The Betz Wave system review??

[Dave Isern]

I've enjoyed using the Wave1.

I use it primarily for help with windy days when I have broad wide horizons around me. It also helps with some tricky or uncomfortable Low-Mode shots. Works great, just out of the box. I carry some old heavy brick batteries from heavier film days to counterbalance.

Rock solid. Doesn't take much power.

Betz manufactures by demand, so orders may take a couple months.

 

Have fun flying,

Dave

www.daveisern.com

[Raul Bujard]

Hi,

I have a lot of vibration problems in the image with my wave1

with long optics and when I walk something fast, any help?

M-power is ok

 

thanks

[James Baldanza SOC]

The Wave1 is rock solid. I doubt your vibration is being caused by the Wave1.

[Nikolay Kerezov]

The Wave1 is rock solid. I doubt your vibration is being caused by the Wave1.

Agree 100%

[Lawrence Karman]

I've got one and have used it for heavy wind work a couple of times. If wind is coming from the side it really works great. Head on wind is still floating headroom issue. Have not experimented with a really fast drop time yet as I balance as I normally do without the wave. Maybe that would help. Very sold piece of gear, no vibration issues.

[Raul Bujard]

Ok, I also thought it might be to have so much weight down with very heavy cameras in a sled PRO of 1'5 "

thank you all

[Tom Wills]

I just spent my first normal day on set with the Wave, rented from my good friend Larry McConkey. It was quite the experience, and it confirmed my feelings, and made me all the more glad I have one on order.

 

First of all, a few things that are of note. Flipping to low mode now has an added step. You must, and I mean must lock the Wave before you flip, or you will be forced to reboot it (and wait for it to re-calibrate - thankfully a very quick process). On my show, especially on the promo unit, we move very, very quickly, and often flip to low mode without even docking. This is a small step, but forgetting to lock the Wave a few times today did slow me down by a few seconds.

 

Cable management is a big deal. A coiled BNC which I've taken to using for most of my video feeds into the sled ended up pulling on the Wave, and while it didn't seem to have any significant adverse side effects, I did have to disconnect the cable to get the balance of the Wave correct. The motor cable from the MDR mounted on my sled was also in the way, and took a bit of dressing to make neat, but still flexible for the full range of motion.

 

Also important - you still do need to keep the sled pretty darn level! While some may view this as a tool to save an operator with poor horizon control, the Wave will only add to a poor operator's shots one of the banes of the gimbal world's existence - lateral translation. While the horizon may be level, there is a significant amount of side-to-side shifting if the sled's level isn't consistent.

 

As for balance, after some testing with Larry, we found it was of incredible importance to have the top/bottom CG of the camera correct. A bottom heavy camera means that if the sled gets even slightly off level, it will begin to fall in that direction. Very disconcerting! Some of the vertical balancing can be done via proper placement of motors, but I've added a kit of small screw-on weights (scavenged from a small Steadicam Solo), which can be screwed onto the top cheese plate of the camera to immediately add some top weight. From our testing, a Mini (which is the camera that makes the most sense to use the Wave with, I think) will require additional top weight in most configurations, as will an Amira with a zoom. Further testing may reveal a better solution, but for now, the weight is useful, and little seems to be needed. Side to side balance appears to be something you can get close, but I'm guessing I will need to be a bit more hands-on with my ACs to make sure that the camera isn't loaded asymmetrically - all the motors on one side, for example.

 

Operating with the Wave, as others have said, was a breeze. Most of the time, I forgot it existed, apart from a few times banging it into my hip in low mode. A quick twist of the fine adjustment knob allowed me to tweak to the verticals in the studio we were in, and I was ready to shoot.

 

I ended up having to do a few shots with the rig directly in front of me, backpedaling down a hallway - a position I sometimes find myself stuck in because of the width of my harness (and my shoulders). I can't stress enough how amazing it was to be able to concentrate on framing. What would have been a challenging shot - rounding several corners with bad sightlines to the monitor - was suddenly doable. The footage looked beautiful, and because I was able to let my muscle memory keep the sled upright, rather than chasing the bubble (and splitting my attention to watch the level), I was able to devote more attention to the shot. I also experimented on one of our shots with taking the sled deliberately out of level, to push the camera over obstacles. Leveling the sled back out (if done correctly) lets the camera perform a beautifully slow slide.

 

Overall, I'm incredibly impressed. It doesn't seem to contain the gremlins I was expecting from some of the early prototypes and reviews (no off horizons after whip pans or going around corners, very minimal drift over the course of a shooting day, etc...). I can't wait for mine to arrive, and I certainly wish I didn't have to give this one back!

[Jake Iesu]

I just spent my first normal day on set with the Wave, rented from my good friend Larry McConkey. It was quite the experience, and it confirmed my feelings, and made me all the more glad I have one on order.

