Arriflex II a power

[Gabriel Hong]

Does anyone have any insight as to what kind of power is required for an older Arriflex II a? I've read conflicting articles online that say 12v DC only and some say between 12v and 16v. My camera is the older model with the German spelling "Oel" inside. My thought was to buy the Anton Bauer Titon Micro 150 V-mount Battery and convert the ends of my cable to fit a D-tap plug. If anyone has previous solutions they've found I'm all ears, thanks - Gabe.

[Fabian Schreyer]

The rheostat motor is supposed to be supplied with 16.8V. If you are shooting no higher speeds than 24fps with 200ft loads, you might be able to get away with 12V though. But that, of course, is something that you would need to test.

[Gabriel Hong]

45 minutes ago, Fabian Schreyer said:

The rheostat motor is supposed to be supplied with 16.8V. If you are shooting no higher speeds than 24fps with 200ft loads, you might be able to get away with 12V though. But that, of course, is something that you would need to test.

I could be wrong but I believe that the camera has a Governor Speed-Controlled Motor. The manual directly states 16v but I'm still a bit skeptical and don't want to overheat the motor.

 

[Fabian Schreyer]

The motor that you pictured for sure does not have one. It is just a variable resistor that you can adjust by turning the dial.

[Gabriel Hong]

4 minutes ago, Fabian Schreyer said:

The motor that you pictured for sure does not have one. It is just a variable resistor that you can adjust by turning the dial.

That's really helpful info. I bought it from Sweden and neither the guy I bought it from nor I knew much about it. What battery would you recommend if 16.8v is what it needs? Though I don't plan to film any faster than 24fps I'd still like to be covered with enough voltage.

[Fabian Schreyer]

I do not have experience with professional (V-mount, etc) battery solutions (as they are way to expensive for my hobbyist use), so I cannot really make an appropriate recommendation. 

I use a battery adapter made for Li-Ion power tool battery packs with my IIA and so far this works quite well. These adapters can be bought for many tool brands from Aliexpress and they cost about 10$.

Edited July 30, 2025 by Fabian Schreyer

[Gabriel Hong]

Would you be able to link what you're using? Thank you.

 

[Steve Switaj]

Also, if you don't want to modify an original cable,  Richard Bennet at Cinemagear offers a plug adapter to a generaic 3 pin XLR

https://www.cinemagear.com/details/arri-2c-power-adapter.html