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The 2005 Vanguards

Dec 1, 2005 12:00 PM, By Trevor Boyer

Fifteen award winners help make affordable HD production a reality.

Near the close of each year, Video Systems convenes a panel of judges to select Vanguard Award winners from among the products released within the previous 12 months. The judges select products that promise significant, useful technological advancement to the everyday workflows of our readers. To be sure, each judge has an area of expertise (or three) that's sure to color his list of Vanguard picks. This year, however, we witnessed something close to unanimity in at least one area: camcorders.

Every judge rightly determined that 2005 was a banner year for low-priced HD camcorders. No fewer than five camcorders grace our list of Vanguard Award winners: four of them based on HDV and the remaining one, a compact, DVCPRO HD-shooting marvel.

Postproduction products have made enormous strides over the past few years, granting all levels of editors the tools (if not the skills or the time) to create Hollywood-level masterpieces. The prominent NLEs reached lofty technological heights a couple years ago, but they are absent from our list this year — though certain to return in the near future. In their place is an impressive variety of products — switchers, interfaces, and wireless transmission tools — that support cameras in innovative ways or help connect bandwidth-hungry HD camcorders to super-charged postproduction platforms.

Many thanks to our judges, and congratulations to each of the winners. Without further ado, we present the 15 Vanguard Award winners for 2005.

Bebob Coco-dvl

Bebob Engineering's Coco-dvl is an ingenious device that redirects voltage from a camcorder's battery to power accessories like lights, onboard LCD monitors, and audio receivers, as well as the camera simultaneously. Distributed by 16×9 Inc. and designed for Sony camcorders such as the Z1, the FX1, the VX1000/2000, and the PD150/170, the Coco-dvl snaps on the camera's 7.2V NPF battery mount, which then attaches to the device's docking plate, anchored at a 90-degree angle to free space for the converter's connectors. The Coco-dvl converts the 7.2V to 12V to power accessories.

Sony HVR-Z1

Last year, the editors of Video Systems were excited to award a Vanguard to Sony's consumer-oriented1080i HDV camcorder, the HDR-FX1. Earlier this year, shooters got what they'd been looking for: a fully professional HDV camcorder from Sony — the HVR-Z1. Results more than matched anticipation. With 40 firmware-enabled enhancements that set it apart from the FX1, the Z1 is a truly professional HDV camcorder with great optics, and it is physically well-balanced and intuitive in its menu system. Aside from necessary pro features, such as XLR inputs and peaking, the Z1 also offers an innovative Shot Transition feature that stores focus, zoom, iris, gain, shutter speed, and white balance settings for two shots, allowing shooters to toggle between the settings with a press of a button. (See Steve Mullen's review in the April issue of Video Systems or at www.videosystems.com.)

Sony HVR-A1U

This is the undisputed champ in the HDV featherweight division. The tiny (1.5lbs.) HVR-A1U has only one 1/3in. CCD, but it's a CMOS chip, which means the signal processing individually addresses each pixel. That 1920×1440 chip is “shape-shifting,” so it can put out a native 16:9, 1920×1080i image or capture a 4:3, 2.8Mpixel still image. A new downstream digital signal processing engine, the Enhanced Imaging Processor (EIP), handles 14-bit A/D conversion. The camcorder, which Sony is positioning as a possible “helmet cam” for potentially hazardous shooting situations, borrows many features from the larger HVR-Z1, such as the clever Shot Transition. (See Barry Braverman's review in next month's Video Systems.)

Lectrosonics SM

Lectrosonics' Super-Miniature Digital Hybrid Wireless transmitter is hardly bigger than two AA batteries. The company's Digital Hybrid Wireless technology uses a proprietary algorithm to encode the digital audio information into an analog format. The SM transmitter offers 256 synthesized UHF frequencies, four-level audio metering, and nearly six hours of operation, using a single AA lithium battery. Video Systems staffers were able to test-drive the unit in July. We shot interviews on the loud floor of Siggraph 2005 that we then posted to our Blog@Siggraph. We were amazed by the SM's ease of use and the crystal-clear audio it transmitted. (See Tom Patrick McAuliffe's review on p. 16.)

LitePanels IR

The fully dimmable LitePanels IR is the first practical on-camera infrared unit the industry has seen. This infrared version of the LitePanels Mini LED panel emits no visible light, making it ideal for shooting in total darkness when the camera's presence must go undetected. Infrared-capable camcorders pick up the soft white, flicker-free light that's balanced for 5600K daylight. The IR's small size (9.6oz. and fits in your palm) helps support the usual stealth applications. The appeal for reality TV programs and documentary shooting is undeniable. (See www.videosystems.com or the November issue of Video Systems for Tom Patrick McAuliffe's review of the IR.)

Canon XL H1

It looks familiar, for those of us who have known and loved Canon's XL series of DV camcorders. It also shoots the now-ubiquitous HDV format (at 1080i). But there are a few things that set it apart. Like the JVC HD100, the Canon XL H1 HDV camcorder features an interchangeable lens (it comes with a Canon 20X zoom with optical image stabilization). Beyond that, the XL H1 offers the Professional Jackpack, a set of outputs for timecode, genlock, and HD-SDI. That's right, the XL H1 outputs an HD (or SD) baseband signal via a single coaxial cable. (See D.W. Leitner's review in last month's Video Systems or at www.videosystems.com.)

