Canon XL1 or Sony VX2000? Which should I buy?
- Thread starter Tony001
- Start date
chris24 said:
Isn't the Canon HV 20 a 1 CCD camcorder? Do you think 1 CCD with HD and 24P is better than an interlaced SD 3 CCD camcorder regarding resolution/picture?
Do you have any links to any threads that talk more about this setup or this cam?
Do you have any short films/vids you've seen that used the HV20 for filming..that I can watch that are uploaded online? I would like to see it in action!
Last edited:
It depends on what your output is. I don't recommend the HV20 for your situation because it only shoots 24p in HD, not SD; you can probably do a down convert but then it's extra money for a system that can handle HDV in the first place.
The HV20 is a 1 chip CMOS (not CCD) with a slightly bigger chip than the 1/3'' CCDs of the XL1 and the VX2000. Resolution wise it beats both (cause it's HD) but in SD mode we just don't know. Same thing with image performance; people are just starting to get their hands on it and there's not enough released footages to tell, but it should be competitive.
Neither the VX2000 or the XL1 has XLR inputs but both would make a better choice than the HV20 because of the zoom ring and the focus ring; it's just easier to get the shot you want on the fly without having to fumble with the HV20's consumerish control. I would recommend the VX2000 over the XL1 because it's manual control is significantly better. I have not used the XL1 but had a chance to use an XL1S (basically an XL1 upgrade) and I didn't like it at all. The focus ring and the zoom rings feels slippery and non-responsive and the form factor wasn't a plus for me.
The HV20 is a 1 chip CMOS (not CCD) with a slightly bigger chip than the 1/3'' CCDs of the XL1 and the VX2000. Resolution wise it beats both (cause it's HD) but in SD mode we just don't know. Same thing with image performance; people are just starting to get their hands on it and there's not enough released footages to tell, but it should be competitive.
Neither the VX2000 or the XL1 has XLR inputs but both would make a better choice than the HV20 because of the zoom ring and the focus ring; it's just easier to get the shot you want on the fly without having to fumble with the HV20's consumerish control. I would recommend the VX2000 over the XL1 because it's manual control is significantly better. I have not used the XL1 but had a chance to use an XL1S (basically an XL1 upgrade) and I didn't like it at all. The focus ring and the zoom rings feels slippery and non-responsive and the form factor wasn't a plus for me.
Spartacus
Veteran
If you need to impress clients: Xl1 with clip-on mattebox
If you want a smaller formfactor but still look kind of "pro" for the average guy:Vx2000 (with XLR adapter), also "better" picture than the XL1
If you want HD in an ultraportable formfactor, chris24 suggestion for the HV 20 doesn´t sound bad at all - though I´d cut the spiderbrace and rather get a cheap handheld camerastabilizer...
And I´ll add - even though I havn´t seen HV20 footage yet - I bet it will look better than the XL1s even in SD, better than a XL2 or a DVX, I´m not sure about that...
That said, I´d rather save more money for a XL2 or DVXa, both proven and tested to be the best "prosumer" SD cams out there...
If you want a smaller formfactor but still look kind of "pro" for the average guy:Vx2000 (with XLR adapter), also "better" picture than the XL1
If you want HD in an ultraportable formfactor, chris24 suggestion for the HV 20 doesn´t sound bad at all - though I´d cut the spiderbrace and rather get a cheap handheld camerastabilizer...
And I´ll add - even though I havn´t seen HV20 footage yet - I bet it will look better than the XL1s even in SD, better than a XL2 or a DVX, I´m not sure about that...
That said, I´d rather save more money for a XL2 or DVXa, both proven and tested to be the best "prosumer" SD cams out there...
cecil995
Well-known member
jade8472 said:
I would say that the vx2000 had one of the worst focus rings out there, it takes like 5 turns to get the darn thing to focus, and the exposure knob is a pain because it controls several functions at once. That being said, I have used a
vx2000 and dvx during a shoot, and in 60i the images matched up well.
It just came out a few days ago, but if you do a search here for HV20 you'll see a lot of posts about it, some with video. Here's a link to some footage of it with the Brevis 35mm adaptor. Just test footage.
www.cinevate.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=479
Also, just pointing out an option to the VX2000 or XL1 that's in the same $$ range. It's still too new to say it's the best option.
www.cinevate.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=479
Also, just pointing out an option to the VX2000 or XL1 that's in the same $$ range. It's still too new to say it's the best option.
The only thing is the HV20 looks unprofessional in my opinion. If you hire 10 actors for a short film and some even volunteer to come out and work on the project and you whip out the small HV20...I would think some actors would be like I can't believe I wasted my time to come out here, he doesn't even have a real camera.
Even though it's HD and it's got 24p, I wouldn't think some people would laugh at it because it seems to look to close to other regular DV cams at best buy.
I'm still skeptical about the 3CCD versus CMOS.
I did go to best buy earlier today to look at HD videocams but didn't see the HV20. They had a presentation on HD versus standard and I think HD definitely is the way to go.
What I'm wondering though is if you shoot in HD but someone watches it on a standard tv (non-hd tv)..will there be a difference?
Particularly, most people don't have HD computer monitors. So if I upload the short online and use high end compression, will there really be any difference if it still comes out on a standard pc monitor?
Also how does it handle motion?
Seems like a good plan though as far as buying it and adding things on. I wish there was more footage, particularly footage with motion and dialogue.
Even though it's HD and it's got 24p, I wouldn't think some people would laugh at it because it seems to look to close to other regular DV cams at best buy.
I'm still skeptical about the 3CCD versus CMOS.
I did go to best buy earlier today to look at HD videocams but didn't see the HV20. They had a presentation on HD versus standard and I think HD definitely is the way to go.
What I'm wondering though is if you shoot in HD but someone watches it on a standard tv (non-hd tv)..will there be a difference?
Particularly, most people don't have HD computer monitors. So if I upload the short online and use high end compression, will there really be any difference if it still comes out on a standard pc monitor?
Also how does it handle motion?
Seems like a good plan though as far as buying it and adding things on. I wish there was more footage, particularly footage with motion and dialogue.
If you run HD through a standard def TV it automatically converts it to SD so there's no difference.
"HD computer monitors" doesn't really mean much. Most monitors are capable of displaying at least 1280 x 1024 which are roughly 720p resolution in anycase. THe problem is the hardware. Some computer processors or graphic cards are too slow to display 1080i footage so playback will lag.
In your case I'm assuming that you'll be looking for some outlet of distribution after you complete your film. If you're looking for distribution right now then HD is not the way to go. You'll end up spending a lot more money trying to edit the footage and you'll just end up downconverting it anyway. There's no way to burn HD to DVD and you can forget about putting your HD work up online; the file will be huge! Five minutes will end up around 250 mb no matter what compression you used and no one will have the patience to wait around for it to download. Put the money toward a decent SD cam, it'll work much better.
"HD computer monitors" doesn't really mean much. Most monitors are capable of displaying at least 1280 x 1024 which are roughly 720p resolution in anycase. THe problem is the hardware. Some computer processors or graphic cards are too slow to display 1080i footage so playback will lag.
In your case I'm assuming that you'll be looking for some outlet of distribution after you complete your film. If you're looking for distribution right now then HD is not the way to go. You'll end up spending a lot more money trying to edit the footage and you'll just end up downconverting it anyway. There's no way to burn HD to DVD and you can forget about putting your HD work up online; the file will be huge! Five minutes will end up around 250 mb no matter what compression you used and no one will have the patience to wait around for it to download. Put the money toward a decent SD cam, it'll work much better.
Last edited: