Need REAL big Help: Hoodman RAW Card Faliure at DVinfo.net

William Griffin · August 15th, 2010, 12:44 AM

well, I got bit tonight....

I shot for a new client tonight and some reason one of my Hoodman 16gb RAW cards, after formatting it and shooting with it .... Failed big time. When it was put in the MAC Book Pro to transfer the media....the card was blank... nana, nothing was there. But the computer told us that 14.9 gb was used on the card...

and the other cards I used, Patriot and Transend worked just fine and the camera (EX3) never told me if I had a media error or disk failure as the camera recorded just like as always, humming right along.
....so the big question is:

Is the card toast or is there a way of getting the media back off the card?

The client is not too upset as it was a 6 camera shoot, and we recorded the project (a musical show) twice
today.

thanks

Bill Griffin
DP/Cameraman
Dallascamguy.com

Craig Seeman · August 15th, 2010, 11:22 AM

What happens when you put the card back into the camera?

HOW are you putting it into MacBookPro?
Some have Express slot, some have built in SDHC slot.

William Griffin · August 15th, 2010, 04:27 PM

I put it back in on media mode.....it came up as a file, but there was no picture....it said "unrecognized media, need to be formatted" or something like that....the client tried both a express card and the sdhc card slot...same results.

Craig Seeman · August 15th, 2010, 09:10 PM

Can you copy the BPAV by hand to computer from an SDHC card reader.
It sounds like the card itself when bad if the camera is showing unrecognized media.
Can you reseat the card into the adaptor you had it in or a different adaptor and try putting it back into the camera?

William Griffin · August 15th, 2010, 10:03 PM

tried that and no luck.....

Bruce Rawlings · August 16th, 2010, 10:02 AM

Have you had a talk with Hoodman to see if they have any ideas?

Craig Seeman · August 16th, 2010, 10:18 AM

Question is it the Adaptor which impacted the card or is it the card itself.
Adaptor is rebranded MxM unless they've changed anything.
Hoodman changes a premium for the reliability of their SDHC cards.

Unfortunately it's unclear from your posts where the point of failure is. You really should be more detailed in your posts. All we can do is ask questions and I'm still not 100% clear from your answers what you've actually tried.

Did you get any messages while you were recording?
Did you attempt to view the clips in camera before trying to copy them to computer?

You mentioned you formatted and then shot with the card.
Did you format the card in camera?
Did you test it before shooting with it?

Given the "unrecognized media" it doesn't sound like a card i/o controller issue. Given the message requesting a format it doesn't seem like a typical metadata corruption either. It sounds almost as if the card wasn't formatted properly.

William Griffin · August 16th, 2010, 10:54 AM

I have spoken to alot of people this morning...sounds like the Hoodman card has failed....as the other SDHC cards worked with no problem.

William Griffin · August 16th, 2010, 12:07 PM

Did you get any messages while you were recording? NO
Did you attempt to view the clips in camera before trying to copy them to computer? NO time to do so

You mentioned you formatted and then shot with the card. YES I DID
Did you format the card in camera? YES
Did you test it before shooting with it? NO, as it formatted

Quote:

Given the "unrecognized media" it doesn't sound like a card i/o controller issue. Given the message requesting a format it doesn't seem like a typical metadata corruption either. It sounds almost as if the card wasn't formatted properly.

IT WAS as the camera said it was......

Craig Seeman · August 16th, 2010, 12:39 PM

Interesting that the card should fail in that way. It sounds like the storage media aspect of the card failed (part of it). I'd love to hear Hoodman's explanation since their reputation is built on the reliability of their cards (or so I thought).

Marcus Durham · August 17th, 2010, 04:31 PM

Hoodman need to look at your card asap. They do state they offer a lifetime warranty (although that won't cover your data). Since they manufacture the card themselves they are in the best position to establish exactly what the problem is.

We'd all be very interested to know what their findings are. Trying to work out what is user error, camera failure or media failure is very important as it helps us see the true picture with SDHC use and also lets us know what media is reliable.

