How many here own a GS100?

Peter Jefferson · August 17th, 2003, 03:23 AM

Roll call???
Present!! LOL

yeah been a pana boy for afew years now.... started off with a funky old DS-88 single chipper which we bought in lieu of hiring a videographer for filming of our own wedding.
Incredible little monster at 800k with MP shots and this ws from about 2 and a half years ago...
I keep it as it has a better low light performance than MX500... albeit a litltle noisier , but 12gb gain up has no noise and is equivalent to the MX's 18+ with a slight loss in colouration.
We use this cam for cam for dancing as its fited with a raynox wide angled adapter.. really REALLY nice shots from a cam so old.. also doubles as the capture and backup deck.

We bought 2 of the MX's for wedings and even videography when we opened the business (I come from a strong post production background and it was quite easy getting into video from audio.. felt more like a natural progression)
MX500's were great... small, great colours, audio is incredible and is great for Dolby Digital work (were standardised froma whiile back so continuing that was important), especially with the VMS2e switchable mics... may be small, but obsolutely incredible for a trully discreet job.... and set properly more importantly, it didnt look like home video.

Incredible still picture output regardless of waht people say, interlaced or not, the pictures are GREAT. This comes in handy for wedding as we create slideshows from images taken on the day.

We sold one MX and imported our own DVX100e as prices here in Oz were too high too justify local purchase... I saved 4000 AUS by doing it this way

now for this camera, i can go on and on and on... and i can see how the GS100 has afew features which are only available to it (or the DVX) which will make me consider it when its released in Oz... then I'll prolly sell the MX for teh GS...
The DVX is the main cam, but during Ceremonies and speaches, its hooked up to the DS88 and the DS works as teh additional recorder for backups and tape interchanges. You can set the DVX to trigger recording on an external unit as your tape nears its end.. this is probably one of the most useful features i have ever had the pleasure of working with.. totally seemless.

I stuck with pana as theyre great cams... above all, theyre a good reliable company who constantly work to provide a product which excels in its promisess...

I cant say that about any other company (ie yamaha music *cack*)

oh and all batteries from each cam are interchangable... :)

Peter Jefferson · August 17th, 2003, 03:37 AM

"Gain Up digital effect which appears to be hidden shutter speed control. From other user I learned it gives you 25 fps - something you can't achieve with GS100 despite it's improved low light capabilities. "

Here in PAL land you can either use the gain up effect (manual focus) or the "Colour Night Shot" which runs at about 1/8 shutter (i think) at about 8 to 15 frames a second depending on lighting ...
Now some people say this is useless.. but at night, point it at a lit up bridge full zoom and whip it back out to macro and you get that beautifully distorted timelapsed look with flares of light... in post, you can just slow it down... great for scenery fills and special effects :)

"Second main point for me is the dedicated mic input and mini system control (you can buy Pana tripod with remote on the handle). I think the last is not valid for the 953."

Yes this is one of the best things about the MX... i can monitor a radio mic with no trouble.. with the GS, this is NOT audibly possible. the mic input also accepts stereo mics... but not inputs from an audio only source (RCA and MIC dont accept RCA line in while video is being recorded... ) which is a shame when wanting to connect to a mixing desk... i mean you can connect a radio mic form a desk to the mic input, but its mono..

Frank Granovski · August 17th, 2003, 05:28 AM

Peter, thanks for all that great information, along with the story.

Quote:

We sold one MX and imported our own DVX100e as prices here in Oz were too high too justify local purchase... I saved 4000 AUS by doing it this way

You saved $4000 Australian? Ouch! The DVX100 is THAT expensive Down-Under? Wow!

I've seen the DS88. It's a nice cam. There's a dealer here in Vancouver that only sells PAL electronics. He brings in Sonys and Panasonics. The Panas he sells come with an international warranty. I think 1 year. The Sonys, 3 months.

Peter Jefferson · August 17th, 2003, 09:02 AM

were lucky down here that our warrantys are 12 month as opposed to 3 months, however we are paying for it in other ways such as media, batteries and other accessories...

a Pana wideangled adapter for example is a little over $300 (still thinkin about purchase) but the VMS2e set me back $220 a piece.

