Tapeless recording with FS4 and the Z1
 

Hi
Does anyone know if you can record without tape on the Z1 to a FS4??
cheers
mat

Focus FireStore FS-4 IN STOCK & getting GREAT reviews
 

FS-4s are still on allocation, but as of today we will have inventory of all models! We have both FS4Pro 40Gb & FS4 Pro 80Gb units in stock. We just checked with UPS and we have a pretty big shipment of standard FS-4s ( and FS-4s with Field Kits) scheduled to arrive this afternoon.

Demand is still very strong and we are selling FS-4s as fast as we get them. While we have inventory now, we expect to be out of stock by the middle of next week. We are still experiencing shortages of extra batteries.

Over the past couple of months the reviews are starting to pour in and the decision is unanimous – FireStore FS-4 is a winner!

- EventDV Magazine gives FOCUS Enhancements FireStore FS-4 - Editor’s Choice Award “The FS-4 sets a new standard for digital disk recorders, combining the FireStore line’s peerless feature set with a competitive price point and a compact form factor that makes it a good match for top prosumer handheld camcorders from Canon, Sony, and Panasonic.”
- Digital Media Net (DMN): Tapeless Acquisition in the Palm of Your Hand “Wedding Videographers, EFP, indie filmmakers, sports, and corporate productions will love this unit. “
- DV Magazine FireStore FS-4 review: "Compact, with great battery integration. Huge, bright, readable LCD. Records directly into many NLE codecs."

For more FS-4 info, to order, or to check out the reviews above follow this link http://www.videoguys.com/FireStore.html

Gary

You CAN record from a tapeless Z1 if the FS-4 is Local mode ie manual record start.

You CAN'T record from a tapeless Z1 in Synchro Slave mode (no tape = no triggers)

The above statements are also true of the Z1's ancestors like the VX2000/2100 and the PD150/PD170.

Until the HDV firmware upgrade is available. the FS-4 will only record from the camera's 1394 socket if a) the Z1/FX1 is set to DV mode or b) the Z1/FX1 is set to HDV mode but HDV/DV downconvert is selected (ie you can simultaniously record HDV on a tape and DV on an FS-4 - very useful if you want to edit DV for the present and stockpile HDV for the future)

Ray Liffen

HI
If I connect my Apple Laptop via Firewire to the Z1 could I then record tapeless?

You should be able to record on your mac with BTV Pro, but only in DV or downconvert mode:

http://www.bensoftware.com/btvpro.html

I don't know... maybe FCP 5 would record HDV directly from firewire? I'm still running 4.5.

FireStore FS-4
 

I have installed the new firmware onto my firestore. I cannot get it to record using the camera functions (Canon XL2 has DV control set to on) stop/start buttons. I have the firestore functions and control set to sync, i just can't seem to get it to work. Can anyone direct me to a step by step set up with the firestore on the XL2 can some one help or would your suggestion be to call focus enhancements support.

thanks

I would suggest that you try doing this with a tape in the camera, in case you are not at the moment. You might also try following a strict order of turning turning the devices on. For example, turn the XL2 on and then boot the FS-4. If that doesn't help then contact Focus.

I'm sorry that I am guessing, but I don't own an XL2, and the FS-4 I am using is not reliable anymore because I have done a lot of experimenting on it.

I'm just curious, but did the FS-4 function how you wanted it to before you updated the firmware?

FS4-PRO > (4) CH. of audio > Avid OMF
 

It seems that transferring from the Firestore to my computer (HP) results in a loss of channels 3 & 4 audio channels.

I'm using a Canon XL2 for record.

I've checked playback from the Firestore in VCR mode on the camera, and I can hear all (4) channels, but they are not transferring properly.

If it's not the transfer then I am assuming Avid is not recognizing all (4) channels of audio.

Anyone else having this problem?

Thanks!

Check this thread,

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=47051

or search using, FS-4 audio, as a search criteria.

