I just thought of something.

Sony said, that for the 60GB disk drive to be supported by the EX1, they had to allow USB expresscard interface. Although they said it would not support 3rd party memory... Maybe it now does?

Does anybody have a Lexar memory card (or some other expresscard usb memory) available tro try with the 1.11 version of the camera?

Would be interesting to know.. If the card could write about 9 MB/s ( 70 mbits) it would be fast enough to take on overcranked footage as well..

Any thoughts?

I found this in another forum

I tested the read write speeds of 1) Sony SXS 8gb card from my EX1 and 2) a Transcend 8gb card I use as a memory stick.

Using "Passmark" test software on my Vaio laptop, the cards were plugged into the Express card 34/54 slot and tested:

Results:
Sony SXS 8GIG write 4.63MBytes/sec read 31.2MBytes/sec
Transcend 8 gig write 0.68MBytes/sec read 15.4MBytes/sec

Anandtech had a review as well. Not a pretty picture, even as a thumb drive replacement.

Those numbers must be wrong.

in 720p60 the EX1 writes (on max vbr) 70 Mbit/s

which is almost 10 MB/s..

the SXS Cards can (on paper) handle 100 MB/s..

the SXS Cards can (on paper) handle 100 MB/s..

And it does - on my desktop, using the PCIexpress-based reader, I can copy to HDD at ca. 60 MBps.

Yeah..

So what I want to know is this:

Can you use an USB based SDHC reader and use fast SDHC cards?

Anybody got one?

I wonder if this device could be used to record SP format

Sony | MSAC-EX1 Memory Stick Duo ExpressCard Adaptor | MSAC-EX1 (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/517468-REG/Sony_MSAC_EX1_MSAC_EX1_Memory_Stick_Duo.html)

I tried this, with no luck (not with v1.11)

We know it doesn't work without 1.11. The point is, for the disk to work, they had to enable USB interface support through expresscard. So it _might_ work with the 1.11 :)

What they have enabled is the use of an Express card to USB adapter card. The PHU-60 is essentially a USB hard drive. It connects to the camera via USB and an Express to USB adapter card. I don't know whether the adapter card is a generic card Sony have re-badged or whether it is a Sony designed card. It may be possible to buy the PHU-60 and then use different hard drives, I don't know, but you would have to find a way to power the drive. As S&Q motion doesn't work with the PHU-60 I guess if you use anything other than an SxS card you will be limited to standard frame rates.

We know it doesn't work without 1.11. The point is, for the disk to work, they had to enable USB interface support through expresscard. So it _might_ work with the 1.11 :)

oK updated my cam to 1.11 purchased a Lexar 8gb express put it in the Ex1 message Format card poped up. Formated the card recorded at SP and HQ modes complete. I do not know if I would try recording a paid job with the after market cards at HQ mode. The only problem is the Sony external card reader will not read the Lexar express card SSD had to use my laptop.

so , any express card adapter to any kind of fast memory should work ?
CFExpressPro ExpressCard to CompactFlash Memory Card Adapter, (Compact Flash) Synchrotech (http://www.synchrotech.com/products-expc/expresscard-memory-card-adapters_01-compactflash.html)

or to usb hard drives ?

that would be great since a 120 gig hardrive cost nothing and is far faster than any memory.

oK updated my cam to 1.11 purchased a Lexar 8gb express put it in the Ex1 message Format card poped up. Formated the card recorded at SP and HQ modes complete. I do not know if I would try recording a paid job with the after market cards at HQ mode. The only problem is the Sony external card reader will not read the Lexar express card SSD had to use my laptop.

oh my.... can you shoot some rippling water.... even at 720 60p and see if it holds up?

googling some express cards leads me to some cheap prices.... but the SSD SATA drives via a sata cable>express sata gets me excited!

i am not sure ripling water would change anything, the bandwith is fixed ( i think).

oK updated my cam to 1.11 purchased a Lexar 8gb express put it in the Ex1 message Format card poped up. Formated the card recorded at SP and HQ modes complete. I do not know if I would try recording a paid job with the after market cards at HQ mode. The only problem is the Sony external card reader will not read the Lexar express card SSD had to use my laptop.

So you are saying non sxs transcend 8 and 16Gb cards now work in the EX1?

If so thats a hell of a saving on sxs prices if the quality holds up.

So you are saying non sxs transcend 8 and 16Gb cards now work in the EX1?

If so thats a hell of a saving on sxs prices if the quality holds up.

