Hey Tom,
I received word from Anton Bauer that the voltage reading is directly from the battery, before the step down conversion to 7.2 volts and that it is normal to show 14-16 volts.

"A" Update
 

Any info on the "A" upgrade? For those of you who have had it done, are you pleased with the results?

Thanks

Hi Carl,

I had the update done, no problems at all.

I even had a small crack in the viewfinder and they replaced it.

I was also shocked at how quickly I had it back.

They turned it around the same day.

Tom Chaney

Hi Tom,
Thanks. DId you inform them of the crack, or did they just fix it?

Carl

I am sending my camera in for the upgrade tomorrow. I'll let you all know how it turns out.

Well, yesterday my camera was dispached and is now on it's way. I was just wondering what JVC considers to be expedited shipping?? That is what it states on the update page, and according to the UPS ground TR# it will not reach me until 6/5. Also when I shipped it to them, the insurance I got $6000.00 worth, the shipper said they cannot ship it ground for this amount of insurance, because it gets bounced around to much with ground shipping, I know this to be true because I onced worked for UPS, and packages were for sure thrown around quite a bit. This leads me to believe that JVC did not insure the camera for what it is worth, because it will only ship ground with the insurance being under $5000.00.

Anyway, any thoughts?

Problems after upgrade
 

We have two HD100s that we purchased 3 months ago. We sent one away for the upgrade about a month ago. We got it back about a week ago. The shipping was only 3 days each way by UPS, so they had the camera for about 2 weeks. It was "Waiting Parts" for most of that time. They had to replace the main circuit board. When I got the first camera back, I sent the other one.

Today was the first chance I had to really test the upgraded camera. So far, I've found the following problems:

1. There is no 48v phantom power at all, no matter where you put the switches.
2. When you do a white balance, it gets stuck in Auto White Operation and cycles between being balanced and the previous setting. You have to turn the camera off to make it stop. (Full Auto White works OK.)
3. The camera does not shut off immediately when you turn off the power (even when it's not stuck in Auto White). It says POFF in the viewfinder and the indicator lights on the side stay on for about 15 seconds.

I'm going to send it back, but not until I get the second one back. Has anyone heard of anything like this?

Also, does anyone know what the range of serial numbers is so far? One of ours is 1305xxxx (the one that has been upgraded) and the other is 1503xxxx. That seems odd to me. Also, the warranty card that came with the 1305 says "2 Years," but the other one says "One Year." We got them both from a local dealer, but the 1305's box looked like it had been opened and resealed by JVC.

Lee, were sorry to hear of the problem you are experiencing. Please call our Customer Care Center to arrange for repair when you are ready. 1-800-582-5825, M-F, 9AM to 5PM EST.

Regarding the serial # question: The first three digits are a code that defines the date of manufacture. Because of this, the serial numbers do not always fall in consecutive order as the units are built.

Lee why did JVC send the camera back to you with all those problems, didnt the tech even bother to test the camera before sending it back. Let see it cost you what 50-60$ every time you send it back to them not to mention the money it cost you when you dont have it to use. This is what my worry is, JVC sending things back with existing problems. My camera is with them right now I hope to god I dont get it back with the same problems it had when I sent it in.

Carl Hicks please make sure the tech working on my camera really checks it out before sending it back to me, I would love nothing better than to report back to this board that my camera is now functioning fine after sending it in to JVC my reciept # is L046714 Thanks I really hope they get it fixed or send me a new one that functions correctly.

Hi Gary,

As I have nothing to do with the repairs, I will pass your message on to the appropriate persons.

Regards, Carl

Workaround
 

Ciao Carl,

I have a workaround fix for the VF blackout/Ultralight 2 on situation. Users have to set the "low voltage warning" setting to 12.1 or 12.2V (12.1 works fine for me). This will also allow the use of the JVC AA-P250U AC adapter (which has a pretty constant 12.4V output) with the HD100 and a Anton Bauer SO-XLR plate.

It appears that the low voltage alarm can also trigger the camera shut-off down voltage circuit too early.

