This week there have been three important firmware updates for XDCAM EX cameras, the Convergent Design NanoFlash and the Zoom H4n. Read on for the details.

Sony XDCAM EX Firmware Update

If you are interested in using the new 64GB or 32GB SxS-1A cards, your XDCAM EX camera will need a firmware upgrade. The SxS-1 32GB cards have been out for sometime now, but the new SxS-1A cards have just recently starting shipping. These cards have faster transfer speeds, up to 1.2Gbps, which really makes a difference when downloading your footage through the ExpressCard interface. The following cameras require the firmware upgrade to work with these cards: PMW-EX1, PMW-EX1R, PMW-EX3 and the PMW-350. The new PMW-320 and PMW-500 cameras should work with no upgrade necessary. The firmware can be downloaded from the Sony website, which also includes instructions for installation.

Convergent Design NanoFlash

Convergent Design has updated the NanoFlash to version 1.6.226 (beta). This update adds many features including the ability to hot-swap cards and switch between cards on the fly. They have also added support for playback of Canon XF305 files, which makes the NanoFlash the only deck that can playback the Canon XF305/300 video. There are several other updates and bug fixes that every NanoFlash user will appreciate. This firmware is currently in beta, but worth checking out. Click here to download the firmware and learn more (bottom of the page).

Zoom H4n

The popular Zoom H4n has just been updated to version 1.70, which allows independent level controls on the unit’s two XLR inputs. This is very important for anyone using the H4n as a recording device for video work. Download the latest firmware here.

The latest addition to the Nexto Video Storage Pro lineup, the NVS2525, has all the features of the original NVS2500, but with a dedicated P2 and SxS card slot. It also supports CF, SDHC and MS cards through a simple adapter. The NVS2525 has FireWire 800 and USB computer connectivity and syncs data with an external eSATA drive. The unit ships with both an internal 750 GB hard drive and an external eSATA 750 GB hard drive. Video can be downloaded to both drives at the same time when in sync mode.

The NVS2525 will be available at the end of November, and firmware will be released to support UDF formatted memory cards in December. This will enable it to work with ARRI ALEXA and Sony PMW-500 UDF formatted SxS cards.

The Glyph Triplicator is another great device that can really simplify workflow. It allows you to connect up to three hard drives, and your computer or Nexto will see them as a single drive. Now you can create three identical backups at once. Learn more about both of these devices in my video above.

I got a chance to see the new Sony PMW-500 camera at HD World this year. The camera combines the 2/3″ CCD sensor of the PDW-700 and PDW-F800 with the body of the PMW-350. If all those product numbers have your head spinning, you can think of this as an XDCAM 422 camera that records to SxS cards. In addition to support for all current SxS cards, the PMW-500 will work with the new 64 GB and 32 GB SxS-1 cards that are now shipping. The XDCAM 422 format is widely accepted by news networks and other broadcasters, so it’s great to see Sony offering it on SxS cards. Watch my video above to learn more.

With the first day of IBC wrapping up, there is a steady stream of products and updates coming from the show floor. Look for future blogs on some of this gear, but for now here’s a quick look at a few of the new products from IBC.

…continue reading New Product Announcements from IBC

ARRI’s ALEXA camera offers several recording options, including recording directly to SxS cards in Apple ProRes format. This is called the Shoot to Edit option, and it makes for a very simple workflow. ProRes has proven to be a high quality and robust video format that is widely used in the industry today. The ALEXA has an uncompressed video output, but I believe many productions will choose to record in ProRes directly in the camera. Here is a 3 step guide for how to import ALEXA footage into Final Cut Pro.

…continue reading Simple ALEXA Workflow with Final Cut Pro

Transcend just started delivering their 32GB Class 6 SDHC cards, and of course our first question was: Will it work with the EX1 and EX3 cameras? For those of you that don’t know, the EX1 and EX3 will accept some ExpressCard 34 to SDHC adapters and allow you to record directly to high-speed (class 6) SDHC cards. This is very popular because of the reduced cost compared to SxS cards. The first adapter that was known to work well was the Kensington 7-in-1 Media reader, but stock soon fell short and Kensington stopped producing them. Recently an Australian company (E-Films) started producing an adapter called the MxR ExpressCard/34 Reader, which was guaranteed to work for this application and fit nicely in both EX1 and EX3 cameras. Now Hoodman has taken over the US reselling of that product, which they are now calling a SxSxSDHC adapter. These adapters have proven to work well and many of our clients have them. However, not all SDHC cards work with the adapter in the EX1/3. I’ve successfully tested both the 16 GB SanDisk Extreme III Class 6 cards and the 16GB Transcend Class 6 SDHC cards, and those are the cards we recommend to our clients. So of course I was looking forward to testing the 32GB version as well. Well finally the good news. The Transcend 32 GB card has tested out the same as the 16GB version. I was able to write at 1080p 24/30/60i with no problem. At 720P I was able to write at up to 41fps, which is about the same as the 16GB version. I’m looking forward to testing the SanDisk version and Hoodman’s RAW SDHC card, which promises to handle even higher frames per second in 720p.