Have only tried Lexar 8GB SSD cards two min clips I will try to do more extensive testing tomr.

oh my.... can you shoot some rippling water.... even at 720 60p and see if it holds up?

googling some express cards leads me to some cheap prices.... but the SSD SATA drives via a sata cable>express sata gets me excited!

I will try tomr.

So I was right with my theory ;) Good stuff

What about trying an ExpressCard SD reader and use the new fast SDHC cards?

They're cheap And writes 30 MB/s... (sandisk)

Lexar 16Gb SSDs are available for $80-$100.

Far cry from $800 for Sony/Sandisk SxS 16Gb.

But will Lexars work reliably and in all modes, like S&Q etc.?

Have only tried Lexar 8GB SSD cards two min clips I will try to do more extensive testing tomr.

How did the footage look when brought into a NLE?

So I was right with my theory ;) Good stuff

What about trying an ExpressCard SD reader and use the new fast SDHC cards?

They're cheap And writes 30 MB/s... (sandisk)


I ordered one today... mat take four days

Great!

Let us know how it works out.

So I was right with my theory ;) Good stuff

What about trying an ExpressCard SD reader and use the new fast SDHC cards?

They're cheap And writes 30 MB/s... (sandisk)

So let me get this clear. You are saying put a 32Gb SDHC card into the ExpressCard sd reader and then push the ExpressCard SD reader into the SXS slot on the EX1 ( leaving the door open)

Is that right?

That's the theory. Are you sure you have to leave the door open?

I think some readers allow push in push out like the readers on many laptops..

That's the theory. Are you sure you have to leave the door open?

I think some readers allow push in push out like the readers on many laptops..


You would have to leave the door open. I thought it would fit inside the adapter.

Amazon.com: SONY MSACEX1 MEMORY STICK(R) DUO EXPRESSCARD(TM) ADAPTER: Electronics (http://www.amazon.com/MSACEX1-MEMORY-STICK-EXPRESSCARD-ADAPTER/dp/B0014KO204/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1220274283&sr=1-17)

You would have to leave the door open. I thought it would fit inside the adapter.

Amazon.com: SONY MSACEX1 MEMORY STICK(R) DUO EXPRESSCARD(TM) ADAPTER: Electronics (http://www.amazon.com/MSACEX1-MEMORY-STICK-EXPRESSCARD-ADAPTER/dp/B0014KO204/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1220274283&sr=1-17)

HI Brian, is that Sony one any better than this, or just a branded adaptor, because the price difference is large.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150289083497

That image probably shows the chip half way in. Would be no point to show a picture of it inside. Then you wouldn't see it.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

So I was right with my theory ;) Good stuff

What about trying an ExpressCard SD reader and use the new fast SDHC cards?

They're cheap And writes 30 MB/s... (sandisk)

This could work with an ExpressCard CF reader too... With a 233x or faster CF...

There is now to topics on the same topic. We should keep to one of them!

As I wrote in the other section. I don't think the CF reader would fit into the slot.

Oh, you can get the CF adapter in there, but the camera doesn't like it very much and I'd NEVER shoot with this much hardware hanging out of the camera. I got an "Unknown Media" message on the screen....no option to format or do anything else. BTW, that's the Delkin adapter.

Oh, you can get the CF adapter in there, but the camera doesn't like it very much and I'd NEVER shoot with this much hardware hanging out of the camera. I got an "Unknown Media" message on the screen....no option to format or do anything else. BTW, that's the Delkin adapter.

Thanks, Dave!

Forgot to add that I used a Sandisk Extreme III card which, according to Sandisk, tops out at 30 MB/sec data rate.

Forgot to add that I used a Sandisk Extreme III card which, according to Sandisk, tops out at 30 MB/sec data rate.

And you are using the latest 1.11 firmware?

Nope, not that brave or rich. I can't afford any of the upgrades that 1.11 allows me to use.

OMG... Without the version 1.11, this will never work...

OMG... Without the version 1.11, this will never work...

No need to bring deities into this. I was simply working off of this quote from Oyvind:


"As I wrote in the other section. I don't think the CF reader would fit into the slot."

Next thing we know... someone with 1.11 firmware will actually be able to use CF adapter to record on CF cards. Maybe?

This is all very interesting... Quite tempting to update firmware and try it out. Any idea whether sony will be able to tell/care if firmware was user-updated? guess they'd check the service history if i sent it in and realize my firmware was newer than it should be. im not really that interested in giving up my warranty.

