Ursa Mini Battery mount

Will Davis · January 2, 2017

Hi,

I'm completely new to this, sorry if this is a newb questions, but wanna make sure I'm not messing anything up. So I got an Ursa Mini for Christmas (this is my first camera) and looked around for some batteries and decided on BCBs 'cause they look simple and affordable enough. Now the question is, they have mounts for both gold and v-mount with matching plates and I'm wondering which one to get / how to properly apply the plates so I can mount the battery.
Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Will

Edit: Found BCBs at http://www.comparebroadcastbatteries.com/ if anyone's wondering what they are.

Phil Rhodes · January 2, 2017

Every Ursa Mini I've ever seen had a V-mount plate on it, and that's probably the most common type in terms of having a wide choice of batteries in the future. I'm not sure that the camera specifically comes with one, but most places would have supplied something with it. I believe the mounting holes are of a standard pattern so you should just be able to pick up a plate and slap it on there.

Does that answer the question?

Albion Hockney · January 2, 2017

The website you posted discludes a bunch of leading manufacturers and doesn't seem to reliable I have never heard of BCBS. I would do a good amount of research on them and make sure they are well. If you can't afford Anton Bauer (industry standard) I would go with switronix for a cheaper option.

Also keep in mind you will need chargers for these batteries - they make quad and dual chargers - the more expensive chargers will charge the batteries much faster so I would look into the run time you can expect from a 90w battery (all the normal brick style batteries are around 90W) and decide how many batteries you need and account for charging time to keep you shooting.

I believe black magic makes a v mount battery plate specifically for the ursa - I'm not sure but the back of the camera likely will have the screw holes setup to accept any standard v mount or gold mount plate.

Gold mount is industry standard - but V mount is fine

Kenny Suleimanagich · January 3, 2017

Gold Mount is definitely the way to go if you can afford Anton Bauer. V-mount is cheaper to buy and rent (Sony and Switronix) but I've always felt they're a little more vulnerable to dislodging. I wouldn't cut costs on batteries and camera media - use known good brands.

Will Davis · January 4, 2017

Thanks for the advice guys! Really appreciate it.

Digged around a bit more about theses BCBs and found this more reliable looking review: http://www.provideocoalition.com/review-broadcast-camera-batteries/

What do you think? I'm still leaning more towards these because they are more affordable for me than even the switronix ones (though not by much) and they have a "universal" charger that can charge both gold/v-mount, so regardless of which one I go with the charger will work.

I think I'll go with gold mount though, didn't see a price difference between them, so might as well go with the industry standard on that one.

Albion Hockney · January 5, 2017

I read through that review - I'm not sure. I think they will work but the DC charger and as they mention them falling short of the wattage ratting and not having the amperage to run a red or alexa tells me they aren't great and I wonder about long term reliability. Make sure they have enough Amperage for the black magic. A good Anton Bauer battery will do well for 5+ years and the charger much more then that. It will also charge batteries Fast - the DC charger might take some time.

If this is a long term investment and you are wanting to be a working professional with this camera or future cameras I would certainly go with Anton Bauer 90W Batts and get a real charger - it will last and not break down.

If you are just trying to get by for personal projects or really stuck on budget I'm sure they will allow you to get by for a bit.

Edited January 5, 2017 by Albion Hockney