Canon XL H1 + Focus Enhancements Firestore FS-100 only in SD?

[Johannes Balzer]

Hi,

I finally got hold of a FS-100.
Unfortunately I was only able to run it in DV mode with the camera set to SD resolution?
This seems weird to me but then again, I'm just a beginner.
Am I overlooking something here?

I tried setting the camera to HD Mode and then I tried it at 25P and 50i but the recorder just wont start.
The recorder I tried to set it to all the modes, like DVCProHD, DVCPro and DV but none of them works.
It starts recording and then stops immediately.

In SD mode it works perfectly fine though.

Also I tried it on my older XL1 but that didn't do anything. Like it didn't even want to record manually.

Any Ideas on this?

Cheers

Joe

[Don Palomaki]

I'm no expert of the FS-100 but here4 are a couple thoughts for your consideration from what I've seen elsewhere on the web.

The FS-100 came in several variants. The model for the Panasonic may not work with the Canon HDV camcorders.

Camera and FS-100 settings must agree.

The Firewire out of the Canon is HD or HDV, (DVCPro, etc. were for Panasonic.)

Early versions of the firmware may be problematic.

[Johannes Balzer]

Ah ok.
My bad.. I should have researched this before I bought them.

Those FS-100s are DVCProHD, DVCPro50, DVCPro and DV recorders. they can't do HDV which uses MPEG2 compression on the tape. DV apparently doesn't do any compression except chroma subsampling so thats where the issue lives.

I think my units have the latest 4.0 Firmware. It is just a shame that they both work perfectly with the XL H1 in SD resolution, but they don't do anything on the XL1

Well that's a bummer.
I guess I'll be looking for an alternative unit then. But they are getting prohibitively expensive for what and how old they are.

[Don Palomaki]

FWIW DV does use compression within the individual frame (about 5:1 or so). That is why if was relatively editor friendly when it came out, did not require as much processing power as current HDVC recordings. the 4:1:1 or 4:2:0 sampling in DV still provided more than sufficient color resolution for SD video compared to VHS or broadcast. IMO the rub with DV is the in the compression which is hurt by the noise found in typical home video, especially video shot in poor light.

You might consider a component-to-hdmi converter coupled with a HDMI recorder as an alternative to finding a Canon-compatible FS-100. This was discussed in another thread.
https://www.dvinfo.net/forum/canon-x...le-2022-a.html

[Allan Black]

Originally Posted by Johannes Balzer

Ah ok.

I think my units have the latest 4.0 Firmware. It is just a shame that they both work perfectly with the XL H1 in SD resolution, but they don't do anything on the XL1

Well that's a bummer.

I was going to mention upgrading your Firmware last week. Johannes, you have to confirm your 4.0 Firmware upgrade asap.
Cheers.

[Johannes Balzer]

@Don
Oh thanks I didn't know that.

@Allan
The exact firmware version per the Menu is:
4.0.0.04080107
PAL
FS-100

What do you mean confirm upgrade?
The firmware files are nowhere to be found.
I even tried to get in touch with Vitec, the company who supposedly bought Focus Enhancements but they seem to be so far off planet earth somewhere in a ivory tower that they don't even feel it necessary to answer an email at all. It's like they're just a letterbox company who doesn't make or accomplish anything.

[George Dean]

I'm coming in here late and this maybe something you are not interested in, if so please ignore. When I was shooting with a Conon Xl H1, I elected to match it with an Atomos Samurai Blade (SDI) that worked very well. I repeated attempted to work out an FS-100 but it was so confusing at the time I just opted for a more friendly product with better support. Just a suggestion if you haven't consider it if the FS-100 doesn't work out for you.

[Allan Black]

Originally Posted by Johannes Balzer

@Allan
The exact firmware version per the Menu is:
4.0.0.04080107
PAL
FS-100

What do you mean confirm upgrade?
.

I meant, confirm that you have the latest 4.0 version installed before you try anything else, which you have.
Cheers.

[Johannes Balzer]

@George Dean
Yes the Samurai Blade looks pretty cool but the units I could find over here are usually going for 400 bucks and more while I got hold of two FS-100s for 100 bucks each
If my odyssey really doesn't work out I'll probably go for a Samurai Blade but for now I kind of want to keep trying :D

@Allan Black
Well I'm not sure if this is really the latest firmware version.
Somehow I could find information on a 4.0.1 firmware but so far I was unable to get hold of the actual upgrade file.
It seems like Focus Enhancements sold the firmware upgrades back in the days instead of just providing them publically

[Danny Gates]

I now have a copy of the FS-100 v4.0.1 firmware if you want a copy.
I too am trying to get it working with a Canon XL1