Canon Xl1s Bad Pixel ??

When I film a black object, or when I film in the dark I see a pixel that is but clear that the others.
It flash white, but it is not white all the time, it only flash white intermittent, and only can see wen I film in 1/25 or low, not in normal 1/50 ( my camera is PAL )
Anything appear in the regular normal filming mode, only appear one flash white pixel in the 1/25 - 1/12 and 1/6 low shutler mode ( manual mode ).
Is my CCD workin correct or it is not?
There are one bad ( dead ) pixel in the CCD or not ?

Thanks

Veronica

[Joe Redifer]

Sounds like at least one of the three CCDs has a dead pixel. This is all too common in Canon camcorders, and is actually less common in Sony cameras (you would think it would be the opposite). It might be cheaper to just buy a new camera then to have Canon fix it. Plus I have heard horror stories about the Canon service department screwing up the camera when sent in for service, and the camera has to go back and forth between them and you many times before it is working properly again.

Unfortunately there are no articles here on the site or info from anyone other than myself who has had these bad pixels and what can be done about them. My camera has them and I am afraid to send it into Canon. Every time I make a post about it on the forums I usually don't get a response.

Thank you Joe

I bought my camara in Buenos Aires, Argentina, but this company is not longer exists in this country. In Argentina there are not one official service of Canon that can repair Canon XL1S.

So I can not repair my camera in Argentina

I contact Canon USA, and they said to me:

"Please contact the Canon company in the country where the product was manufactured for assistance."
I contact Canon Japan.
Is the Canon Japan service departament good ??
Canon Japan can resolved this problem ?
Who is responsible for the guarantee?
What I can do ??

Thank you Joe for the response, and sory for my english

Veronica

Thank you Joe

I bought my camara in Buenos Aires, Argentina, but this company is not longer exists in this country. In Argentina there are not one official service of Canon that can repair Canon XL1S.

So I can not repair my camera in Argentina

I contact Canon USA, and they said to me:

"Please contact the Canon company in the country where the product was manufactured for assistance."
I contact Canon Japan.
Is the Canon Japan service departament good ??
Canon Japan can resolved this problem ?
Who is responsible for the guarantee?
What I can do ??

Thank you Joe for the response, and sory for my english

Veronica

[Joe Redifer]

Well I might trust Canon Japan more than Canon USA since the Japanese take pride in their work whereas that's not too common a work ethic in the USA anymore (with exceptions, of course). Maybe try visiting Canon's web site and try to find out if you are covered in the area that Canon Japan is responsible for. Or maybe there is another Canon in some other country that can help you. Good luck.

Thank you very much by your suggestion.
I hope that the ethics and the pleasure by the good work, return to the spirit of the people.
For the benefit of all.


Thank you very much again

Veronica

[Chris Hurd]

Joe

I've had dead pixels before and Canon has successfully fixed them. Regarding the quality of the Canon service facilities, you only read about the bad experiences because nobody bothers to post about the good ones. Just like how you don't call the cops to say you're having a good day. By far the vast majority of experiences with service are very positive. If you have a dead pixel or two, they can mask it out, no problem. I think it's mapped to an adjacent pixel. Since you're in Colorado you have a choice between two service centers. Try the one in Jamesburg, NJ. Hope this helps,

[Don Palomaki]

Hot pixels. All CCDs have them, the only difference is how well they are masked or remapped. They can become more apparent when shooting dark subjects in low light with gain, especially at +12 dB and above. There have been very few complaints about hot pixels with the XL1 series. The added gain on the XL1s may lead to more complaints.

A pixel with a dark current equal to 2 IRE is still black at +6 db (4 IRE) dark gray at +12 dB (8 IRE), and getting brighter at +18 dB (16 IRE) and so on.

I suspect taht no one sees hot pixels in typical consumer camcorders beause the rest of the image noise level is so high it hides the hot pixel in the snow.

