GY-HM600 - Items of note

[Michael Warren]

JVC appear to have put a lot of thought into most aspects of this camera, from what I can tell by reading the manual. It will be interesting if these things work as well in practice as they appear in the manual.

These are some of the features that stand out to me:

Built in lens cover
I don't know why all video cameras don't have this. It's been common on consumer cameras for a long time, but to my knowledge only Sony has been doing it on some of their pro range.

SD card formatting while recording
No need to stop recording on card 2 while formatting card 1 or vise versa. Could be useful for events where you might need multiple card swaps.

3.5mm Aux audio input
Convenient for wireless mics.

Some things to assist in run and gun mode where some auto functions might be preferable.

Closed limit and open limit on the aperture
Set the open limit to f3 and the closed limit to F5.6 and never need to worry about going into diffraction limiting or losing light as you zoom. The auto aperture adjustment rate is a nice addition too.

Negative gain
It will be interesting to see how this affects highlight handling.

Variable auto shutter speed
For when you simply must use full auto exposure without worrying about NDs.

Very configurable audio functions
Adjustable AGC rate is something I'm pleasantly surprised to see.

Recording continues on single card when in dual recording
If one card fills up before the other while doing dual card recording, the recording is stopped, but immediately resumes on the card with remaining space. Although the clip is broken, there is no time lost and the clips can be seamlessly joined in the NLE.

The manual also states that recording will continue on the remaining card if one is removed. That bodes well for not losing data if one card fails while recording.

Audio can be excluded from full auto mode
Good for unattended shooting of concerts.

I'm looking forward to seeing samples from the early adopters. What I've seen so far looks promising.

[Ron Evans]

Is the manual online somewhere ?

Ron Evans

[Mike Kujbida]

Ron, try Mobile User Guide (thanks to Michael Warren for the link) or http://www.jvcpro.eu/jpe/global/product.3534.140.html

[Chris Harding]

Hey Michael

Obviously a lot of thought and user input has gone into this....Wouldn't it be awesome in a HM750 casing..maybe us SM people need to get with the times and keep handheld now.

Very impressive features that will knock others for a six I think....I love the options of having an autoshutter as an extra..so in normal mode you can easily turn it off...that would be a huge asset for outdoor weddings where a shutter change is far more desireable than a ND manual change.

Chris

[Michael Warren]

Originally Posted by Chris Harding

Wouldn't it be awesome in a HM750 casing..

Yes, although with this lens, there would be no need to have it changeable. But if we're dreaming, I'd easily pay $1000 or more extra for these differences.

-1080p50/60
-Shoulder mount. Can be a small SM.
-4:2:2 at a higher bit rate
-A super slow motion mode
Keep the lens and battery the same. I think all this is possible with current technology, but I guess the market is not considered large enough.

maybe us SM people need to get with the times and keep handheld now.

Unfortunately, I think you're probably right.

[Ron Evans]

Keep looking for an improvement to my NX5U that I bought when they first came out a few years back. Things I want improved on my NX5U, that are available on my other Sony consumer cameras, are 60P, true touch focus( touch the LCD where you want the focus to be in manual focus) and better low light video noise level. My little Sony CX700 has all of these so Sony does have the technology. Having looked at the manual the GY-HM600 is a next generation NX5U but still lacks two of the things I would like 60P and touch focus. The face recognition is close but does not use a touch LCD and cannot be used to do a rack focus between things other than faces. Will keep hoping Sony has a new NX5U !!!

Ron Evans

[Michael Warren]

Originally Posted by Ron Evans

Things I want improved on my NX5U, that are available on my other Sony consumer cameras, are 60P, true touch focus( touch the LCD where you want the focus to be in manual focus) and better low light video noise level.

I'd be horrified if the HM600 wasn't significantly better in low light than the NX5U, and sharper.

I've used touch focus before and it does have it's uses, but it would not be a high priority for me. I also don't like my LCD covered with greasy finger prints which tends to happen if you have a touch screen.

As for 60p; if the HM600 had 50/60p I'd have my wallet out begging someone to take my money.

Actually, that's not quite true. I'm not an early adopter so would wait for the first samples and user reports. But this camera ticks more of my boxes than anything else in recent years.

[Ron Evans]

Yes of course it has better low light performance than the NX5U that is why I left that off my list of things it didn't have that I wanted. The NX5U has the same vintage of technology as my SR11 and it shows in comparison to the other Sony's I have the XR500 and CX700 which have backilluminated sensors. There is a lot the GY-HM600 has in common with the NX5U though. And some things missing that the NX5U has too. The NX5U does have a touch LCD not used for much though, has the FMU128 for dual recording and two slots for SD cards.

Ron Evans

[Chris Harding]

Hi Mike

I see this morning that Global Media Pro have the HM600 now in stock...Quite a lot more than I expected. Before GST that we have to pay the HM600 is AUS$4590 whilst the Panasonic AC-160A is AUS$3620.00

We would have to add 10% GST onto those prices which puts the 600 at just under $5K

Chris

[Michael Warren]

That's a cheap price for the AC160A. B&H are selling it for $4595, $100 more expensive than they are selling the HM600.

[Randy Johnson]

You know what would be nice. A hoodman kinda of thing for the monitor. Not the kind you strap on but a real good one like on the Panasonic AG-hmc 80 so then all you would need is a shoulder rest you wouldnt need to get on that off sets.

[Chris Harding]

Hi Randy

I did exactly that on my AC-130's ...had a Hoodman 3X Loupe on a foam board box that had "wings" that slid onto the LCD ....worked pretty well actually. Under the cam you would need rails with a shoulder pad at the end. What the issue is is that it really only works balance wise with cams with a front mounted LCD...otherwise the camera is just too far out in front and totally out of balance....AFAIK only the HMC80 and the Sony EX-3 have the ideal setup as the EVF is far enough forward to achieve a decent (but not perfect) balance.

Even spending many hours modding mine to shoulder mount they were not that great!!

Chris

[Michael Warren]

Originally Posted by Chris Harding

the Panasonic AC-160A is AUS$3620.00

I just had a look at the GlobalMediaPro site. The 160A is $30 less than a 130 (no A) I think they may have a typo in there and it's probably $4620. That would make more sense as it's in line with other sellers.

[Chris Harding]

Hi Mike

It was the same price last week as well!! It does seem strange that the 160A costs less than the 130...If you bought a 130 and updated it it would be a huge difference!!!

At Videoguys in Sydney the 160 (not the A) is $5329!!!! plus that's GST included!

Chris

[Randy Johnson]

I got one for my AG-HMC 150 and even though "It worked" the AG-HMCs viewfinder was too weak to hold it up so it was awkward to use. Id like to see JVC put a hard plastic one on like the 80. I went through all my odds and ends yesterday and im starting to give up on shoulder mounts im wasting too much time dealing with them. I now have a light that doesnt need Anton/Bauer and a wireless that doesnt need Anton/Bauer maybe I will just use my mono pod for long hand held type stuff and blow off the shoulder support thing.