I own the Panny HVX200 and while I am amazed at the capabilities of the camera, I am distressed at how noisy it gets at anything over 6 or 9db. It also lacks black stretch, making it not as good in low light as other units. How does the A1 compare in these respects?

I have both cameras. Out of the box the A1 is noisy. If you set the A1 gain to -3db and give it some light it will produce a nice clean picture. Both camera require lots of light.

I have both cameras. Out of the box the A1 is noisy. If you set the A1 gain to -3db and give it some light it will produce a nice clean picture. Both camera require lots of light.

I had both and I have to agree and disagree a little. They both need a lot of light to produce amazing images. However I feel the A1 still produces acceptable images in dark situations where the HVX would look totally unaccaptable...and this is from using both.

IMHO.

You are right Marty.
I didn't answer the question. The A1 makes (in my opinion) reasonably noise free pictures at 6db. At 12 db you must use some noise reduction. That said it makes a really good picture all the time.