a simple female dovetail bracket and/or cheeseplate for the lower (66mm wide) dovetail on the bottom of Tiffen sleds (Zephyr, in my case.) I'm looking to mount a few lightweight accessories from time to time (Decimator, etc). and the Zephyr offers very few mounting options on the lower spar. It could be as simple as an aluminum plate that screws into the 1/4-20 with some "stops" to keep it from twisting, and flat surfaces for velcro...or something more elaborate and elegant that incorporated mounting holes. I could cook something up, but thought I'd ask what may be out there already. The only thing I'm aware of is Steve Fracol's weight plate system.

If you're interested, please feel free to make an offer. mark at sunporchmedia dot com

Very true...if that's the configuration you're using. I'd wager that it still might be on the light side, though. Get that puppy into the 15 lb range with a weight plate and now you're cooking! If it's just a 5D/60D/7D with a wide angle zoom, internal battery and lens hood, (documentary/low-budget music video/wedding/event shooting), fuggedaboutit.

Now that Tiffen has officially revised their payload lift specifications to 9-23lbs (which precisely confirm the payload testing I did), a couple of personal observations and opinions. If you are planning to mostly use smaller cameras, and prefer to work without a weight plate (for documentary/event work, etc.), then the Pilot or perhaps the new Scout are your choices. The Zephyr requires a weight plate, or other weight, for the 6-7 pound cameras such as the HVX200, HPX170 to bring them up to 9lbs or more. DSLR's, forget it without a weight plate! What about the well-known Stillmotion Youtube Zephyr test-drive video from last year? They must have been using a Flyer or Pilot arm. If you are working at the high end of the payload range, you may need to use a longer post than you expected, in order to keep the total weight down, to keep the arm within its capabilities. Tiffen has removed the maximum 30lb arm lift spec from its Zephyr page, and from my experience it appears to be in the 34-36 lb range. This translates to a 23lb camera/aks, 6 1/2 lb sled, and 5lbs of battery, Merlin intertial weights, and everything else. The stock SD monitor is less than a pound, so a heavier HD monitor weight may need to be subtracted from "everything else". Bottom line, the Zephyr is a great little system with beautifully upgraded arm, sled and vest. The payload can stretch you into territory that includes most broadcast cameras and many RED configurations, which overlaps into the lower end of Archer 2 territory (at 1/3 the price), albeit with some compromises. If you want to go with lighter cameras, buy a weight plate or stick with the Pilot or Scout. You can consider the 9 to 23lb net camera payload specs to be accurate, with no more than a half-pound of "fudge factor" in either direction (depending on your specific arm.)

I have a similar problem, I get a "database error" message.

Ah, thanks. Familiar with the Marshall by reputation but couldn't ID it from the pics.

Tiffen's new published specs do conform to what I found in my testing. So, I guess it's official now. B)

Joel, Thanks for the pictures. Is that a Tiffen HD monitor on the rig or a 3rd party unit? If Tiffen, did they provide any specs? Can you snap some closeup photos and post them?

The el-cheapos include the Asus Wicast and the Brite-view AirsyncHD and HDelight. They are all consumer units based on the same chipset, with different antenna implementations. Opitek is repackaging the Asus Wicast with some semi-pro-style mountings and powering options. Interesting to see how all three fare.

Sorry I'm not with my case at the moment, but if it helps, the case is the same dimensions as the Flyer hardshell case and the Archer 2 case.