checking hours
 

some people may know me here from previous posts looking to buy a dvc80 or a dvx100.
saturday im going to look at a used 100 that i will hopefully buy. the owner doesnt know how many hours are on it, so how do i check when im looking at it? what the menu commands to get to the hour usage is what im trying to say. im very new and have never used this camera before. i would get a new 100A but being 17 i dont really have the budget to do so. will i be disappointed that i didnt save for one?
thanks in advance!

Michael,
The head counter is in the System menu toward the bottom of the list. I don't have my 100 or my 100A handy and can't be more precise right now.

But I'll go you one better. You can download the entire DVX100A users manual from Panasonic's site. The menus structure of the 100A is basically identical to the 100. (The exceptions lie in some of the individual menus.) You'll be able to navigate the 100 with this documentation. (You'll also be able to see the 100A's features.)

Good luck with your purchase.

thanks, i found out how to.
also, will i be dissappointed that i didnt wait and save for the A (4 months), because i want to start filming in 2 weeks. i know the advantages of the 100A.

The quality of the photographer and quality of the story are both far more important than the model of the camera.

If you don't mind telling us I'd like to know how many hours were on the DVX and how much you paid for it?

The reason I'm asking is that I've considered selling mine and upgrading to the newer model.

There was a guy at DV.com who never followed up on his post, but he was paying $2600 for a used one... I told him that he could have mine at that price if the one he was buying had much more then 100 hours on it. Then another forum member said, "It doesn't matter 'cause you can reset the hour meter anyway!"

Well I checked my camera and you CAN'T reset the hour meter on it... not that I could see anyway.

So to summarize... hours and price... please!

And as ironic as it is to say this after typing the above, I wouldn't worry too much about the model differences. They are both pretty high caliber cameras with a TON more image control then other cams offer in that price range. In the past I've paid hundreds of dollars for filters to tweak images, so for me the subtle differences in image would justify the cost difference... but generally speaking it probably doesn't matter. I've shot documentaries with my cam and a GL2 at the same time, and had the client actually prefer the GL2 shots at certain times. Framing, lighting, composition, and message will always be more important then the camera.

i decided against going as the price for the camera without the box, manual or mic holder went over 2350. sorry!