Mark Schlicher

Really inspiring move. The whole video was a well-realized vision, including the soundscape. Kudos to you, the director, the DP, and whoever edited the sound..

I was talking about Dan's labor and overhead to run his business (including product design, manufacture, sales, promotion, support, insurance, accounting, etc., etc.). You know, like Chris at Cinetronics or Terry West or Jim Bartell or Erik at G-Zoom. I had assumed you understood my meaning. Thanks for the opportunity to clarify.

Eric I understand just as well as you that HDMI connections are less than ideal. I dislike them as much as the next guy. You are correct that they are a consumer-grade connection, and so if we are going to split hairs I will stipulate that Dan added professional connectors, except he retained HDMI, per the Amimon reference design. Which A) addresses some concerns, though not all, and B) still makes it a more robust system then the Skylink that it has been compared to in this thread. Nevertheless, HDMI connectors are available on many cameras from major manufacturers in wide professional use, if someone want to use them with this system. Or not. True, cross-converters are a potential failure point and complication. But they are available if one wants/needs to use that option. Or not.

No, it's not that expensive to have an enclosure machined, you can have it done in china for materials +$20+shipping) Lemo chassis connectors are $35 so you're into the project for maybe $300... Of course, that doesn't take into account labor and overhead and other business costs. Does Paralinx get their machining done in China or is that speculation?

Dan does your pricing include the patch antennas as seen in the photos of the demo, or a screw-on diversity array similar the Skylink setup?

Certainly the "packaging" can be a significant factor in both the price and features of a finished product. The Paralinx Arrow and the Teradeck Bolt are both based on the same Amimon Pro chipset (possibly the same circuit boards too, who knows?). The Arrow has been criticized on this forum for lack of a robust housing and professional connectors. The alternative that has these features (plus HD-SDI) is significantly more expensive. No one complains about the higher price. Dan brings to market the Tomahawk, with a robust housing and professional connectors. It is immediately criticized for being more expensive than a unit based on the same chipset (and MAYBE the same circuit boards and firmware, but maybe not) that lacks these professional features...and is not sold nor supported in the US. I give credit to Dan for being the first to develop/adapt/package a product based on the Amimon technology, specifically targeted to the video market (including, but not limited to, Steadicam operators), at a price point that is very attractive.

I believe that Amimon sells "reference designs" to OEMs, who then modify the designs as they see fit, to sell to various markets. Not terribly different than the process that leads Small HD and Cinetronics to both design high bright monitors using the same LCD panels, I suppose...

My Decimator 2 does this for the last 3 years.... Exactly. Hence the winky-smiley-face. ;-) It's not like HDMI input is some insurmountable hurdle, if someone wishes use this product with a professional camera that doesn't offer HDMI output.

Thanks for posting, Alan. Looks like it will be useful for the F5/F55 and Canon C300 user base. If only someone could invent an HD-SDI to HDMI converter...the Alexa crowd wouldn't be left standing out in the cold. ;-)

You and your friends have an agreement to "bully" each other, which is therefore not actually bullying. It is horseplay. That's not what's being discussed here. Bullying (intimidation, sarcasm, piling-on, personal attacks, ostracism, shaming, and so on) is an aggressive attempt to control, or censor the target, or to increase the power or influence or self-image of the bully at the expense of the target, or of the community as a whole. All healthy communities (online or otherwise) establish rules and cultural norms around what is considered appropriate social behavior, in order to ensure the health of the community.

well okay. If you're wanting to rent, most rental houses and individuals do not "dry hire" stabilizers (rent without an operator.) Those that do, usually try to make sure they are renting to someone who is at least minimally qualified. Call around, maybe you can find one who will rent it. Hopefully it will be in good condition. Then try it out with the C300. If you operate a Merlin handheld, that's a different skillset than any system with vest and arm. WIthout a fair amount of practice you are unlikely to have even minimal success. Hire an operator or rethink the shot for dolly or handheld. Track/dolly requires qualified grips to set up, level, and operate the dolly, unless you are talking about a simple platform dolly that runs on PVC pipe. Cheapest option that you might be able to rent is an Easyrig. It's not really a stabilizer per se, but it may be stable enough for running POV/jogging shots, and will be much easier to use. Really, you should be talking to your local rental houses and testing out their stuff. That's where your answers will be found.

How good do you want the shots to look? In the hands of an inexperienced operator, shots with the Glidecam or Pilot will look the same...bad. So...if you don't care that your shots will be bad, then buy the cheapest rig...a Glidecam or a cheap Chinese knockoff. It won't matter. If you care about having a rig that you can actually learn (eventually...it won't happen overnight or in a week), then buy a Pilot. Your shots will still look bad in this movie but at least you will have something that you can grow into if you apply yourself. The knockoffs are like a guitar that can't be tuned...it will never sound good no matter how hard you practice. If you care about your shots looking good, then find a Steadicam operator who offers student rates and/or has a lightweight rig. Would you rather spend $2000 and end up with bad shots and a piece of equipment you will probably sell at a loss, or spend a fraction of that to hire someone who offers a student rate and can deliver shots that make your film look good?

