Cinegears Wireless Follow Focus. Any opinions?

M

Matt09

Carbonite Member
Hi guys, I was just diving through the forums and I got very interested in Wireless follow focus. A thread mentioned to go on Red-User and I did some browsing there as well. Found a CineGears thread and drove into it a little more and comparing to some brands like Bartech and etc. It looks alot cheaper and budget efficient. The receiver seems to be built into the motors too which is also interesting. Any opinions?

I found some reviews



A test between a standard and extreme(?) motor


The original Red User Thread
http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?121023-Wireless-Follow-Focus&highlight=cinegears
 
For the price it seems like an excellent deal.

And the support and response form the manufacturer has been pretty good.
 
Matt, Let me know your thoughts after you play with it for a little while. I have yet to replace the Bartech that was liberated from my kit and have been looking at 2 channel units, but this little guy interests me.
 
Wow, I really like the setup of the single-axis kit with the receiver built into the motor! Lovely intuitive engineering. Auto calibration is a big deal, and the price is certainly right. I may just have to add one of these to the kit.
 
Yeah, from what I've read on RedUser and their online shop http://www.diyfilmtool.com/
They got this black halloween edition for about $1639 + the coupon on their shop filmstudy drops $200 I'm probably going to pull the trigger on this. It looks like a very good deal and there's a lot of reviews on RedUser giving it some pretty big praise.
 
I did it guys. I ordered it. I should get it within a few weeks or so. Shipping might be faster considering their online shop is local, where I live.
 
I'm sure that there are a lot of enthusiasts who will give this system a thumbs up with few if any caveats simply because this is their first experience with wireless focus systems and they are happy about the price. The opinions that I think would be worth listening to are those that have extensive experience with tried-and-true systems like the Bartech, who can identify the specific shortcomings of this system in comparison.

It has been a very long road for lower-cost single channel wireless systems in recent years, I've seen quite a few come and go as well as some well-hyped vaporware in this sector. The most important thing to remember with any type of wireless tech is that external conditions can affect them greatly. The first time you use a unit it may work fine, and the next time it could fail completely, due to crowded bandwidth and interference in that location. Unlike a video transmitter where this may be an annoyance but not a deal breaker, focus is mission-critical; one lens spas in the middle of the shot can ruin the whole thing.
 
I have one coming this week, will try it out on a job this weekend. Hoping to get rid of my bartech if it's good cause my digital receiver been overheating way too much lately. I like that the motor and receiver is one peice, one less thing needing to mount and one less cable that could go. As long as it pulls smooth with no delay and doesn't over heat. I'm sold. And if you think it's loud try using the old m-motors.
 
CharlesPapert said:
The most important thing to remember with any type of wireless tech is that external conditions can affect them greatly. The first time you use a unit it may work fine, and the next time it could fail completely, due to crowded bandwidth and interference in that location. Unlike a video transmitter where this may be an annoyance but not a deal breaker, focus is mission-critical; one lens spas in the middle of the shot can ruin the whole thing.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure compare a Bartech with this follow focus. I mean it would be like comparing a gh2 to a Epic.
The only thing I expect from a follow of that price is this very short list:
-Not too noisy
-Less than 10ms of delay
-Not too noisy
-Durable enough so I can still use it for the next 2 year
-Not too noisy
-And of course not too noisy


Then I'm sure I can manage with weak aluminium screws and holes, strange 15mm rode support, poor cables as you can expect from a cheap equipment.

Clovis
 
puzzlevideo said:
I'm not sure compare a Bartech with this follow focus. I mean it would be like comparing a gh2 to a Epic.
Click to expand...

Not really, based on the price differential (which is considerably greater between the cameras you mentioned).

The point I was trying to make was that it would be good to learn the specific ways that this system may be compromised. Wouldn't you want to know what those are before you buy, to see if it's something you can live with? Someone who doesn't have a point of reference of having worked with industry standard gear is not going to be able to say what is missing or lacking, vs someone who is simply delighted that they can turn a knob over here and have it turn a lens over there.

It's an inexpensive system relatively speaking, but still a good chunk of money for most people--isn't it?
 
Sure does, David. I dislike this type of promotion (pretending to be a customer when they are linked to the manufacturer) to the point where I spent a few minutes playing web detective. Matt09 is Matt Turner. Here's a tweet from June promoting Cinegears. And a post from another site that makes it clear he is connected with the company.

Matt, if you read this I suggest you go back to your posts at the Steadicam Forum, Cinematography.com, Blackmagic forum, Videomaker etc. and add one that explains that you are at the very least bird-dogging for Cinegears, before someone else does.
 
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