HDMI to HD-SDI Converter - Atomos: H2S vs AJA: HA5

[CristinaLoyola]

Hey good people, need help making a decision.

OK, I have the Canon C100 and I want to connect it with the sled of the Scout.
The sled has a BNC connection whereas the C100 has an HDMI; so I'm looking for an HDMI to SDI converter.

 

I'm between the Atomos: H2S & AJA: HA5

 

 

Small Comparison on the features I'm considering:

 

Powering-Up

AJA: can be powered straight from the Sled (w/ extra accesorry-if I'm not mistaken)
Atomos: Has internal battery & takes external Sony batteries (one is included)

Mounting

AJA: not sure
Atomos: attaches to my Atomos Ninja 2 (w/ not extra cables) which i'll be using with the Scout

 

Extra Uses/Attributes

AJA: can embed audio

Atomos: very small & has a flashlight mode for dark places

Price

The Atomos is around £70/$120 cheape than the AJA, depending where you look.



Did I leave anything important out that I should consider? All opinions welcome!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Shawn Wang]

just go with the atomos, the battery option gives you less cable to run than AJA.

 

thats no brainer for your budget and work

[CristinaLoyola]

I was thinking the same but it never harms to get an extra opinion.

Thanks Shawn!

[Victor Lazaro]

The atomos is the smallest on the market, plus it embarks a signal generator to troubleshoot and a flashlight. You can also get a dummy battery to power it off the sled if you need.

[Charles Papert]

just go with the atomos, the battery option gives you less cable to run than AJA.

 

thats no brainer for your budget and work

 

This is a philosophy that largely materialized in the DSLR era and I never understood it. Way I see it, the more batteries you have onboard, the more chances that one of them will go down in the middle of the shot, and you have to check multiple places to figure out which one it is and then swap it out, let alone manage multiple types of batteries and chargers etc. How is adding a cable more work than that?

 

Power everything off the sled battery, you can keep an eye on the charge level more easily and change out as you see fit. A lot less hassle.

[Alan Rencher]

What I do with Atomos Connects is to cut the AC adapter and splice in male and female connectors inline. That's instant dummy battery DC cable & you still have an AC adapter.

 

[John Brankin]

The C100 has an AV out port. That should send a SD signal that would work with your rig.

http://www.manualslib.com/manual/430742/Canon-Eos-C100.html?page=112#manual

[Shawn Wang]

 

This is a philosophy that largely materialized in the DSLR era and I never understood it. Way I see it, the more batteries you have onboard, the more chances that one of them will go down in the middle of the shot, and you have to check multiple places to figure out which one it is and then swap it out, let alone manage multiple types of batteries and chargers etc. How is adding a cable more work than that?

 

Power everything off the sled battery, you can keep an eye on the charge level more easily and change out as you see fit. A lot less hassle.

 

 

nice point ! thanks for that !

[Frederic Sturm]

I can only second Charles post, less is more with batteries, for all the reasons mentioned.

 

And for the atomos, I do exactly what Alan suggested, as the atomos devices can handle non-standard voltages (i.e. 12V plus, a fully charged v-mount or the like) on their sony battery ports. If you wire the adapter for direct connection however, don't use it for other standard NP-F devices without checking first, as it might just kill them!

 

Also I'd like to add, that if you're on a budget and can live with SD monitoring (your Monitor has a CVBS in, too), I second the suggestion of using the AV out - for the most part in the beginning this should be just fine. If your camera doesn't have an SD AV out, this little guy

http://www.amazon.com/Etekcity%C2%AE-Composite-Video-Audio-Converter/dp/B008FO7PQA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1405776417&sr=8-3&keywords=Hdmi2av

will convert hdmi to av reliably and (at least mine does) without any power input, other than what comes through the hdmi cable itself. Also, it's dirt cheap, tiny and lightweight, so easy to rig.

[Jack Lam]

I'd stay away from the Atomos converter. I have one that died on me in the middle of a shoot. Sent it in to get it fixed (had to say their turn-around was pretty quick and responsive). Then recently it died again.....

 

[Gyan gurung]

Hey cris I have atomos h2s canon c100 and Steadicam scout. When I connect hdmi direct to monitor picture is coming but using bnc picture is not coming I am helpless.

Sorry for my English

[CristinaLoyola]

Hi people, thank you so much for all the feedback!

The solution was simple after all. I connceted the C100 to the Scout's monitor, using the AV OUT (C100) to the CVBS (Scout monitor), as you all suggested.

Thanks again.