Ikan V-8000HD monitor: BEST on-camera HD monitor for under $2k!!!

Awesome. So where did you buy it from? How long to ship? I would need it by next week.. and glad that it's finally out. Also did you buy the charger and batteries from them as well? Also, have you thought about a hoodman or anything for exteriors? I will have to use it in bright sun and inside as well.

Thanks for the review!
 
Can this monitor be used for color calibration (blue gun) ?
or can i just buy a cheap SD production monitor for color calibration ?
 
I saw the blue option in the menu stills, but do you have one of the monitor in blue only? It would be great if you could send bars from your HVX and snap a shot of the blue mode.
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This monitor represents a great value for anyone needing the focus capability between what you get with SD and the Marshall. That was a wide and expensive margin between Walmart headrest monitors and the Marshall 7" lump.

Thanks for the thorough review.

e
 
well i'm sold. but when is this thing coming out? B&H has it on backorder and says 2-4 weeks but i read that 2-4 weeks ago, lol.
 
I asked the guy at the IKAN booth at NAB about why the blue gun didn't work- he told me "you can't calibrate an LCD with blue gun, everyone knows that".

That was news to me, as well as the guy I was with, a former engineer at a major flat-panel display company. He told me that nearly all of these monitors use the same panels, and it's only the scaler and programming that gives you the features and better quality output.

-Tom
 
I have never heard that an LCD panel cannot be calibrated through blue only. Specifically, an LCD monitor that conforms to NTSC SD or HD colorspace parameters should function as a CRT does.

Blue wratten filters, which I have used myself in pinch installations of digital projection systems, have been shown to be innaccurate for this purpose. Close, but no cigar.

e
 
sounds like there is a good bit of noodly nit-picking going on. we have to be realistic here. taking into consideration that the nearest competitor to this thing is more than 2X the price. asking this thing to be flawless is kind of silly. at this price im just glad that i can finally properly focus my hvx. in my experience, anyone who needs absolutely flawless color perfomance from a field monitor has the "depth of pocket" to get the esoteric stuff.

for me. the value of this piece is that i can get good focus feedback. AND if it dies in the field, i dont have to refinance my home to replace it.
 
wgzn said:
for me. the value of this piece is that i can get good focus feedback.
Click to expand...

If it claims to be an HD monitor, then I think that it should live up to those standards - otherwise, it should just be advertized as a regular LCD - just like it is fair to expect the sony SD monitors (or who ever) to display colors correctly otherwise, why spend the extra money when you could just get a regular TV ...

But color is not as big of a deal to me as focus is - so you may be correct in that asking to get accurate colors from a $750 monitor may be asking too much. When I used teh SWIT monitor by itself, it seemed to be just fine - but then when I put it next to the Marshall, I could see that the SWIT was soft in comparison, which did not make me feel very confident that I could judge proper focus from it - especially when using a 35mm adapter. So before plunking down the $750 for the Ikan I'd like to know how it preforms compared against the Marshall .... if I can get a decent monitor for focusing with my M2, and it saves me $750, then I'm all for it. :)
 
There's going to be one LONG line for this thing. Sounds like a champion for sure. Congrats on picking one up so soon, wgzn and thanks for the picture report.
 
right ryan, im with you in that id love to see someone with a marshall take some side to side pics with the ikan. its a shame you and i are a half a nation away or we could meet up and duel them out ; )

the only person here who might have both a marshall and an ikan may be brian. but im going to try to locate a marshall here in houston in the next few days to do some side by side pics.
 
wgzn said:
right ryan, im with you in that id love to see someone with a marshall take some side to side pics with the ikan. its a shame you and i are a half a nation away or we could meet up and duel them out ; )

the only person here who might have both a marshall and an ikan may be brian. but im going to try to locate a marshall here in houston in the next few days to do some side by side pics.
Click to expand...

I believe that Brian will be comparing the two, as he has both now- he posted his initial thoughts in the thread that he started in the hardware section, so I'm looking forward to his thoughts after he has had some time to compare them.

When the HVX first came out there were only two options- the Panasonic 17" monitor and the Marshall. Then Varizoomcame out with the SWIT at $500 less then the Marshall- I know people who have the SWIT and the Marshall, so I've been spending the last several weeks testing out the two in a production environment to see which I like better- and I lean heavily towards the Marshall- but if this monitor will do it, I'd love to get it ....

