is this the new GL 2 ? at DVinfo.net

Don Donatello · June 24th, 2002, 11:50 AM

http://www.xm-2.com/

Jenn Kramer · June 24th, 2002, 12:56 PM

Survey says... if not that's a whole lot of work for a short-lived hoax. Kinda looks like a set piece off the Enterprise. And a bit longer than the GL1. No prices, though. I wonder if Canon's plan is to price it against the VX-2000.

Bryan Beasleigh · June 24th, 2002, 01:38 PM

It still has 1/4" CCD's but a few more effective pixels from 320 to 470K for PAL That's a 30% jump.

Audio has more control and there's a dual XLR adapter that clips on the hot shoe.

The LCD goes from 122k to 200k.

I don't know if the GL1 had it but this has a pretty comprehensive color , hue and sharpness preset function.

Low light has gone from 6 to 3 lux

It looks built to do battle with the TRV950 / PD 10X, not the VX2K

Lets give Canon credit they did not pull a Pana/Sony and cut the CCD size and increase the gain. The lens is still a 20X.

Michael Rosenberger · June 24th, 2002, 05:30 PM

Just got finished with another two camera shoot with my XL-1S and GL-1. Both cameras are awesome! The GL-1 definately has held its' own against the Xl-1S, though the prize goes to the X.

The only thing I have really ever had a complaint about is the lack of audio control. Looks like that has been solved nicely. And with the added image quality from the increased pixels I would be hard pressed not to buy another. Just can't wait to get my hands on one to test.

And as for holding there own with Sony, I think they always have. Have used both GL-1 and TRV 900 footage in cuts without much correction between the two. Neither was better than the other. Just a bit of difference in color and contrast.

CarterTG · June 25th, 2002, 08:02 AM

After looking at the pictures I thought I'd do some wondering out loud...

The first would be whether the MA300 XLR adapter would fit the old GL1's hotshoe. True, there's still the GL1's pseudo-AGC to get in the way, but I'd like having a sleek unit like that sitting conveniently up there and taking it's power from the hotshoe. Never fancied the beachtek-style units much; just personal preference. Plus, if I needed greater audio control, that's when the XL-1 comes out.

Holding my GL-1 at a profile and comparing it to the GL-2, two more questions pop up... general shape being very similar to each other, the GL-2's LCD hatch door distinctively looks SMALLER. Granted it claims resolution is UP, but if it's at a cost of the physical size, I think this'll be the first of the future-famous GL-2 nit. The other lesser question is whether the GL-2 uses the smaller BP-5xx series battery currently used by the ZR-xx camcorder line. Probably not, but somehow eyeballing the proportions to the rest of the camera, the battery looks smaller (not accounting varying depths) in the GL-2 than what I'm seeing in the GL-1. If so, chalk one up to the marketing guys to get future XL-1/GL-2 owners to have to buy two sets of batteries. A small fraction of my decision to go with the GL-1 (as a backup for the XL-1) was I only needed to carry one set of batteries ( & charger) with me.

Oh well, I'll guess I'll keep hammering at a non-existent http://www.canondv.com/gl2/ until Canon actually activates the directory and fill it with information. ;-) ;-)

No.... http://www.canondv.com/xm2/ doesn't come up either. :-)

Michael Rosenberger · June 25th, 2002, 10:26 AM

In the Specs area it say the LCD is the same 2.5", so it may just be reformed. The catch for me is that the viewfinder specs on the GL-2 is .44"! The GL-1 is .55" and I consider that useless. I am hoping the new unit spec is just a misprint or something and not really smaller.

I would think the new MA300 would fit the old GL-1, or should I say I would expect it would. What killed me is I took the shotgun mic off my XL-1S and tried to connect it on the GL-1. The plug isn't standard! Now, how hard would it have been to make a standard mini mic/pwr plug between the two? So replacing the stock shotgun on the XL-1S with better unit leaves me with a spare I guess. Or I could butcher the plug to make it work for the GL-1...