Oh, you can get the CF adapter in there, but the camera doesn't like it very much and I'd NEVER shoot with this much hardware hanging out of the camera. I got an "Unknown Media" message on the screen....no option to format or do anything else. BTW, that's the Delkin adapter.

DITTO with 8gb Pro-duo will not work unknown media .
Amazon.com: SONY MSACEX1 MEMORY STICK(R) DUO EXPRESSCARD(TM) ADAPTER: Electronics (http://www.amazon.com/MSACEX1-MEMORY-STICK-EXPRESSCARD-ADAPTER/dp/B0014KO204/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1220274283&sr=1-17)

I am done ...I am using the Lexar 8Gb express card SSd for back up SP mode Only. Do not be surprised if Sony updates the firmware again and locks out the after market cards it can be done.

DITTO with 8gb Pro-duo will not work unknown media .
Amazon.com: SONY MSACEX1 MEMORY STICK(R) DUO EXPRESSCARD(TM) ADAPTER: Electronics (http://www.amazon.com/MSACEX1-MEMORY-STICK-EXPRESSCARD-ADAPTER/dp/B0014KO204/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1220274283&sr=1-17)

I am done ...I am using the Lexar 8Gb express card SSd for back up SP mode Only. Do not be surprised if Sony updates the firmware again and locks out the after market cards it can be done.

If Sony locks out the firmware again, can i get the firmware from you guys when i got the EX1 ? :)

guys with EX1.
Can you please test whether Lexar 16 gig express card works? Record in 25mb/sec is good enough.

Here's a thought. I wonder if you can use a Sony/Sandisk SxS in Slot 1 to record to, then bump the data over to a cheap 16 or 32 Lexar in Slot 2 in camera to off load? Might be more convenient than a laptop in many situations, and the sticks are so cheap.

Has anyone tried the Lexar cards in an EX3 yet?

oK updated my cam to 1.11

I assume this is a "give it to your dealer" kind of thing to upgrade the camera?

Currently it is a "ship it to Sony" kind of thing.

George/

Perhaps I missed it, but aside from the discussion here about memory cards, etc. Is there any real information about what's different / better in firmware v1.11?

Get up to speed here: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/sony-xdcam-ex-cinealta/128059-new-ex1-firmware-out.html

George/

guys with EX1.
Can you please test whether Lexar 16 gig express card works? Record in 25mb/sec is good enough.

Yes SP mode only

Anyone tested the Lexar card in EX3?

If I have Sony 8GB in one slot and Lexar in second slot, can I record to Sony card and then copy to Lexar 16GB? Then record again to Sony card and copy a second time to Lexar card to fill it up.

I also wanted to confirm that with the 1.11 firmware upgrade the Lexar 16Gb SSD Express Card works just fine. Again however, it only works well in the 25mb SP mode. I also confirmed through testing with my camera that it will produce a card error after about 5 minutes in any of the HQ modes. The reason that felt compelled to post on this matter is because of the huge $$$ savings. I just picked up two 16GB Lexar cards for $169.00.
I was within one day of purchasing the 32GB Sony SxS card for $1499.00. That is a total savings of more than $1300.00. For anyone who does not need to shoot in the HQ 35mb
setting, I highly encourage you to spend the $100.00 on the upgrade, and save big on the Lexar SSD media. By the way, another nice benefit of the SP mode is that you get a total of 79 minutes of footage on one 16GB card. Nice!

I also wanted to confirm that with the 1.11 firmware upgrade the Lexar 16Gb SSD Express Card works just fine. Again however, it only works well in the 25mb SP mode. I also confirmed through testing with my camera that it will produce a card error after about 5 minutes in any of the HQ modes. The reason that felt compelled to post on this matter is because of the huge $$$ savings. I just picked up two 16GB Lexar cards for $169.00.
I was within one day of purchasing the 32GB Sony SxS card for $1499.00. That is a total savings of more than $1300.00. For anyone who does not need to shoot in the HQ 35mb
setting, I highly encourage you to spend the $100.00 on the upgrade, and save big on the Lexar SSD media. By the way, another nice benefit of the SP mode is that you get a total of 79 minutes of footage on one 16GB card. Nice!


Be careful AL these cards are not Certified ..I would not trust a paying job on them. Also the write speed is slower on the 16gb cards. I am only using them for backup only.

It's interesting you can even record video on these cards in the first place.

Did you read users' feedback on Amazon and Newegg about these Lexar 16Gb cards? Consensus seems to be that they are very slow even for the normal file transfer operations.

Hmm