Odyssey7Q February 2014 Firmware Update

M

Mitch Gross

Veteran
Below are the changes we are expecting to release in our February 2014 firmware update. Some features may be added or dropped as we approach release, but we have high confidence in this list. Also note that the Popular Compressed Codec is subject to manufacturer's certification.

Please note that this will be a free firmware update. Firmware updates require the use of a Convergent Design Odyssey SSD. All firmware within the Odyssey7Q will be updated, so the new C500 functions will be available to anyone who has already purchased the use of this option and will be available to test in demo mode (bar across recorded image) for all others.



New Features

- "Popular compressed codec" in 422HQ for HD (1920x1080) up to 30p.
This is for direct recording of HD signals. Converted RAW signals will come later (UPDATE: see FS700 notes below).

- Free File Combiner program on our website (for Mac & PC).
The "popular codec" is recorded in Fat32 structure so this simple program will combine lots of little files into one standard file. A simple and quick maintenance operation.

- Adobe compatibility for .DNG files.
Use Odyssey7Q-recorded Cinema DNG files in any Adobe software. This change will have minor alteration of Resolve settings, for which we will also publish new suggested presets.

- Mix file types on SSDs.
Record RAW or video, single SSD or spanned files, without needing to change drives.

- OLED zoom frame drag.
In Pixel Zoom mode, one can use the touchscreen to drag the zoomed window around the frame.

- Histogram reference lines.
Similar to the reference lines in the waveform display.

- 1.33 Frame Guide.
An additional frame guide option, noting 4x3 cutoff within the 16x9 image.

- Screen flip.
When the Odyssey7Q is turned upside down, the image will auto-flip for correct orientation. Can be turned off if desired.

- Audio meters & output level control.
Graphic audio level meters in Upper Tool Bar. Audio Out adjustable level control enabled.

- Clean SDI/HDMI output.
Option to remove image analysis tools from SDI & HDMI outputs.


Known Issues Repairs

- Fixed image tearing and dead lines.
In some shooting modes the display would show the image splitting horizontally during panning motion. Additionally a black line could appear across the frame approximately 1/3 from the top of frame or 1/3 from the bottom. These processing errors were only ever in the OLED display and have been corrected.

- Fixed FS700 RAW white balance.
White balance should now track correctly and accurately.


Canon C500 Recording Option Updates: New Formats Support

- QHD up to 60p

- 2K 12-bit 444 in .DPX up to 60p

- 1080p 12-bit 444 in .DPX up to 60p

- 1080p 10-bit 422 up to 120p


FS700 Recording Option Update:

- 4K RAW to High Quality HD, recorded in 10-bit 422HQ compressed codec

The Odyssey7Q will be able to accept the 4K RAW signal, deBayer it and super-sample it to 1920x1080 with our new advanced high quality algorithm. This algorithm improves both the deBayer as well as the super-sampling processes. The Odyssey7Q will then be able to record the HD signal in a popular compressed codec in 10-bit 4:2:2 at a high quality. At this time we can state that the Odyssey7Q will be able to do this at frame rates up to 30p, and it is expected to attain the camera's full 60p frame rate with further development. Additinal further development will allow HD capture in 12-bit 4:4:4.

(New Update, 2/17/14)
- 4K RAW Recording

The Odyssey7Q will be able to accept and record the full uncompressed 4K RAW signal. This 4096x2160 feed is available from the FS700 at frame rates up to 60p. The Odyssey7Q will auto-detect the incoming format and frame rate and capture it in its native format.

***************
STATUS UPDATE -- FEBRUARY 27
***************

Odyssey7Q February Firmware Status Update

(February 27, 2014, Colorado Springs) There are many improvements and added functions in our Odyssey7Q Firmware Update. Sony FS700 4K RAW recording, additional Canon C500 recording formats, and a host of small functions and minor fixes. The most anticipated new function is the popular compressed recording format to complement all of our other recording functions.

This codec is the intellectual property of another company, and Convergent Design needed to go through extensive technical training and then a certification process to make sure the code we wrote was qualified by the other company. We have been in continual contact with the other company and believe that we have answered all of the requirements it has posed to us. However, as of today, February 27, 2014, we have not been issued our certification.

Without this certification we are contractually bound from releasing this firmware. So while we fully anticipate full approval and certification from the other company, we must delay the release of our February Firmware Update.

Our engineers continue to work on. They sweep the code searching for programming bugs as well as work on additional functions that we have not yet announced. The firmware will improve every day.

It is not practical in the short term to release a version of the firmware update that does not include the popular compressed recording format. Its functions are intertwined with many others and locking it out could cause issues in other functions. However if the delay appears to extend beyond a minimal time we will do exactly this.

