Okay...

I have an XL2. Duh. Recently I have gotten a 32" Samsung LCD HDTV to use as a preview monitor for editing. I am still waiting on my HDV deck from Sony, so for my most recent project I, UGH, have ot use my XL2 as a deck. I hate doing it, but my minicam crapped out and my deck is lost in fed ex hell.

Anyhoo, Logging and capturing is fine, and I have the S-video out going to my LCD for preview. Looks great, but, ALAS! What is this?! I notice (on green screen footage) A dead black pixel on my screen! NO! Only one week old!

I check out a soild green Matte from my NLE over the firewire-XL2-S-video connection, and the dot is still there. Ican't see the dot on my footage on my CRT main monitor so I know it's not a dead pixel...

However, when I Look at my LCD's main blue screen, I do not see a dead pixel, only when a signal is going through my XL2...

SO my question is.... is it possible I only see the pixel cause of DV's specific res/nature... or could there by some mysterious glitch in my XL2 where somehow a dead pixel would display on a screen but not footage.

Could there be some one-pixel connection malfunction? It really does look like a dead pixel on the screen when I pause it and look closely, but i can't see it anywhere other than my greenscreen footage (but not exclusivly on green)...

AHHH! SO CONFUSED!

Matthew, have you taken off the lens and checked that the actual digital sensor is 100% clean?

Have you checked different footage to see if the same dead pixels show?

Have you double checked that the Sony LCD screen is 100% OK? I guess it is if no black dots show up on the screen with a normal TV programme.

Have you tried taking a still frame and blowing it up larger to take a closer view?

Have you checked the footage using a different lens?

If you ONLY see it on pause, and not during moving footage, then maybe the XL2 can still be used normally...but if not, maybe it is a dead pixel.

I learned it was an issue with the screen, not footage, but for some reason it doesnt appear on purr Blue, only pure green and red. Eitherway, Samsung is replacing it for free.

I'm glad that it wasn't the camera, Matthew. I had a feeling that it may of been the screen. At least all is OK now.