The basics: Two main broadcast battery systems in the US: V-mount aka IDX aka Sony Anton Bauer aka AB aka Gold mount Both are in wide use. IDX is the "name brand" manufacturerer of V-mount batteries Anton Bauer is the "name brand" originator/manufacturere of gold mount batteries Small and large batteries are available in either mount. For any given battery capacity, the battery sizes and weights are similar between the two systems, genuine AB are slightly heavier. Generic batteries and charging systems are available in either mount D-tap aka P-tap aka Powertap is an Anton Bauer invention. It is an auxiliary power connector that plugs into a receptacle on one of the sides of the battery mounting plate (the main output of the plate is usually hardwired into the attached equipment that it is mounted to). D-taps are present on all genuine Anton Bauer plates and most IDX plates, AFAIK Most generic plates of either type have d-taps built in Many generic batteries have a d-tap connector built right into the battery. In the photo it appears that they are using an AB battery on a plate, which is mounted to the cage (unclear how) . The battery and mounting plate would be a bit over two pounds, plus whatever cheeseplate and bracketry they used. Hope this helps.

The Cinetronic Gen1 sounds like a no-brainer given what you've described. As for the 651, I use a top-notch engineer here in Nashville for nearly all my gear repairs. I had problems with a Marshall monitor (fried SDI board) and he diagnosed it, ordered the parts from Marshall and did the repair quickly and reasonably, and the monitor never had to leave town. I previously sent a monitor repair/upgrade directly to Marshall and had pretty decent communication and turnaround from them, too. No complaints. But if you're concerned about them getting weird about your modifications, then consider an independent repair shop/broadcast engineer.

I know the difference between passionate opinions and personal insults and attacks, thankyouverymuch. Remember "Goth Op", or the time Garrett made an uncharacteristically blunt call-out to a particular repeat offender? Those threads became so toxic that they were eventually scrubbed from the forum. I actually wish that the thread with Garrett's post had remained. He spoke great wisdom. I don't see anyone on this thread advocating for watered down feel-good discussion. I don't see anyone advocating against passionate opinions. It amazes me that a call for forum civility would be at all controversial. How is thoughtless (or intentional) abrasiveness, sarcasm and name-calling a virtue? I'm encouraged that a growing number of forum members are willing to speak up. I continue to be puzzled by the moderator silence over the simple, commonsense idea of a sticky in the Newbie section, which would orient newbies to the culture and expectations of the forum, and therefore minimize the "need" for the trolling behavior by some "professionals" in that subforum. It would undoubtedly reduce the number of newbie posts that some on the forum profess to "hate", but always find time to comment on.

It may have been labeled "change display name", I was going from memory... the option seems to be gone now.

Thanks, Tim! A question: where do I find the "rig" field? I'm not seeing it. Also, "change username" doesn't seem to work. It displays an old username and when I change it to what I actually already use, the field reverts to the previous, old username.

If you hate to say it why say it? just sayin'

I recently helped out on a student shoot that was using the school's handheld Flycam. I really tried to give it the benefit of the doubt but it was junk. The gimbal was so far off-center (and non-adjustable) that, when I it vertically balanced and turned 90 degrees, it literally went 45 degrees off-vertical. It was horrible. The "vest" and comfort brace or whatever they call it were worse than useless for any walking shot, restricting motion and transferring any vibrations or hip motion directly to the sled. A knockoff of a knockoff built by people who apparently don't understand the basic principles behind camera stabilization.

I'll ask again, why is there not a sticky to answer these recurring newbie questions and/or instruct them on the forum etiquette re: research? For all the irritation is seems to cause a few folks, that would actually be a constructive step. Surely if the forum can put up a sticky warning people about MK-V service issues, a sticky about the newbie section seems like a no-brainer. I understand that a few people do enjoy the target practice.

As one experienced op stated succinctly to me, "If it can carry the camera, you should get the rate." Edit: to expand and clarify, he was (and I am) talking about gear rental specifically. When asking about labor rate, he agreed that experience level was a legitimate factor in setting labor rates.

If you want to try out Steadicam, Flyer (used) or Pilot (used or new). Anything cheaper is probably a waste of money. And take a weekend workshop ($500 or so) or at least buy the Operators Handbook and EFP training DVD. You'll need several months' practice until you begin to be happy with your shots. If your goal is simply to up the production value your films with Steadicam, collaborate with a professional. Often, up and coming or even seasoned operators will be willing to give special rates for worthy student projects. Reach out to local professionals. Good luck.

Good information, thanks Victor and Alan. Interesting that they should have such a design weakness in a monitor designed for field use...

Lightly used Blackmagic Hyperdeck Shuttle V1. Excellent condition. $175 OBO plus shipping. Lightly used as a cross-converter only...the SSD slot has never been used. Converts 3G/HD/SDSDI to and from HDMI. Includes original accessories and two adapter cables to convert to fullsize BNC cables. Rubber pad has been removed and replaced with a piece of softside Velcro. This is the version 1, that records uncompressed only. PM or email at mark@sunporchmedia.com

Tim, Check with Tom Wills, he has made a couple of different small batches of yokes, and I believe that the price has varied a bit each batch. It was very reasonable, but talk to Tom. You need to know that, for the 7" (non-MD) Marshalls, you'll need to buy, from Marshall, some little mounting blocks that screw into each side of the monitor to provide the 1/4-20 holes needed. Tom provided mounting blocks for the 6.5" monitors, but they are not compatible with the 7" monitors.