August 15th, 2010, 12:44 AM	#1
William Griffin Major Player Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Dallas, Texas Posts: 204	Need REAL big Help: Hoodman RAW Card Faliure well, I got bit tonight.... I shot for a new client tonight and some reason one of my Hoodman 16gb RAW cards, after formatting it and shooting with it .... Failed big time. When it was put in the MAC Book Pro to transfer the media....the card was blank... nana, nothing was there. But the computer told us that 14.9 gb was used on the card... and the other cards I used, Patriot and Transend worked just fine and the camera (EX3) never told me if I had a media error or disk failure as the camera recorded just like as always, humming right along. ....so the big question is: Is the card toast or is there a way of getting the media back off the card? The client is not too upset as it was a 6 camera shoot, and we recorded the project (a musical show) twice today. thanks Bill Griffin DP/Cameraman Dallascamguy.com __________________ Bill Griffin SONY PXW-X320,PMW-300K2, LiveU LU-500,Sound Devices 552 Mixer,www.Dallascamguy.com

August 15th, 2010, 04:27 PM	#3
William Griffin Major Player Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Dallas, Texas Posts: 204	I put it back in on media mode.....it came up as a file, but there was no picture....it said "unrecognized media, need to be formatted" or something like that....the client tried both a express card and the sdhc card slot...same results. __________________ Bill Griffin SONY PXW-X320,PMW-300K2, LiveU LU-500,Sound Devices 552 Mixer,www.Dallascamguy.com

August 15th, 2010, 10:03 PM	#5
William Griffin Major Player Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Dallas, Texas Posts: 204	tried that and no luck..... __________________ Bill Griffin SONY PXW-X320,PMW-300K2, LiveU LU-500,Sound Devices 552 Mixer,www.Dallascamguy.com

August 16th, 2010, 10:54 AM	#8
William Griffin Major Player Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Dallas, Texas Posts: 204	I have spoken to alot of people this morning...sounds like the Hoodman card has failed....as the other SDHC cards worked with no problem. __________________ Bill Griffin SONY PXW-X320,PMW-300K2, LiveU LU-500,Sound Devices 552 Mixer,www.Dallascamguy.com

August 17th, 2010, 04:31 PM	#11
Marcus Durham Major Player Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Hampshire, UK Posts: 693	Hoodman need to look at your card asap. They do state they offer a lifetime warranty (although that won't cover your data). Since they manufacture the card themselves they are in the best position to establish exactly what the problem is. We'd all be very interested to know what their findings are. Trying to work out what is user error, camera failure or media failure is very important as it helps us see the true picture with SDHC use and also lets us know what media is reliable. __________________ Marcus Durham Media2u, Corporate Video Production For Your Business - http://www.media2u.co.uk

August 15th, 2010, 11:22 AM	#2
Craig Seeman Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brooklyn, NY, USA Posts: 3,841	What happens when you put the card back into the camera? HOW are you putting it into MacBookPro? Some have Express slot, some have built in SDHC slot.

August 15th, 2010, 09:10 PM	#4
Craig Seeman Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brooklyn, NY, USA Posts: 3,841	Can you copy the BPAV by hand to computer from an SDHC card reader. It sounds like the card itself when bad if the camera is showing unrecognized media. Can you reseat the card into the adaptor you had it in or a different adaptor and try putting it back into the camera?

August 16th, 2010, 10:02 AM	#6
Bruce Rawlings Major Player Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Cardiff, Wales, UK Posts: 410	Have you had a talk with Hoodman to see if they have any ideas?

August 16th, 2010, 10:18 AM	#7
Craig Seeman Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brooklyn, NY, USA Posts: 3,841	Question is it the Adaptor which impacted the card or is it the card itself. Adaptor is rebranded MxM unless they've changed anything. Hoodman changes a premium for the reliability of their SDHC cards. Unfortunately it's unclear from your posts where the point of failure is. You really should be more detailed in your posts. All we can do is ask questions and I'm still not 100% clear from your answers what you've actually tried. Did you get any messages while you were recording? Did you attempt to view the clips in camera before trying to copy them to computer? You mentioned you formatted and then shot with the card. Did you format the card in camera? Did you test it before shooting with it? Given the "unrecognized media" it doesn't sound like a card i/o controller issue. Given the message requesting a format it doesn't seem like a typical metadata corruption either. It sounds almost as if the card wasn't formatted properly.

August 16th, 2010, 12:39 PM	#10
Craig Seeman Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brooklyn, NY, USA Posts: 3,841	Interesting that the card should fail in that way. It sounds like the storage media aspect of the card failed (part of it). I'd love to hear Hoodman's explanation since their reputation is built on the reliability of their cards (or so I thought).