Again, we expect this delay to be very short-lived, and apologize to all of our Odyssey7Q owners for the delay.
 
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ilnow said:
Any chance of Sony 4k Raw?
Click to expand...
That is up to Sony.

We have the technical ability to record it now. We have demonstrated it to Sony. We already do it for the Canon C500. We believe that our recording of the FS700 4K RAW would boost sales of the FS700 camera. If we can get Sony to agree to this, then it will be a quick adjustment to enable the feature in the Odyssey7Q. We just have to flip the switch.
 
- "Popular compressed codec" in 422HQ for HD (1920x1080) up to 30p.
Click to expand...

will it be 10bit or is the 8bit stream which is already available by the camera and can be recorded by hyperdeck shuttle or atomos devices?
 
I know awhile back there was a campaign effort on the sony forums asking them to enable 4k raw for the odyssey 7q. However, I don't think there was any response. It just seems that it would make good business sense to enable the 4k raw, as you say, they would sell a lot more fs700s. Is there anyone we can contact from Sony to voice our support? We don't want to harass Sony, but hopefully as fs700 owners we can make them aware of our support for enabling the 4k raw on the odyssey 7q.
 
Hi Mitch,

Curious about the fat32 issue as for me one best selling points of the 'popluar codec' was that it was easy to send to editors- and pretty much most of them can read it straight away without downloading additional programmes. Now if they need another programme to combine the 4gb clips to edit with it adds another step in the process.
Is there any chance in the future the file structure will change from fat32 to something with a longer record time (exfat) making a self contained clip? I'm currently using the Atomos Blade, it doesn't have this issue.
My 7Q just arrived today, playing with it right now:)

Thanks
Tim.
 
Clermond said:
will it be 10bit or is the 8bit stream which is already available by the camera and can be recorded by hyperdeck shuttle or atomos devices?
Click to expand...
The way you pose this question is as if the Odyssey7Q was only an accessory item to the Sony FS700. In fact it can work in a great variety of situations. This first compressed recording implementation is in fact a 10-bit recording, but if the camera you happen to plug into it has an 8-bit internal video architecture - and yes, that is true of the FS700 - then what that camera will spit out as an SDI video stream will be 8-bit video in a 10-bit wrapper (meaning that there are some zeros stuck on the end to be properly formatted). If you fed the Odyssey7Q a 10-bit video signal it would record 10-bit. If you send it 8-bit in 10-bit form then that is what it will record.

The internal recording on the FS700 is 8-bit in depth, and is also 4:2:0 in sub-sampling and 25mbps in data rate. This recording codec will be 8-bit yes, but will also be 4:2:2 and 220mbps variable. Take it into a grade and that's a big difference.

Is this the same as what is currently available on some other devices? Yes. It is also the recording codec we are asked for more than anything else. So it is the first one done. Others will follow. 444. 12-bit. High quality HD derived from 4K. 4K compressed 422HQ. And so on. Not necessarily in that order, but perhaps.
 
ilnow said:
I know awhile back there was a campaign effort on the sony forums asking them to enable 4k raw for the odyssey 7q. However, I don't think there was any response. It just seems that it would make good business sense to enable the 4k raw, as you say, they would sell a lot more fs700s. Is there anyone we can contact from Sony to voice our support? We don't want to harass Sony, but hopefully as fs700 owners we can make them aware of our support for enabling the 4k raw on the odyssey 7q.
Click to expand...
While Sony may not have responded publicly, let me assure you that they are quite aware of the participation and postings on their own forum. It is a good place to make your voice heard. It is in part the job of those that monitor such communities to inform those above them of such activity.
 
35mill said:
Hi Mitch,

Curious about the fat32 issue as for me one best selling points of the 'popluar codec' was that it was easy to send to editors- and pretty much most of them can read it straight away without downloading additional programmes. Now if they need another programme to combine the 4gb clips to edit with it adds another step in the process.
Is there any chance in the future the file structure will change from fat32 to something with a longer record time (exfat) making a self contained clip? I'm currently using the Atomos Blade, it doesn't have this issue.
My 7Q just arrived today, playing with it right now:)

Thanks
Tim.
Click to expand...
Don't know, but I can tell you that like our Clip Merge utility, this program is (A) free and (B) takes like 10 seconds to use. As in the files just string together in a few seconds from the folder and poof they're done. It is almost trivial a step. It's certainly not like some post prep stages where you suddenly lose a day doing file conversions.
 
Can you change to HFRs without having to switch SSDs in this update? ( I assume that you can and that's what spanning refers to).
 
