Pd150/dsr 250 at DVinfo.net

lcameron · June 23rd, 2003, 01:34 PM

Do both these cameras share the same chipset?

Mike Rehmus · June 23rd, 2003, 02:21 PM

If, by chipset, you mean the optical block, then yes. Everything else may be different.

Eivind Vaa · June 23rd, 2003, 02:28 PM

I belive they do. As far as I can tell, the imaging-proccessing and optics is the same in these two cameras. The 250 could be said to be a pd150 shooting off the shoulder. There are of course differences, some bigger than others, but they seem to me to be mainly practical, like size and connector-options.

Dave Valencic · June 25th, 2003, 10:37 PM

SaferSeas.com seems to say that the DSR250 has different DSP characteristics that give it higher quality than the PD150/VX2000...Take note that there is an electronically coupled iris along with the zoom and focus on the lens barrel of the 250.

Are there any DSR250 owners out there who can confirm the higher image quality due to a better DSP?

Here is the safer seas website:
http://www.saferseas.com/vsd/eye/eye2.html

lcameron · June 27th, 2003, 11:09 AM

Dave,

Odd that you should mention that. My reason for the original posting was that I shot with a demo 250 last week and found the footage surprisingly good - better than I remember seeing off an earlier 150. Memory is a strange thing and, not having both cameras in front of me, wanted to see if others had similar experiences. Still, for what it's worth, the 250 produced some very clean images.

Lou Bruno · June 27th, 2003, 08:24 PM

RUMOUR has it that there are slightly better optics.

Dave Valencic · June 27th, 2003, 10:16 PM

It's tough to find 250's to test out without paying for it.. Last time i was in NYC, B&H couldn't even show me one because they were completely out of stock on them, and the guy just told me that it was a PD150 is a shoulder mount...which is obviously a lie. Someone out there MUST have a 250 and a 150 that could put them side by side and show the results to us....anyone???

Dan Grimes · July 9th, 2003, 04:33 PM

I have a DSR-250 and a friend has a PD-150. I shoot with both often.

There are differences. The lens is the obvious one. I think the DSR-250 is distinctly sharper and has better contrast. The contrast could be a result of a less compact lens or better signal processing. Color rendering is also better in the DSR-250.

There are limitations to the programming in DSR-250 that should be different from the PD-150 but unfortunately are not. But the tape transport is different and it shows when connected to a non-linear editor such as Avid XpressDV 3.5 or Adobe Premiere 6.5. The DSR-250 reacts almost as well as a regular VTR.

I should also say that I use a DSR-200, along with the DSR-300 and DSR-300a. The DRS-200 is similar to the PD-150, the 250 shows improvement over those two, but the 300a is clearly the winner. No surprise here.

If anyone wants me to test situations side by side, let me know.

Dave Valencic · July 9th, 2003, 07:03 PM

Yeah, a side-by-side would be great!

Dan Grimes · July 10th, 2003, 02:45 PM

I'm shooting an interview this weekend, a two camera shoot. I'll do a side-by-side then. Probably indoors only.

Dan Grimes · July 15th, 2003, 09:55 AM

Sorry, folks, I couldn't make the side-by-side comparison of the PD-150 and the DSR-250.

My friend had a PD-100 that we often shot with, but it was stolen not long ago. I recommended that he get a PD-150 but he opted for a less expensive alternative: a TRV-900.

I did use the TRV-900 for the interview. Compared to the DSR-250, the coloration was not nearly as natural, the video only slightly softer, but the most unfortunate difference was in the contrast. The TRV-900 had way too much contrast and needed a flatter light to look good. The blacks could not hold detail. I have not looked at the video on the scope, but I bet you there will be a difference in black set-up levels; the DSR-250 sets at 7.5 IRE for black but I bet the TRV-900 is at 0 IRE.

Wish my buddy would have bought a PD-150! Now I am going to waste a bunch of time trying to color correct to match the two.

June 23rd, 2003, 01:34 PM	#1
lcameron Tourist Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: SC Posts: 2	Pd150/dsr 250 Do both these cameras share the same chipset?

June 23rd, 2003, 02:21 PM	#2
Mike Rehmus Wrangler Join Date: May 2002 Location: Vallejo, California Posts: 4,049	If, by chipset, you mean the optical block, then yes. Everything else may be different. __________________ Mike Rehmus Hey, I can see the carrot at the end of the tunnel!

