RTMotion Systems MK3

[Jarrett P. Morgan]

hey guys...i'm looking forward to order the MK3 as my first wireless system...i have 2 questions for you that you have used it or own it.

 

1. what is the actual usage distance of the MK3?

 

2. what is the best way of powering it? D-tap battery, xlr mount battery etc?

 

thanks

1) It depends quite a bit on the situation. I have been in open fields or in houses and have gotten several hundred feet, but I did a location on the last feature where a single old concrete and metal wall stopped the single from going more than about 20 ft. That is the nature of 2.4 GHz spectrum. The 900 mhz (Bartech and Preston FIZ1) has much more penetrating power.

 

2) I have a d-tap, 4-pin XLR, sled power, and am going to make an alexa power/run with a 24v-12v step down when I have a second to do so. I would at least have two cables for each method you have, and multiple methods in case you have to rig something differently. That being said, the d-tap is by far my most used.

[Milos Kodemo]

Hi to everyone,

 

I received two motor system (mk3) a month ago and did not want to post anything before a good try.

It is working perfectly. Very quiet, very fast, much faster than more expensive systems.

very happy

[Jarrett P. Morgan]

I would like to put in some more input now that I am 9 months into owning the system.

First off, the good (in no particular order):

- motors are fast and accurate

- AC's seem to like the hand unit. It is smaller and lighter than the HU3 and its battery life is incredible.

- The OLED screen on the HU is great. Bright and easy-to-navigate menus

- and on the battery note, using LP-E6 batteries is great. Easy and cheap to get.

- receiver/MDR is tiny. super small. and incredibly light.

- range is acceptable. there have been times I was wanting, but overall it has been good.

- Customer service is fantastic. For such a small company they have been quite responsive and very helpful (will get to this more later)

- Company is committed to good firmware upgrades. They just aren't fixing bugs, but actively making it a better product.

- Cost is obviously a huge factor. Quite cheap when compared to the other options.

 

So the really bad things next:

- First off, the biggest thing is that I have had a TON of receiver issues. (according to Kris, I have had 85% of the issues they have had total, which is saying something). I have gone through 3 of them this year and my whole system is back at the factory getting completely checked out now, as they thing something else has to be the problem. That being said, when the MDR needed to be replaced, they did so quickly and without having to go through a whole RMA set-up. I told them it broke and they shipped a new one right away. I really hope that they get it sorted out over there and it comes back perfect, because I really do like the system.

- Unfortunately this leads me to thing that there are inherent flaws in the design of the system; namely with the receiver antenna. I have had two of the broken by ACs through seemingly normal wear and tear. I am sure it was one event that did it, but it isn't like the device was dropped or whatnot, just used a lot on a fairly rough handheld show. It shouldn't have a problem with that if it is designed to withstand production environments.

 

And the design bads:

- The motor mount leaves a lot to be desired. Hard to tighten very tight and difficult to get to. Do yourself a favor and buy a Jerry Hill (or Film-Stuff.com) motor bracket and put it on. It fits the 15mm bracket and I used a wing-nut wrench to crank it down. So much better now. Acts just like a preston motor on a mount. Cannot recommend this route enough.

- Hirose connectors for power and camera control. Not a big fan in favor of Lemos. (if they had thought about it I think using Bartech standard connectors would have been smart for power and camera, for upgrades and cable sharing)

- 4pin 0B Lemos for the motors/ motors not compatible natively with other digital systems. I imagine this was a cost issues, but too many other devices use 4 pin 0B Lemos. I like it when a connector is only used for one or two things, it helps cut down on confusion with AC's not familiar with the system. (I.e. I had an AC pull in a motor to the camera port on the MDR with a red one (4 pin 0B Lemo) start stop cable. I have since taken and labeled everything better, but the anecdote still stands)
- Not a huge fan of the labeling discs. Too narrow for my taste. I built my own out of PVC and the AC seem to prefer the homemade wider ones.

That is all I have for now. Please let me know if you have any specific questions!

[Jarrett P. Morgan]

An update to my review/thoughts. (I just like to put the information out there so that people searching can find relevant information)

I just received the newest iteration of the RTmotion remote follow: version 3.1

 

It seems to address several of the issues I discussed before. The antennas are now encapsulated and supposedly more powerful/better (this will be proven or disproven with time). This for me makes the likelyhood of the antennas breaking off again next to nothing, which is wonderful. That alone is a great upgrade.

The hand unit's focus wheel is much silkier in its rotation, almost fluid-like. Much nicer than the older design with no resistance. It feels more like a preston now.