I know both you Mitch and Dan are doing a really good job at trying to keep us notified and for that you have my gratitude.
But in my honest opinion.. One feels a little mislead. Im asking this cause I would have wanted the same questions answered before I actually bought the 7Q, so this might help others to decide whether they should make the investment at the moment.
I just bought my unit and I have to say that ("Popular compressed codec" in 422HQ for HD (1920x1080) up to 30p) is not really floating the boat for the upcoming firmware update. 4k compressed up to 30p we knew was going to be included from the start (it is not included yet) But now not even 60p in regular HD for the firmware, how come?

Following is stated on your webpage: [TABLE="width: 725"]
[TR]
[TD="class: xl73"]Recording Formats (Base Odyssey7Q)[/TD]
[TD="class: xl73"][/TD]
[TD="class: xl74"]Compressed formats: 1080p 10-bit YCC 422 up to 120fps, 1080p RGB 12-bit 444 up to 60fps* Uncompressed formats: 1080p RGB 10/12-bit 444 up to 60fps
[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
The info is misleading...
Do we have any idea on how long we have to wait for true 10-bit? Pro-res up to 60p? 4K compressed? Are we talking about weeks or months? Are CD putting their focus somewhere else? What can I as a customer now expect? Is there any guarantee that we will see these options at all?

I apologise if I have offended anyone or if I have been ignorant in anyway, I would likely be corrected if what Ive asked or presumed is wrong.
 
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I'm getting slightly nervous too. Seems to be a lot of over promising going on. I hope this doesn't lead to under delivering.
 
Mitch Gross said:
The way you pose this question is as if the Odyssey7Q was only an accessory item to the Sony FS700. In fact it can work in a great variety of situations. This first compressed recording implementation is in fact a 10-bit recording, but if the camera you happen to plug into it has an 8-bit internal video architecture - and yes, that is true of the FS700 - then what that camera will spit out as an SDI video stream will be 8-bit video in a 10-bit wrapper (meaning that there are some zeros stuck on the end to be properly formatted). If you fed the Odyssey7Q a 10-bit video signal it would record 10-bit. If you send it 8-bit in 10-bit form then that is what it will record.

The internal recording on the FS700 is 8-bit in depth, and is also 4:2:0 in sub-sampling and 25mbps in data rate. This recording codec will be 8-bit yes, but will also be 4:2:2 and 220mbps variable. Take it into a grade and that's a big difference.

Is this the same as what is currently available on some other devices? Yes. It is also the recording codec we are asked for more than anything else. So it is the first one done. Others will follow. 444. 12-bit. High quality HD derived from 4K. 4K compressed 422HQ. And so on. Not necessarily in that order, but perhaps.
Click to expand...

Sorry Mitch, this might have been misleading as I am not native English. I already own a Atomos Blade (for sale!!) which is for me an accessory item to the Sony FS700. It is recording the FS700 SDI stream in 4:2:2 8bit in a 10bit wrapper. It's is nice but from my experience in daily practice the improvement compared to the internal compressed AVCHD recording is smaller than I would have expected. Yes, there is a difference if you squeeze it in a grade but it is still 8bit and you will get at the limit quite soon also. Therefore I almost did not use sLog recording.
Recording in 8bit 4:2:2 is for me first of all a back up to SD cards and also I don't have to transcode them for the editing.

I wonder that people asked for this recording codec more than anything else because it is an option that is available with other devices as mentioned in my posting above. For me personally it is real 10bit 4:2:2 HD or 4K recording what I would ask most. Actually I have to record RAW to improve from what I have already. No question it's a real improvement but the workflow is a real increase in time and effort too.

You are closer than anybody of us is to Sony so you will know better what's in their mind. My gut feeling says they wont go for a 4K RAW option. We will probably see an announcement of a real sucessor model in the end of 2014 or early 2015 latest and if they add 4K RAW now to the FS700 they set the standard too high for the next model. Sony would also cannibalize the F5 and kill the HXR-IFR5 interface immediatlely. But this is wild guess.


 
You have to wonder why anybody would ask for 8bit (albeit in a 10 bit wrapper) over true 10bit HD derived from 4k or even compressed 4k. I'm desperate for those options and before the advent of other cameras appearing on the market with comparable capabilities. I've read there was a similar roadmap promised for the Gemini when it was released which ultimately didn't come to fruition. I hope that's not a precedent. I get a sense of prickliness when CD is asked about what the O7Q does in conjunction with the FS700. We know it works with other devices, we're just interested what it does with our camera on this forum. I appreciate's CD's visibility and I want this thing to work but perhaps they should be a bit more circumspect about what, how and when otherwise IMHO there's a danger of the unit not living up to the hype.
 
Mitch Gross said:
New Features

- "Popular compressed codec" in 422HQ for HD (1920x1080) up to 30p.
This is for direct recording of HD signals. Converted RAW signals will come later.
Click to expand...

And when will the FS700 raw to 422 10 bit arrive?

