another "which field monitor" thread

J

Josh Bass

Veteran
Hey guys. Hate to do it but I'm not getting my research needs met with field monitor info searches, via message boards or google (surprisingly, shockingly, little info on Ikan stuff, marshall stuff. SmallHD, very plentiful). So I come to you asking asking, sigh, "which field monitor?"

I think it's time to get something on the higher end of the small field monitors. Seems contenders are the usual, Ikan, Marshall, SmallHD, and I'd even consider the TVLogic w56somethingsomething. Here's what's important to me: color/contrast accuracy (are any of them any more untrustworthy in this regard than any other)? Peaking, pixel to pixel, false color, calibratibility (iz word?), SDI and HDMI both.

Many folks in other threads have said useful things like "Ikan blows the sux". WHY? Maybe the older stuff, but I live in Houston where they're based out of and got to see a bunch of the monitors in person. The Vx7i and D7/D5 look nice to me. Real nice. Real real nice--IPS panels, true HD. Especially the Vx7i is very feature rich (has everything above I mentioned), lots of inputs for different connections, knobs where the should be (D7/5 has knobs/buttons on top for some reason). Can't find Marshalls or SmallHDs in town from any vendor. TVLogic, all agree, is great, but doesn't seem to have as many features (not 7", not a buttload of different inputs, quite a bit pricier).

So, here's how I'll be using it if that helps. Maybe occasionally on a short film/personal project, but mostly I'm thinking this will be my only field monitor for the time being (no 17" for me), so I would use it to assist with shooting long form lectures (staring at viewfinder/flipout LCD not fun for 8 hours), and talking heads with three-point lighting. Don't really plan on running around with it handheld, don't even really plan to mount it on camera if I can put it on a light stand or chair next to me when shooting. Battery mounts. . .not super important to me at this point. Not saying it won't be, but I don't often shoot anywhere where I can't plug in. Would use with DSLRs or camcorders, reason for wanting the HDMI/SDI.

Given all that, what's the deal? We'll say the TVLogic is the most expensive one I'd consider. So anything pricier than that out right now. I'd probably be looking at the new models of all these brands since older stuff seems to be severely compromised compared to current offerings (i.e. DP6 is 6 bit display vs AC7)

Thanks.
 
I was on the same quest 6 months ago, and ended up buying a Marshall V-LCD70MD 7 inch monitor for a few reasons...

1- I wanted a bright monitor that would be easy to see in bright light ( this Marshall has a brightness rating of 800 nits )

2- I wanted a monitor that had a waveform and audio display

3- I wanted to be able to upgrade to SDI down the road ( something I likely won't need for a while )

4- I wanted good color

5- I wanted something reliable

6- Something that would fit my under $1,000 budget

So far I've been very happy with this monitor, and would buy it again today.

If I could double my budget I might consider a TvLogic equivalent, or perhaps the new Convergent Design Odyssey 7 monitor that can be expanded to become a field recorder. ( the new SmallHD super-bright monitor also looks interesting, but at almost $3k I don't think I'll be getting one any time soon )
 
Thanks. I'm thinking scopes would be great, but really, isn't false color basically a waveform with a different approach? It's not quite as precise since it displays ranges (0-10% is a single color rather than exact luminance) but serves the same purpose. I don't see why you couldn't light a green screen using false color. I don't know how much use a vector scope would be in the field except for the most very anal of white balancing.

Other stuff makes sense. Do you find your marshall "accurate" (do you trust it for lighting, judging color/contrast?)
 
You may wish to consider the Odyssey7, little brother to the Odyssey7Q. It is basically the same unit stripped down to HD monitoring as well as recording. It has an excellent OLED 7.7" panel with 1280x720 resolution, with all of the image analysis tools you mentioned and more, all for just $1295. Think of it as an amazing deal on an OLED monitor and for the cost of adding some SSDs you also get a high end recorder as well. What's not to love?

Odyssey7 will ship at the end of the year.
 