To bad we are not closer, or I'd come on over and bring the Marshall and the SWIT for a three way shoot out. :)
 
ok, youre in oregon, brians in california and im in texas. i say we meet at the airport in denver for an objective 3 way shootout.

that'd be hillarious!
 
wgzn said:
ok, youre in oregon, brians in california and im in texas. i say we meet at the airport in denver for an objective 3 way shootout.

that'd be hillarious!
Click to expand...

LOL! :) I suppose that is as central a place as any. :)
 
I have a marshall as well, so I will try to post up some pics here.

Regarding getting accurate colors, boy that's a bit of a sticky wicket. I think you are really asking if it can be calibrated correctly. It has RGB and brightness/contrast controls, so in theory you should be able to calibrate it. The lack of a blue mode just means it's that much more of a pain to do it.
 
I dont agree at all with this post. I tested all these monitors side by side. The Ikan may be the best sub $1000 but it is not as good as the Marshall and well behind the upcoming Nebtek. You need the Nebtek or the Panny for shallow DOF work.



ash =o)
 
Hello everyone... I know it's been some time since I last chimed in, and I apologize for that. However, I was instructed to lay off the User's Groups for a while. Unfortunately I am receiving so many e-mails from everyone out there that I felt the need to post in order give a little insight into what is going on in the HD LCD realm.

The IKAN as well as the SWIT are "Made in Taiwan" monitors straight from the assembly lines in China. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as there are plenty of solid units like these being used in cars and kiosks all over Asia. The reason they are so cheap is because they use "low-budget" Video Scalers. A lot of people are under the misconception that it is the panel or the programming (no effect on image quality) that has the most to do with the image you see on the monitor. The panel is important, but more important is the type of processing chip you are using to scale the video. I can pretty much guarantee that every single monitor that people are discussing on these boards is using a different panel and video scaler chip set. Don't let yourself get caught up in all of the technical jargon, for example...

I had a customer walk up to me at NAB and ask me if she should buy an IKAN unit. I told her that she would have to be extremely careful with the connectors on the back of the unit, because (like the SWIT monitor) they are soldered directly to the circuitry board. A BNC is a push and twist (to lock) connection, if you apply too much torque when you connect it you can snap one of those connectors off, and crack the board in the process. If you happen to crack the board the unit will probably have to be sent back overseas for repair... And it will probably not be covered under your warranty because it would be operator error. As long as your going to use this monitor in studio conditions, and no one else will be connecting the unit other than you (NO PA's), then if your happy with the picture... BUY IT!!!

It's all about finding the best tools to do the job right at the best price!

Now having said that... NEBTEK is in the unique position of being a company that designs products for it's own technicians to use first before offering them up to the LCD sales division. We have been modifying the Marshall V-R70P series since we bought one (to use with our Z1U) in June of 2006. We thought it had a great picture for the price, was solidly built (the BNC connections are anchored to the chassis) and had a solid feature set. I have had problems focusing in low light conditions (especially with my principles dressed in dark colors against a dark background), but under solid lighting conditions it worked great indoors and out (you'll need to put a Hood on it outside). The only thing I did not like about the unit was the IDX battery mount. We easily solved this by mounting one of our Sony Lithium-ion battery adapters to the back. Once people saw the Marshall LCD on set, and realized we could modify it with either our Sony, Canon, Panasonic or JVC Li-Battery adapters, I started selling the Marshall modified units like crazy... I continue to do so to this day.

The only reason we decided to build our own HD from the ground up was because there were so many customers coming to us saying that they needed this feature (critical focus assist) or that feature (underscan) or the other feature (image flip). There was a real need in the market for a monitor that would address all of these concerns. Well we listened to what everyone had to say and built an HD monitor with the features people asked us for, and the features that we need in the professional film and video field (anamorphic). The reason our monitor was delayed was because no one at NAB 2007 liked the membrane pad controls. It was a great idea in theory (better image adjustment, less likely to break down, better response time) unfortunately it was simply not a "field friendly" interface. We are currently redesigning the unit with buttons and knobs, and it will be ready by July. As long as we continue to work in the field (and customer's call with their feedback), we will continue to build the products that fit everyone's needs.

