Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR

There is yet another BMD software update just announced - some details here:

https://www.newsshooter.com/2020/02/13/blackmagic-video-assist-3-0-3-update/

BTW, in the comments on that Newsshooter feed, someone said they did not see it at the BSCExpo in London recently. In fact, CVP had both the new 5 and 7 inch versions on display (along with practically every monitor and/or recorder that exists) in an impressive video wall - my quick iPhone snap below only shows about a third of this display (and actually has the new 7 inch version half cut off at the edge of the frame on the RH side, and the 5 inch on the LH side). It was very interesting to see the variation in quality of the images on all the monitors and the wide range of colour hues!
 

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Excellent info, this is what I was looking for, the other major question left unanswered for now: Does the FS5 raw license give you 4K 50/60P or HD 100P on the video assist? If so I'm getting the 5 and will try to turn it into a EVF :)
 
Hi Andy,

Thank you for the links, but I'm afraid they do not answer my question.
Basically: does the Black Magic work the FS5 raw output and can I use that workflow to record 4K 60P

Because the BMVA offers a 5inch version I prefer it over the 7 inch devices. 5inch can be turned into an EVF, so that would solve my two main issues with the FS5: the mediocre viewfinder and low bitrates.

have fun,
Maarten
 
This is what it says on the official Sony site about the FS5 Raw Output key.

"Sony’s 12-bit FS RAW allows user to record 4K (4096x2160) 60p/50p and continuous 2K (2048x1080) 240fps/200fps on an external recorder."

Maybe I'm missing something (I apologise if I am) but, from that, I don't see why you can't do what you are asking?

I guess we need someone with one of these BMD Videoassist Recorders and a FS5 with Raw Key to confirm how it all works in reality - hopefully as both you and I would like!
 
Exactly, that's how far I got and when I saw your post suggesting you might get a raw key and own the BMVA I thought... maybe you know ��

Shooting a lot of surf at the moment and would love to upgrade to a higher bitrate 50mbit 1080 50P is not great. Not horrible but would love a higher bitrate for some shots: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DW266gH89fo

So I guess we both eed to be patient, thanks,

have fun,
Maarten
 
One advantage of the raw key certainly when used shooting 4k raw to Prores to an Atomos is that you get the evf AND outboard screen which you cannot do without the raw licence. I saw Dan Chung doing this at a show a couple of years back. I'm not sure if the BMD's have the ability to accept the raw feed or whether it is one of Atomos's tricks a bit like the Nikon Z6 raw capability. That is only available with an Atomos device.
 
Just a quick update - using it on a big shoot today and have just broken for lunch. There is a very slight delay when the BMD Videoassist 12G is fed a 2160p feed via HDMI from my Sony FS5. It’s much closer to real time than the Atomos Blade though. Could be FS5 related or HDMI related, I’m not sure but it’s close enough to real time for my needs. Been using the set-up most of the morning and have yet to hear any fan noise. Really liking it (and the client likes to be able to see the shots clearly too).
 
I'm looking for a high-brightness 7" monitor at the moment (ideally with built-in recording as well), and the Blackmagic 12G and the Shogun 7 seem to be the only real options for those two features at the moment.

However the general reviews for both monitors are supremely average.

Does anyone have any alternatives they can recommend?
 
Nothing else with recording exists.

I would forget about the reviews unless there is a glaring omission for your workflow; they all have their strengths and weaknesses, but the majority of Atomos and BM customers are happy with the products. I've owned every 7" HDMI Atomos model since 2014 and the first generation 5" and 7" BM ones, and they are all very much worth the money.

There's also Video Devices, but I haven't used any of those.
 
NorBro said:
Nothing else with recording exists.

I would forget about the reviews unless there is a glaring omission for your workflow; they all have their strengths and weaknesses, but the majority of Atomos and BM customers are happy with the products. I've owned every 7" HDMI Atomos model since 2014 and the first generation 5" and 7" BM ones, and they are all very much worth the money.

