HMC150 Extended Repair, what would you do?

[Ken Snyder]

Hello all, I had a main board fail on my HMC150, parts are back ordered and no ETA given. I only have one camera. They won't send a refurbish camera or give me a loaner.
I'm trying to find a replacement that could possibly become my B cam or main camera when the HMC150 is fixed. I shoot sports type video, high performance motorcycles.
Always 720p 60fps, I do allot of panning slow motion. Camera is usually on 7 hours a day with a couple hours of video recorded. I use the camera about 60 hours a month.


What would you do if you lost your only camera?


Thank you for your comments in advance

 

[TheDingo]

Rent or buy a used HMC-150 ( they should be easier to find now that the AC-130/AC-160 are almost here ), buy a used TM-700 or a new TM-900 as a "band-aid" to get you by. ( yes they aren't a CCD sensor, but they do shoot 1080 60P )

 

[AGMedia]

Your camera should still be under that three year warranty thing -- so I'd start by giving them hell over the phone.

As long as your sports footage is outdoor or lit by arena type lights -- then it sounds like a job for an HMC40 (that should deliver better resolution). The "band-aid" recommendations from "TheDingo" are consumer versions of the HMC40 (the 700, I know nothing about the 900), and they'll hammer you with all the consumer bullshit that any HMC150 shooter should not be able to accept.

 

[Ken Snyder]

Your camera should still be under that three year warranty thing -- so I'd start by giving them hell over the phone.

As long as your sports footage is outdoor or lit by arena type lights -- then it sounds like a job for an HMC40 (that should deliver better resolution). The "band-aid" recommendations from "TheDingo" are consumer versions of the HMC40 (the 700, I know nothing about the 900), and they'll hammer you with all the consumer bulls**t that any HMC150 shooter should not be able to accept.

yes it is 14 months into the three year warranty. Big reason I purchased the camera because of the great warranty, a promised fast turn around of 2-5 days and a general consensus the camera is bullet proof. I am very disappointed, fully expected my camera back this week. My friend gets a loaner when his Nikon is down, maybe he purchased locally. I need to consider if that could be an option for my next purchase.

 

[TheDingo]

they'll hammer you with all the consumer bulls**t that any HMC150 shooter should not be able to accept.

Yes manual control is awkward, and there is little control over the image set-up, but they do produce a nice image. 1080 60P is gorgeous with good light.

HMC-40 new costs almost as much as a used HMC-150, and the HMC-40 is not great in low light. ( no better than the TM-700 or TM-900 )

 

[Ken Snyder]

Yes manual control is awkward, and there is little control over the image set-up, but they do produce a nice image. 1080 60P is gorgeous with good light.

HMC-40 new costs almost as much as a used HMC-150, and the HMC-40 is not great in low light. ( no better than the TM-700 or TM-900 )

I actually have the TM700s little brother the sd600. I use it as a static cam and it works well for that. No mic jack and on board audio isn't great, wind often destroys the audio. I do hope the next generation pro cams come out with 1080p 60fps, really like the format. As much as I like the camera I need a more professional camera with ND filters and XLR inputs.

 

[TheDingo]

I do hope the next generation pro cams come out with 1080p 60fps, really like the format. As much as I like the camera I need a more professional camera with ND filters and XLR inputs.

Looking at the specs for the new AC-160 camera they don't show 1080 60P, but I think this will be handled the way the AF-100 camera does, where the AF-100 can shoot over-crank 1080 60P without sound to be played back as slow-motion footage on a 24P timeline.