I purchased the DVX from a trader on ebay.. i contacted his store directly and bypassed the auction, i did some homework on his business practices and in teh end, turned out to be one (if not THE) best customer service reps on the planet.
Here in Oz teh DVX retials for $8800 on its own with 12 month warranty (about $5,786.87 US according to currency converter on a good trading day)
Now to include 2 yrs awarranty ($350AUD) as wel as the shotgun XLR mic ($450) , your looking at an extra $800...

I payed $5600AUD including taxes, GST and import duties (bout $3600US) and i got 2 years extended warranty, as well as Pana shotgun mic in the package.

when you look at this, the money i have saved allows me to purchase another camera or even another workstation...
They wonder why people import theyre own goods, but there is NO jsutification for these prices...

With regard to technology and equipment, Roland and Yamaha for example use the "market demand" excuse, basically stating that for every 10 units sold in the US, only one is sold in Oz. So this in turn justifies a price rise inOz to make up $$ for that market loss (ie not many people buying them)...
Pana for example seem to be doing the same thing. And so does every other manufacturer... that and the fact that our import taxes are charged twice (during import as well as when they hit the shelves)

An XL1s is sold for 8000AUD here, and the PD150 about 7700AUD
GL2 is about 6 and the VX2000 approx the same..

Our tapes <DVM60> average about 10AUD (6US) MQ's are almost non existant and if your lucky enough you can find them retailing for approx $20AUD.

You wont find a battery les than $100 and retailers have NO idea what your talking about when you ask them to get some stock in for you (even WITH a model number)

There are afew suppliers who offer things cheap, then charge exhuberant prices on acessories... i once paid $660AUD for an 800w lowel tota lighting kit with fluro, 13ft manfrotto stand and brella... saw the same unit on a US website for about 320AUD which really REALLY annoyed me...

---->And finally, the worse thing about these prices is that here in Oz, videography isnt seen as an essential aspect of a wedding and our prices are usually less than half of what our US counterparts are charging...
I have seen US Videographers charge $3000US for a "standard" job, which here in Oz would equate to about $5500... we cant charge that here as its not viable for our market... as its been saturated with Photographers and everything else.. then theres the "industry awards watchdog", which in fact is a paid service by a business to this "awards watchdog" to list their names on a database of "reputable" business'... turns out most my work (re-editing, correction and re-mastering) comes from these guys... turns out theyre not as good as they claim they are..

Moving on...
For a full package, the average here is usually about $2500 to $3000AUD, this includes multiple DVD's, Stills on CDRom as well as mini movie/interviews etc etc... so its a big job for peanuts...
Im lucky though as i hav other advantages to most of the other videographers, however we still havent started advertising... and that too is a bit of a joke...

damn i ramble...

One day our Bridal industry will catch up I guess...

sorry to veer off topic...
okies, whos next!! LOL

Joel Specter · August 17th, 2003, 02:21 PM

<<<-- Originally posted by Rick Tugman :

Joel, I'm interested to know a little more about your AMEX deal...

By the way Joel.... I know Northridge very well...
-->>>

Rick

I would be glad to help you but I do not think I can respond here, since it doesn't relate to the forum subject. If you allow me to email you directly I can tell you specfic details I learned. You can see my profile to email directly.

Northridge is nice. I live near NE of Devonshire/Tampa.

The camera is of hi quality and has many professional features. I am having fun.
I still have to buy some accessories using suggestions discussed in this forum.

It is a small world.

Thanks Joel

Joe Carney · August 17th, 2003, 05:09 PM

Rick, I probably live less than ten mintues from you (just north and east of Parkland off of SW 18th).

I just emailed Yow Cheoh to get the ball rolling on ordering the MX500 with english menus.
I may want to get the 953 also since this is one of the rare times I can actually afford both and I should buy before something else comes up to take away the money.
If interested, we should hook up sometime.

