Lexar 8 Gb Expresscard

[Jbucaro]

I remember reading that someone tried the Lexar 8 Gb and the 16 Gb SSD card.
I remember that they said that they were ok for SQ but not HD quality recording.

Question: Were they tested on a EX1 or EX3?

I have the EX3 and have tried the Lexar 8 Gb cards at HD quality (1080i) and so far I have not encountered any errors during capturing or using the XDCAM Browser.

I was considering purchasing more Lexar cards but if some of you had problems I would like to know.

Thanks!

[Carl Marxx]

:Drogar-Dum(DBG): I have a Lexar express 4 and 8Gig. memory card. These are the standard express memory cards. The cards both work in SQ and HQ capture; but I would not use them personally for HQ shoots that are critical. SQ @ 25Mbs is fine. But, I have tested the memory in over cranking and found they are on the edge at 35Mbs speed. So much so, that if you sneezed you would cause a write error. I Feel fine using the Lexar for HDV (SQ) capture, though. I hope this answers your question.

[PaulTV]

I have a Lexar 8gb SSD and don't actually use it at all, it appears OK with SP recording but HQ causes too many write errors.

That said, maybe they've improved the write or read speeds recently, I'll test mine with CrystalDiskMark and post the figures.

OK, well the Lexar came up with great read speeds almost double those possible with a Sandisk SDHC Ultra II card, but in terms of
write capabilities it is worse than half as fast as the Sandisk, and this is what matters.

I just put my Lexar SSD into my EX1, put it into record in HQ mode, stopped and started it twice and it threw an error. As I
say, maybe they got faster cards by now.

I'd be interested if you downloaded Crystal Disk Mark and ran a test thru you express card slot if you can and publish the figures.

Heres what I get for Sequential, Random 512K and Random 4K:

Lexar SSD
read -- write
33.46 -- 8.18
33.29 -- 1.70
6.54 -- 0.017

Sandisk Ultra II
18.07--- 16.92
17.44 ---3.82
3.63 ----0.030

Paul

[Jbucaro]

PaulTV and Carl,

Thank you for the information. I tried at least 10 times in a row (a 1 second stop and record) at HD quality and it never failed. I did long recordings and let it switch to another card and no problems. I am using the EX3. I am not sure if you guys also tested them with the EX3?

I do not have a laptop so I am not sure as to how I can test it using the CrystaldiskMark that PaulTV mentioned? I just use the camera to upload to the computer for the Lexar card. For the Sony cards I use the Sony USB SxS Reader. The Sony SxS reader does not recognize the Lexar card. That is why I have to use the camera.

[GuyB]

They generally work ok in SP but still occasionally throw a random 'media error' so be warned when filming something vital, remember murphy's law.

[Jbucaro]

They generally work ok in SP but still occasionally throw a random 'media error' so be warned when filming something vital, remember murphy's law.

Even on SP mode they throw a random "media error"?

Thank you

[GuyB]

yes they can, especially if you are keying on and off quickly.
Seriously, so far, with everyones tinkering, the only solution that basically everyone has had absolutely no problems with is KxS. A couple have recieved faulty K readers but they are problems out of the box and these people havn't reported back their replacements had any problems.

[Carl Marxx]

:violin:I've ran a test on the Lexar in SQ mode and found no errors for 37Min. I will try it again to see if it will error. Keep in mind, when you use questionable memory cards, you must always format the card first, as to write in a contiguous fashion to the card. Random memory write requests will most surly create errors over seguential writes. Also, Memory card performance varies slightly from card to card depending on the date of manufacture; on questionable brands of marginal performance, this can make the difference of it working or erroring. -- Carl Marxx

[Jbucaro]

:violin:I've ran a test on the Lexar in SQ mode and found no errors for 37Min. I will try it again to see if it will error. Keep in mind, when you use questionable memory cards, you must always format the card first, as to write in a contiguous fashion to the card. Random memory write requests will most surly create errors over seguential writes. Also, Memory card performance varies slightly from card to card depending on the date of manufacture; on questionable brands of marginal performance, this can make the difference of it working or erroring. -- Carl Marxx

Yes, I have used the Lexar 8Gb for 3 different occassion (when I run out of memory on my other Sony cards) and so far I have never encountered an error. That is why I wanted to know if the errors where with a EX1 vs the EX3? I know that the Kensignton with the Ultra II is a better choice but you have two additional connections (Kensignton to the camera, the ultra II to the Kensignton adapter) and with the Lexar card you don't. All of those times I have recorded at HD quality.

Maybe I got lucky and got a good Lexar card?

[Jbucaro]

Maybe I am not to clear as to the write errors?