June 23rd, 2003, 02:28 PM	#3
Eivind Vaa Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Norway Posts: 35	I belive they do. As far as I can tell, the imaging-proccessing and optics is the same in these two cameras. The 250 could be said to be a pd150 shooting off the shoulder. There are of course differences, some bigger than others, but they seem to me to be mainly practical, like size and connector-options. __________________ Eivind Vaa

June 27th, 2003, 11:09 AM	#5
lcameron Tourist Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: SC Posts: 2	DSR250/PD150 Dave, Odd that you should mention that. My reason for the original posting was that I shot with a demo 250 last week and found the footage surprisingly good - better than I remember seeing off an earlier 150. Memory is a strange thing and, not having both cameras in front of me, wanted to see if others had similar experiences. Still, for what it's worth, the 250 produced some very clean images.

June 27th, 2003, 08:24 PM	#6
Lou Bruno Go Cycle Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Huntington, NY Posts: 815	RUMOUR has it that there are slightly better optics. __________________ Lou Bruno

June 25th, 2003, 10:37 PM	#4
Dave Valencic Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Cleveland OH Posts: 34	SaferSeas.com seems to say that the DSR250 has different DSP characteristics that give it higher quality than the PD150/VX2000...Take note that there is an electronically coupled iris along with the zoom and focus on the lens barrel of the 250. Are there any DSR250 owners out there who can confirm the higher image quality due to a better DSP? Here is the safer seas website: http://www.saferseas.com/vsd/eye/eye2.html

June 27th, 2003, 10:16 PM	#7
Dave Valencic Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Cleveland OH Posts: 34	It's tough to find 250's to test out without paying for it.. Last time i was in NYC, B&H couldn't even show me one because they were completely out of stock on them, and the guy just told me that it was a PD150 is a shoulder mount...which is obviously a lie. Someone out there MUST have a 250 and a 150 that could put them side by side and show the results to us....anyone???

July 9th, 2003, 04:33 PM	#8
Dan Grimes New Boot Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV USA Posts: 18	Definite Differences I have a DSR-250 and a friend has a PD-150. I shoot with both often. There are differences. The lens is the obvious one. I think the DSR-250 is distinctly sharper and has better contrast. The contrast could be a result of a less compact lens or better signal processing. Color rendering is also better in the DSR-250. There are limitations to the programming in DSR-250 that should be different from the PD-150 but unfortunately are not. But the tape transport is different and it shows when connected to a non-linear editor such as Avid XpressDV 3.5 or Adobe Premiere 6.5. The DSR-250 reacts almost as well as a regular VTR. I should also say that I use a DSR-200, along with the DSR-300 and DSR-300a. The DRS-200 is similar to the PD-150, the 250 shows improvement over those two, but the 300a is clearly the winner. No surprise here. If anyone wants me to test situations side by side, let me know.

July 9th, 2003, 07:03 PM	#9
Dave Valencic Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Cleveland OH Posts: 34	Yeah, a side-by-side would be great!

July 10th, 2003, 02:45 PM	#10
Dan Grimes New Boot Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV USA Posts: 18	Side-By-Side this Weekend I'm shooting an interview this weekend, a two camera shoot. I'll do a side-by-side then. Probably indoors only.

July 15th, 2003, 09:55 AM	#11
Dan Grimes New Boot Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Las Vegas, NV USA Posts: 18	Couldn't Complete Comparison Sorry, folks, I couldn't make the side-by-side comparison of the PD-150 and the DSR-250. My friend had a PD-100 that we often shot with, but it was stolen not long ago. I recommended that he get a PD-150 but he opted for a less expensive alternative: a TRV-900. I did use the TRV-900 for the interview. Compared to the DSR-250, the coloration was not nearly as natural, the video only slightly softer, but the most unfortunate difference was in the contrast. The TRV-900 had way too much contrast and needed a flatter light to look good. The blacks could not hold detail. I have not looked at the video on the scope, but I bet you there will be a difference in black set-up levels; the DSR-250 sets at 7.5 IRE for black but I bet the TRV-900 is at 0 IRE. Wish my buddy would have bought a PD-150! Now I am going to waste a bunch of time trying to color correct to match the two.