Though HDV Will Likely Grab The Most Attention At This year’s
NAB, with lower-cost yet professional-grade HDV offerings from
manufacturers such as Sony (the HVR-Z1U) and JVC (the GY-HD100U), there
will be plenty of other new cameras to sink your teeth into.
Manufacturers, including Sony, Panasonic, Thomson and Ikegami, are
bringing new goods in variety to Vegas.
In addition to Sony’s hot HVR-Z1U pro HDV model camera (with a
suggested list price of $5,946), which is making its NAB debut this
year, the company is also introducing a wide array of choices that
support existing SD and HD product lines. According to Alec Shapiro,
senior VP of Sony Electronics’ Broadcast and Production Systems
Division, all of the company’s new cameras will feature "24p production
capability and built-in upconverters."
Of greatest interest to XDCAM converts will be an HD version of Sony’s
XDCAM Professional Disc system (based on the Blu-ray optical disc
technology), which will be demonstrated at the show, as well as two new
2/3-inch camcorders that expand on the company’s DVCAM line. Both
camcorders—the DSR-450WS (1) and DSR-400—are built on three 2/3-inch
PowerHAD EX CCD imaging sensors. The DSR-450WS is a wide-screen model
that can capture images in 60i at 24fps, 25fps (PAL model only) and 30
fps. The DSR-400 features a 4:3 version of the PowerHAD EX CCD.
Though Sony continues to take the high road with its HD releases, the
company will also introduce two new high-end professional camcorders
for SD acquisition, continuing 24p across all formats: the MSW-970
(recording in the MPEG IMX format) and the DVW-970 (recording in the
Digital Betacam format) (3). Both models are based on 2/3-inch
PowerHAD EX CCD imaging and feature 14-bit A/D converters, offer image
captures in 24fps, 25fps (PAL versions) and 30fps, feature a slow
shutter up to 16 frames, and time-lapse capture. The MSW-970 is
expected to be available this month for a suggested list price of
$39,500; the DVW-970 is expected to be available in July for a
suggested list price of $48,500. Sony will also demo a version of its
HD-XDCAM, which will be able to handle any SD footage shot on XDCAM. By
the summer, we should see a full range of camera products that "connect
the dots." www.sony.com/news
Ikegami will introduce an HD version of its Editcam, the Editcam HD
camcorder, which will use the Avid DNxHD mastering intermediate codec
to deliver HD resolution, 1920 x 1080 images. The new camcorder is just
one of several new Ikegami cameras that make use of CMOS image sensors,
which are better suited to multiformat camera, don’t need as much
camera housing and don’t eat up as much power as their CCD counterparts.
Editcam HD employs a data rate of 140 Mbps to deliver 1080/60i,
1080/24p and 720/60p recording and playback using the company’s
hard-disk FieldPak2 recording media. The company will also introduce a
120 GB FieldPak2 to up the ante for HD recording time. Look for both HD
and SD desktop editing demonstrations of the FieldPak2 on a variety of
Avid edit systems at Ikegami’s booth.
Ikegami will also be showing the DNS-33W Editcam3, SD tapeless ENG and
EFP camera. The Editcam3 features 520,000-pixel AIT (Advanced interline
Transfer) CCDs and includes time-lapse as well as Retroloop recording. www.ikegami.com
Last month, we reported on Thomson’s entry into a broader market with
its introduction of the new Grass Valley LDK 4000 HD camera (priced at
$58,900)(2). Targeted firmly at the small-to-medium sized digital
production studio-a newer market for Thomson -the LDK 4000 will make
its NAB debut at this year’s show. It’s a single-format, HD production
camera, available in either 720p or 1080 production models, that
features the company’s own HD Dynamic Pixel Management image sensor
technology.
The company is also rolling out the compact LDK 400 ITW (starting at
$25,800 USD complete with triax adapter and 1.5-inch viewfinder), a
14-bit camera that supports a range of SD applications. According to
Thomson, this new camera completes the range between the Grass Valley
12-bit LDK 300 and the LDK 500 cameras. Both cameras are expected to
ship this month. www.thomsongrassvalley.com
Panasonic enters NAB this year with a solid hold on broadcast and video
production, reporting an increase in sales of its DVCPRO P2 solid-state
memory products. According to the company, more than 100 customers
worldwide have purchased P2 products. In addition to several additions
and enhancements to the line (including a new P2 hard-disk drive and
upgrades to the AJ-SPX800 DVCPRO P2 camcorder and AJ-SPD850 P2 VTR),
Panasonic’s big news is the announcement of a DVCPRO HD hand-held
camcorder offering 24p recording, for under $10,000 (4). With this new
product introduction, company VP and technical liaison Phil Livingston
says he expects to see the P2 line make serious advancements into the
Pro video production market. More details about this camera and
additional P2 products will be available at the show. Also, for a
limited time, Panasonic is offering a special $300 rebate with the
purchase of an AG-DVX100A MiniDV Cinema Camcorder. The offer, which
lasts until April 30, 2005, also includes Magic Bullet Editors software
and Barry Green’s The DVX Book (with companion DVD) for free. For more information on the promotion, visit the company’s Web site at www.panasonic.com/dvproline or speak to a Panasonic representative at the company’s booth during NAB.
Best of the VTRs
Panasonic has not only enhanced its AJ-SPX800 DVCPRO P2 camcorder: new
options for the companion VTR include an optical disc back-up, a 4.7 GB
DVD-RAM/DVD-R recordable drive, which installs in the available
5.25-inch bay in the AJ-SPD850. The company is also introducing the
AJ-SD255 DVCPRO/DV recorder (suggested list price of $5,500), a
half-rack size VTR specifically geared for nonlinear editing and
production applications. All units are available now.
Sony is expanding its CineAlta family with the introduction of the
SRW-5500 videotape recorder (suggested list price of $98,000). The new
VTR is switchable between HDCAM and HDCAM SR record formats. It is
scheduled for release this spring.
Sony is also rolling out two high-definition upconverter boards
designed for its DSR series of DVCAM Master Series studio videotape
recorder/players: the new DSBK-2020 and DSBK-1820 HD upconverters. The
DSBK-2020 is designed for the Sony DSR-2000A DVCAM VTR and the
DSBK-1820 is designed for the DSR-1600A and DSR-1800A VTRs. The boards,
which now come with i.LINK IEEE-1394, enable conversion to both 1080i
and 720p, with SD input through the HD-SDI interface. The 2020 is
coming in September at a suggested retail price of $4,500; the
DSBK-1820 is planned for an October release at a suggested retail price
of $4,500.
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