Menu Switch/Roller is starting to go

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dtocco

Active member
Hey guys, I'm at 13 months of ownership on my 200, and my menu switch is starting to go. Sometimes it works, and obviously when I need it the most, it doesn't. I have 2 quick questions I thought the board could advise me on.

Shutter speed: Is the menu switch my only option for changing shutter? I'm under the impression it is, but I could just be missing something obvious.

Also, being outside my warranty, does anyone know the repair cost and length of time to get this repaired?

As always, appreciate any insight, cheers.
 
With a known issue like this, I would hope Panasonic would do the repair free of charge even out of warranty. IMO, they should also have a process to replace the wheel proactively.

I'd like to get mine replaced before it fails. I know our local Panasonic rep, and I reached out via email yesterday to ask about getting mine replaced before it fails.

Stay tuned.....
 
I agree with Larry. As it is a known issue they should fix it for free. Mine went early on and I just hope the replacement they fitted is of the new improved kind. You should also check whether you really only have a 12 months warranty. Mine came with a 3 year extension (UK) but depending on where you are "on the globe" you are often entitled to 24 months legally anyway.
 
Just wanted to update you guys in case you go through this experience with your DVX.

I was advised originally that the repair process would be a 5 day turnaround. My camera arrived to the Panasonic Repair center on February 6. 10 days later I was informed that they had replaced the switch and that the problem was still there. They had to order more parts which took an 8 days to arrive, and was then repaired. Camera is due back today (hopefully completely repaired). Obviously this isn't totally their fault but I was without my camera for just over 3 weeks of shoots and spent a lot of money on rentals.

Customer service was good when I could actually get info from them on the status, and they took pity on the situation and warrantied the entire process, including overnight shipping it back to me. All I paid for was shipping the camera to them, which is obviously much appreciated. Just wanted to share the info in case anyone has to send theirs in. I would have waited for a slower part of the year if I knew it was going to take 3 weeks, but things happen!
 
This is why you need more than one camera. I certainly do not have a second DVX200 (wish I had two more!), so I'm in the same boat, sort of. I do have other cameras. If I had to, I could use one of my DSLR's or the BMCC...but what a pain. And for three weeks? It'd be like 2010 all over again. $500 for a rental I have to eat when I'm not charging a whole lot more than that anyway...yeah that would be a bad month. Thanks for the updates and info, dtocco.
 
NorBro said:
You're handling it well...I would not be happy.
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I was definitely not happy. 13 months in for a problem this time consuming was a nightmare. I have a GH4 for backup and second angles but obviously you can't fully replace a full size video camera with it's little sister. I used a friend's DVX200 one day and his scroll wheel felt completely different than mine. More resistance, smoother rolling (and it actually worked). Also my fate was basically in their hands as far as covering it under a warranty I was outside of, so I tried to be as patient as humanly possible. Good luck out there.
 
dtocco said:
his scroll wheel felt completely different than mine. More resistance, smoother rolling
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When you get your DVX200 back, please let us know if your scroll wheel feels like your friends' DVX200. Mine is plenty resistant, smooth and definitely works. If yours comes back feeling the same way then that probably means your particular original scroll wheel just happened to be wanky and it isn't a design flaw.
 
JRJphoto said:
When you get your DVX200 back, please let us know if your scroll wheel feels like your friends' DVX200. Mine is plenty resistant, smooth and definitely works. If yours comes back feeling the same way then that probably means your particular original scroll wheel just happened to be wanky and it isn't a design flaw.
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Got it back yesterday, feels like his DVX now. What is odd is that mine has always felt the way it did in terms of resistance and smoothness. Even when I first bought the camera the wheel didn't work well, I would have to spin way more than necessary to move the selection on screen. I just thought that's how it was supposed to work, but it eventually just stopped working completely.

Glad this process is over, what a nightmare.
 
I appreciate you sharing this information. The unit I am using has begun having issues with the scroll wheel, so now I know what is on the horizon. I've never had a quick turnaround with Panasonic service, but I was hoping maybe things had improved. Can you give a ballpark figure of what your costs were for the repair? Here's to no further issues for your gear!
 
voxwerx said:
I appreciate you sharing this information. The unit I am using has begun having issues with the scroll wheel, so now I know what is on the horizon. I've never had a quick turnaround with Panasonic service, but I was hoping maybe things had improved. Can you give a ballpark figure of what your costs were for the repair? Here's to no further issues for your gear!
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I was told by the manager that technically the repair was not determined to be a warranty repair but as a customer satisfaction issue it was taken care of. I paid $65 to ship it there and that was it, including them shipping it back to me overnight Fedex.

However, if you guys start having issues let them know! He told me that was the first scroll wheel malfunction they have had to deal with, (which I have a hard time believing being a member of this board) so they need to know this is an actual problem on Panasonic's end.

Also, I completely blew it and forgot to back up my scene files. My camera came back factory reset besides current firmware. That meant resetting user assignments, preferences, etc. Really wish that would have occurred to me before sending it out, stupid mistake.
 
Thanks for the info. Waiting on another camera to arrive (on back order) so I can send this one out.
 
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