The Cinema DNG raw will be nice for art projects, but OQ7 will really start to pay for itself when it converts FS700 to a 10 bit monstrosity. Untill then i already have several monitors, no need for an extra at a premium charge.
 
sunnyjimfilms said:
You have to wonder why anybody would ask for 8bit (albeit in a 10 bit wrapper) over true 10bit HD derived from 4k or even compressed 4k. I'm desperate for those options and before the advent of other cameras appearing on the market with comparable capabilities. I've read there was a similar roadmap promised for the Gemini when it was released which ultimately didn't come to fruition. I hope that's not a precedent. I get a sense of prickliness when CD is asked about what the O7Q does in conjunction with the FS700. We know it works with other devices, we're just interested what it does with our camera on this forum. I appreciate's CD's visibility and I want this thing to work but perhaps they should be a bit more circumspect about what, how and when otherwise IMHO there's a danger of the unit not living up to the hype.
Click to expand...
In terms of the FS700, on the whole the productions we work on don't want 4k, it's too much data and would cause an issue in the edit, when other cameras are shooting boring old (already!?) Full HD. However as we're generally shooting for broadcast, they do require broadcast spec HD. AVCHD isn't, 8 bit uncompressed to ProRes (or even better our my world, DNxHD) is. DPX is a headache and needs a lot of data space, so getting a manageable broadcast spec record from the camera is a big plus for us, I'd expect that there are a lot of people in the same boat.

Beyond FS700, we also do a lot of minicamera work (on board filming and the like), the cameras require an external recorder. There's plenty of options out there already, e.g nanoflash, PIX240, Samurai/Blade etc, however the Odyssey 7Q becomes a viable choice with HD to broadcast spec in manageable form, and trumps them all once the quad record feature is enabled.

4k is just around the corner, but Full HD is still very much the here and now and makes up the vast majority of what people need... and as Mitch pointed out earlier on, the 7Q isn't just for the FS700, we bought it to pair with a number of different camera solutions and filming scenarios.
 
Stuart Keasley said:
In terms of the FS700, on the whole the productions we work on don't want 4k, it's too much data and would cause an issue in the edit, when other cameras are shooting boring old (already!?) Full HD. However as we're generally shooting for broadcast, they do require broadcast spec HD. AVCHD isn't, 8 bit uncompressed to ProRes (or even better our my world, DNxHD) is. DPX is a headache and needs a lot of data space, so getting a manageable broadcast spec record from the camera is a big plus for us, I'd expect that there are a lot of people in the same boat.

Beyond FS700, we also do a lot of minicamera work (on board filming and the like), the cameras require an external recorder. There's plenty of options out there already, e.g nanoflash, PIX240, Samurai/Blade etc, however the Odyssey 7Q becomes a viable choice with HD to broadcast spec in manageable form, and trumps them all once the quad record feature is enabled.

4k is just around the corner, but Full HD is still very much the here and now and makes up the vast majority of what people need... and as Mitch pointed out earlier on, the 7Q isn't just for the FS700, we bought it to pair with a number of different camera solutions and filming scenarios.
Click to expand...

+++++1
 
Yeah I'm pretty sure I mentioned I was aware the 7Q services other hardware. Look, for me it's obviously coming from a personal perspective. What's right for one person isn't necessarily right for another. If you have all the features as promised, it's likely, near as damn it ,going to be right for everyone. I guess ultimately you're trying to achieve F5/ 55 performance on what is effectively a prosumer camera and as good as results are, it's always going to be a compromise. My interest lies in Pro Res purely as I edit in FCPX (shoot me down in flames) then grade in Resolve. The workflow at the moment seems somewhat clunky. For me starting off in Resolve, then going into the NLE, then back to Resolve does not seem an efficient way to work. Anyway, I have one on order so hope to find out for myself soon enough.
 
Lets not forget what a huge improvement the 2KRAW 120 and 240 fps is, we already have that. It will also be great to have the compressed formats, and the bug fixes are a big help too, lets not be too negative here, life on the bleeding edge is always interesting. And remember we have a fantastic monitor with a price point similar to offerings that are monitor and scopes only, and the recording already works and as I stated is a huge improvement over the internal high frame rates. The changes to how we will use the SSDs will be a big help.

I know the CD team will get all these things working, would I love to have them right now, yes of course. Be reassured the 10 bit from 4K is coming as is compressed 4K as well. A year from now we will not be remembering the wait but we will be very happy with all the great footage we got from the Odyssey. We are in this for the long term, not the instant reward, at least I am. It was a long wait for the DSR500 and EXcams I ordered as well as many other new technology tools like updates to NLE's, but I don't think of that now only of what huge improvements they were in my quality and ease of production

One question Mitch. What about vector scope? I thought that was part of the next update as well. This is not super important but would be nice.
 
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