Are the write errors a warning on the camera?
Is the video corrupted?

Thank you!

[arkay]

Lexar 8GB works fine for me in HQ or SQ mode. No errors. Will NOT work in overcrank mode.

[Stevet]

OK, I guess I'm confused, do the Lexar cards work in HQ mode or not?
I thought they failed in HQ?

If so, HQ is all I shoot.

[Carl Marxx]

Only failes with overcranking, SteveT

[PaulTV]

Mine fails in HQ if I stop and start record, but as previously stated, maybe they made them better/quicker - speeds I got from my 8gb version are shown earlier in this thread - can anyone run a test on their media to confirm a difference ? I'm running EX1

Also it is clear that these cards record SP mode ie. 1440x1080 - HQ mode is 1920x1080 and S&Q mode is Slow and Quick motion.

Paul

[Jbucaro]

OK, I guess I'm confused, do the Lexar cards work in HQ mode or not?
I thought they failed in HQ?

If so, HQ is all I shoot.

Stevet,

I have not problem with HQ or SD quality. That was my original question since I am considering purchasing more Lexar 8 Gb cards. I wanted to make sure I was not the only one without problems with this cards.

[Carl Marxx]

I have tested the Lexar 8Gig. express card, and as I stated before, you can not over-crank this card even one frame or it will error. They are marginal while working in HQ mode; but, it also depends on the the batch and time the card was manufactured. Memory cards very slightly. Early manf. cards may error quickly or later. Again I say, the memory will work in HQ mode, but take caution! -- carl

[arkay]

I concur on the 8GB Lexar cards. Other than no over-cranking, they work as well as the Sonys in SQ and HQ. I shot a marathon all day with them last weekend, with usual starting-stopping etc and no worries. I got mine for $60 each at Calumet and Fry's. Do your own tests before using for a paying gig. Caveat Emptor.

[Stevet]

The problem is...
If you can not overcrank by even a small amount, this shows us that we are very close to failing in HQ mode. I'm not willing take this chance.

The KxS has decent headroom with it's ability to overcrack to 40FPS (24P) without any errors. This equates to a sustained datarate of over 66mbps

[GuyB]

I have 2 lexar 16GBs and both show occasional restore media erros in HQ and while much less often in SP, but enough in SP to not trust them as anything other than last resort fall back media. I only bother keeping one in the camera bag now, the other lives in the laptop for backups of important data from the laptops HDD.

Until a reader as good as the Kensington but with flush mounting comes out, it is KxS all the way for me. Even off loading is easier for me with SD than Express Card as I really want to off load to my desktop, not my laptop.

[arkay]

Was shooting yesterday with the Lexar 8GB SSD cards and got the dreaded media error, needs to be restored message several times. Did not lose any media but just the fact that it would stop recording made the cards useless. I have 4 of them and I did tests on all 4 after that, it was consistently making errors. I switched to SanDisk SDHC cards then Sony Pro-Duos and no problems. This after a week of no problems. :(

[Z1Scottie]

i have used mine for two weddings. the second one, one of my cards threw errors, but i suspect it was because I was dangerously low on battery. after I switched, i had no problems the rest of the day. I restored media and didnt lose any video. I was shooting in SQ.

[PaulTV]

It does say in the Sony EX1 handbook, that an SxS which regularly throws "media error" reports can at times be fixed by repeated formatting cycles, so even SxS are subject to these problems, possibly fragmented clusters or something - sounds nasty!

It also says that "in some cases only parts of clips can be restored" So SxS is fallable too.

Paul

[EDIT-XTREEM]

What about this one?

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=transcend+expresscard&oe=UTF-8&cid=14600914046391049383#ps-sellers

Really cheap.

[Carl Marxx]

Iv've just tested the Lexar 4Gig. express card and I wanted every one to know that it comes through with flying colours using HQ mode. What a blunder Lexar has made. The 4 Gig. works, while the 8Gig. card is marginal, and I have herd that the 16Gig. is slower. What a blunder Lexar has made! -- Carl

[Stevet]

Yes, if they speed these Lexar SSD cards up, they may be the best alternative.

Actually, I kind of like the idea just leaving the Kensington in the EX and pulling in and out the 32GB SDHC once they arrive.

[Carl Marxx]

:thumbup: -- On testing the Lexar 8Gig. (16Gig.) express cards, if you have a lot of movement, they will give you errors, so, don't shoot sports with them or wild brides! On the other hand, I've found that the 4Gig. Lexars are the closest thing to the Sony SxS that I have found in speed, and could be overcranked to 54 frames (720p 24 mode) before erroring.