In my endless search for the perfect accessory whereby I can power both the camera and a 20w on-board light, I came across this:

http://www.swit-battery.com/swit2006/english/images/S-8U62.html

Unfortunately I cannot find a detailed specification for this except that it is a 63Whr battery. Although it is a battery it seems that it can power the EX1 (and presumably the EX3) via the DC power input. Strange! Also there is no mention as to the wattage limit one can draw from the D-tap. I know that if too much drain is put on the battery this leads to a premature death of the battery.

Has anyone bought this?

I also saw that Hawkwoods have produced their own setup whereby one can use 2 Z1 batteries to power the EX1 (I do not think it can be fitted on an EX3 due to its shape) and an onboard light. Since I do not have such batteries I'm not eager to buy this product.

There is some pretty sophisticated handshaking going on between the EX cameras and the batteries. My guess is Swit haven't yet worked out how to talk to the battery connector so they have to use the DC in.

Yes...that's my gut feeling. In fact there are no alternative batteries for the EX's from any company as yet. And nobody has come out with a V-lock plate attached to a dummy EX battery so that we can use the trusted V-lock batteries.

I'm getting this from Tapeworks. It's supposed to be usable on both the EX1 and EX3 and I'm hoping it'll also supply my Zylight. Not a cheap solution but supposed to run 6 hours.

Anton Bauer QR-EX1 Anton Bauer Under camera Gold Mount for Sony PMW-EX1 with built in Egripz

Anton Bauer Tandem70 Single Position charger

Anton Bauer Dionic90 Anton Bauer Anton Bauer Dionic90 Lithium-Ion Battery with 14.4V/90 WH

There is some pretty sophisticated handshaking going on between the EX cameras and the batteries. My guess is Swit haven't yet worked out how to talk to the battery connector so they have to use the DC in.
Right on. Sony would not power up unless it is assured it is powered by its own battery. I hear it is not so easy to crack the Sony communication code, so I doubt there are any 3d party batteries in the pipeline...

In my endless search for the perfect accessory whereby I can power both the camera and a 20w on-board light, I came across this:

http://www.swit-battery.com/swit2006/english/images/S-8U62.html

Unfortunately I cannot find a detailed specification for this except that it is a 63Whr battery. Although it is a battery it seems that it can power the EX1 (and presumably the EX3) via the DC power input. Strange! Also there is no mention as to the wattage limit one can draw from the D-tap. I know that if too much drain is put on the battery this leads to a premature death of the battery.

Has anyone bought this?

I also saw that Hawkwoods have produced their own setup whereby one can use 2 Z1 batteries to power the EX1 (I do not think it can be fitted on an EX3 due to its shape) and an onboard light. Since I do not have such batteries I'm not eager to buy this product.


I'm very interested in this battery, but from the photos, it won't work for the EX3 without a change. Currently, the power cord is oriented in such a way that it will be at least two or three inches short of the DC input due to the orientation of the battery on the EX3 vs. the EX1.

Ted I think you're right - the DC input is slightly further away for the EX3. In the meantime I managed to find a price for this battery - it is £118 (VAT included) which is cheaper than Sony's large battery whilst giving out more WHrs. I think I will still buy one and after a minor modification I shall be hooking it up to the second hot shoe (or should I say accessory shoe) on the EX3. I'm not interested in the Sony's hard disc so this shoe can be used for any accessory. By this way I will have a very short lead (D-Tap) from the onboard light going to this battery at the back of the camera. It will also help to make the EX3 back heavy which should not be a problem since it is shoulder rested. This Swit battery should theoretically power a 20 watt light for 3 hours which is more than enough for any ENG type of work.

I'm using the Anton Bauer Dionic 90 with the QRP-EX1 Pouch Style adaptor specifically for the EX1. The Pouch keeps the weight off the camera and it also powers the Zylight with a dtap cable. It is a pricey setup but there's no worries with Anton Bauer.

Brian,

I'm now VERY interested in this battery - of course your 118 number is in metric dollars, not US dollars. Probably be around $200 for me - still great price.

My favorite part of it is that is fills the battery bay. I would also make a modification, but my modification would be to extend the adapter. By the way, in case anyone is wondering, the DC input power jack fits a Type "D" Adaptaplug from Radio Shack.

Plus, I think I may get a hard drive as some point.

More weight on the rear of the camera, especially the rear right of the camera, will only help the balance. It became more and more comfortable to use as I weighted it down with about two pounds of battery, etc.

