GH2 Hack - Start me out gently
- Thread starter Brandon Rice
- Start date
Brandon Rice
Distributed Producer
I tried it in both modes, using a normal class 10 transcend, and a 90mb/60mb class 10 transcend. I have a 45mb sandisk on the way as well, but I needed something stable with these cards as well.
I loaded up 5.1 to do some tests! I'll report back soon
If you want to test if a GH2 patch is 100 percent stable, you need to film something extremely complex visually that keeps changing it's pattern, and then see if the patch/memory card will still span.
For my own testing I used the free Futuremark 3DMark 2001 3D benchmarking software, and set it to continuously loop the "Nature" benchmark with very detailed butterflies and leaves blowing in the wind while the 3D camera flies around the scene, which proved to be very challenging for any GH2 hack to record. Some of the GH2 patch/memory card combinations broke when trying to span while filming this looping 3D scene, while others like the FlowMotion 2.02 patch with the Sandisk 95MB/s cards had no problems recording an hour of this.
Brandon Rice
Distributed Producer
Sanity 5.1 works great, both L and H modes to span on any of my cards. I am still wondering if bit-rates really even matter, as I noticed on this hack that the bit-rate dropped below the NORMAL bit-rate at times. That surprised me of course.
Brandon Rice
Distributed Producer
I am trying Cake 2.3 out right now, and so far I LOVE it. It seems to be very stable and offers pretty high record times, and good consistent bit-rate throughout. It also spans very well on all of my cards.
Ryan Farnes
Well-known member
Had to fall back on my GH2 to shoot a couple of interviews as my C100ii arrived via UPS later in the morning at a hotel. I'd had the 66mb cBrandin hack and over the past year or so I'd noticed that on longer takes, it would abruptly stop from time to time. (Sandisk extreme 30MB/s cards that were 100% reliable with Driftwood's 150mb hack flavors)
So - I got Sanity 5.1 put on - used the lower 24 setting to save space and provide reliable spanning. Stable as a rock. Did about a 2 hour test the night before. Close that LCD and the GH2 will run a long time. Worked like a charm. I may load Sanity X up. I think the GH2 may be the camera I never get rid of...its got a special place in my heart.
So - I got Sanity 5.1 put on - used the lower 24 setting to save space and provide reliable spanning. Stable as a rock. Did about a 2 hour test the night before. Close that LCD and the GH2 will run a long time. Worked like a charm. I may load Sanity X up. I think the GH2 may be the camera I never get rid of...its got a special place in my heart.
DPStewart
Veteran
Had to fall back on my GH2 to shoot a couple of interviews as my C100ii arrived via UPS later in the morning at a hotel. I'd had the 66mb cBrandin hack and over the past year or so I'd noticed that on longer takes, it would abruptly stop from time to time. (Sandisk extreme 30MB/s cards that were 100% reliable with Driftwood's 150mb hack flavors)
So - I got Sanity 5.1 put on - used the lower 24 setting to save space and provide reliable spanning. Stable as a rock. Did about a 2 hour test the night before. Close that LCD and the GH2 will run a long time. Worked like a charm. I may load Sanity X up. I think the GH2 may be the camera I never get rid of...its got a special place in my heart.
Yup.
I just posted a wee piece of video today - I have stuck with LPowell's Flowmotion 2.2 which hovers around 90mb and the only time it ever shut down on me was with an insanely busy mural background and clips that had gone beyond 20 minutes.
With a good hack and better glass, the 'ol GH2 really is still a remarkable image for the price and for the stealthy little tiny body size.
I'll probably never sell it just because of the stealth-use factor.
RYAN, I'm interested in using an ALL I-FRAME hack also - can you suggest a good one? Don't care how massive the bit-rate gets as long as it's pretty stable.
Thanks mate!
I'm working on a comparison of some of the patches. I recorded 16 so far (including stock 1.1)
Here is some of it. Still have a lot work more editing to do. This one shows iso 640, but I also have 160, 1250, 2500, 6400, 12800...
Edit: I removed youtube link. The video had invalid moon t8 testing, which was missing a second light source. My fault.
Here is some of it. Still have a lot work more editing to do. This one shows iso 640, but I also have 160, 1250, 2500, 6400, 12800...
Edit: I removed youtube link. The video had invalid moon t8 testing, which was missing a second light source. My fault.
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What are you using to test with ?
Looking at the YouTube video you posted a link for, it does not appear that there is anywhere near enough detail to push these CODECs to their limits.
Back when I owned a couple of GH2 cameras, I tested the patches and memory cards by filming very complex looping scenes from the FutureMark 3D gaming benchmark using a 1080p LCD graphics monitor. This test broke both GH2 patches and memory cards that could not keep up with the detail or could not maintain the high data-rate for long periods of time.
DPStewart
Veteran
NICE. Very helpful.
Looks like MOON T8 and THE END are the winners.
I had heard about MOON...but never took the time to try it. I will now.
People will often look at a test like this and think the differences are tiny and hardly matter. That's because no single test can tell the whole story.
There's another area where extremely high bit-rate hacks make an ENORMOUS difference - RECOVERY.
Shoot something with bright areas but also a lot of shadow areas first stock, then shoot ultra-high bit-rate.
Now throw it in your NLE and add a color corrector and boost the gain of the shadows. BOOM the stock will be as noisy and crappy as you would expect...but the ultra-high bit-rate one will allow a significant boost of shadow gain before it breaks up.
This is a huge difference and a difference that has very serious implications for the final outcome of your video image.
Maybe sometime I'll shoot THAT test and put it up here.
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My goal is to test for image preference and taste.
I want to know which patch looks the best to my eyes and figured I would share my test.
Although I screwed up. Moon T8 did not have a second light source turned on. So moon t8 is invaild. Which is easy to redo for my setup.
To be honest I'm thinking of a different setup and method but not sure yet. I will probably redo the test.
I want to know which patch looks the best to my eyes and figured I would share my test.
Although I screwed up. Moon T8 did not have a second light source turned on. So moon t8 is invaild. Which is easy to redo for my setup.
To be honest I'm thinking of a different setup and method but not sure yet. I will probably redo the test.