To Rob Easler at DVinfo.net

Tung Bui · March 8th, 2004, 06:20 AM

Hey mate how did your comparison between the gls/pd150/dvc80 go? I have been eagerly awaiting your report. Apologies if you posted somewhere.

Rob Easler · March 8th, 2004, 01:22 PM

Well these comparrisons aren't as easy as they would seem. They are all good cameras. I didnt have the kind of time I would need to really do it right. The info you would get from me is the same as you would get from all the other reviews. Nothing that is really going to make the decision easier.

Here are some judgements by catagory ranked in order but some stuff could be subjective and I spent a fraction of the amount of time on this that I should to get accurate results in all environments.

Balance:
Panasonic
GL2
Sony (Ouch)

Good light/Close Objects Picture Quality:
Three way tie

Object sharpness more than 10 feet away:
Sony and GL2 tie
Panasonic (only slightly less)

Low light ability:
Sony/Panny(about the same but the Panny has a bit more grain)
GL2 (about 6db less sensetivity)

General Color Accuracy:
Panasonic
Sony
GL2

Highlight handling:
Sony
Pana/GL2 tie

Zoom Range:
GL2 (Wow)
Sony
Panasonic

Auto Focus:
Sony/GL2 tie
Panasonic (bright little lights in the backround cause havok)

Lense Width:
Panasonic
GL2
Sony

"Pro" Look:
Panasonic
Sony
GL2

Weight: (light to heavy)
GL2
Sony
Panasonic

Audio:
Panasonic (Sweet)
PD150
GL2 and VX Tie for different reasons

Price: Lowest to highest
GL2 (+ Rebates)
Panasonic
Sony

LCD:
Panasonic (BIG)
GL2/Sony tie

Tape Drive:
Panasonic (Solid)
Sony
GL2 (Very Finicky)

Adjustments:
Panasonic
PD150
VX/GL2 tie

Just buy any of them and use it well. All this stuff is splitting hairs for the most part. I suppose if you buy the Sony you will be with the majority and it would serve you well, the Panasonic does win out in several catagories and then GL2 has that long lense and is the cheapest.

Good luck.

Tung Bui · March 8th, 2004, 04:25 PM

Thanks Rob.
I had the impression you still had niggling doubts about the lowlight of the dvc80 earlier on. I have the dvx100 and have doubts at times as well . You were very surprised at how small the difference in lowlight was between the dvc80 and gl2 .Is the difference between the dvc80 and the sony of a similar amount to you ?and is it enough for you to change over to the sony if you had the choice again?
I read that the main difference is at the high gain settings and not at the lower gain settings. Was this apparent to you? I had a chance to check out the sony very briefly and definitely noticed a difference at 12db gain - less noise and brighter image -but nothing that was really earth shattering.

Rob Easler · March 8th, 2004, 06:00 PM

My opinion on the low light between the GL2 and dvc80 has changed. There is about a 6bd difference between the GL2 and the Panasonic or Sony of course because of the different chip size. If you have the Panny or Sony set at 0db in a low light situation you will need to have the GL2 at 6db in the same situation. There is not that big a difference however between the Panny and Sony. In fact, there really isn't much at all. The difference is not in db but in a bit more grain in the image of the panny at 6,9 or 12 db as compared to the Sony so I doubt that is worth replacing your 100 with the Sony esp since you get the ability to do 24p if you want to.

I made the mistake the last time I compared the GL2 and the Panasonic of doing it in auto mode. When you do that you don't know what gain is being set at automatically by the camera and you make errors in judging properly. Doing it in manual mode you can see the difference. Also you have to watch the footage on an NTSC monitor not in the LCD or viewfinder of the cams. I don't know if when you compared the sony and panny if you used the camera or a TV but thats the only way.

March 8th, 2004, 06:20 AM	#1
Tung Bui Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 101	To Rob Easler Hey mate how did your comparison between the gls/pd150/dvc80 go? I have been eagerly awaiting your report. Apologies if you posted somewhere.

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March 8th, 2004, 01:22 PM	#2
Rob Easler Major Player Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 219	Well these comparrisons aren't as easy as they would seem. They are all good cameras. I didnt have the kind of time I would need to really do it right. The info you would get from me is the same as you would get from all the other reviews. Nothing that is really going to make the decision easier. Here are some judgements by catagory ranked in order but some stuff could be subjective and I spent a fraction of the amount of time on this that I should to get accurate results in all environments. Balance: Panasonic GL2 Sony (Ouch) Good light/Close Objects Picture Quality: Three way tie Object sharpness more than 10 feet away: Sony and GL2 tie Panasonic (only slightly less) Low light ability: Sony/Panny(about the same but the Panny has a bit more grain) GL2 (about 6db less sensetivity) General Color Accuracy: Panasonic Sony GL2 Highlight handling: Sony Pana/GL2 tie Zoom Range: GL2 (Wow) Sony Panasonic Auto Focus: Sony/GL2 tie Panasonic (bright little lights in the backround cause havok) Lense Width: Panasonic GL2 Sony "Pro" Look: Panasonic Sony GL2 Weight: (light to heavy) GL2 Sony Panasonic Audio: Panasonic (Sweet) PD150 GL2 and VX Tie for different reasons Price: Lowest to highest GL2 (+ Rebates) Panasonic Sony LCD: Panasonic (BIG) GL2/Sony tie Tape Drive: Panasonic (Solid) Sony GL2 (Very Finicky) Adjustments: Panasonic PD150 VX/GL2 tie Just buy any of them and use it well. All this stuff is splitting hairs for the most part. I suppose if you buy the Sony you will be with the majority and it would serve you well, the Panasonic does win out in several catagories and then GL2 has that long lense and is the cheapest. Good luck.

March 8th, 2004, 04:25 PM	#3
Tung Bui Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 101	Thanks Rob. I had the impression you still had niggling doubts about the lowlight of the dvc80 earlier on. I have the dvx100 and have doubts at times as well . You were very surprised at how small the difference in lowlight was between the dvc80 and gl2 .Is the difference between the dvc80 and the sony of a similar amount to you ?and is it enough for you to change over to the sony if you had the choice again? I read that the main difference is at the high gain settings and not at the lower gain settings. Was this apparent to you? I had a chance to check out the sony very briefly and definitely noticed a difference at 12db gain - less noise and brighter image -but nothing that was really earth shattering.

March 8th, 2004, 06:00 PM	#4
Rob Easler Major Player Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 219	My opinion on the low light between the GL2 and dvc80 has changed. There is about a 6bd difference between the GL2 and the Panasonic or Sony of course because of the different chip size. If you have the Panny or Sony set at 0db in a low light situation you will need to have the GL2 at 6db in the same situation. There is not that big a difference however between the Panny and Sony. In fact, there really isn't much at all. The difference is not in db but in a bit more grain in the image of the panny at 6,9 or 12 db as compared to the Sony so I doubt that is worth replacing your 100 with the Sony esp since you get the ability to do 24p if you want to. I made the mistake the last time I compared the GL2 and the Panasonic of doing it in auto mode. When you do that you don't know what gain is being set at automatically by the camera and you make errors in judging properly. Doing it in manual mode you can see the difference. Also you have to watch the footage on an NTSC monitor not in the LCD or viewfinder of the cams. I don't know if when you compared the sony and panny if you used the camera or a TV but thats the only way.