I recently bought a Manfrotto 701HDV and paired it with my Gitzo 1228 legs. I was unable to get the bubble level centred and always felt as if I wasnt shooting straight and had to manually tilt the camera to take shots which I believed were level. Well the end result isnt so bad, but to eliminate future problems I was about to return the 701 head and get another set, until I came across the 562 monopod. Would the 701HDV fit on this monopod ? If yes how would the combo be workable ? I have a choice of returning the head and getting a 561BHDV but then the head of the 561BHDV would not be usable on a tripod if required in the future ? So can someone please advice me about the 562+701HDV combo ? or any other suggestions, thanks

The 562 has already a base plate so this is not the best option to fix your 701 head on it.

Have a look at the Manfrotto 685B, it seems very good, for instance. You'll just have to screw the 701 head on the top on it.

And avoid the 561 monopod because, as you guessed, you won't be able to use its head anywhere else, because it has no panning function (its head pans thanks to the base of the monopode).

Thanks for your reply. The dealer is selling me the 562 without the base plate (cheaper), so fixing the 701 will not be a problem.