The reason why I will not buy Redrock

Chris Santucci said:
Dude, when I say "assertion," I mean - statement. Like, you say something is true, and I question what you say, as in - I need proof to agree with you.

That's all. I only ask for proof, in part because I'm NOT disagreeing with you. I'm actually being discriminating and looking for the best option for a lens adapter without having the benefit of hands on experience with more than just the M2.

And that's pretty funny about me preferring softer footage...

I've seen some really nice footage from the Letus and I have issues with soft edges just like anyone else. Footage I've seen from the SG Pro and Letus seems to have slightly soft edges on the same plane of focus but apparently less fall off and I'd agree that the Letus footage appears to be sharper than the M2 footage.

This is one of the best examples of Letus footage I've seen yet.

http://downloads.letusdirect.com/extreme/featured/letusdirect720.mp4

I'm having a real hard time finding some exceptional SG Pro footage online and their website won't play the example clips in either of the browsers I use.

To tell you the truth, I'm leaning towards the Letus 35 Extreme pretty heavily and I appreciate your feedback because I AM a little tired of the softness and vignetting.

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Alright, LoL. No offense, man. Just seemed like you were definitely okay with the M2 which is FINE.

I've been meaning to post up some footage of my own here, just need to find the time to do so. When I do I'll PM you.

After Lenny and Tim's testing it was exposed that they ALL have edge sharpness issues when dealing with low light. The EX-1 so far as the best edge-to-edge performance, but maybe ask Lenny about that one too as he owns the camera and will probably have more charts for you to judge scientifically.

I love Redrock gear. Don't get me wrong! Just that the Extreme is an upgrade for me.

Again, I'll have some HVX + LetusEx footage for ya. It's nothing more than our trip to the Canyons because me GF wanted some footage to send back to her parents and everything else I do tends to be under NDA. =P Don't expect award winning footages.
 
I appreciate it. I'm actually kind of sold on the SG Pro. I can't stand the wonky rig they use for the Letus adapter and I actually think the SG Pro footage looks better also and I have no need for a flip unit. I thought this was exceptional:

http://www.sgpro.co.uk/thanar-theodoroschliapas.mov

I just ordered the SG Pro and I'll be doing some testing before I decide to sell the M2. It's just such a shame Redrock is so lax in updating this thing and there's no mention as far as I can tell in their forums of any forthcoming improvements to the M2. I hope I can use my RR follow focus and rods with the SG Pro...

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Chris Santucci said:
I appreciate it. I'm actually kind of sold on the SG Pro. I can't stand the wonky rig they use for the Letus adapter and I actually think the SG Pro footage looks better also and I have no need for a flip unit. I thought this was exceptional:

http://www.sgpro.co.uk/thanar-theodoroschliapas.mov

I just ordered the SG Pro and I'll be doing some testing before I decide to sell the M2. It's just such a shame Redrock is so lax in updating this thing and there's no mention as far as I can tell in their forums of any forthcoming improvements to the M2. I hope I can use my RR follow focus and rods with the SG Pro...
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Mabe the Redrock team is taking the silent approach to releases, similar to Letus.

Be wary. Just because you don't see it doesn't mean it's not there.

You can use your RR Follow Focus and Rods with the SGpro, not sure about the RR baseplate, however. You may want to do some research on that.

Enjoy your SGPro.
 
I would actually be shocked if Redrock doesn't release their next adapter soon... Given the delays in their already announced products (matte box, microX, handgrips that have been pictured on the site forever) and the fact that Brian says they are "mighty busy working on some interesting things" for us in this very thread, I am expecting to see a next-gen flipped adapter at NAB. It might not be for sale right after NAB, but I would bet they have a working prototype there.

This is pure speculation, of course, and I have no inside information (I promise), but I have been watching these forums and the Redrock forums carefully for the last few months and drawn this conclusion. Something that REALLY makes me think this is from the microX forum on Redrock's site where Brian says that backwards compatibility for current M2 owners is an important design criterion. Well, you shouldn't have to say that if you aren't working hard on releasing a new adapter for future customers, right? In a different thread, someone suggests that the microX could be the foundation for a new, flipped adapter - and Brian never responded at all. Maybe I'm reading too much into it. Maybe not.

Also, regarding the edge-to-edge softness on the M2.. I use a Cinveate achromat with my M2, and I have pretty good edge-to-edge sharpness - definitely just as good as footage I have seen from other adapters on this forum. I wonder, though I have no way of finding out right now, if the achromat is the difference. The microX comes with its own achromat, and that could explain why footage shot using the microX is sharper... food for thought.
 
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herbalmedia said:
I would actually be shocked if Redrock doesn't release their next adapter soon... Given the delays in their already announced products (matte box, microX, handgrips that have been pictured on the site forever) and the fact that Brian says they are "mighty busy working on some interesting things" for us in this very thread, I am expecting to see a next-gen flipped adapter at NAB. It might not be for sale right after NAB, but I would bet they have a working prototype there.
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Well, I'm prepping to shoot a feature this June and I may need 2 adapters. If they don't release a new cinescreen or upgrade for the M2, I'll be using the SG Pro.

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Will, the achromat is very important, but it's not the only determining factor in sharpness, particularly edge to edge. A few factors that enter into that equation:

1. Size of achromat relative to camcorder lens
2. Sharpness and contrast ratio are much better when an achromat lens is optimized for a given situation...case in point, our flip achromat. Both chromatic and sperical aberration must be modeled, and optimized.
3. "Flatness" of stock lens focal plane. The worst offenders here are the FX1, Z1U, and EX1.
4. How paralell is the imaging plane to the optical axis? The DOF relationship between the achromat and GG is super, super shallow so even a tiny variance in alignment will show up as soft edges left and right.

Hope that helps :-)
 
herbalmedia said:
This is pure speculation, of course, and I have no inside information (I promise), ... you shouldn't have to say that if you aren't working hard on releasing a new adapter for future customers, right?
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I would say that is reading too much into that. Backwards compatibility is important because many of our customers have said they want to enhance their investment in equipment. The microX is an option for them. It doesn't mean anything beyond that :)


Brian
 
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Hi im new to this forum from Holland.
I was reading the whole post Because i also want to buy a adaptor for my hdr fx1e.
I also emailed Redrock about some information and they replied really fast on my e-mail.
But the information wasn't enough and they said someone else will reply your mail the mail has been forwarded to the right person.
Since than i haven't heard anything from them.
Maybe it wasn't handled the right way?
thats losing on a customer that want to buy a product.
still haven't bought any adaptor since i see there are alot more out.
the promoting of Redrock is good i would say because it pops out of no where from google if typing adaptor 35 mm?
anyway
Im looking for Quality looks for only music videos anybody got tips for me which adaptor is beter for me?
Im reading good things about SG pro is it any good for hdr fx1 haven't send an email yet just curious before i can decide what is good for me and i should go and buy.

greetz
 
WannabeAFilmMaker and others

We've been doing some investigations and we've figured out that our hosting service has been sporadically dropping emails to us! We always answer emails re *receive* as quickly as possible

As always, if anyone has any issues contacting us you can always write to me directly at brian@redrockmicro.com


Brian
 
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