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SxS to SD fools gold?


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On eBay, I've seen Sony SxS cards that have SD slots so you can plug an SD card straight into an F3.

 

Unfortunately, I'm always a prisoner of the "too good to be true" adage. Does this actually work with zero digital blunders (given the card is 40mb/s or higher), or is there a catch I'm not seeing it to.

I understand internally recording with most cameras just gives you 4:2:0 sub-sampling so I've come to grips with that, but if that's the only catch I'm excited to get one of these.

 

As always, thanks.

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I haven't used them with F3, only the F5, but Sony XQD cards work perfectly via a Sony XQD to SxS adapter. Super cheap compared to SxS.

 

Though the data rate for the F3 is so low, I'd suggest picking up old used SxS cards on eBay. The slow ones don't really work with newer cameras like the Alexa, F(5) because they don't have the bandwidth. So they often go pretty cheap used these days.

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I think the big advantage of the SxS cards is the restore media function.. thats what you are paying for compared to SD cards.. dont know if the XQD has the same internal controller as SxS.. personally I want to keep anything that can go wrong to a minimum .. and one of the ways is to not scrimp on the cards unless you really cant afford them.. I just dont want the added worry of cheaper cards in an adaptor.. lose a long file in an interview and the poop will stick to your name..

Edited by Robin R Probyn
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I did have one of the SxS SD card adapter thingies crash on me once - 25 minutes into a 30 minute interview with Simon Pegg. Causing the camera (EX1) to lock up and freeze. We were able to save the footage but it was stressful and embarrassing at the time. I've never had the same issue with standard S x S cards and i shot a lot of EX material for a few years

 

I wouldn't want to risk using one again unless I had a back up. I guess they would be ok for recording internal proxy files on the F3, alongside an external recorder. Since you can get 28 mins on an 8Gb SxS card, its not really worth the risk. I never needed more then two cards to get me through most shoots if I could back up over lunch.

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Never used an external adaptor - I used to have the 17" Macbook that had an internal SxS port, shame they discontinued it. Can you pull the files off the camera via USB or something? Not ideal but would save money if that works.

I assume that harshly caps the data transfer rate?

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Yeah would be slow but offset by manageable file size- but probably ok for a drama shoot if you had enough cards to get through the day. Documentary material would be an issue.

 

Not a perfect solution but workable in some circumstances.

 

I did a shoot on the Ikonoskop camera a few years ago that could only download the uncompressed RAW data over USB. An 80Gb card would give 15mins shooting time and take 4 hours to make 2 back ups. Also you had to use the camera body to do it. It meant having to set alarms during the night to change cards. So never ideal but we got it done. It also turned the shoot into a "film" shoot where we were very keen to conserve data and ended up shooting with a low shooting ratio with lots of rehearsal. Which ultimately helped the edit.

 

So if you can get 2 x 8gb cards and try not to shoot more then an hour a day - then even slow transfers can be managed overnight.

 

Or you could get a faster card reader :)

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Macks.. TBH I think you need to be able to afford a "real" card reader.. and cards..down loading off the camera is a total non starter .. it really becomes diminishing returns going cheap .. if your talking about professional work.. you really need the right gear or things will go pear shaped pretty fast..

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Macks.. TBH I think you need to be able to afford a "real" card reader.. and cards..down loading off the camera is a total non starter .. it really becomes diminishing returns going cheap .. if your talking about professional work.. you really need the right gear or things will go pear shaped pretty fast..

Is a card reader just around $150 or am I missing something? I can afford it, I just don't feel like tacking on another hundred dollar purchase for a camera that could've easily had an SD slot. Does SxS make 8-bit 4:2:0 look better or something?

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No the files the look the 35mbs 8-bit 4:2:0 will look the same off either SxS or SD card. Just the SxS might be marginally more reliable.

 

It it were me I'd be saving up for the Blackmagic video assist, then you get to vastly better 10bit pro-res to SD cards. I've graded quiet a bit of EX 8 bit 4:2:0 footage and you can't push it round very much, starts banding quite quickly.

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It it were me I'd be saving up for the Blackmagic video assist, then you get to vastly better 10bit pro-res to SD cards.

Just looked this up, nice piece of gear. I already own an Atomos Blade for my F3, but I know there will be times where I just need a quicker, less cumbersome, setup. That's where the SxS cards came in for me in the first place.

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Is a card reader just around $150 or am I missing something? I can afford it, I just don't feel like tacking on another hundred dollar purchase for a camera that could've easily had an SD slot. Does SxS make 8-bit 4:2:0 look better or something?

 

 

Put the other way round.. why worry about $150 for a card reader.. compared holding up your whole production by down loading from the camera.. in the professional field no one is doing that for good reasons.. same with SxS cards.. you are buying peace of mind.. there is a big difference in quality control between SxS and SD cards.. if they were the same no one would buy the SxS cards.. you get what you pay for..

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