C100: How Reliable Has Your SmallHD DP6 Been?

Erik Naso

Erik Naso

Veteran
I like my DP6 but after less than two years the scroll wheel only scrolls to the right now and intermittent connection issues via HDMI.

I sent it in for repair and got an email stating to fix it it would cost $218 shipped. The main board and scroll wheel plus labor comes to $175. Shipping is a whooping $45. Crazy expensive shipping.

I'm debating on going through with it. $218 is a lot considering I didn't break it but the monitor failed.
Anyone else have their SmallHD fail earlier than expected? Again I'm a little uncomfortable with paying that much on a product that will fail again under less than normal use.

An AC7 HDMI only cost $599 so the fix would be a third of the price for a new bigger and better one. That is if it's reliable.
 
Well I don't have a DP6 but I do have a DP4/VF and it now has a couple of dead pixels and goes wonky for some unknown reason after less than two years. They seem like nice people, but I would be reluctant to buy from them again.
 
Eric
I have just had the same thing happen w my DP6 this past weekend. Not only is mine the same age as yours but i am sure its use hours are a lot less. this makes me wonder if it is a part failure, and perhaps should be a warranty issue. Anyone else?
 
My friend also had the blue screen issue. HDMI input went bad and it cost him you guessed it $200 to fix. We bought our DP6's within weeks of each other. That was a red flag for me so thats why I'm asking you guys.
 
peytons said:
Eric
I have just had the same thing happen w my DP6 this past weekend. Not only is mine the same age as yours but i am sure its use hours are a lot less. this makes me wonder if it is a part failure, and perhaps should be a warranty issue. Anyone else?
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Starting to think it could be a faulty main board but fails out of warranty. I'm collecting info and will respond to customer service but I don't have a good feeling about paying $200 more if it's only going to fail again. I baby my gear so this issue does surprise me.
 
Does sound concerning, perhaps they don't have proper heat management?

There are certainly plenty of alternatives available today. the ikan 7" ips models seem to be getting positive feedback
 
I sent SmallHD an email with my concerns on the price for repair. I hope we can come to some kind of agreement because I don't think it's worth throwing more money at a discontinued product that failed under very light use. If I broke it due to abuse or a mishap then I would understand but thats not the case here. We shall see.....
 
I had mine also for 2 years or so but only after 6 month of owning the DP6SDI version I had issues with the sdi input! so after only 6 month of usage i had a sdi version that works only with hdmi :( and the shipping costs was too much from Italy to USA so decided to keep it like that! only hdmi until i attached the monitor from dtap with wrong polarity and it just got "burned"!! I know it's my fault but should have some kind of protection like other products!! i was thinking of getting the dp7 but then went with the Marshall 9" v-lcd90md and i must say that i regret that decision :(... from day 1 i had problems with battery mount (modular type Vmount and NP-F970) it's really really very poorly constructed and for the price it's insane!! it seems like one of those cheap chines products that you discover that you have thrown away 5 dollars on one of their products but in their case it's more than $2000 !!! very disappointed.. should have buy a TVlogic6 and i think i will.
 
I had the DP6 for maybe just over a year, and now I have the AC7 (since April '13).

Mine have been working well. My DP6 came with a problematic HDMI-cable, but when I wrote support the sent me two new ones free of charge that have worked well since.

I like the AC7 for being as sleek as a 7" monitor can; and it weighs next to nothing. I felt the colors on the DP6 didn't quite do it for me, but the AC7 is better, even if I have tuned that too manually.

The area where the cheaper SmallHD monitors fail for Cinema EOS users is the exposure tools. I've told them that I need to be able to configure the false color mode in order to use it with Canon Log (everything is off: black point, skin, whites), but they refer me to their more expensive monitors.

Just like they have various DLSR scaling presets, I think a few presets for popular Log-formats would be in order.
 
I have to be very gentle with the scroll wheel to get it to scroll left, with my finger near the bottom left side of the scroll wheel. Everything else works as when I received it with additional fixes/features via upgrades. Not happy with the color and have never been happy that it does not have a battery meter. When I ask Small HD about a meter feature they then referred me to their high end Pro series that was not even available for another year.

I like the overall quality of the picture but would be hesitant to buy again with all of the competition out there right now. Erik, I would see how you like the Atomos Ninja Blade before putting more money into the DP6.
 
Timely thread. Both my DP6 & DP4 are in for diagnostics. When I first got my DP6 it was intermittent and they replaced a board. Now my issue is when I power it from the Anton Bauer D-tap it flickers on and off, also wiggling the HDMI cables while hand held. So I sent in the 4 cables I own for them to be tested also.

If I have to pay for a repair either for the HDMI inputs or power jack repair I would be furious. To me that's a build quality issue. They are very, very nice people and very inventive but unlike a company like Zacuto, they may not be very experienced with contracting out for parts and construction? I can not go into a stressful shooting environment not knowing if my monitor will flicker and die, let alone the embarrassment in front of a client. Perhaps they are too small? No pun intended.

And that outrageous shipping charge to Erik? I will let you know how my repairs come out in the next few days. I like their price point but not if they don't stand behind their quality. I would not be inclined to go to a DP7 if they screw me on the 6 & 4. I need to be assured their female inputs are robust and connected strongly to the internal boards.
 
I have two 6's and a DP7Pro(OLED). My 6's are probably at least two years old and besides an SDI connector issue when I received my first 6(they had a batch of connectors that didn't have the bushing around the center pin) that they fixed (for free) ASAP, everything has been great. All of my interactions with them have been great and my impression is that they really care about their customers and making great products. Heck, I've even had back-and-forth email conversations after 10-11pm. I don't think that would happen with anyone at Sony or Panny. One of my friends had an issue with his DP7 shortly after receiving it, but again, it was resolved ASAP(they replaced the whole unit the next day).

That sucks about the shipping, too. I only live a few hours away from them, so dirt cheap ground shipping is next day for me. Hopefully y'all can come to a satisfactory conclusion to the problem. I don't think they would intentionally try to take advantage of a customer.
 
SmallHD met me half way. I'm paying $107 to get the monitor fixed and shipped back with a new main board and scroll wheel. Much easier to swallow compared to $218.
 
I've been disappointed with my dp4 since I've opened the box. It has never resolved red well at all. SMallHD self admittedly acknowledged the monitor as "not color accurate". Sigh...
 
Small HD should really address these issues. Just the talk on here about the problems with the DP6 has made me less likely to buy one.
 
John Foundas said:
I've been disappointed with my dp4 since I've opened the box. It has never resolved red well at all. SMallHD self admittedly acknowledged the monitor as "not color accurate". Sigh...
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I only use my DP6 for the director or producer to hold and see what I'm shooting if we are moving fast hand held or in tight shooting conditions. Framing with a jib is also handy. Using a 16' thin HDMI cable gives me the space so they dont hover over me while I shoot. You're right the color on the DP6 is also not accurate.
 
I can light a subject no problem it's just a tad warm but the image is pretty good. The new AC7 and DP7 are in another league though. Interested comparing the DP6 to the Ninja Blade when it comes in tomorrow.
 
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