FS700 no longer outputs 4k

S

Scim

Member
Hey all, I've been dealing with this issue for a little while and decided to post it on here.

I have an fs700r (4k ready) that I've had for about 1.5 years. Last winter I purchased an Odyssey 7q+ and RAW license, and loved it. The pair worked very consistantly, and was not abused.

A couple weeks ago the pairing between the FS and the Odyssey started getting sketchy. The 4k RAW signal kept turning to a snowstorm of pink fuzz after a few minutes or seconds of use. The 1080p, non RAW signal still worked great with the Odyssey, my capture cards and my blackmagic switcher. I bought several new Canare SDI cables and had the same result. Cheaper cables lasted shorter or not at all before dropping the 4k signal. I talked with the folks at Convergent Design, they were beyond awesome and helpful. I didn't have access to other FS700s to test so I ended up mailing in my Odyssey to see if it was an input chip problem. My Odyssey works great for them so now I am sure it's my FS700. Also, the FS700's 1080p signal has flickered over a 100' sdi run during live broadcasts where it has not before, but that might have been the cable reel failing.

I'm trying to borrow an Atomos to continue testing the RAW signal, but has anybody else had this problem or have any ideas?! I've reset both recorder and camera to no avail. Perhaps there's a firmware redownload or something? Sony is getting back to me on a repair estimate, but a third party company I spoke to said they would have to do an over $1,000 main board replacement on the FS700. If it came down to that I'd probably sell my entire setup.

Thanks,
Shawn
 

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I mostly think the center pin of the BNC / SDI is worn out and cause problem
I'm thinking of putting a BNC to RF SMA on both the FS700 and Odyssey. The RF screw is more reliable
 
It doesn't appear to be a physical connection problem as wiggling it doesn't ever help, but I hadn't thought of the center pin being worn!

Thank you, I'll look into that more. Perhaps some conductive paste on the sdi pin might help diagnose it.
 
UPDATE: I think Jpham was right on the money. All 4 of my Convergent Design brand cables don't work with 4k RAW (but do with 1080P), my Canare cable doesn't really work either with 4k RAW but all 3 of my 100' Comprehensive brand cables work perfect wth 4k RAW! This problem started up not long after buying the 100 footers, perhaps their connectors wore the FS700 in a way that other brands no longer fit perfectly enough for the high data stream? This is very weird but I'm glad it's not the main board. I just ordered a few different brand cables to experiment further...
 
Dear Scim,

I would carefully examine the Odyssey7Q+ BNC center pin.

This consists of four petals that grasp the center pin of the cable.

BNC Male Center Pins should be a certain size.

But some cables use BNC Male Center Pins which are too large, and spread out the four petals.
When this happens, these cables work, as in your case, but all of the other cables, with the proper size pins no longer work.

You could take a photo of the BNC A and BNC B connector on your Odyssey7Q+ and send it to me.
Dan (at) Convergent-Design (dot) com

Or you could compare the BNC A and B center pins visually.

If you are very careful and gentle, you can sometimes close the petals that are out of shape.

You may call me at 719-930-1376 Option 1.

Respectfully,

Dan Keaton
Convergent Design
 
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