Master quality Mini DVC
 

I came across some panasonic 63 min "Master" quality mini dvc on the B&H web site. My question is what is the difference compaired to the regular mini dvc, and is it a better choice for a wedding.




John DeLuca Akron, Ohio

Panasonic's "MQ' series of tape is their top of the line. You can download a brochure on it from Panasonic's site to see for yourself what Panasonic says about this grade.

We've recently had quite a bit of discussion concerning how it compares to other brands and grades, with no hard conclusions.

In my opinion you should always use the best grade of tape you can afford especially if someone is paying you for your services and materials.

I use PQ and MQ tape interchangeably. If I was under contract for services I would use MQ tape. Will you see a difference in your recording? No. But it would be the professional thing to do, especially if you plan to turn the raw footage tapes over to your client.

Great info ken. I guess the MQ packaging was what got me. If you dont mind me asking, What brand name do you use/like the most? I guess if the tape is the same, then which one would have the most robust caseing? Thanks again for all the help




John DeLuca Akron, Ohio

Just to be clear, I'm sure there's a difference between Panasonic's MQ and PQ grades of tape. Whether or not that difference is material to you, commensurate to the price difference, is a question only you'll be able to answer.

I use only Panasonic tape. Others, however, will cite Sony and Fuji as good brands, too. In general it's best to stick with a brand. Be sure to run a cleaning tape through the camera if you do decide to switch brands. It's a good housekeeping practice.

Yes, I agree with Ken that there have been no hard conclusions. I too use MQs, though I have rarely had problems with other brands (Sony, Fuji).

I would recommend you do a search on 'tape' or 'MQ'. You should get lots of hits.

I discovered the Panasonic MQ tapes a few months after buying a VX2000 and use nothing else now. I probably pay too much for them ($CDN45/box of 5) but they just feel right to me.

David Hurdon

I too have never found the difference between MQ and PQ but I have been using the PQ's 63 minute and 83 miunte for 2 years in 2 different PD150's and an old VX1000 with out any troubles whatsoever.

Different strokes for different folks.

Don

Now that the Canadian dollar has risen it should be even cheaper.

EDIT: I don't know what happened but that last sentence was supposed to refer to tapestockonline.com. I think you have to pay customs on it which can make them expensive (sorry I'm not too sure on this). As far as I know items under $20 individually are not charged tax.

If you are in Toronto the cheapest place to buy locally seems to be Tapeworks (search for Tapeworks Toronto in google for their phone #).

Thank you, Glenn. I'll check it out.

David Hurdon

Thanks for all the help. Ill have to checkout the link aswell Glenn.



John DeLuca Akron, Ohio

For Canadians:
I think you have to pay customs on it which can make them expensive (sorry I'm not too sure on this). As far as I know items under $20 individually are not charged tax.

If you are in Toronto the cheapest place to buy locally seems to be Tapeworks (search for Tapeworks Toronto in google for their phone #).

RE-EDIT: For Canadians, 99.9% of items made in North America are not subject to customs because of free trade. My school bought 25 mini-DV tapes plus a storage rack and cleaning tape and the duty turned out to be $40ish (didn't do the accounting). I'm not exactly sure what happened there. The tapes were Panasonic tapes (the cheap ones) and are manufactured in Japan.

I haven't bought tape online but I have bought CDr/DVD-R media in the US and paid GST only. Is it possible that $40 bucks was tax rather than duty?

David Hurdon

Nope, I didn't buy that much stuff (the order was $100ish) and I think it was duty. There may have been some fee from a company that handles this stuff. I'm not really sure since it wasn't my money.

Perhaps you can call them to see if they know...

Mixing PQ and MQ Tapes
 

Hi Ken,

In message two of this post you mention that you use PQ and MQ Panasonic tapes interchangeably... Now from the Panasonic link you've provided, Panasonic states that their MQ tapes use dry lubricant and I assume their PQ series would also use dry lubricant.

Having said that, I came accross the below website that says that both the PQ and MQ use dry lubes, but the website advises to run a tape cleaner through first (before changing from PQ to MQ and vice-versa)... is this something you do as well or is this not necessary? Personally I would think this shouldn't be necessary.

Here is the link:
http://www.hosannaproductions.com/tips/minidv_lubricants.html

Jack

Honestly, Jack, I've never run a cleaner when switching between MQ and PQ grade Panasonic tapes. I've never had a problem with my (former) XL1, my (current) XL1s, my (former) GL1, my (current) GL2, my DVX100 (few hours) or my DVX100A.