The batteries in spec are still 900 series. I would think the smaller packs just couldn't juice the camera for very long.

The rebate for the GL-1 ends after June so I would still expect the official news to come in July.

CarterTG · June 25th, 2002, 11:55 AM

Well, it looks like tidbits of info is on their site... just not made public yet... the site's being worked on. For all I know the following just might be decoy data till everything's finished:

The stills the GL2 can take are 1.7megapixels (1488x1128)

It might have a USB terminal (?) in addition to the IEEE 1394

MMC / SD Memory Card

Image sensor is 1/4" 3CCD. 410k pixels (380k effective for NTSC)

2minutes 50seconds to rewind a 60minute cassette

20x Flourite lens is F/1.6-2.9. 4.2-84mm (no change from GL1)

6lux illumination, 100lux recommended

0.44inch 180k pixel viewfinder (aperture on the eyepiece looks smaller than GL1 per XM-2 site mentioned earlier)

2.5" (diag) fold-out LCD screen. 200k pixels

Dimensions 4-5/8" x 5-3/8" x 12" (half inch longer than GL1)

Weighs 2lbs 7-1/2 oz

And gleaning info from another site, the GL2 will have SMPTE color bars and an interval timer. Speculated MSRP: $2999

Michael Rosenberger · June 25th, 2002, 12:00 PM

I read the CCD's are bumped to 470K with 440K effective and the lux is down to 3 from 6. I am still wondering how much is fact and how much is just word of mouth.

CarterTG · June 25th, 2002, 12:30 PM

Much of what was posted is definitely not word-of-mouth from the streets... comes straight from the CanonDV site actively being worked on. But like I said, whether it's decoy data.. that's another story.

Anyway, a bit more has been gleaned from the site:

A "Custom Key" is programmable so that one touch will snap the camera into your favorite settings - color gain, sharpness, color phase, black level. This button works separately from camera-mode to VTR-mode.

Still uses the STV-250 cable like the GL1 (anyone know where to get extras??)

Accessories: WD-58H Wide Angle Adapter (0.7x). VL-3 Light (dinky and powered by hotshoe), HC-4100 system case, Kata GL2 case (solid frame), Kata Rain Cover

Now the following info below is definitely word-of-mouth and some sounds MUCH too good to be true...

Slow shutter speeds 1/30, 1/15, 1/8 seconds

Gain settings: +18, +12, +6

ClearScan 60.5Hz - 201.5 Hz in 120 steps

Variable Zebra Level (80/85/90/95/100 IRE)

VCR Stop (5-minute shut-down fix)

16:9 EVF guides

VU audio level meters also show up on the EVF and color LCD

Pass analog feed in real-time to computer

Now, if 90% of EVERYTHING above is true, that $2999 MSRP is lookin' MIGHTY good. If I were in the market for a camera, most of the XL-1s features being carried over would already put the GL2 higher on my consideration list over the VX2K... and having a 30fps Frame Movie Mode shooting option would be the deal-breaker.

Michael Rosenberger · June 25th, 2002, 12:48 PM

All sounds good. Can't wait to get my hands on a unit to demo. Have loved my Gl-1 and Xl-1S. And it does sounds as though they took the same features that raised the bar for the XL-1S and incorporating them into the new GL-2 (GL-1S?).

As we speak I am cutting together yesterdays shoot with both my cameras...and I am smiling the whole time. Great products.

Keep the info coming.

CarterTG · June 25th, 2002, 01:25 PM

Hrm... whaddya know... it's official as of this afternoon.. the CanonDV.com homepage now points to the GL2!

I'm heading for a celebratory beverage.....

Michael Rosenberger · June 25th, 2002, 01:54 PM

Yep. Now just how long before I can get a hold of one? :)

Chris Hurd · June 27th, 2002, 01:24 PM

MA-300 will *not* work with the GL1, because the GL1 accessory shoe is not hot.

