Jared Hagemann Posted February 8, 2018 Report Share Posted February 8, 2018 Hey Guys, New to the forum, and this may have been covered before but I had trouble finding it. Can anyone describe the biggest differences between a Zephyr rig and an Aero 30 rig? It seems like they are very similar, with the exceptions of additional power options of additional power options of the Zephyr. The price difference is very extreme, even on the used market. As a beginner flying mostly FS7s and RED, would it be worth saving money starting on an Aero 30 or paying the extra money for a Zephyr rig? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Francisco Orozco Jr Posted February 8, 2018 Report Share Posted February 8, 2018 Biggest Difference is the bottom having dual rods to fine tune monitor and battery placement for pan inertia, as well as the option for 2nd battery plate for 24v power. This is a good reason to consider getting a zephyr since used they are around the same price as a new A-30. Also the A-30 is all made overseas and the gimbal does not have the nice flush clamp style locking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Scott Monk Posted February 9, 2018 Premium Members Report Share Posted February 9, 2018 Francisco is right. Also, the Aero 30 may spec-out at 20 lb payload, but when you actually try to fly that weight, you will find your post needs to be fully-extended and it will vibrate. The Zephyr will vibrate also when the post is fully extended flying heavy loads. But with the Zephyrs extra battery plate option, you can add more weight to the bottom of the sled so you can shorten the post. I've posted recently how I had mounted a two-into-one hot-swap battery plate to my Zephyr's add-on battery plate and flown the rig with two big V-Mounts (240 WH) on it. That allowed me to fully shorten the post when flying a Red One camera build with several add-ons and a 5-lb Cine Xenar lens. In one case, I actually mounted a Red hard drive to one side of the hot-swap plate to get more weight off the top stage and onto the bottom, and used a 6-ft drive cable bongo-tied to the post. It worked great; no vibration and my post was only extended about one inch. For the same money (or less) as an Aero 30, you can get a used Zephyr that is much more flexible to configure. Not to mention, it's max payload is about 3 lbs higher. That 3 lbs doesn't sound like much, but it can make a big difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Hagemann Posted February 10, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2018 Thanks for the replies and insight, guys. All this makes a lot of sense, and definitely answers my questions as to why I've never heard of anyone using an Aero 30 outside of DSLRs (including their marketing). The Zephyr sounds like a much better deal to get started on almost every front. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryan t jenkins Posted March 26, 2018 Report Share Posted March 26, 2018 the aero 30 is definitely a capable rig, but the zephyr does have its benefits for sure. All of the things listed above are true, but do not count out the 30. I have a 30 ( i needed to buy "new" as part of the contract and the zephyr new was out of the price range) and i have loved it so far. It packs very small, I have flown up to alexa on it, and I really enjoy having Ptap on the top of the sled. I also have not seen a zephyr for sale used int he 4500$ price range in a long time. There are also a LOT of mounting points and options for DIY add ons on the aero. It would be very easy in my opinion ot hang another battery plate or anything else you might need in order to get bottom weight. I have both a Flyer LE, a used Zephyr, and an A-30 and i fly the A-30 the most. It just "feels" better, crisper, and cleaner. If i need to fly the heaviest of weight stuff that i do in my line of work, I use the Zephyr... but 90% of the time that is not necessary and i fly the aero for almost everything ( incl. reds/panasonic eva1/blackmagics/f5,f55/miniArri) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Scott Monk Posted March 26, 2018 Premium Members Report Share Posted March 26, 2018 There are no $4500 Aero 30 units for sale, unless you're talking used - then they're a LOT cheaper. New with a battery option, they are mostly $5,250 - then add shipping and maybe sales tax. Here is a used Gold mount zephyr on eBay today w/low mode bracket with a Buy it Now price of $5,200. https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p3984.m570.l1313.TR12.TRC2.A0.H0.Xsteadicam+zephyr.TRS0&_nkw=steadicam+zephyr&_sacat=0 I assure you that any attaching you can do on an Aero 30, you can do on a Zephyr and you'll also have a more flexible rig. There's a reason why new Aero 30s sell for about half of the price of a new Zephyr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryan t jenkins Posted March 26, 2018 Report Share Posted March 26, 2018 im not denying that if possible a good condition used zephyr is the better option, i am just saying that if for whatever reason you are unable to get one, the aero 30 is no slouch. If i could have gone zephyr i would have, but im not dissapointed in my aero 30. There are no $4500 Aero 30 units for sale, unless you're talking used - then they're a LOT cheaper. New with a battery option, they are mostly $5,250 - then add shipping and maybe sales tax. Here is a used Gold mount zephyr on eBay today w/low mode bracket with a Buy it Now price of $5,200. https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p3984.m570.l1313.TR12.TRC2.A0.H0.Xsteadicam+zephyr.TRS0&_nkw=steadicam+zephyr&_sacat=0 I assure you that any attaching you can do on an Aero 30, you can do on a Zephyr and you'll also have a more flexible rig. There's a reason why new Aero 30s sell for about half of the price of a new Zephyr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Woo Posted September 12, 2019 Report Share Posted September 12, 2019 Thanks for this info! I was wondering about the exact same thing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Forte Posted April 12, 2020 Report Share Posted April 12, 2020 On 3/26/2018 at 8:48 AM, ryan t jenkins said: the aero 30 is definitely a capable rig, but the zephyr does have its benefits for sure. All of the things listed above are true, but do not count out the 30. I have a 30 ( i needed to buy "new" as part of the contract and the zephyr new was out of the price range) and i have loved it so far. It packs very small, I have flown up to alexa on it, and I really enjoy having Ptap on the top of the sled. I also have not seen a zephyr for sale used int he 4500$ price range in a long time. There are also a LOT of mounting points and options for DIY add ons on the aero. It would be very easy in my opinion ot hang another battery plate or anything else you might need in order to get bottom weight. I have both a Flyer LE, a used Zephyr, and an A-30 and i fly the A-30 the most. It just "feels" better, crisper, and cleaner. If i need to fly the heaviest of weight stuff that i do in my line of work, I use the Zephyr... but 90% of the time that is not necessary and i fly the aero for almost everything ( incl. reds/panasonic eva1/blackmagics/f5,f55/miniArri) I noticed the Dtap appears to be limited to 5A on the Aero 30. Could you run an alexa mini with a single channel wireless focus & teradek on from the Dtap to avoid running a battery on the camera? It seems like that would blow the fuse. Especially on the new Mini LF. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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