Hey guys,
I'm a student film-maker and just bought my GL2 yesturday after a year of research. I really hope I've made the right choice! Anyways, yesturday I bought some SONY Premium DVC tapes. I was wondering if these are any good, because there are also the SONY IC Excellence tapes which cost 30 dollars a peice. I've also heard stuff about switching different types of tapes. If they are both SONY would this be a problem? Anyways, thanks and I'll be sure to post some videos from my GL2 soon! I've been a lurker on this forum for almost 6 months now! Thanks again for all your help!

Glen Chua

Welcome Glen,
I've moved you to this section of DVInfo which is devoted to tape matters. Grab a cup of your favorite beverage and browse.

Glen,
I have been shooting with the SONY Premium tapes for about 4 years now...I've never had a problem with them.

Forget about the Sony IC Excellence tapes.
The GL2 can not use the IC part of that tape. So that will be waste of money.
Use the Sony Premium or the Sony Excellence (Without the IC) instead. If you change to another brand, use a cleaner tape first.

I use Sony Premium myself, and so far only one tape has had problems.

As far as I know, switching between Premium and Excellence should not cause any problems.

Panasonic master quality are most likely the best.


John

Is there any evidence that the Pana MQ series' dry lubricant is better for all camcorders, instead of just the DVX100?

Is it true the panasonic mq's are the same as the Fuji 60 minute tapes?

I haven't heard that anywhere, and it seems unlikely considering the price discrepancy. Where did you hear that?

<<<-- Originally posted by Jesse Bekas : Is there any evidence that the Pana MQ series' dry lubricant is better for all camcorders, instead of just the DVX100? -->>>


I've been using Pana MQ's with my XL-1, and I have no complaints.

<<<-- Originally posted by Glen Chua :
I was wondering if these are any good, because there are also the SONY IC Excellence tapes which cost 30 dollars a piece.
Glen Chua -->>>

Chipped tapes are not worth it 99% of the time. Just don't bother with them.

<<<-- Originally posted by Glen Chua :
I've also heard stuff about switching different types of tapes.
Glen Chua -->>>

Once you select a tape brand, be it Sony Premium or Panasonic PQ, MQ, or whatever, stick with it and don't change. Changing brands of tapes, because or the varied types of lubricants will clog you heads. And if you think of using a cleaning tape every time you change tape brand, then you'll end up wearing down the heads prematurely. It's basically a loose scenario. Just stick with one brand/type of tape.

Sony has just come out with its Digital Master Quality series of double sided
tape. I would guess that they apply oxide to both sides of this tape which
is supposed to give better signal to noise and less chance of drop outs.

It's expensive, but there are times when I will buy it. The one master
I made from it was perfect. I've had dropouts with regular 3 hr. DVCAM
tapes too frequently.

I use the sony tapes in a very, very harsh environment: skydiving in the desert. Lots of wind moving things around and lots of dust on the ground. I also use multiple passes on the same tape.

I use only Sony since I shoot with Sonys. The Premium tapes tend to drop out far more often than the excellence tapes, even on the first pass. The IC chips I do not use.

You can get these for 7.50 at tape resources.

One drop out at the wrong time is a bad deal for me. In my PD150s I use only DVCAM to further protect against drop outs.

Cheers

Mike

Originally posted by Mike Cook :
One drop out at the wrong time is a bad deal for me. Bwahahaha! I imagine you saying this into a camera wearing one of those helmets and goggles holding a Sony tape. Then jumping out of the plane. Like one of those cheesy local cable ads!

I Like that!

<<<-- Originally posted by Jacques Mersereau : Sony has just come out with its Digital Master Quality series of double sided
tape. I would guess that they apply oxide to both sides of this tape which
is supposed to give better signal to noise and less chance of drop outs.

It's expensive, but there are times when I will buy it. The one master
I made from it was perfect. I've had dropouts with regular 3 hr. DVCAM
tapes too frequently. -->>>

I've read up on the Digital Master's and I've been thinking about giving them a try, but I hadn't decided yet. Damn things cost about as much as a spool 16 mill.

Apple DVD's are hands down the best. I've been using them for months now after doing heavy research.

OK, but you're not suggesting using Apple DVD's as masters, right? You want to retain the original quality of DV25 material, and DVD won't do that.