How reliable has your H1 been?

J

John Trent

Well-known member
I have a one friend whose never had a problem with his XL1 and a few friends who swear the XL/GL series has brought nothing but misery into their lives. These friends warn me not to buy any Canon HDV cams. Thinking maybe quality control and their repair service might have improved, I called a highly regarded repair shop. I asked about the H1 and they said they haven't seen any in for repair. But after talking we both agreed it may well be that at $9,000, not many were selling. This repair shop, when asked said they repair every brand but Canon. The Canon's they send back to Canon. This was something I'd hoped to avoid because of the horror stories I've heard about Canon repair. My favorite being a dvinfo story about a guy sending his GL in for repair and Canon losing the camera, yet insisting he pay the repair bill. Nice.

When asked about Sony and Panasonic cams they said they really don't see many Sonys but the Panasonics come in often, for cleaning. When I mentioned the dead pixels and various other XL/GL problems, they LAUGHED and said, "Oh, yeah, we've seen A LOT of those cameras pass through here."

I'm considering the new A1 and I'd really like to know how many of you H1 owners have had dead pixels or other problems with your H1. Be honest. Since they use the same image block and the same or similar circuitry I figure you guys could tell me if I would have a clear horizon or a troubled crooked path ahead of me. Frankly, my friends and a great number of posts about the XL/GL problems are scaring me off this cam, though I'd rather be forewarned, then charged a repair bill for a camera Canon has lost. :) Thanks, guys.
 
Canon repair has always been great. I've only heard good stories. Once I had a tracking error on a tape for a project and Canon asked to take a crack on retrieving the information. Ultimately they weren't successful, but they gave it their best shot and didn't charge me anything.

My XLH1 has been through the riggers. Daytime exterior. Night time exterior. High humidity levels with moisture condensation build up during filming of Shakespeare in the Park. It's worked like a charm.
 
I've used my XLH1 right on the shore near Ocean Beach in San Francisco and the thing worked great! Salt spray, high wind, and all. I can't get over the high quality of this camera. You really get what you pay for.
 
I have high regards for Canon repair shop. They have always been fast and friendly and I never got the run-around.

I had some bad experiences with the 2 XL1's but it turns out I was mixing Sony tapes with everything else I could find! I blamed the camera when it was just me, too stupid to realize I was gunking up the heads and causing problems.

Other than minor dropouts the H1 has worked like a tank for me.

I wouldn't be afraid of buying one for quality issues.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top