FS7: Interesting observation about the fan

J

J.Brown

Well-known member
I had my FS7 for more than four years now and it has worked fine and still does. But when I put my FS7 and FS5 side by side last week to match them I noticed the fan on the FS5 was audible but the fan on the FS7 was silent. I know the fan is very quiet on the FS7 but it's still noticeable when putting an ear next to it as I remember.

I have no error messages and the camera functions as it should.

This time I had forgot to remove the battery from the FS7 from when I last used it, but the camera was turned off and plenty of juice left in the battery so it doesn't appear like the camera could have taken any damage by having the battery attached.

Okay bummer, the fan must have stopped working was my first thought. I did a camera reset, I reloaded all files, I removed the battery, I rebooted it but still no noise or air coming from the FS7 vent. So I went ahead and reloaded firmware 4.31 and in the update process the fan kicked in, as usual, at full speed. So this isn't a mechanical problem it appears.

Honestly I haven't notice the fan for a long time as it is so quiet and certainly wouldn't have noticed there were no noise from it had I not put the FS5 beside it. But I remember using it on my shoulder with a light breeze from the fan vent on my face many times earlier.

So this got me thinking if it could be a software problem? Could it be the latest firmware has changed how the fan operates? Or could it even be a bug? Neither of the options for the fan in the menu changes anything.

If you have an FS7 with the latest FW4.31 please listen and report!
 
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Hopefully someone with the camera can test for you, but to answer your question; yes, a firmware update can definitely change the fan speed and/or how the fan operates without the user knowing.

The update can be in the 'general operational improvements' category or whatever they want to call it. And they don't have to tell the user that the fan operation has been altered. These kind of firmware updates are usually improving and extending the life of the camera so you probably want the change anyway.

Isn't a silent fan favorable?

[If you let the camera run at 4K/60p for more than 20 minutes I'm sure you'll hear it kick in.]
 
I had the camera running in standby for half an hour last week and the fan stayed silent. Now it could be running but to slow to be noticed.

I have a shoot on Friday so well see if I let the camera run for a while and if the fan kicks in then I know more.
 
But was it running 4K/60p? (Running meaning recording.)

On a side note, the infamous C500's fan didn't kick in until recording was stopped. It went off when recording was initiated. Only stayed on when the camera was getting too hot. (This was all after outcry over the fan being too loud and Canon changed it to the above.)

If you don't hear the fan(s) while recording 4K/60p for an extended period of time then you should worry. 4K/24p is nothing for that camera.
 
I seldom use UHD/60p so it only ran short clips at standard frame rate. I put my hands around the camera to feel if any heat had built up but the camera was cool to the touch.
 
My FS7 fan rarley goes on (or at least I only notice it) in very hot weather. Just because your fs5 fan kicks in doesnt mean tbe fs7 should, its a different camera and smaller body so might need to dissipate heat more quickly.
 
It certainly seems like the fs7 isn't overheating and doesn't need the fan to turn on. but when it was under load *loading the firmware* it kicked on as needed.

The fs7 perhaps is better at keeping cool than the fs5. It's a more expensive camera from the same manufacture after all, and to expect better performance is fair and reasonable.
 
I had a shoot yesterday and tested further today. In UHD recording and normal frame rate I noticed a faint drag from the intake after a while but it came and went. Today I sat my FS7 to record 60p in 4K, just to put a load on the camera, and after 20 minutes or so the fan started so all appears to be okay.

So my observation and my conclusion is that it doesn't appear to be any thing wrong, just that the FS7 doesn't become hot and have a very efficient cooling system. Maybe Sony have improved how it works through firmware or maybe this is how it always has worked.

Anyway, over and out.
 
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