GH4 Panasonic GH4 & 4K Interface Pricing Texas Media Systems

I have tried to consider what the YAGH does and it still seems over priced to me. You can get a very good audio box for $300-$400. That still leaves $1600-$1700. Getting a DSLR Base kit can be hit for very cheap nowadays, lets say $200-$300 for where the YAGH gets you, so lets say $1300-$1400 still left to account for. Lets also not forget that the YAGH requires a power solution to operate properly which is going to set you back $600-$1000++ depending on how many batteries you get, recharger, distro box, cables etc...

The camera is going to be a home run in my opinion while I believe the YAGH is over priced and poorly thought out.
 
I agree it is an ergonomic nightmare, but if you need to shoot 2K or 4K 10 bit 4:2:2 and don't trust the HDMI output solution, the box is the only way to go. Now what might have been cool is to add a bit of price to the GH4 itself and incorporated an HD-SDI output into the body...then left the sound for a separate, less expensive and much smaller module.
 
Mitch Gross said:
Panasonic needs to keep the camera to a certain size, weight, power draw and price. And ours is a secondary market. But they consider it an important enough market to offer a professional tool alternative, the YAGH base, which also does a bunch of other stuff for you. It will function as (most of) a rod base, it has proper audio controls and inputs, and it offers proper video outputs, complete with a high level video signal. If it seems pricey at first, consider the cost of a rod base kit and an audio box that you can now eliminate. It's really not so bad at all.
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Does the YAG base have additional high quality preamps? I was under the impression that the XLRs led directly to the in-camera preamps. I don't know for sure, but unless the unit does have additional high quality preamps, audio is not going to be a strong purchase reason given this is a still camera.
 
That yagh sure is over priced. i like that it powers the whole camera though but why not 2x3G-SDI instead of the 4x current setup?

based on the official panasonic stuff ive read, hdmi 1.4 can do 4k and they do output 4k through hdmi. It also specifies that you need hdmi 1.4 specific cable for this to work.

so my money is in YES regarding 4k output on HDMI
 
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dcloud said:
so my money is in YES regarding 4k output on HDMI
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From your lips to gods ears...lol. That would make me very happy

I just can't see them allowing that, why on earth would they have a need to even create something like the YAGH?

Bassman2003 said:
Does the YAG base have additional high quality preamps? I was under the impression that the XLRs led directly to the in-camera pre-amps.
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I would be shocked if the YAGH didn't have built-in preamps in it, to me it is one of the most potentially redeeming features that the YAGH possesses.

I think with the YAGH you are paying for a good audio solution and 4K 10bit 4:2:2 output. As I have mentioned I believe there are already good external audio solutions available for not a lot of money.

I just question how many people really want or need 4K 10 Bit 4:2:2 right now from their GH4. I now many want to play with it but......how many REALLY need it.
 
Even if the HDMI port doesn't offer 4K output while recording, could the camera potentially be hacked to do this in the future?

Where is the YAGH getting its signal from? Is it coming from the HDMI port or are there other special connectors on the camera body it interfaces with?
 
roxics said:
Even if the HDMI port doesn't offer 4K output while recording, could the camera potentially be hacked to do this in the future?

Where is the YAGH getting its signal from? Is it coming from the HDMI port or are there other special connectors on the camera body it interfaces with?
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Their are several contacts on the bottom of the camera that go into the YAGH.
 
Guys,

1. The manual states that live 4K via the micro HDMI port is possible (and configurable)
2. Illya Friedman @ Red Hot Cameras have tested and confirmed that a live 4k (10bit 422) feed does come out of the micro HDMI socket.

I think we can put this one to bed and say its there and working - and no YAGH box is needed for HDMI based 4K.
 
dcloud said:
That yagh sure is over priced. i like that it powers the whole camera though but why not 2x3G-SDI instead of the 4x current setup?
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The documentation so far is not clear, but since that YAGH SDI outputs are labelled to note that the first two are in fact 3G-SD ports, I believe that you CAN get 4K from just the two of them.
 
Sorry if I was off on the information of 4K output via the HDMI. It appears to not be as I understood it.

It is important to point out that there currently is no device on the market that will record from this output. SDI feeds are curently required to capture 4K.
 
I predict that you will soon find that an Australian company who's name starts with A may have a solution for recording 4K via the HDMI.
 
vtwiz said:
I predict that you will soon find that an Australian company who's name starts with A may have a solution for recording 4K via the HDMI.
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Yeah that wouldn't surprise me either - what has surprised me, is that they released the Ninja Blade - and that didn't do 4k.
 
Mitch Gross said:
Sorry if I was off on the information of 4K output via the HDMI. It appears to not be as I understood it.

It is important to point out that there currently is no device on the market that will record from this output. SDI feeds are curently required to capture 4K.
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Would the Blackmagic Design Mini Converter HDMI to SDI allow it to work with your recorder?
 
True North said:
I would be shocked if the YAGH didn't have built-in preamps in it, to me it is one of the most potentially redeeming features that the YAGH possesses.

I think with the YAGH you are paying for a good audio solution and 4K 10bit 4:2:2 output. As I have mentioned I believe there are already good external audio solutions available for not a lot of money.

I just question how many people really want or need 4K 10 Bit 4:2:2 right now from their GH4. I now many want to play with it but......how many REALLY need it.
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I am going to need official confirmation on this as the text related to this unit does not mention high quality preamps. Here is the blurb from B&H:

"When attached to the GH4, the Interface Unit has 2 monaural XLR inputs for line or condenser microphones, and gives you independent volume control of the left and right channels. There is also an audio level display monitor and +48V of phantom power for each channel."

I am also quite surprised that there is no mention of a battery compartment for the YAGH unit. It is not small but, it looks like along side your external recorder you will always need an external power source for the YAGH. The makings of a Franken-camera which is not very 'battery only' shooting friendly. It is still early but the strikes are adding up against the YAGH for me.
 
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