I just ordered a Magiqcam!!

[Steven Wills]

Yeah...Basson is out of the country though and that kinda worries me.

What I think I want is a Flyer at 1/2 the price...lol.

Anyone using a Flyer in here?

[Charles Papert]

The Flyer hasn't shipped yet, there are currently only two demo models in existence. I've flown it, and I love it. It performs beautifully. I wrote about it in another thread (sorry, in a hurry and can't find it at the moment). To me, the difference in the price tag is justifiable in terms of the performance, particularly in terms of the arm. I do understand that it will be out of many's price range.

Wayne, I haven't heard positive things about the Bassoon system, from a hardware and customer support perspective. I haven't flown it, however.

[Steven Wills]

Sometime when you find the thread, drop it in...I would like to read it.

It seems to me that my options are kinda limited. I'll keep my options open and focus in on the Flyer. It seems like a good, solid, mid-range choice for me and I doubt I'll ever need to fly anything outside of its weight limit.

I'll go look for some links...

[Scott Balkum]

My Magiqcam is sitting at home. My wife sent me pictures by email at work....... tick tock, tick tock,,,, time............ I wanna go home... I will post pics tonight of the Magiqcam for those who are interested.

[Steven Wills]

Where are you Scott? ;-)

[Scott Balkum]

I have been working with this Magiqcam for over an hour and I am not perfect at it. I hate it... Ok, ok,ok... You all know I am kidding..

My first impressions are that this is a very well made product. First rate components.

Now, after balance and such, I immediately noticed that a for and aft adjustment is a must and the Magiqcam doesn't have it. I find myself having to lean way back to keep the arm from taking off forward.

It took maybe about 30-45 minutes to get a good balance. I am still nit picking it, but it wil lwork for now.

The unit is very smooth and somewhat easy to control. Having never flown anything before, I was a little scared about how it all works, but this unit will make learning easy. Any problems are my fault, not the Magiqcam.. :)

I will post some pictures later and get a nice wide open space to really train myslef on the in's and out's.

[Charles Papert]

Have fun with it Scott!

[Ed Liew]

just received mine, well sort of. its in my parent house. will get to open it tomorrow. i'll try to post some pics on monday if possible.
i hope its worth the wait.

ed

[Steven Wills]

<<<-- Originally posted by Scott Balkum :

Now, after balance and such, I immediately noticed that a for and aft adjustment is a must and the Magiqcam doesn't have it. I find myself having to lean way back to keep the arm from taking off forward.

Yeah, thats what I though and it has also been my biggest concern...

It only makes sense that you must balance on both axis to become "neutral." This would greatly reduce the amount of "lean-back" to off-set the rig. Sadly, because of this one little detail, it will take me out of the >$2K range. (good-bye savings...sniff...I will miss you...)

[Charles Papert]

Steven:

If it makes you feel better, the Flyer not only has a 2-axis socket block, it has (compared to the other rigs in this weight class) a much more sophisticated and easier to use set of camera adjustments at the top stage; a very smooth gimbal; the ABSOLUTE best arm in its class (the biggest selling point) and an extremely good LCD monitor that is actually daylight-viewable. I have not gone on record as endorsing a Tiffen Steadicam before, and in fact haven't owned that company (or the previous holder of the Steadicam's license, Cinema Products) equipment since 1996, but I am an enthusiastic fan of the Flyer. I am shooting a short with the Mini35 in a few weeks and I have actually elected to use this rig instead of my own full-size setup as an experiment, and I feel fully confident that my operating will not suffer in the least, something I could not say about any other rigs. But again, the difference between $2K and $6K, while minimal in the pro Steadicam world, is a big deal for most DV users and thus the compromises are usually acceptable.

[Steven Wills]

Thanks Charles,

I dunno but that sounded like a solid endorsement if I ever heard one.

I was "wishful thinking" but realistically, I know I have to move up to this price class.

I had to make the same decisions when I bought my Jimmy Jib and doing the research makes all the difference. No one wants to spend more then they need to.

I already knew there were many advantages, and had already made allowances to budget for the Flyer.

I would really like to know what your review is after you shoot the short with the Flyer. I understand at that price point you can’t have everything, but I feel confident that this will be a solid, mid-range rig that will easily pay for itself within a year. Fortunately, I don’t need a “full-blown” $66K rig but one with the ample features you have already described.

This gets back to what I was calling “feel” and “I” as a buyer have to decide at what price-point I have what I think is needed to perform my job. So far, the Flyer is the only one I feel comfortable with. What is really needed by me is, to strap one on myself, and have a go at it. It seems that may be a while, since none are available at this time, so your review will be very important to me and I’m sure, to others.

I would like to talk to you further by phone if we can, as I have some detailed questions.

[Scott Balkum]

I spoke with John on Friday about the block adjustment. There was something interesting that he told me that I didn't see. The adjustment for the block side to side, also affect for and aft. The block is actually not mounted vertically on the harness. It is mounted at an angle. He said he did this after to speaking with Charles and trying to come up with a happy medium. If he had to manufacture a 4 adjustment block, the price would have to go up considerably. By offsetting the 2 position block, as you adjust the screws so that the top of the block moves right, it ALSO moves back....

This actualy worked. I adjusted it and, low and behold, success. A great design innovation that saved money and works.

So far, very, VERY pleased with the design and unit.

[Charles King]

Well, something I did not see or make out. I still don't notice it. A close up pic would probably do ;)

[Mark Jervis]

I finally made some hires pics of the rig. I know it's been a while and you can flog me if you wish. The pics are at http://www.viproductions.tv/magiqcam

They are not small (between 1.3-2.5 Mb per pic) but if there is anything else you need to see let me know.

[Charles King]

Thanks for sharing Mark. Great pics. A little big in size but great.