For my next film I'm thinking of upgrading my Letus Extreme to a Letus Ultimate. My feeling is spinning adaptors are more reliable and give less grain and noise than vibrating adaptors. The SGBlade seems to fit the bill at a fraction of the cost of the ultimate. Is there any reason why the SGBlade should not be my first choice?
Upgrading from Letrus Extreme.
- Thread starter jacotte
- Start date
I've asked the same question here on the boards. Most all the replies back were praising the SGBlade. Although I did here a few comments about it making noise with the RR1.
My concern is with customer service. I had a small issue/question, emailed in, got a quick response, but my issue/question was ignored. I wrote back again and have not heard anything since. That was a week ago! So its made me think twice about ordering the SGBlade and brought Letus back into the equation.
My concern is with customer service. I had a small issue/question, emailed in, got a quick response, but my issue/question was ignored. I wrote back again and have not heard anything since. That was a week ago! So its made me think twice about ordering the SGBlade and brought Letus back into the equation.
Wayne Kinney
DVXUser Sponsor
Hi,
We reply to our emails virtually instantly during office hours and to all emails well within 24 hours. If you could please resend your last email to us as we have not received it. I am confident that in terms of customer care, we are at the top.
We reply to our emails virtually instantly during office hours and to all emails well within 24 hours. If you could please resend your last email to us as we have not received it. I am confident that in terms of customer care, we are at the top.
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Wayne Kinney
DVXUser Sponsor
Hi,
I believe that the major difference is modularity. The SGblade currently has a choice of 3 different ROTOrazor Imaging Elements (ground glass), each having their own pros and cons. RR1 is the most comparable to the Letus Ultimate, RR2 & 3 have different properties like better bokeh/film look and lower light loss.
Also, the SGblade uses 'Connection Kits' so can be purchased 'Flipped' or 'Non Flipped' or many users purchase both.
The Letus Ultimate has an easier to use back focus adjustment, and the speed control is regulated.
I believe that the major difference is modularity. The SGblade currently has a choice of 3 different ROTOrazor Imaging Elements (ground glass), each having their own pros and cons. RR1 is the most comparable to the Letus Ultimate, RR2 & 3 have different properties like better bokeh/film look and lower light loss.
Also, the SGblade uses 'Connection Kits' so can be purchased 'Flipped' or 'Non Flipped' or many users purchase both.
The Letus Ultimate has an easier to use back focus adjustment, and the speed control is regulated.
Wayne Kinney
DVXUser Sponsor
Hi,
If you are referring to the motionFX GG.relay, a 1/2" EX3 version does not yet exist, although Evangelos will work on the relevant bayonet kits if demand is high enough.
The GG.relay indeed has a backfocus ring in order to focus on the ROTOrazor/Ground Glass.
If you are referring to the motionFX GG.relay, a 1/2" EX3 version does not yet exist, although Evangelos will work on the relevant bayonet kits if demand is high enough.
The GG.relay indeed has a backfocus ring in order to focus on the ROTOrazor/Ground Glass.
Wayne Kinney
DVXUser Sponsor
Hi,
Not directly, no. Why do you suppose that?
Not directly, no. Why do you suppose that?
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Lenilenapi
Carbonite Member
As someone who has used both a Letus Ultimate and a Blade I would say that Wayne's description of the difference is spot on and I want to acknowledge that he is secure enough to mention the advantages of the Ultimate. Thats said, for the money I find them minor compared to the ability to change screens on the Blade. The ultimate has a regulated speed control with an LED readout but to me that's minor. The easier backfocus adjustment might come in handy if you needed to readjust often for lenses or mounts but that's not an issue for me either. The important thing is that the Blade does have a backfocus adjustment and that is critical.
Imagewise the RR1 is very similar to the Ultimate (similar sharpness, speed and DOF) and to my eye the RR2 is prettier. For some strange reason my RR2 is 1/3 stop faster than the Ultimate or RR1. You also have the choice of the RR3 which is faster still with more DOF but I haven't seen that.
Both are well made and I imagine you'll get good service form either. Wayne is in the UK but he's fast on the response. I've got many an email in the middle of the night. Don't know if he sleeps.
By the way Jacotte what happened to your obnoxious rants a month ago about the adapter being dead and replaced by DSLR's?
Lenny Levy
Imagewise the RR1 is very similar to the Ultimate (similar sharpness, speed and DOF) and to my eye the RR2 is prettier. For some strange reason my RR2 is 1/3 stop faster than the Ultimate or RR1. You also have the choice of the RR3 which is faster still with more DOF but I haven't seen that.
Both are well made and I imagine you'll get good service form either. Wayne is in the UK but he's fast on the response. I've got many an email in the middle of the night. Don't know if he sleeps.
By the way Jacotte what happened to your obnoxious rants a month ago about the adapter being dead and replaced by DSLR's?
Lenny Levy
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Dino
Veteran
Wayne and Lenny are right on the money. If you want to use a Letus 1/2" relay lens or 1/3" or 2/3", you need to use a Letus adapter. The good news is that most Letus products are on sale, so the cost is less than before.
The cool thing about any Letus adapter is that there is a relay lens for every camera, 1/3", 1/2" and 2/3".
As a rental facility, simple back focus on the adapter is important because we send out our Ultimates with Nikon, Canon and PL mounts regularly. The speed control--not important, just run at max speed.
The cool thing about any Letus adapter is that there is a relay lens for every camera, 1/3", 1/2" and 2/3".
As a rental facility, simple back focus on the adapter is important because we send out our Ultimates with Nikon, Canon and PL mounts regularly. The speed control--not important, just run at max speed.
Zblock
Well-known member
I received my SGBlade on Christmas Eve day, had a question about setup and got an email the day after Christmas. I second The above statement.