Will we stop selling Marshall monitors when we release ours?
ABSOLUTELY NOT... it's a solid product for someone that doesn't need all the features our unit has.

Will we recommend any one unit over the other?
No one can judge what you need better than you. If the price was not more important than having the best picture available than everyone would be buying ASTRO monitors at $5k a pop.

Are the Marshall & NEBTEK monitors sharper than the Ikan?
Absolutely, but at a higher price tag.

Will the NEBTEK HAVE more features than the Marshall?
Absolutely, but at a higher price tag.

Will the new Panasonic have more features than the NEBTEK?
Absolutely, but at a higher price tag.

There's the pattern folks... You have to decide what features you want and what those features are worth to you.

I hope this helps,
Rob DuBree
NEBTEK
:dankk2:

P.S. The video scaler in our board is powering a 50" LCD in our technicians office as we speak, and the picture is incredible. :thumbup:
 
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Rob's post just about says it all.
When I first had a SWIT in my hands, aside from the less then pic quality, my instincts about the build told me this wouldn't last in the field. The BNC connectors (like the Ikan) could not be repaired and isolated from the board. These things go, even with non-pro occasional use. Another part that scared me was the 1/4 mount was inside the monitor. With no apparent way to open it (without breaking the plastic casing and voiding the warranty) what do you do when you cross thead the 1/4" thread. At least with my Marshall, should that happen, I can unscrew the four screws and replace the 1/4" mount. This is one of the first bits of hardware that goes on a monitor with heavy field use.

Yes, you can rejoice about the low price and accuse the nit pickers of unsympathetic deep pockets but I think it's really a matter of priorities. When I shoot film, technically my priority is good glass and the best tripod. Since most movements are equally good between Aaton, Pana and Arri, lenses are the variable I'll kill for. And a great tripod. Cooke S4's on an old Arri 3 with an O'connor head over the latest Arricam with crap glass on a Sachtler, any day.

When it comes to HD, my priorities on the level with camera/lenses are monitors. The beauty of HD unlike film is you see what you get on set. The more accurate the image is the more I can fine tune my performances, lighting, staging, art direction, etc. Docs aside, the worse your monitor, the more you're guessing. When the demands of your job require subtle tuning of your craft, an accurate monitor is imperative. As we don't have optical viewfinders (as in film) a good broadcast monitor saves me surprises in post and let's me take my work to the next level. I can't tell you how many times I've seen things in better monitors that just don't show up in lower quality ones. As someone who hires DP's (as well DP myself), I can't take a DP seriously who'll settle for a subpar monitor. A good monitor pays for itself as you have fewer expensive mistakes to correct later. Of all my gear I rent, the one's that pay the bills the most are my monitors - that's how important they are to shooters.

So it seems odd to me that people here will drop 8-10g on a camera package, then go cheap on a monitor. It's like buying Zeiss lenses then putting a cheap resin filter in front of it. And if you're really thinking about the future, your camera will become obsolete long before your monitor. I understand foregoing the 1000 dollar quad charger or 2000 dollar Losmandy jib or whatever. But I consider the monitor an integral link to my camera system, which is vulnerable to the weakest link (which in this case is noise from the HVX). I give my HVX another 6 months before it's yesterdays big deal (it has issues). My Marshall and BTH 1700 monitor at least a year and half, maybe two before I replace them, and something tells me they may even be good to go and not obsolete by then.

Tim Naylor -DP
www.timnaylor.com
 
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Rob.. what a great post and I see now why your company is praised so highly. Thanks for that notice. I might be in the unfortunate position to have to get an LCD this week and I'll probably opt for the Ikan.. as it'll be used a a jib monitor with my HVX. Then I'll have to check into your monitor when it ships in July.

Thanks all... and I did see the Ikan.. available and online for 699 with free shipping. Seems like a nice bandaid fix for what I need...


BTW. I did buy the century fisheye last week and LOVE IT... but then I see that 16x9 has a super fish available. I like the fish more than the HVX wide... sure barrel distortion, but no vignetting. A great buy for 600 bucks!


J
 
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