There's also Video Devices, but I haven't used any of those.
Click to expand...
Sound Devices has discontinued their Video Devices portable monitor/recorders along with the Video Devices brand name. They currently only sell one video recorder, the PIX 270i, which is a rackmount model:
https://www.sounddevices.com/video-devices-products-moved-to-sound-devices/

The Video Devices monitor/recorders were pretty solid and had the best audio features and probably the best build quality of anything on the market. They never released any super high brightness models though, and I have a feeling they may have found it a little difficult to keep up with the pace of development and in terms of pricing with the more video oriented brands (like Atomos and Blackmagic). For example, a lot of people were asking Video Devices for features like RAW recording, which requires dealing with different proprietary RAW formats of the various camera manufacturers, and they may have decided that it just wasn't worth the development cost based on the number of devices they could sell.

At any rate, if you don't need recording features, there are several high brightness portable monitors available from SmallHD, TVLogic, and PortKeys (among others). Unfortunately, the prices on many of these units are often as high as for the monitor/recorders, so they may not be as attractive from an overall value standpoint.
 
davedv said:
Sound Devices has discontinued their Video Devices portable monitor/recorders along with the Video Devices brand name. They currently only sell one video recorder, the PIX 270i, which is a rackmount model:
https://www.sounddevices.com/video-devices-products-moved-to-sound-devices/

The Video Devices monitor/recorders were pretty solid and had the best audio features and probably the best build quality of anything on the market. They never released any super high brightness models though, and I have a feeling they may have found it a little difficult to keep up with the pace of development and in terms of pricing with the more video oriented brands (like Atomos and Blackmagic). For example, a lot of people were asking Video Devices for features like RAW recording, which requires dealing with different proprietary RAW formats of the various camera manufacturers, and they may have decided that it just wasn't worth the development cost based on the number of devices they could sell.

At any rate, if you don't need recording features, there are several high brightness portable monitors available from SmallHD, TVLogic, and PortKeys (among others). Unfortunately, the prices on many of these units are often as high as for the monitor/recorders, so they may not be as attractive from an overall value standpoint.
Click to expand...

I have two of them. They are great. Very useful. Realy wish they had continued updating for newer cameras...
 
Grug said:
I'm looking for a high-brightness 7" monitor at the moment (ideally with built-in recording as well), and the Blackmagic 12G and the Shogun 7 seem to be the only real options for those two features at the moment.

However the general reviews for both monitors are supremely average.

Does anyone have any alternatives they can recommend?
Click to expand...

Hi friend.

If you want high brightness that’s almost it.

Transvideo make one that records but it’s much more expensive.

For my work I STILL use a convergent design 7Q+. Well actually three of them :-)

They are an OLED which for me is much better for lighting and critical colour work.

They can be calibrated.

They’re still kind of cheap.

They only thing is that they’re not HDR.

But anyone saying they’re HDR in the field is BS anyway.

JB
 
So I got around to using the Video Assist 12G on a shoot this weekend.
As many of you know I retired from full time shooting a little while back, and sold all of my cameras except a lone Panasonic GH4 which is small enough to be a vacation camera.
This shoot didn't warrant renting a camera, as it was for a local low cost broadcast commercial with a limited run.

OK I paired up the 7" Video Assist 12G with a GH4 feeding it 10-bit 422 from the cameras HDMI out.
As many of you know, the HDMI output from the Lumix series cameras has a fair amount of latency.
The 7" Video Assist 12G has zero ability to delay the audio inputs. Meaning that the sync is off between your recorded video and audio.
This will be the case using any camera's HDMI or SDI output which has any degree of latency when mixing the video signal with the audio inputs on the Video Assist 12G.

Blackmagic Design, if you are reading this.... Please add fuctionality to the Video Assist 12G allowing delay of the audio inputs.
Seriously, it's 2020. I shouldn't have to re-sync an entire days shoot on a timeline when I have a brand new self contained field recording unit which I purchased as a time saver.

Best!

Dave
 
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I want to pair my Sony FS5 M2 with the Black Magic Video Assist 12 HDR.
I'm curious to know if anyone has had experience with this combo and if there are any downsides,
thanks in advance
 
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