That is all I have for now, but I have a 7 day short coming up and will report back with additional findings and thoughts.

[Jarrett P. Morgan]

So I just used the RTmotion 3.1 system on two short films in a row and I have to say it performed admirably. Both 1st ACs were really happy with it. They compared it to between a bartech and a preston, which makes sense in my head as well.

If anyone is in Atlanta and would like to try it out, feel free to give me a shout.

[Zoltan Jonas]

Seems encouraging Jarrett.

 

Their website says they've enabled manual calibration in the latest beta firmware. How, practically, has this been implemented? Is it efficient, say if you compare to a Bartech?

 

Some months back (they've removed this claim from the website since), they proposed adding 'lens mapping', - giving distance readings, f-stop readings. What does the OLED display offer at the moment?

[Jarrett P. Morgan]

Seems encouraging Jarrett.

 

Their website says they've enabled manual calibration in the latest beta firmware. How, practically, has this been implemented? Is it efficient, say if you compare to a Bartech?

 

Some months back (they've removed this claim from the website since), they proposed adding 'lens mapping', - giving distance readings, f-stop readings. What does the OLED display offer at the moment?

It isn't poorly impletmented, but it is meant as a feature to not use all the time, just when you need it (like canon L glass). It works well from what I have tested it, but it is a bit more cumbersome than the analog bartech (mostly because the analog bartech is built to do it constantly)

In my mind the feature is very handy to have in the situation where you may need to manually calibrate, but i have yet to have to use it on set.

 

Currently the OLED is used for menu systems (obviously) and then when you go to the main screen it shows an arbitrary number from 0-999 (or 0-99 for iris slider) that corresponds to where the focus wheel or the slider is. I suppose you could use the number for repeatable marks on the same lens, but using a marked ring is a lot easier. Generally I just turn the screen off to extend the battery life even longer.

[Zoltan Jonas]

Thanks for the insight. I was more hoping for a physical description of the manual calibration process - what knobs you have to turn, what limitations (if any) there are in the motor rotation to provide this. Of course any practical means of manual calibration is ultimately a good thing, in case you have some pesky DSLR lenses, or you need to use range limitation etc.

 

You're description of the OLED display is the same as what I got from another user in another forum some months ago, which indicates that the company hasn't made any significant changes to it. Still, I hope to see that RTMotion can program some more practical uses of it. The 0-999 might still come in handy though, if you want it to be.

 

Cheers.

[Bob Gundu]

I will have a more in-depth review of the RTMotion when the Schneider Xenon FF lenses show up.

 

[Zoltan Jonas]

Nice video Bob, first time I've actually seen the system in action. I also plan to make a similar setup with my new SmalHD high-bright monitor.

[Alan Rencher]

I've heard a few murmurings about the build quality of the RT3. Have any of you taken a look at the guts of the unit?

[Jarrett P. Morgan]

Alan,

 

I have in fact opened up the reciever (one gen old) and it seems fairly well made. A machine printed circuit board all with good solders on it.

 

I wouldn't throw it on the ground (I wouldn't with an MDR either) but I also don't worry about it on a set environment. To clarify though: that is the newest gen, 3.1. The older generation had some issues with antenna integrity that plagued me until I recieved the upgrade.

[kiranreddy ss]

I want to decide between the RTM and the Axis 1. Please advise, anyone who have used both. Thank you.

[Jarrett P. Morgan]

I want to decide between the RTM and the Axis 1. Please advise, anyone who have used both. Thank you.

I think they are both viable systems.

 

(The following list is based on my views on the systems as I have seen them: videos on the Axis 1, owning the RTmotion)

The Pros to the Axis 1:

stronger motor from what I have seen video-wise

faster calibration

 

Pros to the RTmotion:

more axises (sp?)

smaller receiver

smaller motors

acc options (gimbal mounted zoom control, etc)

 

 

 

In my mind, I think the Axis 1 is a more solid system if you only need one channel and you have the money for the more expensive system.

 

That being said, I love my RTmotion and it does what it needs to do. The newest generation hasn't let me down and I have a couple of rough shows with it.

[kiranreddy ss]

Thanks for the reply Mr. Jarrett.

I am looking at the wireless Follow Focus only for my movi M10. I am leaning towards the Axis1 but seeing the very good reviews of the RTM, making a choice is a little difficult. I am looking at only one motor.

Could you please specify the weight of the receiver and the motors seperately of the RTM if you dont mind. I am not able to find that information.

Thanking you in anticipation.