Place to Purchase HD100u?

C

Carcaridon

Well-known member
Hello.
I'm thinking of going with B&H, as they have the best price of any reputable place I've seen. I tried getting in touch with Rush at EVS, but after waiting on hold for 30 minutes, I finall gave up. Question, is trying again at EVS/Rush worth the wait? Normally B&H's prices are higher than everyone else, so should I just throw the phone on speaker and wait it out with EVS?

Thanks.
 
I have to say that I've waited for 6 months to have this opportunity and I don't mind at all responding to this postl.

As far as the wait, definitely. Those of us who have had dealings with East Coast I-net companies, specifically and generally, need say nothing about B&H; our actions speak too loudly and for an increasing number of us, those actions lead us straight to EVS and specifically to people like Rush, Tommy, Toby, Randy and the others who I feel, individualy and collectively, have forgotten more than the people at the referenced company will ever know.

I for one was spending a great deal of time running around between three or four sources for my production company's needs in the Los Angeles area and having people that work with me do the same thing. One day I was fortunate enough to have a cameraman by the name of Jun Tang who I found on this very Board introduce me to EVS and from that very first day when Jun and I arrived, it became a home away from home for me. Is this because their spacious accommodations and voluminous lobby were so comfortable that the mere surroundings beconed to me to come in, relax, pull up an overstuffed leather chair and peruse the day's Wall Street Journal? HARDLY considering that their lobby, until a couple of months ago, made my first college closet look like the Presidential Suite at the Four Seasons! No, actually it was because of the very person you ask about, Rush, and the people there that he works with. Knowlegable, timely and accurate service, information and products all without any of the pressure you always find, especially with the referenced company, is why, to date, I've personally dropped, in the last 6 months, in excess of $30,000 there. And the real irony is that somehow I don't think the owners know exactly what they have in these people. The products I purchased for the production company I own could be gotten anywhere but anywhere doesn't have the person you spoke of and I can honestly say that should that ever change, my business would go anywhere Rush and the others would go. Simply stated, EVS would be nothing if not for these people who, quite frankly, are so busy providing their loyal customers with the best possible advice and service that the phone sometimes takes a while to answer. Those of us who have dealt with them know; Don't bother calling... just show up. They'll more than likely have the answer to your questions and the parts that you need. And if they don't have it and it's an emergency, they'll tell you where to go to get it or loan you their own and this I say from first-hand experience.

So, again, is "trying again at EVS/Rush worth the wait? Normally B&H's prices are higher than everyone else, so should I just throw the phone on speaker and wait it out with EVS?", the way to go? All I can say is that I vote with my pocketbook and whether it's $30,000 or $30, everyone is treated the same at EVS. . .with dignity, honesty and knowledge. So no, don't bother with the speakerphone. Just do what every one else does, get in the car and drive down to the shop. Guaranteed you leave there with more than you ever thought you needed...in knowledge. And besides, there are far more worse ways to ax a couple of hours. But if it is too far to drive, then "Speaker Phone" is definitely the way to go.
 
Thank you for the response. Driving to Glendale isn't that big of a deal, but unfortunately, I am on the "$30" end of things, and my budget is very tight. If I can save $100 or so by going out of state, thank you state tax, then I really have no choice. Plus, I heard that EVS is out of the HD100, and it would be a bummer to go all the way up there and not bring it home.

They open at 8am tomorrow, so I'm going to throw down on the speaker phone and wait it out. If they can at least meet the out the door cost on the camera, then with your glowing review of them, I will get it from them if they have it.

I wish money was not an object, but today it is. Tomorrow? Who knows. :)

Thank you for your great review of them. I've heard a bunch of good things about them, so I hope I am able to connect with them.
 
I second EVS. They have been great with me so far. When they didn't have something in stock while I was there getting something else, Randy called around to all the local dealers trying to find it for me. Considering that means they lose the sale that is definately service. Then again it cold have been because I was already spending several thousand there that day. :)

Ask them about the production tax waiver and you will save 5% right there. I'm sure they will give you a competitive price if you say you're on your way to get it.
 
FullRez said:
I second EVS. They have been great with me so far. When they didn't have something in stock while I was there getting something else, Randy called around to all the local dealers trying to find it for me. Considering that means they lose the sale that is definately service. Then again it cold have been because I was already spending several thousand there that day. :)

Ask them about the production tax waiver and you will save 5% right there. I'm sure they will give you a competitive price if you say you're on your way to get it.
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Would you mind explaining this "production tax waiver?" I have an LLC, if that helps.
 
One thing I will caution you about is getting what you expect. Without pointing fingers at any one specific company, I am personally familiar with the difference between the $5000 camera and the $4300 camera that appears to be the same. However, when you receive it, it is lacking a battery or the lens or cabling or charger or any combination of the above. When you complain, it becomes a game of my lawyer your lawyer. They've got your money and all the time and lawyers in the world. it's very difficult to win against people like this. For the record, my experience in this area is not with B&H. The bottom line is an apparent savings isn't always a better deal. You say you're more in the $30 range. At the end of the day, we all are. I have a production company that is in the $30 range when compared to Brad Grey for example. And he's in the $30 range when compared to, say, Universal Studios. It's all relative and there's always someone bigger.

