What are the actual voltage of the batteries?

Both the ProPac Digitals and the Trimpacs are 14 volts. They are obviously stepped down using the Gold Mount and the battery plug in adapter connected to it.

It sounds to me like a problem with the step down adapter. Could be the charger, or just old batteries. How old are the batteries?

I spent close to an hour on the phone with John from Anton Bauer's customer service department. First let me tell you that he was great. He took the time to run through various scenarios that finaly led to a satisfactory conclusion to my problem!

Apparently the age (4 years) of the 14V bricks were a problem. Although the battery's "gas guage" said they were fully charged, there was enough of an apmerage drop, especially when engaging the lamp that the Canon read it as dead and shut the camera off. (Shouldn't have been using the 4 1/2 pound bricks anyway as they are too heavy for the shouder pad where it attaches to the camera.)

The TrimPacs were a completely different story. A fully charged TrimPac ran the camera in record mode with a 50watt bulb continuously burning in the UL-2 for 35 minutes straight. John thought it would go about 25 minutes...pretty close.

His estimate with a 25watt bulb is about 1 hour 20 minutes and in record mode without a light...an impressive 4 - 4 1/2 hours of straight record time.

The battery meter in the eyepiece will drop to 3/4 and then 1/2 relatively quickly but pretty much stayed at 1/2 for the duration. Just something to keep in mind when using this combination of equipment as it seems to be a quirk in the system.

Thanks for the quick response to this post and I hope this little "experiment" can help others that might come across this situation.

Stay safe, RB.

http://www.canondv.com/service/accessory_legal.html

I had seen that Canon disclaimer previously. It seems to me that Canon, and I can't say I blame them, is wanting to keep everything "Canon".

The only problem is that although their lithium-ion batteries are pretty reliable for straight ahead shooting, the on-board camera light that Canon sells for the XL series is amateurish at best. This is one of the reasons that we have had look at other options.

In my line of work, we are constantly being put into situations where alternate light sources are not practical or available. We are also thrust into places where the only equipment available for support is limited to what you can carry with you and not necessrily into very easy to get to places.

A good example of this would be when the S.S. Norway's boiler exploded while docked at the Port of Miami. I entered the ship approxiamtely 3 hours after the incident and for over 2 hours had to shoot in some very nasty conditions that included extreme humidity and temperatures of over 150 degrees farenheit. To describe the boiler room as a "black hole" would be an understatement!

While the camera functioned admirably, I was stuck using this "toy light" for the duration. This is one of the reasons we went with the Anton Bauer package to power both the camera and a professional camera light (Ultra-Light 2) to cover some very important scenes where we are not afforded second takes.

I have been using Anton Bauer batteries for over 20 years and have never seen or had one leak or explode. The disclaimer seems to be issued more to protect the warranty than anything else.

If Canon is really trying to target the professional shooter, I feel that they would be better served by "beefing up" some of their support equipment so people like us don't have to go to outside companies for solutions.

Thanks for the response and stay safe, RB.

The real problem is Canon protecting themselves from warranty claims caused by very cheap third part batteries. Some very poor quality batteries are available that could potentially damage the camera. I don't think their warning about batteries is meant to include Anton Bauer. But it would be hard to include AB and exclude other cheap brands.

The market would be too small for Canon to develop their own alternative to AB. Professionals will have to do what they've always done, risk voiding their warranties in pursuit of their profession.

Odd, there is a fresh battery in the camera, or sometimes, I go direct from power...and there is still t hat strange red box with a slash through it in the viewfinder.
What's going on?
My power source no longer charges the batteries, I use another charger for that purpose, but...I would love to know how to get rid of the red warning box.
Thanks for any help,
Stacy

I've never used an XL1 but I know on my DVX when there is no cassette in the camera theres is a red box with a line through it. Are you sure it isn't just a signal that there is no cassette in the camera?

thanks for the quick reply, but yep there is a cassette in there when the odd light is on.

It sounds like your back-up battery (the watch battery) is dead.

wow...didn't even realize I had one of those...
where is it? I don't think this is even listed in the manual...or did I just miss it?
Thanks!

See page 99.

Thank you Ken!
Once again, this forum provides a speedy, accurate reply! Many thanks!
Stacy

Yes, I just replaced mine. It is a CR-2025 type lithium battery. You can get them pretty much anywhere batteries are sold. On the XL-1, it's tucked into the bottom of the right-hand grip. I think they are rated for a year but they typically last longer than that.

Greg B.

p.s. I just acquired a used XL-1. It was flashing when I got the camera.

Folks

I'm currently carrying around 6 NP945 batteries for a typical full day wedding shoot.

Does a battery belt exist out there that that can work with my XL1? I saw someone wearing such a belt powring a GL2.

