Moving on from HD7?

[Steve Mullen]

Both the JVC HD1/HD10 and the HD7 have been very good to me.

But, I've been following the GC-PX1 (Japan) and GC-PX10 for the last few months.

I recently got the newest Apple TV and connected it to a 63" HDTV. I can now view 1080p30.

Which means I can watch samples from the PX-series and compare to DSLRs and Sony VG-series.

Bottom-line -- the PX have a much clearer image with NO nasty anti-aliasing and Morie (sp)

And, the review site that has tended to dump on JVC products reports good measures for PX10. Almost 900-lines verses 1000-ines for the expensive Sony EX-3.

Plus, great motion smoothness and clarity from 1080p60. Which is possible because it's recording H.264 at 36Mbps.

With it's almost 1/2" chip -- like the EX-3 -- it can deliver reasonably shallow DOF.

Although it finally has a true gain setting switch (up to 18dB) I'm not sure how great it is at low light. This is complicated because low-light problems can be increased noise, lowed saturation, and lowered resolution. Chroma noise can be AM or PM.

So, I'm wondering if any of you have looked at the $900 PX10?

BE SURE YOU TURN FLASH OFF AND SELECT H.264 1080p.

JVC GC-PX10 Hybrid 36Mbps Full HD Video 4 - YouTube
JVC GC-PX10 Hybrid 36Mbps Full HD Video 5 - YouTube
JVC GC-PX10 - YouTube

[Kaushik Parmar]

Hi!

Mine HD7 is no more usable, it is not working, I kept it as a good memory I learn everything on it, I love it very much very special camera, JVC should relaunch same camera with some modification.

I wanted to buy GC PX10, but then it was not available when I needed camera, so I went for Panasonic GH2, very good camera, very sharp. GC PX10 is very nice camera it seems, and it has Time lapse feature also, but unfortunately people do not buy much JVC camera, very bad.

These are some videos I took from my GH2:

The Flea Market Ahmedabad - YouTube

Kankaria Carnival 2011 - YouTube

Sabarmati Riverfront Ahmedabad 2012 - YouTube

I am also proud owner of amazing Fujifilm X100, great still camera, I made some videos with X100 here are they:

April 13th 2012, Ahmedabad - YouTube

Fujifilm X100 Digital Zoom Test - YouTube

Shivranjani Cross Road, Ahmedabad 14 Oct 2011 - YouTube

Atira 27 Sep 2011 - YouTube

And this is my last video with HD7:

Seasons first Rain! July 2011 - YouTube

I really love JVC camera, very good video camera.

I also like Fujifilm's video performance from X100, though it has only 720p but produce great videos.

Kaushik

[John Nantz]

Judging from the videos it appears you like traffic. Have to say there is lots of that.

The last video about Season's first rain was nice. The close-ups combined with switching from views of the flowers to the rain was good.

[John Nantz]

The videos of the GC-PX10 are really sharp.

Personally, I like the format of a video camera like the HD7. It just has a nice feel to it and I don't know how I could warm up to the shape of what feels like a still camera. It would take some getting used to but the video looks very good.

But then the Volkswagon looked different too but because of gas mileage, easy repairs, no antifreeze required, good traction in snow, just look how long it stayed around.

[Kaushik Parmar]

Originally Posted by John Nantz

Judging from the videos it appears you like traffic. Have to say there is lots of that.

The last video about Season's first rain was nice. The close-ups combined with switching from views of the flowers to the rain was good.

Hi, John Nantz,

Nice to see you after long time, yes Ahmedabad is huge city and we have huge population so traffic is obvious.

Yes Season's first Rain video really came out good, yes rain was really good and blur effect came really good, sadly this was my lat video with JVC HD7, it is now no more usable and its still paining me!

Now I am using my new Panasonic GH2, amazing result, very nice resolution and very wide lens.

I also have Fujifim X100, I really love this camera great still and satisfied video performance, have you gone through those video? Actually Fujifilm can do wonder in video camera if they put more attention
.
Kaushilk

[Kaushik Parmar]

Originally Posted by John Nantz

The videos of the GC-PX10 are really sharp.

Personally, I like the format of a video camera like the HD7. It just has a nice feel to it and I don't know how I could warm up to the shape of what feels like a still camera. It would take some getting used to but the video looks very good.

But then the Volkswagon looked different too but because of gas mileage, easy repairs, no antifreeze required, good traction in snow, just look how long it stayed around.

I always love JVC camera, but they are very less popular than other. GC- PX10 is great but sadly didn't get noticed, very sad.

I really like my GH2 while using, I am now use to and it is very much comfortable, initially I was worried, but now its cool!

Kaushik

[Lee Mullen]

Surely the HM100 is the natural progression from the HD7??

[Greg Huber]

I started researching for a successor to the HD7 last year but I still haven't pulled the trigger yet. I just shot what I think will be my last wedding with the HD7 this past weekend. I counted at least 5 "white dots" appearing on the footage- normally there is only 1, but this time I got a few in the center of the picture! I think the CCD is getting bad enough that it is no longer worth filming on. Fortunately I have some filters that I can apply in FCP to cover up the issues,but that is not going to be fun dealing with.