 

First of all, a few things that are of note. Flipping to low mode now has an added step. You must, and I mean must lock the Wave before you flip, or you will be forced to reboot it (and wait for it to re-calibrate - thankfully a very quick process). On my show, especially on the promo unit, we move very, very quickly, and often flip to low mode without even docking. This is a small step, but forgetting to lock the Wave a few times today did slow me down by a few seconds.

 

Cable management is a big deal. A coiled BNC which I've taken to using for most of my video feeds into the sled ended up pulling on the Wave, and while it didn't seem to have any significant adverse side effects, I did have to disconnect the cable to get the balance of the Wave correct. The motor cable from the MDR mounted on my sled was also in the way, and took a bit of dressing to make neat, but still flexible for the full range of motion.

 

Also important - you still do need to keep the sled pretty darn level! While some may view this as a tool to save an operator with poor horizon control, the Wave will only add to a poor operator's shots one of the banes of the gimbal world's existence - lateral translation. While the horizon may be level, there is a significant amount of side-to-side shifting if the sled's level isn't consistent.

 

As for balance, after some testing with Larry, we found it was of incredible importance to have the top/bottom CG of the camera correct. A bottom heavy camera means that if the sled gets even slightly off level, it will begin to fall in that direction. Very disconcerting! Some of the vertical balancing can be done via proper placement of motors, but I've added a kit of small screw-on weights (scavenged from a small Steadicam Solo), which can be screwed onto the top cheese plate of the camera to immediately add some top weight. From our testing, a Mini (which is the camera that makes the most sense to use the Wave with, I think) will require additional top weight in most configurations, as will an Amira with a zoom. Further testing may reveal a better solution, but for now, the weight is useful, and little seems to be needed. Side to side balance appears to be something you can get close, but I'm guessing I will need to be a bit more hands-on with my ACs to make sure that the camera isn't loaded asymmetrically - all the motors on one side, for example.

 

Operating with the Wave, as others have said, was a breeze. Most of the time, I forgot it existed, apart from a few times banging it into my hip in low mode. A quick twist of the fine adjustment knob allowed me to tweak to the verticals in the studio we were in, and I was ready to shoot.

 

I ended up having to do a few shots with the rig directly in front of me, backpedaling down a hallway - a position I sometimes find myself stuck in because of the width of my harness (and my shoulders). I can't stress enough how amazing it was to be able to concentrate on framing. What would have been a challenging shot - rounding several corners with bad sightlines to the monitor - was suddenly doable. The footage looked beautiful, and because I was able to let my muscle memory keep the sled upright, rather than chasing the bubble (and splitting my attention to watch the level), I was able to devote more attention to the shot. I also experimented on one of our shots with taking the sled deliberately out of level, to push the camera over obstacles. Leveling the sled back out (if done correctly) lets the camera perform a beautifully slow slide.

 

Overall, I'm incredibly impressed. It doesn't seem to contain the gremlins I was expecting from some of the early prototypes and reviews (no off horizons after whip pans or going around corners, very minimal drift over the course of a shooting day, etc...). I can't wait for mine to arrive, and I certainly wish I didn't have to give this one back!

Insightful Tom,

Thanks for sharing. Do you use a rod or similar (with camera placed on it's side) to test the top to bottom balance of the camera? Similar to how you would check fore and aft balance before mounting to your donkey box.

How is the battery use? Did you find you were noticeably using more power?

 

 

Thanks

[Timothy Dolan]

For all those with the Wave 1 and gyros If I had the option of only buying one to be used for car mounts mostly and some slow push ins or pull outs what would be most useful to me the 6x6 gyros or the Wave 1?

[kirk gardner]

I just got mine in on Tuesday and used it on a commercial this week. It is a godsend. I did a soccer scene just running around everywhere with the actors and didn't worry about the horizon at all. The VTR operator actually mentioned to me that he was "super impressed there weren't any horizon issues, cause that's my least favorite thing about steadicam". I had to show him the new toy.

 

So far I would say it is fantastic, but I still haven't used it enough to firmly say one way or the other.

 

Let me know if you have any questions.

 

Where did you purchase it at and how is it doing so far?

[kirk gardner]

If anyone knows where the Beta wave 1 cn be purchased, please speak up. Thanks Fellas & Ladies

 

[kirk gardner]

If anyone knows where the Betz Wave 1 can be purchased, please speak up. Thanks Fellas & Ladies

 

[Lawrence Karman]

www.betz-tools.com

[Reid Russell]

I'm interested in renting a Wave1 in Los Angeles for the last week in August with a prep at Keslow on August 25th.

please email me: eyetrigger@mac.com

Thanks!

Reid

[Mariano Costa]

I'm wondering why there isn't even one single video showing what the wave can do? Only a few videos of itself during tests.