Brian,I'm now VERY interested in this battery - of course your 118 number is in metric dollars, not US dollars. Probably be around $200 for me - still great price.


The 118 refers to UK sterling - found from a non-sponsor outlet and so I'll not mention the outlet. However your calculation is bingo correct! I think B&H are selling it:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=cart_accessories&A=details&Q=&sku=571124&is=REG

Since there isn't yet a photo I cannot be so sure that this is the same item. I will send them an e-mail to confirm.

Looks interesting indeed! Do you know can you charge this using the Sony charger?

Sami

An interesting question - I assume that you can. However I will be buying the Dolgin quad charger and I was going to ask Alex Dolgin such a question. Maybe if Alex will be seeing this thread he can give us some feedback (if he can aswer this question).

Since Swit does not have a charger for such a battery I'm assuming that the current chargers (i.e Sony's and Dolgin's) can charge it and most importantly do so without any long term damage to the battery.

On the Swit website it says you can use the original (Sony) charger.

It's the same with all their battery types

Cheers Vaughan

An interesting question - I assume that you can. However I will be buying the Dolgin quad charger and I was going to ask Alex Dolgin such a question. Maybe if Alex will be seeing this thread he can give us some feedback (if he can aswer this question).

Since Swit does not have a charger for such a battery I'm assuming that the current chargers (i.e Sony's and Dolgin's) can charge it and most importantly do so without any long term damage to the battery.

As long as the Swit batteries are physically the same as Sony BP-UXX (I hear they are?), our TC400-EX will charge them - no problem. Cheers!

I've written to Switronics for a review unit and hopefully they will respond.

Appears that it mounts in the EX-1/EX-3 slot but without Sony codes cannot power the camera. Thus, they take a tap from the battery to the DC-in of the EX. Seems very ingenious. If the battery itself works, seems like a worthwhile product.

If the battery itself works, seems like a worthwhile product.

Supplying power though the DC IN is actually the supported way to power the camera externally. Making the battery physically compatible is genius!

I would kind of be bewildered if the battery itself would not work, it just being a battery...

George/

Supplying power though the DC IN is actually the supported way to power the camera externally. Making the battery physically compatible is genius!

I would kind of be bewildered if the battery itself would not work, it just being a battery...

George/

By "works" I suppose I mean rather cynically "not catches on fire like some LiON batteries have done."

But seriously, I would load up on these at $199. Power the EX. Power lights. Power the NanoFlash. Power the MXO2...

Limitless possibilities here.

Ned,

If they do respond to you, it would be great to hear if they are planning to support the EX3 - for which the DC camera cord would need to be longer by 2 or 3 inches.

Ned,

If they do respond to you, it would be great to hear if they are planning to support the EX3 - for which the DC camera cord would need to be longer by 2 or 3 inches.

Are you certain that the DC camera cord isn't long enough? Just from that one illustration, it does appear to me like it would reach.

B&H also lists an extension cable for another $105.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/571126-REG/Switronix_XP_EX_S20_XP_EX_S20_Adapter_Cable_Assembly.html

Ned

Are you certain that the DC camera cord isn't long enough? Just from that one illustration, it does appear to me like it would reach.

B&H also lists an extension cable for another $105.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/571126-REG/Switronix_XP_EX_S20_XP_EX_S20_Adapter_Cable_Assembly.html

Ned

The orientation of the batter is the problem. From their illustration, imagine rotating the battery 90 degrees counter-clockwise. the cord would basically sit in the groove that is designed for storage - across the top, and down to the bottom of the battery. from that position, the DC tap is another 1.75 inches forward on the camera body. Two inches longer would allow just a little play in the cord for connecting/disconnecting.

Did you check that solution?

http://bebob.de/international/coco-EX_sony-PMW-EX1.html

I think it's a viable solution and when I eventually get the EX3 it will be my option.

Markus

Did you check that solution?

http://bebob.de/international/coco-EX_sony-PMW-EX1.html

I think it's a viable solution and when I eventually get the EX3 it will be my option.

Markus

Yes. I saw the BeBob option as well.

In the US, B&H lists it in stock for around $385. My question is whether it will block the shoulder mount or the rear i/o's on the EX-3 since it is engineered specifically for the horizontal battery placement of the EX1.

I would personally prefer the option of using A-B batteries because they can be rebuilt conveniently and there are even some less-expensive "clone" Dionic's out there for about half the price.

