If you had to upgrade?

[Damien Greaves]

hey i love my PDX10 but i was wondering

if u had to upgrade from a PDX10 to another camcorder what would u choose

i have been looking at the following

Sony PD170

Panasonic DVX100

Sony Dsr250

i was looking at the panasonic dvc60 but would like some more info and reviews on this camcorder but it is not high on my list

any / all comments would be greatly appreciated

[Boyd Ostroff]

PD-170: Better low light response. Better 4:3 image. Better manual control. Much worse 16:9. Personally I wouldn't consider it an "upgrade". I have a PDX-10 and a VX-2000, and stopped using the VX-2000 long ago.

DVX-100 (did you mean DVX-100a?): Progressive scan with 30p and 24p. Better manual control. Lots of image control through menus. Not 16:9 native.

DSR-250: pretty much the same as the PD-170, but much older technology than the PDX-10. Can use full size DVCAM tapes. Real CRT viewfinder. Batteries and other accessories very expensive. Big and heavy, will need an expensive tripod. Poor 16:9. I wouldn't consider this an "upgrade" unless you feel you need a big heavy shoulder-cam.

Personally I think three upgrades come to mind. The first would be the HVR-A1U which is actually what Sony will be replacing the PDX-10 with. It shoots HDV, DV and DVCAM so it will have good 16:9. Smaller than the PDX-10, only 1 CCD, tape loads from bottom so you have to remove from tripod. Manual controls all moved to the touch-screen. Evidently they are having some problems with these - see another thread which claims they've been recalled. Personally I don't find it appealing.

Second would be the HDR-FX1. Shoots DV and HDV, native 16:9. Nice LCD screen and viewfinder (16:9 native). Much nicer manual controls. No XLR's or DVCAM.

Third would be the HVR-Z1. Same advantages as the FX1 but includes XLR's, DVCAM, PAL/NTSC switchable and lots of other nice little upgrades. This has been my personal PDX-10 upgrade and I'm really happy with it. Am keeping the PDX-10 though.

Or how about an XL-2? It would give you native 16:9, progressive scan and lots of image control.

[Damien Greaves]

so really and truely the PDX10 is the best bet

thanks boyd

i thought the Dsr250 would have been an upgrade

i had a shoot recently and they used my PDX10 and a Dsr 250 the client liked my footage more

[Boyd Ostroff]

Originally Posted by Damien Greaves

so really and truely the PDX10 is the best bet

Well let's not jump to any conclusions! The above is only my personal opinion. You could certainly make a case that the DVX-100a, XL-2, FX-1 and Z1 are all substantial upgrades. And depending on your application the PD-170 and DSR-250 might be better choices as well.

But the DSR-250 is identical in terms of optics, CCD's and processing to the PD-150. It was not even updated with the improvements found on the PD-170. But of course there could still be valid reasons for choosing one; if you needed a shoulder-cam form factor, or if you already had batteries that size, or if you needed to use the large DVCAM tapes.

Before determining whether you should upgrade you need to define what you hope to accomplish, and what needs your current equipment doesn't meet.

[Matt Ludwig]

Boyd is right when he says that you need to determine what kind of situation your in.

One of the big desicions you need to make is whether you will be using 4:3 or 16:9. If you decide that 16:9 is important to you (I'm guessing you might already use it since you have a PDX10), than your options for upgrading are more limited, especially if you still want an only SD cam, which personally I don't see the point of if you are going with widescreen.

As for my situation, I bought a PD170 because I wasn't interesed in widescreen and HD. If you want people to keep helping ya with this thread, it might be useful to put out some more info on your situation.

~Matt~