LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

T

TangMotorPictures

Active member
I was looking at different laptop/notebook which ever you want to call the mobile computer. I am in the process of getting together my gear. I was thinking of a monitor to be used as a field and on my editing station. I heard many on this forum to use a laptop computer.

I am not very knowledgable on the topic. But how would you go about using the laptop as a monitor? SDI or firewire? Any recommendation on laptops? what about videocard on the laptop? how many lines of resolution would it be compared too?

What laptops are you guys using?

thanks in adv
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

I do use DVRack on one of my Dell Latitude C840 laptops. 2.2Ghz,512RAM,Gforce w/64Mb, 30Gb HDD, UXGA(1600x1200). This is a little beyond the minimum requirements for the application. The weak spot is the HDD so I use a 250Gb WD drive on a firewire to either capture the video directly or move it from the laptop drive. I then edit on the desktop in Vegas5.
The field monitor part of DVRack is ok but you only get the choice of two screen sizes. Not sure what the resolution ends up as, but it is sufficient for what I do most of the time. The primary asset of the program, in my mind, is that I put better video on the timeline to start with since the program does a good job letting me know how the shoot is going in real time.
The main drawback is that if I need mobility the laptop usually gets left behind after the camera is calibrated.

I do not work for Serious Magic and I bought DVRack on eBay for $299. I got this Laptop on eBay for $652. So for under $1000 I have a better setup than a heavy pro monitor and a lot more functionality.
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

Yea. DV Rack is great. The only downside might be the low res of its monitor, but it sure beats the heck out of the on camera LCD
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

How do you connect the DVX100a to the laptop? Is it through firewire or S-Video?

Still looking at a reasonable laptop.
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

Using DVRack, you connect through Firewire. The really cool part of DVRack is the digital recorder. You can setup your DVX100 in the menu so when you roll tape it records also to your laptop HD. Immediate backup! ;D
It works great when you are stationary and can just set the laptop up next to the camera.
I did a gig last week and the client was blown away that he could review the clips immediately after each take. It was a boring head & shoulders interview type gig and he loved that he could compare shots/compostion between takes.
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

What about us Mac users, when I was on the dvrack site it didn't mention anything for Mac, help please!!!
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

[quote author=leechild link=board=Links;num=1107665217;start=0#7 date=02/12/05 at 07:21:25]What about us Mac users, when I was on the dvrack site it didn't mention anything for Mac, help please!!![/quote]

Seriously... Apple had better figure out how to add this to their next version of Final Cut Pro. Or someone else will beat them to the punch.

Tapeless recording is the future. Panasonic knows it with their P2 cards, Firestore knows it, DVRack does, too. Tape will be around for a while as a backup medium, but going direct to Hard Disk or solid state media is inevitable.

Please, someone make this for the Mac!!!
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

I personally wasn't that impressed with DV rack. Maybe it's because I got DVrack express, i figured I would just use it as a field monitor, as it would properly calibrate my notebook and as it was advertised as using it as a field monitor. Well I plug in my dvx and imediatly I notice the lack of resoltuion, by my estimates it is roughly half the resolution that it should be showing. What is the point of dv rack express then? The monitor is less resolution than the flipout LCD screen on the DVX. I found myself again checking the DVX to see if things were in focus, not DV rack. That is just wrong. Originally I had purchased Dvrack express for future plans of upgrading to the full version if I liked it. But up to this point, I find myself using the vegas capture more as my monitor than DV rack. At least it displays full resolution. My opinion, if you are going to advertise something as being used as a "field monitor" then it should be able to do things that a field monitor can do, like allow me to check focus. :(
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

I'm not exactly thrilled with the field monitor either. I use DV Rack mainly for the DVR to record. Tape is now just a backup! :D
The monitor is fine for the client to sit there and look at. Not for critical focus for sure. Maybe that will be fixed in future upgrades???

I bought DV Rack because I do so many projects for clients that leave with the tape. I'm left with nothing for demo reel footage. Not anymore! :o

Here's a few shots of my setup if anyone is interested:

http://www.pbase.com/siriusdoggy/image/39670722.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/siriusdoggy/image/39670523.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/siriusdoggy/image/39670524.jpg

DVX100a, Miller DS5 tripod, Samson Airline wireless mic on Bracket 1, Alienware Monster 17" laptop running DV Rack and Maxtor 300Gig external firewire drive.
 
Re: LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK as field monitor????

I agree that monitor resolution is the single most-important upgrade they need to make. I hope they take my suggestion of a 512x384 extraction, which would give us everything we need for checking focus.

That said, I think DV Rack is a superb tool. I do wish the monitor showed a full pixel extraction, but as-is, it's showing about 300 lines, which is about as much as those inexpensive JVC field monitors...
 
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