Another disadvantage of the Coco-EX is that it draws from the BP batteries that are not really rated for powering anything but the camera. The outputs of the Coco are 2x4W max. That is not enough to power anything significant.

It is not even enough to power a LED light (I believe Piotr tried with not so good results) although I believe the nanoFlash may actually come out to about 7W, so you could potentially power that.

Using "universal" batteries to power the cam plus any accessories sounds like a better solution to me.

George/

Another disadvantage of the Coco-EX is that it draws from the BP batteries that are not really rated for powering anything but the camera. The outputs of the Coco are 2x4W max. That is not enough to power anything significant.

It is not even enough to power a LED light (I believe Piotr tried with not so good results) although I believe the nanoFlash may actually come out to about 7W, so you could potentially power that.

Using "universal" batteries to power the cam plus any accessories sounds like a better solution to me.

George/

George,

just to clarify: I'm using this adapter with a 10W lamp from PAG, which is featured with a "soft start" function. No problems so far - in fact, I even tried 20W and it also starts properly, but I guess the current drain would kill the battery pretty quick.

However, the Bebob's own 12W LED light should be OK with this adapter/BP60 battery (and the NanoFlash, I can see no problems with at all, with its 7W power requirements).

Not exactly so George. I bought one of them for my previous EX1. It has 3 outputs - x1 a D-tap and x2 Hirose. The Hirose only are limited for just 4 Watts max output each. No such restriction on the D-tap. However what I and Bebob found out was that some of the Sony BP-U60 batteries tend to shut down when a large draw of current occurs. When I used a 20 watt together with the 14 watts draw of the EX1, the battery have shut down. I had to install a soft start in my Pag light in order to be able to use it. Bebob is now advising that this unit should be used only with less power hungry lights such as a 12 watt LED. Also I do not think that it will fit nicely on the EX3 - it was meant for the EX1.

An alterantive to Ted's method, in order to use V-mount batteries, is to buy this unit

http://www.blueshape.net/pdf/Schede/MVBELT.pdf

and change the 4-pin XLR to the Sony DC plug. By this way one is certain that the proper fusing is already inside the unit. If maybe the wire is abit too short maybe one can always open the unit and change the whole wire for the correct lenght. The unit can be attached in the same superb way as that of Ted's.

My only concern is one: I'm quite apprehensive that in ENG work the wire going into the dc input can be accidentally knocked out! It's not like the 4-pin power XLR - once in it cannot be accidentally removed. And considering that if power is abruptly cut off during recording this can end up in a corrupted file, then I'm having my doubts on using the DC input. Any comments on this personal fear from other users?

Not exactly so George. I bought one of them for my previous EX1. It has 3 outputs - x1 a D-tap and x2 Hirose. The Hirose only are limited for just 4 Watts max output each. No such restriction on the D-tap. However what I and Bebob found out was that some of the Sony BP-U60 batteries tend to shut down when a large draw of current occurs. When I used a 20 watt together with the 14 watts draw of the EX1, the battery have shut down. I had to install a soft start in my Pag light in order to be able to use it. Bebob is now advising that this unit should be used only with less power hungry lights such as a 12 watt LED. Also I do not think that it will fit nicely on the EX3 - it was meant for the EX1.

An alterantive to Ted's method, in order to use V-mount batteries, is to buy this unit

http://www.blueshape.net/pdf/Schede/MVBELT.pdf

and change the 4-pin XLR to the Sony DC plug. By this way one is certain that the proper fusing is already inside the unit. If maybe the wire is abit too short maybe one can always open the unit and change the whole wire for the correct lenght. The unit can be attached in the same superb way as that of Ted's.

My only concern is one: I'm quite apprehensive that in ENG work the wire going into the dc input can be accidentally knocked out! It's not like the 4-pin power XLR - once in it cannot be accidentally removed. And considering that if power is abruptly cut off during recording this can end up in a corrupted file, then I'm having my doubts on using the DC input. Any comments on this personal fear from other users?

That is defintiely a nice looking unit, but A-B also has a belt-mount solution. What I think is really called for as a camera mount system. A camera-mounted battery system will assist with the balance issues of the camera as well being much less cumbersome.

As far as disconnecting the DC cable... well, I've lived with the 4-pin firewire connector on the HVX200 and there is nothing as risky as that. I see it as a rather remote concern.