Thanks

Try NGR for battery belts. (http://www.nrgresearch.com/cat.html) I have used them for years. I just recently sold one, they seem to last forever. I could power an XL1 all day with the belt and still be between 1/2 and 3/4 power. I believe B & H carries NRG and you can link to through the sponsor page (just click on the link in my signature at the bottom of this post).

the anton bauer system for the xl1,(not the 30/13 belts I have 2 and they weigh a ton) I got one and its a great addition plus the extra weight for balance on the shoulder has been quite nice. the other nice thing about that is you can start to outfit with real lights, (batt belt will do that to). The AB system is pricier but with the benefits of shoulder weight and the onboard light upgrade might be worth it to consider...BH carries it and probably one or two other sponsers of this board.

plus you would probably pay for it in one shoot :)

M

I've actually used some RC batteries connected to the adapter for the AC/charger unit. I can buy them for about $20 and they work like a charm. I put them in a fanny pack. You don't get any low battery readout, however, but they last about 90 min.

Hi folks,

I know that you recommend the batteries from Power 2000 and lemnar ( I personnaly use some Power 2000 batteries and I am very satisfied).

But what do you think about those no-brand ones that can be purchased from eBay at 30 bucks ? It is really an excellent price! Think that it is worth to test one of them?

Check this link:
http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2962798473&category=15072

Is there somebody here who already made the experiment?

I have several 3rd party batteries by Empire. The price is great, and they have held up for the past couple of years. They don't seem to hold a charge quite as well as the cannons, but at this price, I can have 3 charged up and ready.

I have a Lenmar and have been quite happy.

I use the D Concept ones from OPTEX Battery its 6000mAh and lasts ages, in fact half the time when I'm filming stuff here and there over a few days I forget that the camera even needs a battery. They are like £70 pounds but lasts ages and at 6000mAh give hefty amounts of power.

https://secure.xl1s.com/cgi-bin/shop/commerce.cgi?pid=502

I've read in the XL1s Manual that if the battery isn't drained before a period of long storage than something can be damaged. Is there a way to drain the battery without filming useless footage?

Thanks,

C.

You can always just leave the camera on until the battery runs down without having to actually tape anything.

What they are refering to is the battery building up a memory. It works this way.

If the battery is only drained halfway before you recharge it again, the battery begins to think that when it reaches the halfway point, that it is dead. It builds up this memory of what it believes the "dead point" is and thus mucks up your battery.

If you don't want to keep your camera on to drain the battery, you may want to purchase a battery charger that is a smart charger. The smart charger will look at the battery and if it has a charge still on it, it will trickle it down (drain it) and then recharge it.

Sorry Stephen, as far as I know XL1s has Li-ion batteries which don't show "memory'' effects.

Thank you guys for your advices. At this price, I will try one of these batteries and will inform you of its performance.

Andre is correct.

The Lithium Ion batteries are not subject to "memory". That shortcoming is part of the NiCad family. The only way to get most out of your NiCads was to use the battery until it discharged to the point where it was un-usable but not totaly discharged. Totaly discharging a NiCad could ruin it. Then you would have to give it a full charge and repeat the process.

If, for example, you use a NiCad for 15 minutes and return it to the charger to "top-off", then continue this pattern repeatedly, after a while you would only be able to get 15 minutes of use even if the battery is showing a full charge.

This is not the case with Lithium Ion batteries. You can shoot and top-off your L-Ion batteries without your having to worry about them being conditioned or developing a memory.

So enjoy this new freedom and top-off your batteries without having to feel guilty!

As for your initial question, I'll have to double check my XL1s manual. I have never heard of a battery going bad from being stored charged.

RB

To Stephen: the reason why LI-ion batteries are better stored uncharged is because of the risk of unbalance. Li-ion do discharge, but very slowly. Not all cells in the battery have the same discharge rate. After a long storage (several months), one can end up with strongly unbalanced cells in the battery which cause overstressing (and early dead) of the battery when recharged.
To Rick: it is a misconception that "memory effect" is the result of recharging/topping-off partly discharged batteries. The "memory effect"(voltage depression) is the result of extended trickle charging. Older NIcads were very sensitive to this effect which results in a change of the chemical structure of a part of the battery mass. The changed part keeps the same capacity (Wh) but under a lower cell voltage (about 1V vs 1.2V for Nicad). Fortunately partly discharging the battery (below .9V/cell) a couple of times reverses the unwanted chemical structure.

Many myths, legends and hearsay comments are often repeated about NiCad batteries. Andre is correct in his statements.

Whoops my bad...

Andre is correct!

And FWIW NiMH do also exhibiit the so called voltage depression "memory" effect, although not quite as pronounced as NiCad.

The reason camcorders would shut down due to the memory effect is low cost design of consumer gear. They were designed around 5-volt integrated circuit components and 6-volt (5-1.2 volt cells) batteries. This saves a cell in battery (cost and weight) and allowed use of off-the-shelf components. The voltage drop due to memory effect was just enough to fool a camcorder into thinking the battery was at end of charge early in the discharge cycle.

