I seached on lanc controllers and came up with much good information. One thing though that was not clear is if there are any controllers that have a feature where you can choose a speed (as you can on the GL2) and the controller with zoon at that speed only. More specifically, does the VZ-Rock have this ability as it seems to be the controller in my price range that has recieved a lot of good reviews here.

thanks for any info

j

Jim,
The higher-end Varizoom controllers (http://www.varizoom.com/pages/lanc.php) feature a speed dial that would permit you to dial-a-speed.

{ADDENDUM}
To answer your question, the VZ Rock does not have such a feature.

The Canon zoom controller has five preset speeds as well as variable.

Robin.

Check
http://www.dvcontrol.com/rmbarefeatures.html
A cute tiny thing.

I use the Varizoom Pro-L (http://www.varizoom.com/controllers/prol.php) and think it will do what you want. You preset the speed with a dial then pressing the rocker switch causes it to zoom only at this speed (it isn't a variable rocker switch). It is a rather large, heavy unit however and the handle is not removable.

Thank you all for the replies - they are very helpful. Now to talk myself into buying more gear (I aways do!)

Canon Lanc Zoom here . . presets and Variable . .great stuff . .It also has Foucs! Pretty neat too! . . Standy. . and something else too . .. ah yes, Rec Search, neat eh?

Ah go on buy it . . . yer know yer want to!!!

Grazie

Just a question for you, Jim C. Why do you want a controller to zoom at one preset speed? Are you aware that the controller will start out with a jolt and stop the same way. I use the analogy of a car: if you set your car to forty mph, using this control, when you step on the gas, you would instantly be going forty mph, and when you stop, you would go from forty to zero instantly. Not good for a driving experience, and not good for camera operating. For almost all situations, you want a controller that will allow you to ramp the speed from start to stop.

That said, Robin was giving you good advice with the Canon ZR1000, which works with all LANC cameras and goes for under $200.00 at B&H. It will also allow you to "feather" your zooms, should you choose to do so.

Wayne Orr, SOC

Good question and informative to boot! I guess I assume (perhaps incorrectly) that it would be possible that if you dialed up the slowest speed it would be the same (when starting the zoom) as the speed that would start a zoom when set to variable. The problem I have always had is that it is very tricky to keep the rocker at the slowest speed through a long zoom especially if you are also panning and.or tilting. If the intial bump isn't much more than the bump you get when you use the variable speed then I figure that having the steady speed is worth the trade off. But, I'd have to try it to see.

"But, I'd have to try it to see."
B&H is very generous with their return policy. You could try out the ZR1000, and if it didn't work for you, return it, saying it didn't meet your expectations.

BTW, my favorite controller is the Zoe, but it runs over $300.00. You can read all about it at saferseas.com.

I just got a ZR-1000 and love it.

It's not a solid as the Varizooms, but for the price it's fantastic.

(By solid I mean build quality, the ZR-1000 is plastic and the VZs are metal.)

Wayne, actually I got the Varizoom for the same reason that Jim gave. I wanted to do the slowest possible zoom crawls shooting our opera performances, and that's just about impossible using my PDX-10's rocker switch.

According to Varizoom, the Pro-L supports all the LANC zoom levels although not all camcorders will recognize the slowest one. I just leave it set all the way at the minium to try and get subtle zooms. However sometimes there will be a bit of a bump when the zoom begins. I don't think it's consistent. But from what I've read, none of the prosumer camcorders feature the soft start of more expensive lenses on higher end cameras.

As I understand it (but somebody please correct me if I'm wrong!) you get the smoothest possible start using this controller set to the minimum since it's telling the camera to use the slowest speed it's capable of. The PDX-10 does not have a zoom ring, which I miss. Even though it's just a servo I'm able to get pretty good results with zoom ring on my VX-2000.