All the specs are indeed accurate and apply to shipping units, you have read it right, basically the entire XL1S menu system with all those feature sets, and yes, a USB jack for moving still from the SD/MMC card to a computer. Hope this helps,

Michael Rosenberger · June 27th, 2002, 02:37 PM

Hey Chris,

Thanks for the update. I did notice the new "advanced hot shoe" term thrown in for the updated camera. Kinda figured that I still had the "cold shoe" technology with my GL-1.

Biggest question, if you have had a chance to handle the new unit, is about the viewfinder. Spec says it is smaller (.44 compared to .55) than the previous GL-1. Can that be true?

PS - Hope all is well. We are just get our land toasted here in Arizona with all the wildfires. Biggest one is over 400,000 acres, and it is arguably some of the most beautiful country in the state. Not good for us outdoor folks.

Frank Granovski · June 27th, 2002, 03:12 PM

That's interesting about the viewfinder's size. I don't like that.

The NTSC version has 380K effective CCD video pixels.

All in all, the GL-2 seems like a good basic cam, easy to use / to hold---and will probably shoot great video. Keep in mind, it's still got the interesting, 30fps progressive mode, unlike the Sony's new TRV950. Its 20X zoom will make it popular with wildlife shooting, like the GL-1. I would almost call this a purist's cam, instead of today's gadget garbage found in the consumer heap.

June 24th, 2002, 11:50 AM	#1
Don Donatello Hawaiian Shirt Mogul Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: northern cailfornia Posts: 1,261	is this the new GL 2 ? http://www.xm-2.com/

June 24th, 2002, 01:38 PM	#3
Bryan Beasleigh Trustee Join Date: May 2002 Location: Barrie, Ontario, Canada Posts: 1,922	Holy smokin rubberlips, batman! It still has 1/4" CCD's but a few more effective pixels from 320 to 470K for PAL That's a 30% jump. Audio has more control and there's a dual XLR adapter that clips on the hot shoe. The LCD goes from 122k to 200k. I don't know if the GL1 had it but this has a pretty comprehensive color , hue and sharpness preset function. Low light has gone from 6 to 3 lux It looks built to do battle with the TRV950 / PD 10X, not the VX2K Lets give Canon credit they did not pull a Pana/Sony and cut the CCD size and increase the gain. The lens is still a 20X.

June 24th, 2002, 05:30 PM	#4
Michael Rosenberger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Surprise, Arizona Posts: 143	Just got finished with another two camera shoot with my XL-1S and GL-1. Both cameras are awesome! The GL-1 definately has held its' own against the Xl-1S, though the prize goes to the X. The only thing I have really ever had a complaint about is the lack of audio control. Looks like that has been solved nicely. And with the added image quality from the increased pixels I would be hard pressed not to buy another. Just can't wait to get my hands on one to test. And as for holding there own with Sony, I think they always have. Have used both GL-1 and TRV 900 footage in cuts without much correction between the two. Neither was better than the other. Just a bit of difference in color and contrast. __________________ Michael Rosenberger Sure I'll shoot your wedding, for two million dollars.

June 25th, 2002, 10:26 AM	#6
Michael Rosenberger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Surprise, Arizona Posts: 143	In the Specs area it say the LCD is the same 2.5", so it may just be reformed. The catch for me is that the viewfinder specs on the GL-2 is .44"! The GL-1 is .55" and I consider that useless. I am hoping the new unit spec is just a misprint or something and not really smaller. I would think the new MA300 would fit the old GL-1, or should I say I would expect it would. What killed me is I took the shotgun mic off my XL-1S and tried to connect it on the GL-1. The plug isn't standard! Now, how hard would it have been to make a standard mini mic/pwr plug between the two? So replacing the stock shotgun on the XL-1S with better unit leaves me with a spare I guess. Or I could butcher the plug to make it work for the GL-1... The batteries in spec are still 900 series. I would think the smaller packs just couldn't juice the camera for very long. The rebate for the GL-1 ends after June so I would still expect the official news to come in July. __________________ Michael Rosenberger Sure I'll shoot your wedding, for two million dollars.