Looking at this forum, I saw that the GY-HM150 looks like a good contender since it improved a lot of the HM100- which seems to have a lot of negative reviews on low lighting. I am also considering the Canon XF100 but that's only a single chip and it's CMOS. I am just wondering if there will be the dreaded white dot issue, bad OIS, or what the other foibles are... low lighting is probably the biggest concern I have since that is hard to do much with in post. Seems like the HM100 topic doesn't have a lot of activity. Anyone have experience coming from a HD7 going to a 100 or 150 that is happy they went that route?

[Waldemar Winkler]

Interesting post. My two HD7's are worn out. Can't use them at all in low light conditions due to burned out pixels. I've been wondering what to do. Will be visiting here more often to see what kinds or camera replacements viewers find.

[Greg Huber]

Originally Posted by Waldemar Winkler

Interesting post. My two HD7's are worn out. Can't use them at all in low light conditions due to burned out pixels. I've been wondering what to do. Will be visiting here more often to see what kinds or camera replacements viewers find.

I have been extremely happy with my canon xf100, which is what I ultimately decided on. It was a slightly higher cost, but I went with it because the jvc hm100/150 also had complaints of white pixels and I figured I would try my luck with Canon (very happy with 7d as well). For a single chip censor it shoots great in low light and also has 4:2:2 codec which is broadcast quality. Best of luck and hope you find a suitable replacement.

[John Nantz]

Since my HD7 is a really "low mileage" one, after reading about the white pixel issues I've decided to try and save everything to the flash media to see if that will help.

If the white dot problem has anything to do with heat somehow causing the sensors to degenerate, or maybe it's a software issue, who knows, just maybe by using flash memory there may be less heat generated.

It would be of interest if someone who has a problem with the dots could make a test shot and save to the Hard Drive and another shot then save to flash media and see if the dot locations are the same. If they are, then at least we'd know it's not the media's fault and it's something "upstream", for example, the sensors, software, etc., which I would suspect it probably is.

[Waldemar Winkler]

The burned out pixel issue is, in my opinion, a combination of two things. First, the heat generated by the internal HD has to be a significant factor. I typically record for 2 hours straight and the camera gets too hot to touch in some places. Second, the auto-gain program is the second factor. Auto gain settings push the CCD's beyond their light gathering capabilities. Combining the two for too long is asking too much from the camera. Shooting 1440CBR and recording to SD card is by far the best method. The internal HD is idle. Limit recording times to less than 19 minutes (within the FAT32 file structure maximums).
In low light situations, don't do as I have done and try to record everything non-stop for ever. Keep record times to 5 minutes of less and let the camera cool between takes. Turning off auto gain limits exposure adjustments to whole stops. Exposing to "- 1 stop" will make the white dot appear to disappear. Color correction/exposure correction in post will make the dots reappear if not done carefully.

[Waldemar Winkler]

Originally Posted by Greg Huber

I have been extremely happy with my canon xf100, which is what I ultimately decided on. It was a slightly higher cost, but I went with it because the jvc hm100/150 also had complaints of white pixels and I figured I would try my luck with Canon (very happy with 7d as well). For a single chip censor it shoots great in low light and also has 4:2:2 codec which is broadcast quality. Best of luck and hope you find a suitable replacement.

Looks like an undated GL2. I owned a GL1 for 7 years and absolutely loved it! It still works, sans the tape drive mechanism, which finally ground to a halt.

[John Nantz]

Originally Posted by Waldemar Winkler

Shooting 1440CBR and recording to SD card is by far the best method. The internal HD is idle. Limit recording times to less than 19 minutes (within the FAT32 file structure maximums).

Just bought another SD card with 32GB of memory. SanDisk Extreme SDHC HUS-1. After formatting it I checked the play time available and it said 3 hrs 43 min with the 1440CBR setting. [READ CORRECTION !]Not bad. This cost a little over $40 US.

The card is a "UHS Speed Class 1, FullHD video, up to 45 MB/s"

However, the speed is only for compatible devices. I chatted with SanDisk and the tech said it should work in the camera in lieu of the SD Class 6 card. I made a couple video clips with it and it did play back on the viewfinder. I've yet to transfer the files to the computer or work with them.

Thought: If the hard drive isn't working when the SD card is being used then maybe the battery will last longer? This would be a nice fringe benefit.


IMPORTANT CORRECTION:
Went to check the playing time on the smaller SanDisk card I bought recently, the 16GB one, and learned that the recording time after formatting is 1 hr 51 min. HOWEVER, and a very important "however," I also noticed the two little letters "SP" in the viewfinder. Hmmmm...... This was for a SanDisk "Ultra" MicroSD HC I card. SP stands for Standard Play and is not the same as SD. I double-checked the recording setting and it was set at 1440 CBR so something is amiss.

I quickly removed the MicroSD card and popped in the larger SanDisk 32GB card and checked it's playing time and it also had the letters SP in the viewfinder.

Bottom line:
These neat little SD cards will NOT record at 1440 CBR. The SanDisk tech did say that in non-compatible devices the throughput would be at a reduced speed so I suspect this is what happened.

Bummer! A BIG BIG BUMMER !!!


"INSTRUCTIONS JVC HD7"
Per the manual, p. 19, right column, it says:

"NOTE
Video picture quality (=> pg. 68) will automatically be set to [SP]."

So.... no matter what card you use the picture quality will be relegated to SP.
That's the downside. There is an upside, though, and that is the camcorder runs cooler and the battery should last longer, and maybe even a lot longer.

[Waldemar Winkler]

You're absolutely right! I never noticed that "SP" before.