When I got my F55 and needed an external monitor with exposure tools because Sony did not consider a $30k camera a professional "cinema" camera enough to have any built in, I cheaped out a bit and went for the ikan D7W.

I had some early troubles which lead to BHphotovideo replacing it promptly, but really now after 6 months with it I have no regrets, especially for the price.

Most important for me was the waveform exposure tool & RGB parade, but the false color and focus peaking is also pretty handy.
 
Josh Bass said:
Do you find your marshall "accurate" (do you trust it for lighting, judging color/contrast?)
Click to expand...

Yes, it's pretty much bang on. I use a Sekonic C-500 color meter to set my camera's color-balance, and the Marshall always confirms what I'm recording. ( this was another reason to buy Marshall )
 
Thanks. I just thought of the oddysey, seeing its $100 more than the tvlogic and since oled is supposed to be the shiznit sounds promising. One immediate issue i saw when i looked up the marshall was that it was not 720p
 
TheDingo said:
I was on the same quest 6 months ago, and ended up buying a Marshall V-LCD70MD 7 inch monitor for a few reasons...

1- I wanted a bright monitor that would be easy to see in bright light ( this Marshall has a brightness rating of 800 nits )

2- I wanted a monitor that had a waveform and audio display

3- I wanted to be able to upgrade to SDI down the road ( something I likely won't need for a while )

4- I wanted good color

5- I wanted something reliable

6- Something that would fit my under $1,000 budget

So far I've been very happy with this monitor, and would buy it again today.

If I could double my budget I might consider a TvLogic equivalent, or perhaps the new Convergent Design Odyssey 7 monitor that can be expanded to become a field recorder. ( the new SmallHD super-bright monitor also looks interesting, but at almost $3k I don't think I'll be getting one any time soon )
Click to expand...

Another satisfied customer here.

I've only used mine on one real shoot so far, but I loved it. Really, that 800 nit count is no joke. I didn't need any kind of hood, I could even see the screen in full sunlight. I have the Sony battery plate...shot pretty much full-on from 11am-5pm, and one small Sony battery powered it just about the whole day.

Easy to calibrate, the colors seem accurate. (haven't edited the footage yet, but what I've seen looks fine) It's also lightweight, but sturdy.

Hate to do it but I'm not getting my research needs met with field monitor info searches
Click to expand...
No great crime, seems like the most asked question round here, yet when you try to reference those old threads......
 
Josh Bass said:
One immediate issue i saw when i looked up the marshall was that it was not 720p
Click to expand...

Yeah, the 7 inch model is brighter (800 nits vs 300 nits) while the smaller 5.6 model is higher resolution. (1280x800 vs 1024x600)

I shoot in a lot of bright offices, so monitor brightness was more important to me than higher resolution.

The 9 inch model has the best of both worlds (brighter with higher resolution), and there's one with the SDI module in the DvxUser For-Sale forum. Marshall LCD90MD-3G
 
I never thought of needing a bright monitor indoors. Dont shoot outside much especially with a monitor. Surely the sunshade helps with glare issues? At that $1200 price point seems like why not just consider the odyssey.

When you consider price/feature set seems like its between ac7 (led), ikan vx7i and odyssey
 
I don't even need the recorder right now! Just want a really nice monitor I can trust for than just focus and framing. Nice to have something I could actually light to and trust for color/contrast. Any word when reviews on these will be out?
 
Seems like that Ikan VX7i is a really good deal (local vendor said they could get about 20% normal Ikan site price, putting it at about $720) if it's any good. Can't find many reviews online. Scuttlebutt on Ikan in general seems to be that their stuff is made in China, and quality control is uneven. Sometimes you get a perfect monitor, sometimes the AC cord doesn't work and the batteries don't fit. But when you get a good one, you get a great one. Anyone have any input on that?

Seems like if you're going to go up that next tier to $1000 for the AC7/SmallHD, might as well splurge a little more and go TVLogic or Odyssey.
 
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