Ned I do not intend to attach this unit to a belt - I hate anything not secured to camera. I was thinking of attaching this unit to the camera the way Ted have shown in another thread with the AB mount. Ted's method is very good but there are others who have invested in V-lock batteries and so this BlueShape accessory should be quite good.

As regards to the wire being accidentally disconnected - does anybody know whether there exist wires that are quite stiff and hence can be moulded nearer to the camera body?

Ned I do not intend to attach this unit to a belt - I hate anything not secured to camera. I was thinking of attaching this unit to the camera the way Ted have shown in another thread with the AB mount. Ted's method is very good but there are others who have invested in V-lock batteries and so this BlueShape accessory should be quite good.

As regards to the wire being accidentally disconnected - does anybody know whether there exist wires that are quite stiff and hence can be moulded nearer to the camera body?

Absolutely agree that for those with V mount batteries this is an excellent solution.

What I'm really hoping someone can engineer is a mount like BeBob's which snaps into the EX battery compartment.

Bebob offers a kit with lights they call lux-led-dv. I think it will be easier to handle than other v-mount-solutions because it was the whole battery system that made my JVC HD101 so heavy at the end. I want to keep the EX3 as light as possible.

Markus

Not exactly so George. I bought one of them for my previous EX1. It has 3 outputs - x1 a D-tap and x2 Hirose. The Hirose only are limited for just 4 Watts max output each. No such restriction on the D-tap.

Hi Brian,

From memory I thought Bebob advised no more than 10W drain for the Coco, but that may have been in addition to the 2x4W.

My only concern is one: I'm quite apprehensive that in ENG work the wire going into the dc input can be accidentally knocked out!

Just leave a BP-30U battery in the EX. No worries then.

George/

Hi Brian,

Just leave a BP-30U battery in the EX. No worries then.

George/

What a brilliant idea! Thanks George - I forgot that if a battery is present then there would be an automatic switch over to battery power in case the DC input is interrupted.

Now I need to see how I can attach a V-mount adaptor whilst leaving the battery compartment accessible. Anybody out there with some brilliant ideas?

I just received a message back from Swit Electronics in China. They have confirmed that the S-8U62 battery will not work with the EX3, but that they are currently developing one for it. They expect to have it ready before long, but no real ETA.

any ideas where to get one of the swit batteries in the US? so far no luck, most retail places havent even heard of them...

any ideas where to get one of the swit batteries in the US? so far no luck, most retail places havent even heard of them...

I believe B&H are selling them on special order:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=cart_accessories&A=details&Q=&sku=571124&is=REG

There is no photo of the item as yet and I have sent them an e-mail to confirm that this item is indeed the new Swit battery with the D-Tap but have not received any reply yet.

I do not think this is the same unit. The part number is different as is the wattage.

Swit and Switronix http://www.switronix.com/ are two different companies. Switronix is in NY.

any ideas where to get one of the swit batteries in the US? so far no luck, most retail places havent even heard of them...
We will have them in the near future :-)

The A/B QR-EX3 Goldmount will be shipping at the end of Oct.

See a picture of it at: Anton/Bauer-Options for the PMW-EX series cameras (http://www.antonbauer.com/EX1_gold_mounts.htm)

Buy is at a FODVI (Friend of DVI) Tapeworks

I've been working with the BeBob CoCo EX3 for the last couple of weeks along with the Omega Power System V-mount battery with integrated charger.

Last time I spoke with my contacts at BeBob, there was no decision about their marketing plans with the Omega battery. It is a 130 watt V-mount battery with a simple 3-prong electrical connector which allows you to charge battery directly from any 120-240v power outlet. Charges battery completely in about 6 hours. Very convenient for the road.

The BeBob product is selling around 300 euro-- haven't seen a US price yet but that should put it around $450 US. Interesting to see what the A-B price will be.

The A/B QR-EX3 Goldmount will be shipping at the end of Oct.

See a picture of it at: Anton/Bauer-Options for the PMW-EX series cameras (http://www.antonbauer.com/EX1_gold_mounts.htm)

Buy is at a FODVI (Friend of DVI) Tapeworks

Can you guys add some other pics on site that show it more clearly from different angles. Like to see what I'm buying. Does it have top support etc..

Hmmm. That looks very interesting.

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/918341-post7.html

I'm sure that they either attach to the cold shoe (like bebob) or hook into the strap mount (like mine). There really aren't too many mounting options. From looking at the pics, I can't quite tell.