Upgrade From PC1000 to VX2100 « Videomaker Community Forums

bad-gs400
Member

I currently shoot fitness videos using a Sony PC1000 and display them on YouTube. Since these videos are shot inside of a gym, light is minimal and I'm looking to upgrade to a Sony VX2100 because of all the great reviews I have read about its low light performance. With my PC1000 I have to brighten up all my videos about 35% in Premiere. I have found a used one for $1200 from a local private party and would like to get some feedback from VX2100 owners. Will upgrading make a noticeable difference? Thanks.

Posted 2 years ago #
robGRAUERT
Member

I use a PD170, which is basically the VX2100, but with XLR connections. I have no major complaints and would suggest either of the two cameras to anyone.

Rob Grauert, Jr
http://www.robgrauert.com
http://command-r.tumblr.com

Posted 2 years ago #
bad-gs400
Member

What do you think about low light? Will it make a huge difference from the PC1000?

Posted 2 years ago #
Coreece
Member

>>>"What do you think about low light? Will it make a huge difference from the PC1000?"

If the VX 2100 does not make a huge difference, I would be extremely dissapointed and shocked...

From what I can tell, the PC-1000 only has 1/6" CCD' and has a minimum illumination of 7 lux. (the higher the lux the worse.)

These 2 specs alone suggest that the VX2100 will have a much better performance in low light since it has a much bigger 1/3" CCD and a minimum illumination at 1 lux.

The PC1000 also seems very substandard as it recods in mpeg format at 320x240...is that correcet?....if so, the VX2100 will blow it away even further.

The VX2100 also has gain control, meaning that you'll be able increase the brightness from the camera instead of increasing it in premiere if needed. typically, if there is just a enough light, you can gain up to about 6-8db with minimal quality loss(graininess).... IMO, the sony VX200, VX2100, PD150 and PD170 are the best cameras for low light situations and have the best gain processing...

I'm very confident that you'll be pleased with it's performance, but I would still suggest renting or borrowing one just to make sure you'll be happy with it...(just make sure you white balance, iris up and use the gain properly before making your final decision.

Posted 2 years ago #
bad-gs400
Member

"The PC1000 also seems very substandard as it recods in mpeg format at 320x240...is that correcet?....if so, the VX2100 will blow it away even further."

The mpeg recording is only used with the Sony memory card. The normal recording is regular recording (720X480) in either 4x3 or 16x9 format. Everything about the camera is great except for the low light performace which is primarily the reason why I'm thinking about the upgrade. The compact size is amazing and can be taken anywhere.

Can you explan more about the "white balance, iris up, and gain properly"? I will be test shooting with the VX2100 next week and have decided to shoot some video inside a Starbucks with the VX2100 and then my PC1000 to compare the difference in low light.

Posted 2 years ago #
Coreece
Member

>>>The normal recording is regular recording (720X480)

Ok, that makes more sense especially from a 3-CCD camera...I just couldn't find that info on the 3 websites I checked.

>>>Can you explan more about the white balance, iris up, and gain properly?

Yes....

White Balancing

White balancing basically tells the camera what white looks like under the current lighting conditions of your location. Typically, this is just to have accurate color, but it can also help improve the look of the actual exposure as well.

There is automatic (preset) and manual white balancing.

The presets may be sufficient for you for now...There is and indoor white balance and an outdoor white balance preset and you don't really have to do anything other than just select which preset to use.

If you are not satisfied with the color, or the white in your video has a heavy bluish or orangish tint, you may want to manually white balance.

If you manually white balance, you typically want to do it every time the lighting changes significantly.

The user manual will illustrate how to white balance on pages 50-51:

http://www.docs.sony.com/release/DCRVX2100.pdf

Iris UP

Basically this just means opening the iris all the way to make sure you are getting maximum light in low light situations. Again, there is automatic iris and manual iris control...It may be best to use manual iris control so that you can make sure that the iris is completely open and stays open during low light recording. This may also be refered to as exposure....see page 45 in the user manual I linked to above.

Gain

Gain is also covered in the exposure section on page 45. Typically, you don't want to use gain unless absolutely necessary because it artificially brightens up the picture and this can cause various degrees of graininess depending on the situation. However sony cameras do a great job at utilizing gain and the quality loss is minimal under minimal but decent lighting conditions, especially if you keep the gain under 8db.

Basically the Iris control and gain are adjusted from the same adjustment knob or scroller. Its starts at a closed iris and goes to an open iris.

If you keep scrolling past the open iris, the gain will kick in and you will see the 0.0db start to increase in value up to 18.0db.

Additional notes

Make sure that the outdoor ND filters are off as these limit the light for outdoor use. (page 47)

Using a higher shutter speed will also limit the light. (page 46)

I would review all manual adjustments on pages 47-53.

Also, testing the camera at starbucks may work, but it may be better to find a place that resembles the gym you record at and has similar lighting....I only say this because it will give you a better idea of how the camera performs. Starbucks can be a little tricky because it is usually a dim/darker atmosphere with bright windows which poses a challenge...just ask any camera operator....but maybe the starbucks you go to is different.

Finally, it may be helpful if you have somebody to show you how to operate the camera properly so that it gets a fair shake....it really is a good camera....if you're in Michigan, maybe I could help you.

Best Regards,

Corey

Posted 2 years ago #
bad-gs400
Member

Corey - thanks so much for your help! I'm going to test out the VX2100 this week and will use your tips when shooting with it.

Posted 2 years ago #
bad-gs400
Member

Corey - I ended up purchasing the used VX2100 about a week ago and have tested it alongside my PC1000. The difference in low light performace is amazing. The VX2100 is far superior and I'm happy with the purchase since this was my main concern.

A quick question - I just purchased a lavalier mic (Audio-Technica ATR-35S). Many of the reviews noted its a mono mic and an adapter is needed for full stereo sound (mono to stereo adapter) . I tested the mic and it worked great. I then plugged headphones into the camera and played back the tape to check the audio. I was able to hear full stereo sound in both earpieces (left/right). If it was a mono mic, wouldnt it only play back sound in 1 earpiece (left or right channel)? Not sure if I needed to pickup the adapter. Thanks.

Posted 2 years ago #
Coreece
Member

Basically:

Stereo is two different sounds eminating from two seperate channels.

Mono is the same sound eminating from two seperate channels...or one channel.

For a future reference, it is ok to record mono on two channels if you're only using one mic, but if you are using 2 mics, It may be in your best interest to make sure that each mic is only recording to it's own channel (mic 1 - left channel / mic 2 - right channel) and then mix it how you want in post...(ie. copy left to right and vice versa as well as adding other microphone recordings from other cameras or sources to the channels you want in order to create the desired stereophic.)

Also, you'll need an adapter to use 2 mics...this adapter will allow you to control the which mic gets recorded to which cahnnel....

Posted 2 years ago #