Note that the nominal 6 volt NiCad was actually about 7 volts at full charge, a bit over 6 volts for most of the discharge curve, and about 5.4 volts at full discharge for camcorder purposes. You can see the loss of a bit over 0.1 volts per cell would put it into apparent discharged voltage state early in the discharge curve.

Some so called no-mem NiCad batteries took the simple approach of adding a 6th cell to keep the voltage higher over the full discharge curve.

Where did you read this about draining the battery?
I have been under the impression that these batteries do not have memory, and can be charged from any state. Please expound on this subject.

Trig, what do you want to know about draining batteries? Did you read the entire thread and Andre's and Don's comments? Most types of batteries do not need to be discharged. What type of batteries are you using?

We'll probably need to turn Andre's and Don's comments into a page for the Watchdog site, or at the very least, part of an F.A.Q. list. That's some good info to know.

Sorry, I tried to delete my post when I saw the memory thing was covered, but could not; why not?

Just email a mod to remove a post or post the request to have it removed.

Hi !

I have the XL1s and have seen a large variety to batteries that can be purchased for this camera.

I was originally going to buy 2 Canon brand BP945's rated at 4550mAh's but have found that Energizer make the same battery rated at 5550mAh's !

Has anyone used these energizer batts, and if not, can anyone give any good advice on battery purchases based on personal experience....

Thanks

Nick

Search this site for batteries, there are plenty of posts about them.

I'm using a Lenmar. It sells for around $90 and is available from DVinfo.net sponsors. Remember the sponsors know videography and help make this board possible.

Hi, I don't own any batteries from canon or energizer, But I have some Power 2000 6000 mAh and they are great!

I also order a noname 5500 mAh one at 30$ from eBay a few weeks ago, and I was very surprised!!! it last at least as long as the Power 2000. I don't know how it will perform on the long time, but at 30 bucks, it worth the try!

Check for the seller "batteryhome". it is listing a few of thoses BP-45 equivalents each weeks.

Have a look a batterymegasource.com, they've got all kinds of stuff at superb prices compared with UK high street.

I've bought from them four times now and things have always reached Luton in three or four days. It's all unbranded, made in China etc but performs fine; eg. the spare XL1 3600mAh bat gives about 15 mins more shooting time than the 3000mAh original.

I occasionally borrow IDX Endura batterys. Adaptor on the rear. On for a shoo for 5 hours, still had 40% left! Need more power, just attach another battery onto the battery. The larger batteries also give the camera better balance.
The thing about the IDX v-mounts are that they go directly onto Sony broadcast cameras as well. I need to get them myself. nice.

XL1 adaptor
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=242078&is=REG

battery & charger
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=231387&is=REG

How long can one expect in record time using the 7.2V BP-945 Li-Ion battery?

I just shot a soccer match yesterday using this battery. The camera was turned on for around 2 hours. Actual recording was for a full 60-minute tape. After I finished, the battery indicator was on 50%. So I assume you can safely shoot more than 2 hours with it.

Thanks....
I have been shooting wedding via A/C power source...but am concerned about pwoer glitches and lost of mobility being tied to a cord.

I use two 945s on the CH910 when recording auto races. The camera is always on for at least four hours, sometimes five and I normally record at least three hours with lots of zooming. Then next day I use the same batteries to rewind and capture all tapes. (single pass scan and capture with no stop/rewind/start during the capture) All this is done without recharging. These batteries are two years old now and they can still record the entire event but might give up sometime during capture of the last tape.

When using the CH910 you don't get a "fuel guage" in the viewfinder, only the flashing red battery message when power gets low. With another battery ready, you can take one off the CH910 and replace it on-the-fly and the record or capture process is not interrupted. (might be hard to change one while recording unless you have an assistant though)

Anyone else had the same problem with the battery on the XL1 falling off because the stop under the battery does not not seem the extend out enough to give the battery support.. Any quick fixes out there or is this one for the pros at the shop?

Thanks

Consider a professional battery solution which mounts on the rear of the camera via the MA100 or MA200 accessory bracket, such as Anton Bauer, IDX or Aspen.

Some brands of batteries fit better (higher quality moldings) than others. If you're using a third party battery, you might try the Canon brand. Also, the locking components on both the battery and the camera locking mechanism are plastic. To the best of my knowledge all cameras in this prosumer category use plastic components, so this is nothing out of the ordinary. The plastic wears and over time and use requires replacement.

Has the spring on the battery retainer/release button lost its spring, or is the projection that locks the battery in the 'up' position worn down?

As an interim measure try wedge a piece of something about 1/4" thick under the inserted battery to prevent its slipping down and out. Maybe tape it to the battery to hold the wedge in place.