ERG Ventures HDM-EV85

The emergence of HDV and other affordable HD camcorders has created the need for affordable HD monitoring. Enter the ERG Ventures HDM-EV85. This nice and large (8.4in. diagonally) LCD monitor accepts a YPbPr input from the camcorder's analog HD output. The HDM-EV85 power unit is compatible with the 7.2V battery of HDV camcorders, adding to the unit's portability. CRT monitors are still considered the vanguard for color accuracy, and so ERG has infused the HDM-EV85 with the same technology as its CRT-based HDM-EV30D. Framing, center, and safety markers are particularly important for professional DPs, and the monitor's aspect ratio function allows it to display correctly anamorphic images that would appear distorted on other monitors.

Telestream Flip4Mac

The Flip4Mac family of software products solves what had been a simple problem for Macintosh users: How to edit with and create Windows Media files on the Mac? As high-definition WMV files become a viable HD distribution medium, the problem becomes more acute for the vast legion of Mac-based editors. With Flip4Mac WMV Studio Pro, editors can incorporate high-def WM files in such QuickTime-based applications as Final Cut Pro and After Effects. They can also use the program to output two-pass-encoded, HD Windows Media 9 files for clients. Improvements announced at IBC included Ikegami Editcam support and expanded Sony XDCAM support, as well as the ability to view, within FCP, keyframes and other metadata from WM files.

Blackmagic Design Multibridge

Blackmagic has been on a streak for the last few years, releasing a sequence of capture/playback products that have grown in functionality with the expanding power of camcorders and NLEs. The Multibridge Extreme products are bidirectional A/D and D/A converters that allow editors to switch seamlessly between HD and SD material, and they support dual-link HD-SDI 4:4:4. The breakout boxes connect to editing systems via PCI Express boards. At 10GBps, the connection is 25 times faster than FireWire. Multibridge Studio includes 12 channels of AES/EBU audio and six unbalanced audio outputs for 5.1 surround sound monitoring.

RME Fireface 800

The Fireface 800 was the first audio interface equipped with FireWire 800 ports for big-bandwidth I/O serving digital audio workstations. The interface supports up to 56 channels record/playback and up to a 192kHz sample rate. RME has used its existing audio technology from products like the ADI-8 converters and the Hammerfall DSP series. Particularly noteworthy is its solid instrument input. It has discrete balanced microphone inputs and eight balanced line inputs and outputs with software-controlled, analog-based switching of the reference levels. A soft limiter, tuned especially for musical instruments, prevents overloads of the A/D converter. The Fireface's Mac OS X driver is based on RME's HDSP series Mac drivers, for a strong 1.0 start for Apple users.

Echolab Nova identity4

A hit of NAB 2005, this incredibly compact SDI production switcher has a huge feature set for a reasonable price. The Nova identity4 uses system-on-chip architecture to centralize the firmware and allow for hardware configuration updates via Compact Flash cards. Eight custom or previous versions can be stored on the card. This means the switcher can be easily tailored to a specific repeated production task. The Nova id4 features six keyers (two downstream), four chroma keyers, five pattern generators, two 2D DVEs with rotation, 16 SDI inputs and 16 SDI outputs, and more.

JVC GY-HD100

JVC's entry into the HDV field features an interchangeable lens and shoots true 24p with no frame-rate interpolations. It's bundled with a 16X Fujinon lens and directly accepts ⅓in. lenses. The three ⅓in. CCDs read a progressive 1280×720 image 60 times a second (to achieve 720p60), which is an impressive technical feat. The menu system of the camcorder offers extensive control over image detail. Those shooting 24p can avoid motion judder (if they so desire) either by following the rules for shooting film or by engaging the JVC-designed Motion Filter. (See Steve Mullen's review in last month's Video Systems or at www.videosystems.com.)

Telecast Fiber Rattler

These miniature modules (just over 3in. long and about an inch thick) attach to the HD-SDI port on your camcorder to send HDTV signals up to 18.6 miles. The Rattler TX unit accepts a 75ohms coax input and converts it to an optical stream, and the Rattler RX receives the uncompressed signal and reconverts it back to BNC output. The Rattlers are low on power consumption, accepting any DC voltage from 5V to 16V. A mini USB jack allows them to be powered from a powered USB port. Perfect for production across a campus or at pre-fibered venues, such as convention centers.

Panasonic AG-HVX200

Coming in under the wire for shipment during 2005 is Panasonic's first handheld HD camcorder. With three ⅓in. chips and a fixed 13X Leica Dicomar lens, the HVX200 shoots 100Mbps DVCPRO HD (not 25Mbps HDV) to solid-state P2 cards. At $10,000 for the camcorder and two 8GB cards, the AG-HVX200 makes a strong case for the adoption of intraframe-compressed HD (rather than HDV's interframe-compressed HD) for corporate and indie feature production. The camcorder captures 1080i and 720p at various frames rates, as well as 480-line DV, DVCPRO, and DVCPRO 50. (See Barry Braverman's full review in next month's Video Systems.)

Doremi Labs HDG-20

This year Doremi Labs introduced a replacement to its HDG-10, a handheld HD and SD video test generator. Studios will appreciate the HDG-20's new sync input that allows the unit to be genlocked to an external sync source. A new PC and Mac software GUI allows serial remote control. With new test patterns, the HDG-20 can combine any still pattern with a moving pattern for more options. The test generator outputs NTSC, PAL, 720p, 1080i, 1080p, and even 2K (2048×1080). Video outputs include SDI, HD-SDI, and dual-link HD-SDI.

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