Ideally, allowing the user to set the dead camera setting lower than 12V (about 11.5V or so) would be ideal.

On the HD100 Anton Bauer enabled beta test units, you could press user 2 and 3 buttons at same time, scroll to "VTR2, Anton Shut Down", and change the setting to 11.5 volts. At the 11.5V (12V warning) setting, the Anton Bauer battery real time display on the battery almost exactly matched the real time VF display. Maybe they can change it back to those choices in a future firmware update?

Thanks Carl much appriciated.

I called the number and after waiting on hold (dead silence) for about 10 minutes, a man answered who had seen my previous post. He said that the board was replaced in our first camera because we had sent a note about an audio problem! When I told him that we did not send a note, only the upgrade form, he had no explanation for why they had chosen to replace the board, or why they hadn't discovered the problems before returning the camera. But he is arranging for us to FedEx it to their repair facility in Aurora, Illinois at JVC's expense.

Fat head
 

BTW Carl,

I just received a call this morning from a producer over at the local ABC affiliate who is using the HD100 (testing actually) on a reality show. She says that in a two shot, the person on the left side of the frame is distorted (in profile, the person's head is "wider", or at least looks wider, than the person on the right side of the frame).

She asked if this is possible. And I am thinking, possible yes, probable, no. I guess it could be a problem with one of the blocks going awry, Ever hear of anything like that?

They are using the 13x3.5 lens up, but I have the same lens and even with a .8 CO wide adapter in front, I don't notice it "pulling the edges out". May be just an optical illusion.

I will check it out for them tomorrow. Since I recommend the camera, she feels I am obligated to furnish tech support :)

Great promotion on the HD100 / AB-DIONIC battery system package! Is it retroactive? ;))

Hi Enzo,

I've never encountered anything like this. Hopefully it's cockpit error. A few questions come to mind:

What shooting mode is the camera in?
What model monitor are they viewing the camera on?
Does this complaint exist with the standard lens?

Bring a large ball with you, like a basketball, soccerball, volleyball, etc. I use a ball on camera often to check for aspect ratio issues. It's easier and more cooperative that a person's head!

Let us know what you find.

Regards, Carl

Canada JVC A Version
 

I just picked up the hd100 and it came with the revision "A" already... this camera came through vancouver, bc.

Ciao Carl,

They shot in HD/30, and used one of ABC's broadcast editing suite systems to view the output.

Turns out, it was just an optical illusion. One head in full profile on the left side of the frame (about a foot in) did look distorted/wider than the head on the right side of the frame, but the cam checked out fine. I've had the same kind of phenomena happen using my Sony PDW-F350, so it's not unique to the HD100.

The phenomena is most likely to occur on a two shot using soft lighting at a low ratio when one person is in full profile and the other is 3/4 or full to the camera. Having the camera angled so the subject in profile is closer, will further exaggerate the illusion.

I personally like to use a topless model in my frame to check for ratio distortion. I do like your ball idea, but my system is better esthetically. When my wife is along, I use a 16:9 aspect ratio white card with 2 rows of black alternating circles and squares (circle, square, circle) instead :)

Besides not having to take any heat for recommending the HD100 to her, I also got a free lunch out of it, so all is well in JVC recommendation land.

Nice one Enzo!

A upgarde
 

I too just bought what was stated to be a new "A" model from an authorized dealer. Not caring if it is a true A model or an upgrade/refub, how I can I tell it is now "A" capable? Bob

"A" version ID
 

The A versions will have a little round sticker with an A on it, near the serial number - under the shoulder pad.

Thanks, Carl. It's nice to see JVC representatives' participation. When the "A" Version upgrade was announced, it was offered as a free upgrade to existing users. Is there a cutoff date for the "free" upgrade? If so, what is it and how much will the upgrade cost after the "free" upgrade cutoff?

Bob,

Although I do not have an official document that spells this out, my understanding is that the free upgrade cut-off is July 31st - about 4 months after the upgrade was announced, and that the cost after that is about $150.00.

Regards, Carl