Finally, when you talk to EVS, ask about the 3% tax deal they have. That'll save you some money. As far as being out of the camera, I think they have another load coming in this week. They went through 21 of them between Wednesday and Friday of last week because JVC raised the price on the cameras to them and every other dealer by $600 so what cameras they had flew out the door. I bought three of them for my guys. So that means you really have to look carefully and read the fine print when you're buying one for $4300. Make sure you're getting exactly what you think you're paying for. Good luck to you.
 
jlames said:
One thing I will caution you about is getting what you expect. Without pointing fingers at any one specific company, I am personally familiar with the difference between the $5000 camera and the $4300 camera that appears to be the same. However, when you receive it, it is lacking a battery or the lens or cabling or charger or any combination of the above. When you complain, it becomes a game of my lawyer your lawyer. They've got your money and all the time and lawyers in the world. it's very difficult to win against people like this. For the record, my experience in this area is not with B&H. The bottom line is an apparent savings isn't always a better deal. You say you're more in the $30 range. At the end of the day, we all are. I have a production company that is in the $30 range when compared to Brad Grey for example. And he's in the $30 range when compared to, say, Universal Studios. It's all relative and there's always someone bigger.

Finally, when you talk to EVS, ask about the 3% tax deal they have. That'll save you some money. As far as being out of the camera, I think they have another load coming in this week. They went through 21 of them between Wednesday and Friday of last week because JVC raised the price on the cameras to them and every other dealer by $600 so what cameras they had flew out the door. I bought three of them for my guys. So that means you really have to look carefully and read the fine print when you're buying one for $4300. Make sure you're getting exactly what you think you're paying for. Good luck to you.
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Yeah. I completely understand what you mean. I figure if it's under $4900, it's probably a bad idea to even look at it. B&H is right around there. I don't know if I can post prices, but they are right there.

Everyone is steering me to EVS, so I will be calling them tomorrow at 8am to see what can be done for me.

Thank you everyone that has helped. Hopefully my other post will be answered and I'll know if this camera is right for my setup. :)
 
Just tell them you want the tax waiver, they will give you a paper that you fill out right there and you are good to go. That will save you 5% of the sales tax. It is something CA does to try and keep companies from buying production equipment out of state and losing all of the tax revenue.

Don't forget about shipping fees. You won't pay that either if you pick up and you save even more.

EVS has the best price I could find from a local dealer that I knew I could trust. You will also get the free 1K battery package too.

You just dont' get the same level of service from out of state places (even decent ones like B&H).
 
My 2 cents:

I live in Michiagn and just ordered/recieved a JVC from Rush over at EVS. Never met him, never been to EVS. I just read some reviews on this very website who said they were reputable.

SO, sight unseen, I bit the bullet and wire transfered the money (because Rush told me overall it'd save me another 85 bucks). Three days later I had a new camera w/ all the goodies it was supposssed to have.

I had some questions about the battery coupon, Rush patiently helped explain what the deal is (EVS tells JVC to send them a coupon, and when EVS gets the coupon they mail it to me, then I mail it back to JVC).

Never dealt w/ B@H. But certainly the overall deal I got from EVS was better than what B@H offered - again, I can't speak to customer service at B@H, but the service was excellant at EVS.

Just my 2 cents-
John
 
I just called them this morning. I guess they open at 8, but no one is there until 10? I'm not sure how that works, but OK. I'll try back at 10. :)
 
Just called again, I know, I'm impaitient. :)

Spoke with Ramzi. What a guy. Really nice, and took them time to explain everything to me. Great price on the camera. Beat B&H by a couple hundred. I'm on the list waiting for one to come in. New question. I can't really afford the capture device, the BRHD50 thing. Other than using the camera, are there any other options for me?

Thanks again for all the help.
 
You can just capture to your computer via the cameras firewire port. You don't need the Deck unless you want to offload the workload from your camera. If you get the Hard Drive recorder due out soon then you can record to that, plug it in to your computer and just copy the files over.

While at EVS getting your camera pick up a clear filter to put on the lens. Probably about $40.00 and it will protect the lens element from getting scratched, chipped, etc.
 
FullRez said:
You can just capture to your computer via the cameras firewire port. You don't need the Deck unless you want to offload the workload from your camera. If you get the Hard Drive recorder due out soon then you can record to that, plug it in to your computer and just copy the files over.

While at EVS getting your camera pick up a clear filter to put on the lens. Probably about $40.00 and it will protect the lens element from getting scratched, chipped, etc.
Click to expand...

So are you saying that having a computer near and dumping to the pc via firewire would work? Hmm, seems like a self powered firewire drive would come in handy. I really need to start looking into all this. :)
 
You need to use some NLE package to capture from the camera. As long as you computer has a Firewire port on it and meets the min specs you will be ok. I believe you posted your system elsewhere and it seemed fine to me.

You can't just put a self powered firewire drive next to the camera and capture to it. You would need one that is designed for this such as the FireStore and JVC version.
 
I guess it's come down to the firestore or the HDVRack software. I'm leaning more toward HDVRack due to the fact of it's cheaper and I can monitor the shots with it. I have to admit, the firstore does look like a nice product tho.
 
Well the point is this. You can capture straight to the FS while out in the field and then offload the footage to a computer by just copying the files (No Camera Needed for Offload). OR.... you can capture to tape and then when you are back at your computer (NLE) you will capture the footage to your computer through the camera by putting the tapes in the camera and controlling the camera from the computer. You might also look at CineForm AspectHD as you will get a better file format for editing and any mult-pass stuff will hold up much better than raw HDV.
 
jdv, thank you sir, it was my pleasure. :) I just wish we bought 100 of those cameras at the old price instead of just 20. We went through those like hotcakes...
 
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