My dears Chris Hurd and Don Palomaki

For the reason why you say, it would not be necessary to change all CCD block. Could be repaired remaped or masking the dead pixel ?.
It is a very complex repair?
It is a very expensive repair?
Thank you very much by the explanation, it is the first time that somebody explains to my so clearly.

Thanks

Veronica

[Chris Hurd]

Determine if the hot or dead pixels are in the LCD viewfinder or in the CCD block by recording to tape and playing back on a video monitor. If you see the hot pixels on a monitor, they are from the CCD.

A Canon service facility can mask out hot or dead pixels by re-mapping them. If the camera is less than a year old, the repair should be covered by warranty. I don't know what the actual cost is.

If the hot or dead pixel is in the viewfinder LCD, it should not be considered a problem. A few pixels means the viewfinder LCD is operating at 99.97% and therefore within manufacturer tolerances (this is documented in the camera manual).

Hot or dead pixels in the CCD however should be repaired. No need to replace the entire block, I don't think.

Ok Chris, thanks for the post.

Yes, my problem is in the CCD block

I see this on internet and I coment to you and Joe Redifer perhaps it is certain and can serve to you !!
I will put my camera in the refrigerator tonight ...and will wait for 24 hours for the commentary...

http://www.cameradave.freeservers.com/pixel-5.htm

Dead Pixel? Hyperactive Pixel? White Spot? Residual Point Noise (RPN)? CCD Defect?
Pad You have probably heard all of these "dreaded" terms. Maybe even about your camera. (I hope not) There are several theories as to why these appear. One of them is Cosmic Rays destruction of your CCD image sensors. Another one is heat deterioration of the image sensors. Or even my theory, high incidences of static electricity. There are even theories about airport X-ray machines, and just flying in an airplane. Pad
At this time, the major manufacturers of cameras are supporting the Cosmic Ray theory. This means, unfortunately, that if you fly with your camera, that the cosmic rays that are in the upper atmosphere may damage your camera CCDs. Many manufacturers recommend that you ship your camera by truck or boat to any site you will be shooting at. This is probably not practical for many of you. I know you have to be on site at a moment's notice. I feel I should mention here that there is no definitive proof that this Cosmic Ray theory is completely true. Let's just say it's a possibility.
Now for some better news: Some camera manufacturers have included a pixel drop out or compensation circuit in their cameras. This means that you may have a chance at correcting that spot you see in your viewfinder/picture. Many of the manufacturers will not or cannot confirm the existence of any such circuitry in their cameras. Don't let that discourage you from trying to see if you have it or not. On some cameras activating the black balance will also operate the compensation circuit. You will need to black balance at least once, probably a few more times, or even, on occasion, up to 10 times and maybe that pixel spot will go away. On other cameras there are switches on the prism/ccd assembly that will allow you to activate the circuit. This may get you out of that tight spot where you see the defect and you hope the client doesn't.
Another possibility, that has worked on various occasion, is to cool your camera down to 40 degrees or less for about 24 hours. (Or if you feel like it, just the image sensor/prism block section.) You don't actually have to freeze the camera, just keep it very cool. If you do this, I recommend that you put your camera in a large plastic bag, and seal it. Put the plastic bag with your camera in it, in your refrigerator, cold garage, or where ever it's cold, for about 24 hours. When you remove it, leave the camera in the bag until it warms to room temperature. We don't want any condensation on it, as moisture on a camera is not good for it. Hopefully that will correct some of your white spot defects. (This has been tried a few times, recently, with very promising results. Though I can't guarantee it will work for everyone).
Another good choice is to have Lucke's Camera Service perform Pixel Repair on your camera. They currently service most all of the Sony analog cameras. Their list includes both broadcast and professional cameras. The cost of their service is far less than having your ccd block exchanged. And they provide a one year guarantee.

Thank

Veronica

[Jeff Alipit]

Veronica,

I am interested to hear if the refrigerator trick worked in clearing up your pixel problem?

To All,
Has anyone else on the boards tried this potential fix?

http://www.cameradave.freeservers.com/pixel-5.htm

Thanks!
Jeff