nanoFlash and HV20

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Allan,

Thanks for posting.

The HV20, HV30, HV40 produce some nice images, but they are not great low light cameras.



Until proven otherwise, I would plug up the HDMI cable.

Then I would power on the nanoFlash,

Then I would power on the camera.


For HDMI, the camera interrogrates the receiving device, such as the nanoFlash, which needs to be on.

[Alan Emery]

Hi Dan,

You are quite correct. When the conditions are right, nanoflash images from an HV series camera are really good, better than one might expect. Even when they are not so good, using a clean-up program like Neat Video can make a remarkable difference to marginal images, such as some low light images.

Another trick to remember is to turn off the power-saving feature of the camera. Otherwise it can be frustrating to get everything working again quickly enough to catch what has just started to happen. Linking a remote control to the nanoflash makes starting and stopping the recording a lot easier. I first rigged a belt holder for the nanoflash and relied on the tally light on the remote. That was not too smart and I was constantly wanting reassurance that the nanoflash was actually recording so I changed the rig to have the nanoflash attached behind the camera (still using the remote). That was much better although pretty crude. A simple DIY rig could be made so everything could neat ant tidy -- mine in test mode used a lot of bits and pieces held together with duct tape, but it worked. The test was done at a family Christmas party so the light was extremely variable, but very few clips were so bad they could not be tidied up enough to make the family happy.

Alan

[Jack Zhang]

While we're at this, is this issue also present on the Sony HC7/HC9? I have both a HV30 and HC7 and would like to know which one would be better compatibility wise.

[Ronald Jackson]

I can't replicate what ever happened last night when momentarily I got a signal from the HV20 to the Nano.

I'll start another thread asking for PROVEN recommendations of small cams for use with a nanoFlash.


As for Alan's comments about mounting the camera and Nano. I have a small bracket which takes a quick release plate in the middle and has slots on either side taking 1/4 inch screws. I can thus screw a Nano onto one side and my HV20 (or other small cam) onto the other.

For power I use, and highly recommend, a Canon CH-910 Dual Battery Holder/Charger which connects to the power socket of the Nano via a special cable supplied by NanoFlash.Net.

910s can be picked up on ebay, and Canon clone batteries are muck cheap. I keep the charger either in a tripod skirt when using a 'pod or in my pocket or attached to a belt when not.

Recommend this set up even for those not using Canon cams.

Ron

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Ron,

As you may be aware, the nanoFlash requires a Type A to Type C (mini) HDMI cable.

The HV20 uses the Type A side which is full size HDMI.

Do you have a Type A to Type C cable, or are you using a Type A to Type A cable with an adapter?

Do you have two Type A to Type C cables so that you can test a second cable?

[Alan Emery]

Hi Ron,

Your frustration is coming through loud and clear. I remember feeling the same way. So I dug out the pieces and stuck them together again to see if I could figure out what I had done previously.I did some experiments and if the HV40 and HV20 work the same way and if there is nothing wrong with your cam, cable, or nanoflash, this worked for me and might work for you.

Some obvious stuff first. Nanoflash set to HDMI source. HDMI cable stuck in the IN socket of the nanoflash (I have made this mistake or I would never have been so bold as to mention it)!

I plugged everything in and turned it all on. No source message.
I turned the camera off an on. No source message.
Leaving the camera on I turned the nanoflash off and on. No source message.
Leaving everything turned on I unplugged the HDMI cable at the nanoflash, then plugged it in again. Hooray I got the HV40 to come through.
Leaving everything turned on I unplugged the HDMI cable at the cam end and then plugged it in again. Once again the source connected.

It would appear, at least in my case, that the key is connecting the cable with everything turned on. It doesn`t work if you switch the cam or the nano off and on. It only works by plugging the last connection of the cable in after everything else is connected and turned on.

Hope this helps,

Alan

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Allan,

Thank you for your assistance.

Since I have never personally had any trouble using the HV30 with the nanoFlash,
I wonder if something in the HDMI circuitry of the cameras changed from the HV20 to the HV30.

[Ronald Jackson]

I've actually got it working. The key with me seems to be turning the Nano on (i.e. connecting the power cable) and then, just as the bar appears on the LCD, switch the camera into record/tape mode.

A couple or three things though:

1) The Nano records the screen display, which it does not when used with my XLH1. Need to turn this off.

2) No audio. Presumably there are both camera and Nano specific settings for this.

3) My remote control cable (purchased from NanoFlash.net and until now unused) only works intermittently.
I needed to jiggle, pull etc etc the connection between the cable and the socket on the Nano but so unreliable I detached and instead changed to using the Record/Stop buttons on the Nano which worked okay.
A nuisance this as you need a full set of fingers or even two hands to use Record/Stop.

(Maybe I need to send the cable to C.D. for a check out. I use the remote socket without any problems with the C.D. timecode cable with my XLH1)

Dan commented about poor low light performance of the HV20 and I can confirm this on what was a gloomy day, gain nearly everywhere and the effect of this seems to be exacerbated with the Nano and its high bit rates.

Ron

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Ron,

You need to turn off the viewfinder data so it does not go out the HV20's HDMI output.

You need to check the Audio Menu on the nanoFlash.

You probably have do not have the Audio Source set to Embedded for your HV20.
The setting for your XL H1 will be different since the XL H1 does not have audio embedded via HD-SDI.

If the Remote Control is not working properly, then nanoFlash.net will replace it.
Please contact me so we can diagnose the problem.
Is the plugged into the Remote Control connector securely, The collar may not be pushed forward.
Please note, please do not attempt to force it.

[Alan Emery]

Hi Dan,

I have two nanoflashes. The remote cable works on one of them and does not work on the other. Not sure what this means regarding Ron's inconsistent remote cable but just an observation.

Hi Ron,

You should not need to record on the cam in order to record onto the nanoflash. There is no way to get the cam to trigger the nano through an HDMI cable. If you want a backup, then running the cam at the same time as the nano is a good idea, but it should not be necessary. Also the HDMI should carry both video and audio if it is getting to the cable. So Dan's suggestion of checking the the cam audio menu is a good idea.

Alan

[Dan Keaton]

Dear Alan,

Thanks.

Just to be clear, I was speaking of the Audio menu, specifically the Audio Source menu item in the nanoFlash.

I edited my original post to be clearer.