June 25th, 2002, 12:00 PM	#8
Michael Rosenberger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Surprise, Arizona Posts: 143	I read the CCD's are bumped to 470K with 440K effective and the lux is down to 3 from 6. I am still wondering how much is fact and how much is just word of mouth. __________________ Michael Rosenberger Sure I'll shoot your wedding, for two million dollars.

June 24th, 2002, 12:56 PM	#2
Jenn Kramer Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 389 Images: 1	Survey says... if not that's a whole lot of work for a short-lived hoax. Kinda looks like a set piece off the Enterprise. And a bit longer than the GL1. No prices, though. I wonder if Canon's plan is to price it against the VX-2000.

June 25th, 2002, 08:02 AM	#5
CarterTG Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Midwest Posts: 42	After looking at the pictures I thought I'd do some wondering out loud... The first would be whether the MA300 XLR adapter would fit the old GL1's hotshoe. True, there's still the GL1's pseudo-AGC to get in the way, but I'd like having a sleek unit like that sitting conveniently up there and taking it's power from the hotshoe. Never fancied the beachtek-style units much; just personal preference. Plus, if I needed greater audio control, that's when the XL-1 comes out. Holding my GL-1 at a profile and comparing it to the GL-2, two more questions pop up... general shape being very similar to each other, the GL-2's LCD hatch door distinctively looks SMALLER. Granted it claims resolution is UP, but if it's at a cost of the physical size, I think this'll be the first of the future-famous GL-2 nit. The other lesser question is whether the GL-2 uses the smaller BP-5xx series battery currently used by the ZR-xx camcorder line. Probably not, but somehow eyeballing the proportions to the rest of the camera, the battery looks smaller (not accounting varying depths) in the GL-2 than what I'm seeing in the GL-1. If so, chalk one up to the marketing guys to get future XL-1/GL-2 owners to have to buy two sets of batteries. A small fraction of my decision to go with the GL-1 (as a backup for the XL-1) was I only needed to carry one set of batteries ( & charger) with me. Oh well, I'll guess I'll keep hammering at a non-existent http://www.canondv.com/gl2/ until Canon actually activates the directory and fill it with information. ;-) ;-) No.... http://www.canondv.com/xm2/ doesn't come up either. :-)

June 25th, 2002, 11:55 AM	#7
CarterTG Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Midwest Posts: 42	Well, it looks like tidbits of info is on their site... just not made public yet... the site's being worked on. For all I know the following just might be decoy data till everything's finished: The stills the GL2 can take are 1.7megapixels (1488x1128) It might have a USB terminal (?) in addition to the IEEE 1394 MMC / SD Memory Card Image sensor is 1/4" 3CCD. 410k pixels (380k effective for NTSC) 2minutes 50seconds to rewind a 60minute cassette 20x Flourite lens is F/1.6-2.9. 4.2-84mm (no change from GL1) 6lux illumination, 100lux recommended 0.44inch 180k pixel viewfinder (aperture on the eyepiece looks smaller than GL1 per XM-2 site mentioned earlier) 2.5" (diag) fold-out LCD screen. 200k pixels Dimensions 4-5/8" x 5-3/8" x 12" (half inch longer than GL1) Weighs 2lbs 7-1/2 oz And gleaning info from another site, the GL2 will have SMPTE color bars and an interval timer. Speculated MSRP: $2999

