Premium Members Jarrett P. Morgan Posted November 15, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 15, 2014 A quick look at that Arri price List seems to indicate the opposite? iB Agreed. I like the Arri stuff, but it looks to be fairly more expensive. What about the wait times? I know Preston has quite the backorder log right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Eric Fletcher S.O.C. Posted November 16, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 Price and delivery questions need to be directed at arri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandon Harris Posted November 16, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 (edited) I can back up the claim on it being cheaper. I got quotes for identical kits from both Preston and Arri and Arri's came out cheaper. 3/4 of the items on the quote were available, and the remaining items had a 4 week lead time. Preston was 6 months. And they also didn't say which of the items were backordered and which were available. The Arri customer service has also been excellent. It took Preston a week to send me a quote, and several days to answer a question, and another week to answer a second. Arri had sent me a quote in a matter of hours, and they answered all my questions almost instantly. Edited November 16, 2014 by Brandon Harris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Eric Fletcher S.O.C. Posted November 16, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 Everybody also forgets that there is a zoom control built into the handset. That's an instant savings of ~$4000 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Lawrence Karman Posted November 16, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 Preston's service has been great. They have been quick to make repairs when I needed it. I have an Alexa and needed to replace a noisy fan. I waited almost 7 weeks for a replacement. If they don't stock a simple fan with thousands of Alexas in the field, I wonder what the repair/parts time would be for the WRC and motors? I can't say too much about the Arri WRC. I have tested it and I know the AC's had an issue or 2 regarding software. That may have been addressed by now. Being able to control the camera from it (we couldn't) is a plus. The older system had range issues, that may have been worked out by now? The AC's said the vibrating stops were actually distracting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Frederic Chamberland Posted November 16, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 I own both systems (Preston HU3/F/I unit/MDR2 and Arri WCU4,SXU1/UDM4) : Both are great/not so great for different reasons : Preston: •#1 remote in North America, all AC's have used it. •Plug and play, no software bugs, no frills. •Mix and match digital motors from different manufacturers (I have DM2/DM1X/RED motors attached to it) •Built like a tank •Ridiculously long wait for many parts and they don't seem to be catching up. High resale value on the used market. Arri: •No need of MDR when using Alexa's that have the internal MDR's, a very strong selling point. •Ergonomics are excellent, not plug and play but fairly easy to use with minimum learning curve •Lots of software bugs (most minor) , irritating coming from Arri, they do listen and updates are frequent. •Zoom control built into the hand unit •back lighting of the focus ring is great •motors are amazingly fast and precise (CLM4) I also rent both and as of right now, it's really 50/50 for preferences. I'm not ready to sell my Preston gear yet, but Arri is getting very good at making remotes. Fly safe, Frederic 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members brooksrobinson Posted November 16, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 Not sure if the follow focus division is the same as the rest of Arriflex, but it took me a month and a half to get a replacement knob for my Arrihead pan wheel because Arri was on holiday for the entire month of August. Again, I’m not sure if this experience is typical, but it would certainly give me pause, or at the very least cause me to ask more questions before I made a large purchase. Also, living in Los Angeles, it simply makes more sense for me to own something that is developed, manufactured, and repaired locally - Preston. I’ve never seen one of the Arri units on set, which is perhaps another reason to own a Preston (in North America anyway)…AC’s know them backwards and forwards, and there is no time spent on set explaining how something works on a day-call. Brooks 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Nic Owens Posted November 16, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 16, 2014 I've owned the WCU4 for around 18 months now and I haven't regreted my purchase at all. The CLM4 motors are very responsive and strong and the hand unit is both solid and light, built to last. I'm in the process of buying the UMC4 and, I must say, it has been a process. The lead time on getting a unit is about 6-8 weeks which, for a newly released product, seems a bit long of a wait. The market here in Oz is a bit different. It's split between Preston/Arri/Bartech. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Walter F. Rodriguez Posted November 18, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 18, 2014 Does anyone use the new Cmotion Camin 3 and Cworld with Cvolution handset? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandon Harris Posted November 25, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 Does anyone think Preston will come out with a new hand unit anytime soon? I guess there isn't too much for them to improve on to justify creating a whole new handset. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Jens Piotrowski SOC Posted November 25, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 You answered your own question. Preston was and is rock solid and innovative. Highest build quality and great customer service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Richard W. Davis Posted November 25, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 25, 2014 I have both a CMotion CVolution and a Preston HU3 G4 system. Both are rock stars! Rich Davis LA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Iain Baird Posted November 26, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 Does anyone think Preston will come out with a new hand unit anytime soon? I guess there isn't too much for them to improve on to justify creating a whole new handset. I don't think this is true.... here's a short list of wants from my focus puller who loves Preston but still has issues The screen should be larger The Iris slider should be on the other side of the unit so that one handed operation is easier and doesn't result in accidental button hits The Start Stop button should feel different than every other button on the unit (set's are quite dark from time to time) There is in fact a growing list of shortcomings with the HU3 as other companies come out with feature friendly units that are showing focus pullers what the possibilities can be. iB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Kar Wai Ng Posted November 26, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 I don't think this is true.... here's a short list of wants from my focus puller who loves Preston but still has issues The screen should be larger The Iris slider should be on the other side of the unit so that one handed operation is easier and doesn't result in accidental button hits The Start Stop button should feel different than every other button on the unit (set's are quite dark from time to time) There is in fact a growing list of shortcomings with the HU3 as other companies come out with feature friendly units that are showing focus pullers what the possibilities can be. iB The start stop button can be quite difficult to actuate when wearing winter gloves. I've thought about attaching a rubber pencil eraser or something on top of it. I have no problem with the size of the screen; I'm not really looking at it anyway. Would rather not have battery power go towards a big screen, which, the bigger it is, the greater the vulnerability for damage anyway. Number one requests for me regarding Preston is firmware either in HU3 and/or MDR to talk to Alexa. And a ring in between "D" (3' min focus) and "E" (6' min focus) with 4' minimum focus to match the 24-290 optimo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Walter F. Rodriguez Posted December 14, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted December 14, 2014 Agreed, all the long zooms made in the last 10 years have a minimum focus of 4 feet. I do use the "E" ring on the 24-290 when at the far end of the lens and need more spread on the focus knob. The additional of a 4' minimum focus ring would be great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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