Daniel,

Thanks for chiming in.

I did read your post, the software does not work for OMF for Avid.

Jim Olsen @ Focus Enhancements is looking into this for me/ us.

It clearly states in the user guide that the FS4-pro records (4) channels of audio; which it does.

The problem seems to be transferring or software needs a tweak...stay tuned.

FS-4 - the POWER ON button is too vulnerable
 

Lay an FS-4 face down on a flat surface. Push down slightly. What happens? The FS-4 powers up. That Power On button stands proud and it's too easy to accidentally start the unit.

Several times now I've come to use the unit at the start of a job, or when upacking after getting back and found that it was running despite being protected in a bubble-wrap bag. Last night my carefully-charged battery was almost out of power when I came to use it.

Gear designed for mobile use (phones or digital cameras for example) usually has the ON button recessed.

The FS-4 was designed for mobile use - was there any beta testing? It would surely have shown up this design flaw.

Ray Liffen

FS-4 power button goof work-around
 

Yes, the FS-4 does have some serious design flaws including the power button that sticks out the front like a sore thumb so when you pull it out of your field bag the battery is dead because it turned on simply by being in the bag.

As I was trying to determine how I could pack the FS-4s in the gear bag in a way where they would not inadvertently power-on, I realized that if you turn the FS-4 unit around (battery pack toward the front) in the on-camera mount (the one that came with the "field kit" option) it protects the power button from anything pushing it by accident.

Excellent idea.

(but just one more thing to remember to do)

Ray Liffen

Good idea Bruce,

I just want to say that there was beta testing of the FS-4. I know because I was asked to be a beta tester.

I mentioned the problem of a not recessed "on" switch, along with several other things (some of which have been mentioned elsewhere on this forum) in my reports. I'm guessing that I was primarily a software beta tester without having known it, because the production model of the FS-4 was almost identical to the beta unit, except for a few software tweaks.

I have asked myself, why do a beta testing program and then not listen to the recommendations of the beta testers, but then again, I don't know what the other beta testers reported.

Maybe the FS-5 will have the physical improvements which are needed on the FS-4.

Meanwhile - ingenuity is the best recourse. When the guarantee runs out on your units, you might think about opening the unit and filing down the plastic stem on the inside of the power key so that it doesn't sit so firmly against the IC board. This will prevent general accidental power-ups.

I still have a problem forgetting that the "on" key is not a "record" key. For some reason I associate the record function with a round symbol. (this is the type of stuff I reported)

FS 4 problems
 

Tommorrow I'll be returning my SECOND FS4. The first one had intermittent problems, so B+H sent me a replacement. I opened the new one and put it through its' paces. Here's the results.
1- All the functions worked on the XL2 except that it had a glitch when recording from tape to the FS4. I found that I had to remove and replace the firewire plug from th Canon each time I wanted to record from tape.
2_ Then I tried it with my GL1. This time I was able to record from tape, and record the camera shooting, but only in local mode.I tried repeatedly to use it in slave mode, but no luck.
I was really hoping that the replacement would work the way it is supposed to. It's a great piece of gear, but too problematic for me at this stage of its' development.
I'd love to have one that works, but I guess I'd have to camp out at B+H, or someplace else, and try to find one that didn't have problems.Or maybe I just got two lemmons...
Bruce S. Yarock

The problem with beta testing is that by then all the 'mechanical' or 'physical' parts of the design have been finalised and the design team are really hoping for a pat on the back and maybe just a few tweaks to the software.

From a 'users' point of view the FS-4 is riddled with inconsistancies. Supposing we were starting again. Lets have:

1. A recessed ON switch that is also the OFF switch.

2. A recessed RECORD button that needs just one push

3. A recessed STOP button that needs just one push

4. Just one firewire socket, that changes function when you switch between 'camera' and 'computer' modes. That would leave room for . . . .

