No. The record button on the F35 doesn't work with the SR-R1. But to be honest that button is only useful on a tripod anyway. On the shoulder it is always behind your ear. And there are easy solutions to that too. The SR-R1 has a remote control and you can put that anywhere you find convenient to start the camera. Or you can have a start button on your handgrip, which is what I have.
So the start stop is hardly a deal breaker for the SR-R1.
I never said the ramping from 50fps is the same as doing it in post. It is absolutely not. I'm never a fan of faking things. What I said is that the difference between 24 or 25fps and 50fps does not produce a dramatic enough effect. If you have 200 to 24fps or even 120 to 24fps is a very dramatic effect. But 50 to 24fps, depending on the shot, angle and blocking you have to pay attention to even notice it. It kind of becomes like shooting 3D where you are now shooting around to emphasize your gimmick instead of the story. So all I'm saying is that in my opinion, for my use, the ramping is not enough to make go back to tape or use a much more power hungry recorder as a main recorder.
The SRW1 was a great recorder in its day. It was a technological solution for a problem based on what was possible in the day. Today I feel like using it as a main recorder is handicapping the camera. I never shoot anything besides 12-bit. I feel that at this point the only reason to use the F35 is to get its full quality. So from all the advantages of the SRW1, the only one I truly find important is the variable frame rates. I find myself needing that more often than a ramping gimmick. As I already mentioned, I have a start stop button on my grip.
The tape workflow is enough of a hindrance. You are not even supposed to use the HDCAM recording for reviewing. You were supposed to watch what video village had recorded. Because the tape is your master and every time you watch a tape it loses quality. These were the instructions back in the day. Then you also have to rewind the tape, forward it again to place and make sure not to record over the last take, all of which also adds degradation. This is if reviewing the take once is enough. And this is also before going back and having to playback the whole tape to digitize it. This might be obvious for some. But tapeless workflow has become the normal and many have actually never even worked with tape on a professional environment. I definitely have no wish of going back and the SRW1 offers nothing that would lure me into going back.
The Codex is an interesting beast. Because this is what it is, a beast and an ancient one at that. On paper it looks like a dream. You can get a wet dock that will talk to the F35 just like a SRW1 will, if you can find one, you get all the goodies and all. But then you use it and see it for what it truly is. Really old technology at this point, harder to use and not as fully integrated as it initially seemed.
You get to record all flavors the F35 offers. But you will find yourself transcoding everything and as dhessel said, it's all Mac only. The docks, drives and the whole system is just old tech. They are huge, cumbersome and heavy. Great in the day. But today that volume for 256GB is just a waste. All together I think dhessel painted a very fair picture of the Codex. In my opinion it is just not that easy or even a nice experience to use. Again as with the SRW1, having ramping and variable frame rates, both features I and I suspect many don't use on a daily basis, wasn't enough to make me use the Codex as a main recorder. So it had to go. Because besides start stop, which I have with my SR-R1, the only advantages of the Codex are the ramping and variable frame rates.
The SR-R1 supports 12-bit, supports 444 50p and offers 3 format flavors. So you are covered whether you need a quick and dirty light weight file for a test or 12-bit 444 full quality. All recorded directly to the cards in a ready to edit codec. No transcoding no messing. Pop the card in, open it on the NLE and edit away.
The SR-R1 is also smaller and lighter than the Codex. It feels like just one of the media bricks in the Codex weighs as much. It sucks less power too.
So the SR-R1 has much of the codex functionality and none of the annoying things the Codex does. You don't need to turn the SR-R1 off just to switch formats either.
Then the SR-R1 can be docked directly to the F35. Either on the back or on top, which I have done several times, when needing to back the camera up against a wall as much as possible in a small room. And this is a no fuzz operation as you can have a set up with no cables. Just dock it off the back, dock it on the top. Like you would a Codex or SRW1. Mine lives of the camera. But if you need to take it off to store in the end of the day, again no fuzz. Just dock it off. No cable salad to worry about, as you have for example with a monitor recorder.
All together my least favorite are monitor recorders. They seem like an amateur solution. Their biggest advantage springs from the notion one needs a monitor anyway. But I actually don't. I seldomly have a monitor on the camera. Almost never. Only when I can't be at the camera in a remote shot.
I don't need a monitor for exposure. I don't think an on set monitor is a good way to judge color. So it would be just a framing device. For that I have the much better suited tool, the EVF. It has a smaller footprint, sucks less power and my picture is protected from any external distractions.
For focus, again I prefer the EVF and if I'm not pulling focus, I normally don't like working with ACs who pull by monitor. The ones I have worked with have all pulled by eye anyway.
When it comes to the F35, I use it much as I would a film camera. This is one of the nicest things about it. You can do that easily. Not possible with most digital cameras.
So since I don't have much use for an onboard monitor, and the camera flows so much better without extra stuff mounted to it, a monitor recorder was always last on my list. Then when I tested the 7Q I found it was a bit temperamental too.
My SR-R1 works every single time, out of the box, just as the last time. It's 100% hassle free. My set up has no cables to the camera. Docks directly to the camera. Clean and easy. Again just as a SRW1 or Codex would. I can start and stop it from anywhere around the camera using the remote or from my grip. The extra weight and configuration adds on balancing the camera and I have two mounting positions for the recorder. It all just works!
So as I said, since we never got the SR-R3, which would have been the absolute perfect solution, I feel that at least for my needs the SR-R1 is the next best thing. I think it has the least hindering compromises. This is all of course based on my own experience, needs and opinion. And I do know others have different opinions and that is fine
