Sony SxS cards versus SDHC Class 6 cards

[Dave Morrison]

Marcus (or anybody), did we determine if the color of the stripe on the Transcend (red or green) cards was the determining factor of which was the most reliable? Both of mine were purchased early in 2009 and are red stripes.

[Marcus Durham]

Originally Posted by Dave Morrison

Marcus (or anybody), did we determine if the color of the stripe on the Transcend (red or green) cards was the determining factor of which was the most reliable? Both of mine were purchased early in 2009 and are red stripes.

I know of people using older red stripe cards that have had trouble free operation pretty much since the SDHC solution was discovered. The determining factor with the Transcends seems to be manufacturing date or manufacturing location. Either the manufacturing process was changed slightly to reduce costs or perhaps there's more than one factory being used and the cards are slightly different (although still within Class 6 spec). Either way, it's a lottery for EX1 users.

I'm not sure if SLC v MLC matters since Sony seem to have green lighted MLC use for their new SxS cards and adaptors. You are still looking at being able to make lots of write cycles. Cautious users might want to renew their cards every couple of years.

[Anthony McErlean]

Paul, I will use the MxM lockable cards and the 16gb ATP card. The ones Marcus is using at the moment. I havent recorded much with them yet (using SxS cards) but no problems so far.

I cant say much about the Transcend cards, No error messages with them at all but for some reason I have more faith in the MxM ATP combo.

[Paul Kellett]

I think i'm going to hold off spending any money on cards for the time being until the proper Sony adaptor, the MEAD-MS01, gets released, then i'll get the recommended Sony memory sticks aswell, i reckon about £300 will get me enough to shoot for a day.

Interestingly, on the Sony site which show's the adaptor it says that existing EX1's and EX3's will need a firmware upgrade which is internet downloadable.

Sony : MEAD-MS01 (MEADMS01) : Features : United Kingdom

Paul.

[Marcus Durham]

Originally Posted by Paul Kellett

I think i'm going to hold off spending any money on cards for the time being until the proper Sony adaptor, the MEAD-MS01, gets released, then i'll get the recommended Sony memory sticks aswell, i reckon about £300 will get me enough to shoot for a day.

Remember this is Sony prices we're talking about :-)

I think the firmware update will probably relate to the camera being able to measure the write limit for each card. It might even address the way the EX1 writes to the cards.

The Sony adaptors are probably the way to go but many of us need to shoot now and can't wait or rely on unreliable Transcend cards. We also are yet to find out the pricing.

[Paul Kellett]

I think i read somewhere that the new firmware stops the camera recording again until the light goes green, even if the user hits the record button,it makes sense to impliment this in a firmware upgrade, it takes the operator error out of the equation.
I'm aware of waiting for the light though so i wouldn't risk doing a home firmware upgrade just for this safety feature.
I'm aware that we're talking "sony" prices with the adaptor but it's still cheaper than the sxs route, also i think that there's gonna be more piece of mind than with Transcend and the other adators.

Paul.

[Dean Harrington]

I'll be shooting a conference/speech on economics today with the SanDisk 32g Extreme (class 10) cards today. I'll let you know if there are any problems. This class of card should have 0 problems ... ! Anyone with experience on these cards ... let me know.

[Marcus Durham]

I've been having a play with the ATP/MxM combo.

The headline is that the ATP/MxM lockable will overcrank at 48 fps for ages. In fact I got it to 20 minutes before I had to move on.

The same ATP card in a standard MxM gives a Media Restore after 29 seconds at the same frame rate with the same material in the viewfinder.

I've done a write up here:

Further Adventures with SDHC and the EX1 | Media2u Video Production Blog

I'll add to it as and when I get time. I really want to try and fill a card at 48fps if I can.

For UK users wanting the ATP cards and an adaptor, the MxM/ATP bundles certainly seem to be the way to go.

I also put one of my "bad" Transcends into the MxM. No difference in performance. A bad card is still a bad card. But the ATP's do get a write speed boost in the MxM adaptors it seems.

[John Harbor]

Originally Posted by Dean Harrington

I'll be shooting a conference/speech on economics today with the SanDisk 32g Extreme (class 10) cards today. I'll let you know if there are any problems. This class of card should have 0 problems ... ! Anyone with experience on these cards ... let me know.

I have a pair of them at the moment......
I have yet to fill them and do the full 32gig test, but so far they have been great..... put them in using the MxM lockable cards, shut the door..... I like that part.... the camera liked them and away we went.....all a bit painless so far.
Let you know if that changes at all.

[Duncan Craig]

I got an error message yesterday on a shoot, does anyone have a link to a list of error messages for the EX1?

The error message came up after making a short 30 second or so recording, and the camera locked up. I only noticed it when the camera refused to start recording on the next shot.

I had to power cycle it, and then it asked to restore media. Nothing was lost.

(It was a lingerie shoot, so I expect you guy won't be interested in me posting any screen shots to help sort the problem out ;-) )

[Dave Morrison]

Duncan, I'd be willing to troubleshoot that footage for you. Did I mention I live alone? ;)