12v/24v Power

[Nathan Chapman]

Hello all

 

So, I've only ever flown rigs where the camera (usually a Red Epic, but at times a Panasonic AF100 and Sony EX-1 too) has been powered by its own batteries on the top stage.

 

My understanding is you can power the camera using the rig's batteries, and there are switch/es near the base of the post to change between 12v and 24v power. Ok, so sounds easy - I set the voltage to whatever the camera needs to be supplied.

 

Am I missing something? All over the forum I've found cases of setting the wrong voltage, not understanding what the switch does, and generally getting confused. Is there something more complex here, surely?

 

 

Thanks,

 

Nathan

[richard bellon]

Generally wires are either wired for 12 or for 24v, some sleds have a 12/24v connector that will do both but as I said has to be wired for corrct voltage. On my sled u can leave it in 24v and plug in a 12v wire and it will automatically send out correct voltage

 

IE if u using a lemo 1b series on PRO/MK-V pins 1+2=12v and 1+3=24v

 

some sleds can be set to run 12v parallel/series or 24 v

[Jerry Holway]

Each manufacturer is slightly different, but with most systems in 24 volt mode, 12 volts is also supplied and always available. Cables and pin outs from sled to sled may not be the same, so be sure your cables are matched to your sled.

 

Smoking issues arise when using accessories improperly, or using ones that are not designed for the voltages that come from our batteries - close to 17 volts hot off the charger in some cases, not "12." (or 34 volts, not "24.")

 

Issues also arise when accessories, such as a transmitter, are physically sandwiched between the sled and a battery. Sandwiching like this is often conveniently and safely done on a 12 volt camera with only one battery, but it can be a disaster on a sled if the transmitter is sandwiched between the "upper" battery supplying the 12 to 24 volts, rather than between the ground to 12 volts battery.

 

Ignorance tends to lead to problems, but a very small amount of effort can keep your gear safe.

[richard bellon]

What jerry said

[Nathan Chapman]

Hey thanks for the replies, Richard, Jerry.

 

 

Jerry, by small amount of effort, is there more than just checking what power supply you're connecting each component to, or is it just that - paying attention?