5. . . . . the power socket, which moves from the other end so that ALL cables exit the FS-4 from the same end. The ON/OFF switch above would also be on the end panel, to keep it away from the operational controls.

6. A hard disk that actually records 186 mins rather than 173 min. The FS-4 is intended for use with lightweight cameras and needs to match the recording time of 3 x miniDV at SP or 2 x miniDV at LP.

7. LIGHTWEIGHT power supply accessories. The FS-4 is designed for mobile use and the power supplies should reflect this. The present FS-4 design uses a heavy cable and a heavyweight plug/socket, all unnecessary.

There's nothing in the above list that is non-standard. These button arrangements and cable arrangements have been found over the years to give secure, logical operation. It is the present FS-4 design that is non-standard. Could anyone from the design team explain why they did so?

Ray Liffen

FS-4 and naming clips
 

I just got an FS-4 and have already run into something that I need to figure out. I shoot LOTs of football and love that I can click and create a clip. One thing though is when I finish and transfer all these files into Premiere. The clip names are year-date-time.avi so when I sort, there is nothing to cause the sort to be in the order I want. Is there a way to adjust the naming constraints with the FS-4?

Hi Rick,
currently there is not a way to change the file naming convention used when FS4 is encoding new files to the HD.

Thanks,
Jim at Focus

FS-4 Firewire Connection to PC
 

The FS-4 comes with a 6 pin to 4 pin firewire cable. Does anyone know if a 6 pin to 6 pin firewire cable will also work? My PC does not have a 4 pin firewire input.

I purchased two FS-4s. The first one showed a "No Disk Detected" error immediately. The second one worked for about an hour and then displayed the "No Disk Detected" error. I tried a 6 pin to 6 pin cable but it did not work. I am curious about whether the FS-4 was not working correctly or whether only the 4 pin cable works for tranferring video to the PC.

Is this a PRO model or regular FS4???

Hi Bruce,

Does this unit have version 1.0.1 software? You can download it at the Focus support website. It fixed some Canon XL2 related bugs, but I have not heard of issues with the GL1... I'll request the lab takes another look at it in the morning.

Hope that helps,

Matt

Hi Jeff,

FS-4 will work with a 4-pin to 6-pin or a 6-pin to 6-pin FireWire cable when connecting to a computer.

Give tech support a call though, you should not be seeing "no disk detected".

Hope that helps,

Matt

matt,
It did have the new software. The strange thing was that the first one I got worked with both cams, except it wouldn't consistenetly capture from tape on the xl2(It did, however, capture consistently from the gl1!). The second had the same tape capture problem, but wouldn'twork in synchro salve on the gl1.
Have you tested the fs4 with the xl2 in tape capture mode?
Thanks
Bruce Yarock

Thanks Matt, when I call techical support the person I talked with was not sure if the FS-4 would work with 6 to 6 pin firewire. I did get one of mine to connect with another PC in a test with the 6 to 4 pin cable before the "No Disk Detected" message.

I sent one FS-4 back to the vendor and sent the other one in for repair to Focus Enhancements. Given what happened and costs of each unit, I need to see how dependable they will be "in the field" with an XL2 before I get more of them. These were recent production models with s/n's over 5400.

I'm in the same boat you're in - I just returned my second unit in for repair/replacement since I've started using the FS4Pro in June. The first one worked ok for a while, then wouldn't power up at all. The replacement unit I got worked fine until I used it in a shoot - locked up and went into endless reboot cycle.

I really hope this can be repaired. I'm looking into the nNovia untis if I end up having to return the FS4Pro a THIRD time.


Todd

Todd,
What camera are you using?
Bruce S. Yarock

Sony HVR-Z1 , downconverting the output to DV.
Waiting for the HDV upgrade, but don't know when I'll be able to install the upgrade, since I keep having to send the unit in for repair.