I currently own a dv351 and it works great for a 1 chipper. So I guess I qualify for membership in the 'cult'.

Allan Rejoso · August 17th, 2003, 09:52 PM

Hi Joe,

So you haven't bought your new cam yet? I recall you'd rather not learn Japanese. But an the English MX500 side by side with a GS100 should make things a LOT easier!

Cheers
Allan

Rick Tugman · August 17th, 2003, 11:23 PM

Hi Joe:

YES I know about where you are and your right it's not far from me. I just live a little further west near Heron Bay.

I took my DV953 out to the ballpark today and did a little testing during batting practice. All I can say is I am truly happy with the camera and it's performance. I viewed the tape on my SONY Wega (27 inch screen) and was quite impressed with the vivid colors which were very accurate. I think next time I'm working locally I'll bring the camera and put it on a scope and get some real playback information. I'm learing more and more about the camera and have been fooling with the Gain Up feature as I wrote about. I still want to work a little more in lower lighting but I am impressed with this camera from what I have seen so far.

If you would like to get together sometime I have no problem with that. Please feel free to e-mail me (no spam please :-) ) and let me know what might work for you.

If Yow Cheoh can't help you Allan might be able to assist you as well with your purchase. He is also very knowledgeable and has been very very helpful to many people here.

Talk with you soon.

Best,

Rick.

Frank Granovski · August 17th, 2003, 11:23 PM

Joe, you can download the English MX500 manual here:

http://www.dvfreak.com/pana_mx5.htm

Joe Carney · August 18th, 2003, 03:37 PM

Rick, your email option is turned off in your profile, so here is
mine.....
tuffcom@adelphia.net
let me know...
Could you post the web site where you got such a great deal on yours? The local CC is charging full price.

Yow hasn't answered my email yet, and I don't think Allan can get the MX500 in Japan. I actually want the PAL version for a variety of reasons.
And with a good price, I can get the dv953 also.

Is the gs100 really that much better than the mx5K/dv953? Enough to take the trouble to learn a little Nippon?

the reason I hadn't bought yet was the sudden/unexpected need to put a new engine in my truck a few months ago.

Samuel Raj · August 18th, 2003, 03:51 PM

Joe,
Ofcourse GS100 is many times better than MX5 or 953

see this

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...5&pagenumber=1

Rick Tugman · August 18th, 2003, 06:59 PM

Sorry Joe.... don't know why my e-mail address is shut off here. I have written admin to see if it can be changed.

Anyway e-mail on the way to you about your questions.

Rick.

Allan Rejoso · August 18th, 2003, 07:07 PM

Joe,

Actually, I can get the PAL MX500 even in Tokyo but it's TOOOOOOOO expensive. Remember Warranty is valid international, EXCEPT in the U.S.A. and all NTSC world.

The GS100 is better than the MX5K but not SOOOOOOOOO much really. Depends on the user for the most part, IMO. If you already own the MX5K or 953, I don't think there is any need to upgrade to the GS100. If you're looking for a new cam and can live with the Japanese, I don't see anything better than the GS100 at the moment.

However, you are contemplating on getting a 953 also to go with the MX500, so I thought it'd better for you to get the black GS100 instead. If you operate them together, it should be relatively easier (to deal with the Japanese language) compared to just handling the GS100 exclusively...not to mention that the BLACK mamba is truly gorgeous...I can't sell the silver even with added discount (LOL)...

Regards

Samuel Raj · August 18th, 2003, 08:24 PM

I am a fan of the silver model. NOT the black one.

It depends on the taste! My idea is for a smaller cam, silver goes better and it portrays that it is a camcorder!

For me black looks like something not suitable for that size camera!

May be BIG cameras should be black, not the smaller ones.

IT is my VIEW!!

Frank Granovski · August 18th, 2003, 08:57 PM

A black one, a silver one---even a pink one, would be just fine, thank you.