June 25th, 2002, 12:30 PM	#9
CarterTG Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Midwest Posts: 42	Much of what was posted is definitely not word-of-mouth from the streets... comes straight from the CanonDV site actively being worked on. But like I said, whether it's decoy data.. that's another story. Anyway, a bit more has been gleaned from the site: A "Custom Key" is programmable so that one touch will snap the camera into your favorite settings - color gain, sharpness, color phase, black level. This button works separately from camera-mode to VTR-mode. Still uses the STV-250 cable like the GL1 (anyone know where to get extras??) Accessories: WD-58H Wide Angle Adapter (0.7x). VL-3 Light (dinky and powered by hotshoe), HC-4100 system case, Kata GL2 case (solid frame), Kata Rain Cover Now the following info below is definitely word-of-mouth and some sounds MUCH too good to be true... Slow shutter speeds 1/30, 1/15, 1/8 seconds Gain settings: +18, +12, +6 ClearScan 60.5Hz - 201.5 Hz in 120 steps Variable Zebra Level (80/85/90/95/100 IRE) VCR Stop (5-minute shut-down fix) 16:9 EVF guides VU audio level meters also show up on the EVF and color LCD Pass analog feed in real-time to computer Now, if 90% of EVERYTHING above is true, that $2999 MSRP is lookin' MIGHTY good. If I were in the market for a camera, most of the XL-1s features being carried over would already put the GL2 higher on my consideration list over the VX2K... and having a 30fps Frame Movie Mode shooting option would be the deal-breaker.

June 25th, 2002, 12:48 PM	#10
Michael Rosenberger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Surprise, Arizona Posts: 143	All sounds good. Can't wait to get my hands on a unit to demo. Have loved my Gl-1 and Xl-1S. And it does sounds as though they took the same features that raised the bar for the XL-1S and incorporating them into the new GL-2 (GL-1S?). As we speak I am cutting together yesterdays shoot with both my cameras...and I am smiling the whole time. Great products. Keep the info coming. __________________ Michael Rosenberger Sure I'll shoot your wedding, for two million dollars.

June 25th, 2002, 01:25 PM	#11
CarterTG Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Midwest Posts: 42	Hrm... whaddya know... it's official as of this afternoon.. the CanonDV.com homepage now points to the GL2! I'm heading for a celebratory beverage.....

June 25th, 2002, 01:54 PM	#12
Michael Rosenberger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Surprise, Arizona Posts: 143	Yep. Now just how long before I can get a hold of one? :) __________________ Michael Rosenberger Sure I'll shoot your wedding, for two million dollars.

June 27th, 2002, 01:24 PM	#13
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,368 Images: 513	MA-300 will not work with the GL1, because the GL1 accessory shoe is not hot. All the specs are indeed accurate and apply to shipping units, you have read it right, basically the entire XL1S menu system with all those feature sets, and yes, a USB jack for moving still from the SD/MMC card to a computer. Hope this helps, __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

June 27th, 2002, 02:37 PM	#14
Michael Rosenberger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Surprise, Arizona Posts: 143	Hey Chris, Thanks for the update. I did notice the new "advanced hot shoe" term thrown in for the updated camera. Kinda figured that I still had the "cold shoe" technology with my GL-1. Biggest question, if you have had a chance to handle the new unit, is about the viewfinder. Spec says it is smaller (.44 compared to .55) than the previous GL-1. Can that be true? PS - Hope all is well. We are just get our land toasted here in Arizona with all the wildfires. Biggest one is over 400,000 acres, and it is arguably some of the most beautiful country in the state. Not good for us outdoor folks. __________________ Michael Rosenberger Sure I'll shoot your wedding, for two million dollars.

June 27th, 2002, 03:12 PM	#15
Frank Granovski Outer Circle Join Date: May 2002 Location: Hope, BC Posts: 7,524	That's interesting about the viewfinder's size. I don't like that. The NTSC version has 380K effective CCD video pixels. All in all, the GL-2 seems like a good basic cam, easy to use / to hold---and will probably shoot great video. Keep in mind, it's still got the interesting, 30fps progressive mode, unlike the Sony's new TRV950. Its 20X zoom will make it popular with wildlife shooting, like the GL-1. I would almost call this a purist's cam, instead of today's gadget garbage found in the consumer heap.