XHA1 Zoom Controller

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drdimento

Well-known member
Anyone know where to find a nice rather inexpensive (wow is that a contradiction in terms or what?) zoom controller for the XHA1. I just need zoom and can't seem to find one. I doubt my VariZoom's from the DVX100B's will work. I think we tried them on Friday.

Any help or pointing will be appreciated. This I need badly :D
 
fightclubtb said:
i am interested too, though I am sure i will just get steered to the same $200 + ones...
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Actually on another board about HDV I got a bunch of responses. Here is a cheap one:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0011ECIUE/ref=dp_olp_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1229415949&sr=8-10

30 bux isn't bad for a test. I didn't realize that the Canon and Sony were the same. B&H has one for a buck seventy five which I'll get if I don't like this one. However, I also order the Canon 1000 one when I found some guy had it on Ebay for 90 with shipping included and what the heck that's a wrap AND it's a Canon one and not a "copy cat" version (beware).

I am lost without a zoom controller and since I changed to Canon's all my Panny ones won't work :crybaby:

How you like the A1?
 
I use the Manfrotto basic one - About $160 or so - you can always use the stock remote as well.
 
GR8 ! I like that Libec one especially for the other cams. I'll have the canon 1000 one for the primary camera and then the libec's for the other cams.

Thanks all. Some nice solutions.
 
fightclubtb said:
i love the xha1... thanks for asking! lol
. . .
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i share your enthusiasm for the xha1 and i went though a lot of complicated paths to get to it where we ended up running "viewer studies*" (see below)" and found that the average (99%) of the viewing public could not tell the difference between a $6,000 camera and a $700 so long as it was 1920x1080 let alone all 100+ of our airing broadcasters for our content told us that we had finally "found the image" they prefer. I was blown away. In fact, for the price of the previous camera we could buy two xha1's :o) . . and . . HDV is so NLE and user friendly I can put a freelance editor in the studio and inside of 1/2 hour have them running full speed ahead.

thanks for the feedback and enjoyed that house video, WOW bet that puppy cost a small fortune.

*ran studies of multiple hd cameras and formats of outdoor and indoor material and mixed the order of the respective videos edited out to DVD and also one test of BluRay at HDTV viewing levels and the result was that no viewer could precisely pin point a winner other than two of the viewers made a comment that one camera looked like the colors might be better but they couldn't really tell for sure and even that was on only two of the many clips. in other words, all the cameras won. the cameras used in the various runs were HVX200A, XHA1 (was rented for the tests), Sony 3 cmos Palmcorder (don't have the model number, was borrowed) and if it were not for controllable features we would obviously go with the palmcorder. BTW, the palmcorder was an afterthought in the tests but fortunately for us revealed something we hadn't thought of before beginning the tests; and that is, that once at the HD level the distinguishable difference to the average viewer is lost because of each cameras remarkable picture size and quality. thus, price and uncontrollability was our end decision.
 
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cledwards said:
I got one of these works ok http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-LANC-Remote...ptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?_trksid=p3286.m20.l1116
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does it work nice? this is one thing i have really found to be a + + with the xha1 and that is devices. nice ones with lots of controls and features including that small light that works great and runs off the xha1 battery. i am putting one in each of the kits plus the 110v/12v porta charger and the entire package fits very comfortable with all its' cables, spare battery, manuals, cables, etc. in the kata cc191 which is so small it easily works as a "carry on"

also those downloadable presets are a honey and sweetspot once i finally figured out how to get them into the camera :thumbup:
 
Yea I use mine all the time has zoom, focus and off/on. I figured for the cost you can't go wrong and I have been using it alot. Plus it's mean you rather inexpensive criteria.
 
cledwards said:
Yea I use mine all the time has zoom, focus and off/on. I figured for the cost you can't go wrong and I have been using it alot. Plus it's mean you rather inexpensive criteria.
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YES! Definitely. Those VariZoom'ers we used with the dvx100b's worked great but they were very weak at the point where the rotating thumb pin goes inside the apparatus and at 190 a pop and our ability to thusly destroy them we didn't want to repeat that experience with the xha1's. that 30 buck solution is a winner. if we break it, sorta like an arri 300 bulb going :thumbup:

Thanks for the input. Ordered them already for the "other" cams. That is, on the A main camera we'll use the zr1000 just because of it's "special" features (and because we got it off ebay for a hundred bux) and these cheapies for the "other" cameras. Thanks again!
 
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