August 17th, 2003, 02:21 PM	#20
Joel Specter New Boot Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Northridge CA Posts: 14	<<<-- Originally posted by Rick Tugman : Joel, I'm interested to know a little more about your AMEX deal... By the way Joel.... I know Northridge very well... -->>> Rick I would be glad to help you but I do not think I can respond here, since it doesn't relate to the forum subject. If you allow me to email you directly I can tell you specfic details I learned. You can see my profile to email directly. Northridge is nice. I live near NE of Devonshire/Tampa. The camera is of hi quality and has many professional features. I am having fun. I still have to buy some accessories using suggestions discussed in this forum. It is a small world. Thanks Joel __________________ PV-DV953 PC:Dell P4 2.2 120GB

August 17th, 2003, 11:23 PM	#23
Rick Tugman Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Parkland, Florida Posts: 105	Hi Joe: YES I know about where you are and your right it's not far from me. I just live a little further west near Heron Bay. I took my DV953 out to the ballpark today and did a little testing during batting practice. All I can say is I am truly happy with the camera and it's performance. I viewed the tape on my SONY Wega (27 inch screen) and was quite impressed with the vivid colors which were very accurate. I think next time I'm working locally I'll bring the camera and put it on a scope and get some real playback information. I'm learing more and more about the camera and have been fooling with the Gain Up feature as I wrote about. I still want to work a little more in lower lighting but I am impressed with this camera from what I have seen so far. If you would like to get together sometime I have no problem with that. Please feel free to e-mail me (no spam please :-) ) and let me know what might work for you. If Yow Cheoh can't help you Allan might be able to assist you as well with your purchase. He is also very knowledgeable and has been very very helpful to many people here. Talk with you soon. Best, Rick. __________________ Camera: Panasonic DV953 PC: Apple Aluminum G4 Powerbook - 15 inch Final Cut Pro 4 and other assorted goodies!

August 18th, 2003, 06:59 PM	#27
Rick Tugman Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Parkland, Florida Posts: 105	Sorry Joe.... don't know why my e-mail address is shut off here. I have written admin to see if it can be changed. Anyway e-mail on the way to you about your questions. Rick. __________________ Camera: Panasonic DV953 PC: Apple Aluminum G4 Powerbook - 15 inch Final Cut Pro 4 and other assorted goodies!

August 17th, 2003, 03:23 AM	#16
Peter Jefferson Inner Circle Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Aus Posts: 3,884	Roll call??? Present!! LOL yeah been a pana boy for afew years now.... started off with a funky old DS-88 single chipper which we bought in lieu of hiring a videographer for filming of our own wedding. Incredible little monster at 800k with MP shots and this ws from about 2 and a half years ago... I keep it as it has a better low light performance than MX500... albeit a litltle noisier , but 12gb gain up has no noise and is equivalent to the MX's 18+ with a slight loss in colouration. We use this cam for cam for dancing as its fited with a raynox wide angled adapter.. really REALLY nice shots from a cam so old.. also doubles as the capture and backup deck. We bought 2 of the MX's for wedings and even videography when we opened the business (I come from a strong post production background and it was quite easy getting into video from audio.. felt more like a natural progression) MX500's were great... small, great colours, audio is incredible and is great for Dolby Digital work (were standardised froma whiile back so continuing that was important), especially with the VMS2e switchable mics... may be small, but obsolutely incredible for a trully discreet job.... and set properly more importantly, it didnt look like home video. Incredible still picture output regardless of waht people say, interlaced or not, the pictures are GREAT. This comes in handy for wedding as we create slideshows from images taken on the day. We sold one MX and imported our own DVX100e as prices here in Oz were too high too justify local purchase... I saved 4000 AUS by doing it this way now for this camera, i can go on and on and on... and i can see how the GS100 has afew features which are only available to it (or the DVX) which will make me consider it when its released in Oz... then I'll prolly sell the MX for teh GS... The DVX is the main cam, but during Ceremonies and speaches, its hooked up to the DS88 and the DS works as teh additional recorder for backups and tape interchanges. You can set the DVX to trigger recording on an external unit as your tape nears its end.. this is probably one of the most useful features i have ever had the pleasure of working with.. totally seemless. I stuck with pana as theyre great cams... above all, theyre a good reliable company who constantly work to provide a product which excels in its promisess... I cant say that about any other company (ie yamaha music cack) oh and all batteries from each cam are interchangable... :)

