HV20 vs AG-HSC1U

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Shane Jackson

Well-known member
Ok so I sold my DVX and was looking for something smaller but with very good picture quality. I bought a HV20 from costco (90 day return policy...) to replace the DVX???

I know others may disagree but I do not think it has no where near the same picture quality as the DVX.

What I am wondering is how would it compair to a AG-HSC1U??

Or rather, how does the 1U compair to the DVX???
 
I do not own this camera, but I have been researching it a lot and I'm considering getting it.

One thing I have read over and over is that the very first thing you should do...is go into the menu and turn off the auto gain, then set the gain to about -3. From what I have read, this clears up about 90% of peoples picture issues.
 
Shane Jackson said:
Under normal lighting it seemed very grainy....
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The HV20 has automatic video gain that goes up as high as 27dB, and yes in those circumstances it is a total snowstorm of grain. An HV20 is about three stops less sensitive than a DVX, so you need a lot more light for the HV20. Under adequate light (for it) it delivers very nice images.
 
DivotDan said:
One thing I have read over and over is that the very first thing you should do...is go into the menu and turn off the auto gain, then set the gain to about -3. From what I have read, this clears up about 90% of peoples picture issues.
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That's for the XHA1, not the HV20. On the HV20 you can't disable auto gain, nor can you set it to -3.
 
Well, there's a way to avoid gain, yes. But then the picture will likely be unacceptably dark; the camera puts gain in when the image is too dark.

Back to the original question, HV20 vs. HSC1U -- the big question is whether you need 24P. The HSC1U is interlaced only, so if you need 24P there's no comparison.
 
I used the HV20 for my Hallows Fest entry, it seemed to hold up well in the dark. As did my avatar. That's me in the closet with my daughters toy flashlight.

:)

Great little camera for the price, but a professional camera will give you a lot more control.

Cheers,

Mike
 
I have done some tests and the HV20 does look very good when there is plenty of light. The thing I wonder is how it will do at weddings..... I shot a wedding with my DVX and used my brothers cheap sony DV (cant remember the model but it was a $400 cam) as a #2 cam and the DVX footage looked awsome and the sony looked like $hit!!! It was done outside under 2 trees and the lighting was good (not as bad as your usual church lighting...)

I just hope the HV20 has similar results as the DVX as opposed to the sony!!
 
Shane Jackson said:
I have done some tests and the HV20 does look very good when there is plenty of light. The thing I wonder is how it will do at weddings..... I shot a wedding with my DVX and used my brothers cheap sony DV (cant remember the model but it was a $400 cam) as a #2 cam and the DVX footage looked awsome and the sony looked like $hit!!! It was done outside under 2 trees and the lighting was good (not as bad as your usual church lighting...)

I just hope the HV20 has similar results as the DVX as opposed to the sony!!
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Are you using the 60i mode or 24p mode because 24p mode is much more better in lowlight.
 
To get a basic idea of what the HV20 is going to look like as compared to the DVX, picture using your DVX with ND1 enabled. That's about the level of brightness an HV20 delivers.
 
Shane Jackson said:
I have done some tests and the HV20 does look very good when there is plenty of light. The thing I wonder is how it will do at weddings..... I shot a wedding with my DVX and used my brothers cheap sony DV (cant remember the model but it was a $400 cam) as a #2 cam and the DVX footage looked awsome and the sony looked like $hit!!! It was done outside under 2 trees and the lighting was good (not as bad as your usual church lighting...)

I just hope the HV20 has similar results as the DVX as opposed to the sony!!
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Take a look at some footages here, that should answer some of your questions regarding the look of the HV20. I just purchased one and waiting for my Letus. It's the little camera that could.

http://www.vimeo.com/hv20
 
Shane Jackson said:
That video made me sick.... too jerky. I hope that is what they were going for..... to me it looked like crap!
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There are like 3 pages of footage in that link. So all of them made you sick? You wanted to see the quality of the HV20 so I linked it to you. I think you are better off buying a more expensive camera. We're talking about an $800 CONSUMER camera and I personally think it's better than most cameras that cost twice as much.
 
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