JVC GY HM 700 Video Review

[Harry Pallenberg]

My guy in LA says its $6995 with the 17X lens... he expects them "soon"... although many of the 1st order are already spoken for.

[Jack Walker]

Originally Posted by Harry Pallenberg

My guy in LA says its $6995

But if one lives in California and buys from a California dealer, the price is almost $7700 (and in a couple of cities, more).

I would encourage anyone outside California to buy from California dealers, and vice versa.

[Kenn Christenson]

Man! Glad I moved to Oregon.

[Marcello Mazzilli]

I have got a HM 700.
In Italy it ships with Fujinon 17x lenses that I donàt like very much. In June I'm told Canon 14x and 20x will be available. The 14x at a reasonable price, the 20x at around 3K €.
Here I got a bundle at a very good price but I was quite luky. Regional dealer had to convince hi boss at national level that he was as good reseller than his northern counterpart and I got really a bargain (i think.. at least for italian standards). That is camera, SxS writer/reader, Fujinon lenses 17x, Microphone (standard I think), 2 cards, 1 USB SDHC card reader, 1 IDX Power charger, 2 IDX 70 ampere batteries all for 6.500 euro. You might know the price in dollars but usually here we get prices like 1$=1€ allthough it should not be like that.

My impressions...

The camera is noisy. I àm trying to undertsand how much. I did not own myself a 200 but I used it once or twice and I believe we are in the same range.
For resolution I d go with Tim Dashwoods tests here on this site.

I don t like the lenses. I asked for the Canon but I couldn t get them. I only got a promise for a special deal when they ll be out. These have a green/magenta fringe effect quite noticiable... specially (obviously) in tight tele.

I come from a Sony Z1 and never had these kind of problems but I m starting to realise that in this price range I think that a 1/3 ccd pro camera can have some noise and probably my Sony was "hiding it" with a blockish-blurish 19 Mbit MPEG2 and that all this comes out with a 35 MBit digital video. Also probably if I use my lenses only up to 12x (like the Sony) I ll not get the fringe.

Still.... I m waiting for Canon lenses.... !

[Amos Kim]

so it's the higher bitrate that's making the noise? I don't have noise problem on my 19mbs jvc hd100.

[Marcello Mazzilli]

No wait.. the HM700 is 35 Mbits.
I'm not saying that the bitrate makes the noise, but that compression hides the noise that amny cameras have. But's it's my idea... I'm not a professional DOP and not a camera technician.. It's just what I think. I made a Blueray M2V file from the footage and got a footage with less noise (but probably more artifacts). That's quite normal I think. I've been working in compression for internet since internet started and we were always working in reducing palettes, getting higher contrast, etc... At the time we used to do these procedures one by one. Now they are done in automatic by compression codecs. But play with BLACK TOE, PEDESTAL, KNEE, etc.. and you can reduce noise just by reducing the amount of colour space.

[David Petersen]

Well I got a camera setup that seems to be a bit better with noise. It is noisy, though. Have you tried enabling the DNR?

[Alex Humphrey]

Originally Posted by Amos Kim

so it's the higher bitrate that's making the noise? I don't have noise problem on my 19mbs jvc hd100.

apparantly our 100/110's are less noisy than the 200/700 series cameras judging by other posts with gain from +9 to +15. I thought my 110 was noisy so I never go past +9 unless it's something news worthy event, then I roll into the AGC Max (or what ever the auto gain is called in JVC menu) and it runs the aperture and gain for best image. Not bad job really. I recommend that setting for news at night events)

Anyway people who own/use both 100's and 200's (not me) seem to say that the 200 series was noisier.

[Marcello Mazzilli]

I am using DNR, I compressed the blacks and enhanced a little de colours, but I am waiting some serious test by some serious DOP like Dashwood or Bloom or Paolo Ciccone (who for the 200 and 250 publihed the "truecolours" settings). I'll test it on a real job this weekend, shooting in the forest, at night, etc.. and we'll see what comes out.

[David Petersen]

Ohh, I did the opposite. My settings are:

Detail -7
Master Black Normal
Black Toe Normal
Knee Manual 80%
White Clip 108%
Gamma Film Out
Color Matrix Cinema Subdued
Color Gain Normal
DNR On

I also think (but haven't had a chance to fully test) there's less noise when you shoot in 720 vs. 1080.

[Marcello Mazzilli]

Yes.. i think that too... I think part of the noise comes from upscaling of the CCD signals. We don't know eactly how the three CCD that are put off-axis to get a "virtual" 3.840 res and from there back down to a 1920 res. but I think something here it's not working.

[Amos Kim]

so is the noise only from using video gain? because I never use gain.

[David Petersen]

No the noise isn't only during gain, and I notice it most in the blacks even on brightly lit daylight shots.

I've been going out every day filming for a few hours and feel I've started handling the camera well and have a picture profile set up I like. I think next I'm going to compare the 1080 to 720 to see if there's any difference in the noise.

[Marcello Mazzilli]

David let me know about your tests... I have noise in daylight too.
I just discovered that my lenses are not the standard 17x Fujinon but the 16x (the ones you got with the 200 anth the ones Bloom used in his tests). The re-seller himself was surprised and it came out that this "special deal " I got I got it for that. We both agreed to give me the Canon x14 at a special price as soon as they will be out. Hope I can reduce the fringe effect.. not much hope for the noise.
Please give me your settings so I can test them too.
Marcello

[Sean Adair]

Sorry to hear about that disappointment Marcello. If you see the lenses together, you will really be surprised at the difference in the build. (weight, size of glass elements) The 16x would maybe retail at $800 (never sold new alone AFAIK), the 17x retails at $3000. The 13x is double that, and has great feedback immediately too. I hope for this products stake that the 14x is a smart compromise of price and performance. Limiting the zoom range is a smart compromise I feel, as well as starting reasonably wide. I hope the gains show through in other areas. I'll be curious to see if/when the 14x sells alone what it's retail will be.