August 17th, 2003, 03:37 AM	#17
Peter Jefferson Inner Circle Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Aus Posts: 3,884	"Gain Up digital effect which appears to be hidden shutter speed control. From other user I learned it gives you 25 fps - something you can't achieve with GS100 despite it's improved low light capabilities. " Here in PAL land you can either use the gain up effect (manual focus) or the "Colour Night Shot" which runs at about 1/8 shutter (i think) at about 8 to 15 frames a second depending on lighting ... Now some people say this is useless.. but at night, point it at a lit up bridge full zoom and whip it back out to macro and you get that beautifully distorted timelapsed look with flares of light... in post, you can just slow it down... great for scenery fills and special effects :) "Second main point for me is the dedicated mic input and mini system control (you can buy Pana tripod with remote on the handle). I think the last is not valid for the 953." Yes this is one of the best things about the MX... i can monitor a radio mic with no trouble.. with the GS, this is NOT audibly possible. the mic input also accepts stereo mics... but not inputs from an audio only source (RCA and MIC dont accept RCA line in while video is being recorded... ) which is a shame when wanting to connect to a mixing desk... i mean you can connect a radio mic form a desk to the mic input, but its mono..

August 17th, 2003, 09:02 AM	#19
Peter Jefferson Inner Circle Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Aus Posts: 3,884	were lucky down here that our warrantys are 12 month as opposed to 3 months, however we are paying for it in other ways such as media, batteries and other accessories... a Pana wideangled adapter for example is a little over $300 (still thinkin about purchase) but the VMS2e set me back $220 a piece. I purchased the DVX from a trader on ebay.. i contacted his store directly and bypassed the auction, i did some homework on his business practices and in teh end, turned out to be one (if not THE) best customer service reps on the planet. Here in Oz teh DVX retials for $8800 on its own with 12 month warranty (about $5,786.87 US according to currency converter on a good trading day) Now to include 2 yrs awarranty ($350AUD) as wel as the shotgun XLR mic ($450) , your looking at an extra $800... I payed $5600AUD including taxes, GST and import duties (bout $3600US) and i got 2 years extended warranty, as well as Pana shotgun mic in the package. when you look at this, the money i have saved allows me to purchase another camera or even another workstation... They wonder why people import theyre own goods, but there is NO jsutification for these prices... With regard to technology and equipment, Roland and Yamaha for example use the "market demand" excuse, basically stating that for every 10 units sold in the US, only one is sold in Oz. So this in turn justifies a price rise inOz to make up $$ for that market loss (ie not many people buying them)... Pana for example seem to be doing the same thing. And so does every other manufacturer... that and the fact that our import taxes are charged twice (during import as well as when they hit the shelves) An XL1s is sold for 8000AUD here, and the PD150 about 7700AUD GL2 is about 6 and the VX2000 approx the same.. Our tapes <DVM60> average about 10AUD (6US) MQ's are almost non existant and if your lucky enough you can find them retailing for approx $20AUD. You wont find a battery les than $100 and retailers have NO idea what your talking about when you ask them to get some stock in for you (even WITH a model number) There are afew suppliers who offer things cheap, then charge exhuberant prices on acessories... i once paid $660AUD for an 800w lowel tota lighting kit with fluro, 13ft manfrotto stand and brella... saw the same unit on a US website for about 320AUD which really REALLY annoyed me... ---->And finally, the worse thing about these prices is that here in Oz, videography isnt seen as an essential aspect of a wedding and our prices are usually less than half of what our US counterparts are charging... I have seen US Videographers charge $3000US for a "standard" job, which here in Oz would equate to about $5500... we cant charge that here as its not viable for our market... as its been saturated with Photographers and everything else.. then theres the "industry awards watchdog", which in fact is a paid service by a business to this "awards watchdog" to list their names on a database of "reputable" business'... turns out most my work (re-editing, correction and re-mastering) comes from these guys... turns out theyre not as good as they claim they are.. Moving on... For a full package, the average here is usually about $2500 to $3000AUD, this includes multiple DVD's, Stills on CDRom as well as mini movie/interviews etc etc... so its a big job for peanuts... Im lucky though as i hav other advantages to most of the other videographers, however we still havent started advertising... and that too is a bit of a joke... damn i ramble... One day our Bridal industry will catch up I guess... sorry to veer off topic... okies, whos next!! LOL

