Worth selling my HMC for the new NXCAM?

F

FUBARFilms

Active member
I have owned my HMC for about a year now and while I am generally pleased with it, the one issue I have is the resolution of the image the camera produces. I'm not sure if it's just me but it seems like when compared to other cameras like the XH-A1 the image on the HMC just seems sort of "rough" (yes, I have played with the detail settings). I know this is a combination of lens and imaging chip, thats why the NX5U excites me so much (exmor sensor, 20x zoom). I know there are issues like rolling shutter and I have yet to see any actual footage from the camera. But based on my concerns do you guys feel it would be worth the trouble to get an NX5U?
 
yes.
if you don't like the image the hmc produces, then you'll never be happy and should move on to a sharper camera.
 
The EX-1R is the only step up that will make you happy. The NXcam dosent have a full 1920X1080 imager either. If it turns out to be better resolution, it is most likely a small increment.

Maybe the Canon XH-A1 replacement coming soon will be a possible choice too.
 
Yes, if maximum resolution is the most important quality you look for when you shoot video.

Myself, maximum resolution is the least important quality I look for. I am more concerned about color, contrast, dynamic range, achieving the "film look", and no-rolling shutter effects when I think about video image quality.

I want to be able to shoot video that does not look like it belongs on the 6 o'clock news. So far I've been very very happy with the results I get from my HMC150.
 
The NX5U may not have full raster chips, but the imaging block can resolve considerably more detail than the imaging block in an HMC150. From what Adam Wilt has written (and looking at res charts in his articles), I expect image detail recorded by the NX5U will be about on par with what you can get out of an HMC40, which records dang good detail (pretty stunning visually) - perhaps not quite as sharp as an EX, but not hardly very far from it either.
 
I for one want more resolution plus a few other things.


Type in NXCam over at Vimeo and you'll see about 2 videos out of maybe 8 that should give you an idea.
 
> I'm not sure if it's just me but it seems like when compared to other cameras
> like the XH-A1 the image on the HMC just seems sort of "rough"

This is perception shared by many owners of Panasonic AVCHD cameras. DVCPRO HD saves the image by filling in the blanks, so to speak, with additional chroma, making colored objects pleasantly smooth and saturated. But AVCHD is no DVCPRO HD. With its 4:2:0 chroma, luma portion of the image has to deliver sufficiently hi-res yet smooth image. Low-res chips cannot deliver high enough resolution, and artificial sharpening (along with lower bitrate on earlier models) makes the image "rough". Which means that hi-res sensors is not a whim, but a necessity for HDV/AVCHD/XDCAM EX cameras.
 
Hidef1080 said:
I for one want more resolution plus a few other things.


Type in NXCam over at Vimeo and you'll see about 2 videos out of maybe 8 that should give you an idea.
Click to expand...

I don't see any 1920x1080 sample clips there. The only way you could really get an idea how much detail the camcorder can record, would be to if you can download 1920x1080 clips actually recorded by the camcorder (or just ever so lightly recompressed).
 
Robert M Wright said:
I don't see any 1920x1080 sample clips there. The only way you could really get an idea how much detail the camcorder can record, would be to if you can download 1920x1080 clips actually recorded by the camcorder (or just ever so lightly recompressed).
Click to expand...

You're right.
I downloaded a mp4 clip and it was 1280 x 720 I didn't think to check that first.

Question for you:
Do you think the images from the NXcam will be about the same as the images from the Sony Z5?
I believe that have the same chips and lens so would the video look about the same?
Maybe better for the AVCHD camera in some cases?
 
They use the same imaging block essentially, but 21Mbps (avg) AVCHD can pretty much blow away HDV encoding (image quality wise). 21Mbps (avg) AVCHD encoding from Panasonic's H264 encoder, in AVCCAM branded products, apparently is quite comparable to XDCAM EX encoding from Sony's EX camcorders (again, image quality wise). So long as Sony's H264 codec in the NX5U is a reasonably good one, it really should mean notably better image fidelity in recordings from the NX5U (especially in very detailed scenes) compared to the Z5.
 
Sony's HDV codec is not very good, especially compared to Canon's, but Sony's AVCHD codec seems to be at least on par with Canon and Panasonic. I've never seen any complaints from users of Sony AVCHD cameras, only praises. Some of them are professional videographers and use small cams either for home movies or as B-cams. NXCAMs will be definitely better than Sony's HDV cams.
 
I will pick low-light peformance and color rendition over resolution any day (aka HMC). The 150 may not have the number of pixels as Sony CCDs have, but each pixel is larger. This results in cleaner shadows, and all together better low light performance and color.

And if you want the above PLUS the higher resolution, then you're going to have to spend more than the $3.2K that the HMC costs (aka EX or 7DMKII).

If resolution is your priority, then the HMC might not be for you- just be aware of what might happen when the lights get low :evil:
 
It's my understanding that a Z5 edges out an HMC150 in low light. If so, the NX5U certainly should as well.

It sure seems to me that current, modern day CMOS chips have caught up with and passed CCD chips for low light performance in general.
 
Robert M Wright said:
It's my understanding that a Z5 edges out an HMC150 in low light. If so, the NX5U certainly should as well.

It sure seems to me that current, modern day CMOS chips have caught up with and passed CCD chips for low light performance in general.
Click to expand...

perhaps (and perhaps only on paper) but the Z5 is over $800 more...apples to apples

a side by side would be needed
 
I can see comments + test data + actual shots on different sites showing that the Z5/Z7 is noisy at 6dB and noise goes away at -6dB, meaning that these cams may be one stop slower than they are advertised. Some people who shoot HDV say that the A1/G1 is still unsurpassed in terms of lowlight/clarity/codec, and that the Sonys only have the edge in native progressive in good light.
 
You were saying the HMC150 will outperform the NX5U in low light conditions. The Z5U uses the same imaging block as the NX5U, thus low light performance of the Z5U and NX5U should be quite comparable. The NX5U is about $700 more than an HMC150 too, for that matter. Price difference between the Z5U (or NX5U) and HMC150 is utterly irrelevant to the point, as to which camera will perform better in low light.
 
Robert M Wright said:
They use the same imaging block essentially, but 21Mbps (avg) AVCHD can pretty much blow away HDV encoding (image quality wise). 21Mbps (avg) AVCHD encoding from Panasonic's H264 encoder, in AVCCAM branded products, apparently is quite comparable to XDCAM EX encoding from Sony's EX camcorders (again, image quality wise). So long as Sony's H264 codec in the NX5U is a reasonably good one, it really should mean notably better image fidelity in recordings from the NX5U (especially in very detailed scenes) compared to the Z5.
Click to expand...

Thanks Robert!!!
 
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