August 17th, 2003, 05:09 PM	#21
Joe Carney Inner Circle Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Centreville Va Posts: 1,828	Rick, I probably live less than ten mintues from you (just north and east of Parkland off of SW 18th). I just emailed Yow Cheoh to get the ball rolling on ordering the MX500 with english menus. I may want to get the 953 also since this is one of the rare times I can actually afford both and I should buy before something else comes up to take away the money. If interested, we should hook up sometime. I currently own a dv351 and it works great for a 1 chipper. So I guess I qualify for membership in the 'cult'.

August 17th, 2003, 09:52 PM	#22
Allan Rejoso Major Player Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Tokyo, Japan Posts: 569	Hi Joe, So you haven't bought your new cam yet? I recall you'd rather not learn Japanese. But an the English MX500 side by side with a GS100 should make things a LOT easier! Cheers Allan

August 17th, 2003, 11:23 PM	#24
Frank Granovski Outer Circle Join Date: May 2002 Location: Hope, BC Posts: 7,524	Joe, you can download the English MX500 manual here: http://www.dvfreak.com/pana_mx5.htm

August 18th, 2003, 03:37 PM	#25
Joe Carney Inner Circle Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Centreville Va Posts: 1,828	Rick, your email option is turned off in your profile, so here is mine..... tuffcom@adelphia.net let me know... Could you post the web site where you got such a great deal on yours? The local CC is charging full price. Yow hasn't answered my email yet, and I don't think Allan can get the MX500 in Japan. I actually want the PAL version for a variety of reasons. And with a good price, I can get the dv953 also. Is the gs100 really that much better than the mx5K/dv953? Enough to take the trouble to learn a little Nippon? the reason I hadn't bought yet was the sudden/unexpected need to put a new engine in my truck a few months ago.

August 18th, 2003, 03:51 PM	#26
Samuel Raj Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 210	Joe, Ofcourse GS100 is many times better than MX5 or 953 see this http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...5&pagenumber=1

August 18th, 2003, 07:07 PM	#28
Allan Rejoso Major Player Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Tokyo, Japan Posts: 569	Joe, Actually, I can get the PAL MX500 even in Tokyo but it's TOOOOOOOO expensive. Remember Warranty is valid international, EXCEPT in the U.S.A. and all NTSC world. The GS100 is better than the MX5K but not SOOOOOOOOO much really. Depends on the user for the most part, IMO. If you already own the MX5K or 953, I don't think there is any need to upgrade to the GS100. If you're looking for a new cam and can live with the Japanese, I don't see anything better than the GS100 at the moment. However, you are contemplating on getting a 953 also to go with the MX500, so I thought it'd better for you to get the black GS100 instead. If you operate them together, it should be relatively easier (to deal with the Japanese language) compared to just handling the GS100 exclusively...not to mention that the BLACK mamba is truly gorgeous...I can't sell the silver even with added discount (LOL)... Regards

August 18th, 2003, 08:24 PM	#29
Samuel Raj Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 210	I am a fan of the silver model. NOT the black one. It depends on the taste! My idea is for a smaller cam, silver goes better and it portrays that it is a camcorder! For me black looks like something not suitable for that size camera! May be BIG cameras should be black, not the smaller ones. IT is my VIEW!!

August 18th, 2003, 08:57 PM	#30
Frank Granovski Outer Circle Join Date: May 2002 Location: Hope, BC Posts: 7,524	A black one, a silver one---even a pink one, would be just fine, thank you.