Todd

FS-4 PRO Bugs
 

If anyone has any experience at all with the new FS-4 PRO and comment on this, it would be appreciated. My FS-4 will record sometimes and other times it will give almost every indication it is recording, but it really isn't. For example, when I set up with my XL2 the camera's viewfinder will say recording, the status light on the FS-4 is in record state, the LCD on the FS-4 says recording, but the counter on the LCD doesn't move. When I hit stop on the FS-4 it goes through the same motions it would if something had actually recorded. When I hook up the FS-4 to my Mac after no counter movement (to see if anything recorded) there is nothing. I know when there has been footage recorded to the FS-4 if the counter moves on the LCD. I've made sure I have upgraded the firmware on the FS-4 and my problem seems to arise randomly. By random I mean I could turn the FS-4 on and it will work fine, then after recording something hook it up to my Mac and get the footage. Then I could hook it back up to my camera and it won't work or soemtimes it does work fine. I've also turned the device on and got set up, then shut it off, and have experienced the device not working properly. It's been very frustrating, and Focus Enhancements hasn't been that helpful.

Tom,

I don't think that you are alone with your problems. It appears that the FS-4, although more reliable than other D2D devices on the market at the moment, is not 100% reliable. As long as you use your FS-4 I would suggest that you look at the counter on the LCD as the absolute indication of wether the FS-4 is recording or not. If the numbers don't move, you are not recording. You might also consider returning the unit for a new one, maybe it is an issue with your specific unit (but I kind of doubt it, at this point).

FS-4 PRO Bugs
 

I used my FS-4 last night to shoot a football game. All went well, although I did experience the FS-4 not working properly right away. What happens is that if I turn the FS-4 off then sometimes when I turn it back on it doesn't want to record. This is totally random so I'm not able to pinpoint what the problem is exactly. However, the fix seems to be this: I disconnect the FS-4 from my camera, go to the menu where I can select "hard drive" mode. I don't actually enable "hard drive" mode, but then I exit out and select "record" mode. This has proven to get my FS-4 working properly each time since I've started using this method. It's odd and quirky but so far it's all I got. I did record the entire game and all the clips came through just fine.

"No disk detected" error
 

Hello,
when a "no disk detected" error occurs on a FS-4 unit, it means that the internal hard disk on the FS-4 is not detected by the firmware when the FS-4 is trying to complete a Power on Reset and boot from the software on the hard disk. This error does not have anything to do with whether a 4-pin or 6-pin firewire cable is connected to the unit. We use durable hard disks, but they still can be susceptible to shock damage during shipping or if dropped or handled in a way that causes g forces that the internal hard disk can't handle. Overall we don't have many problems with them, but the HD and the fan are the two mechanical assemblies that actually have to move correctly for the unit to work properly.

Hope this helps --

Jim at Focus

As Matt said, the FS-4 will function either with a 6-pin-to-4-pin cable installed, or a 6-pin-to-6-pin cable installed. The main requirement is that the Firewire port on the other end is also a DV IEEE1394-compatible Firewire port at 400Mbps.

Thanks,
Jim at Focus

FS4 External Charger - Huge Disappointment
 

Just arrived from the UK suppliers is a letter telling me that the external charger for the FS4 will ship at the end of the month. It will consist of "an empty FS4 shell with the charging circuit left inside" and cost £140 incl tax (about $237 US). Er, excuse me? It seems the designers have taken the easy way out and given us an unnecessarily large charger which will still have to have a clunky cable and power supply to load down our gear bags. AND we have to pay a high price for a box full of fresh air.

Surely it should be a wall-wart with a battery connector that can be strapped on with velcro? Small and neat (and cheaper) - that's what we need.

What a shame

Sending to Focus product management
 

Hello,

I forwarded your comment to give feedback to Focus product management. An external charger is certainly needed. I think this was the quickest, if perhaps not the most elegantly engineered, solution that we could offer.

Thanks,

Jim at Focus

Jim

Thanks for your comment.

Have to say, though, that my mobile phone has an Lithium Ion battery, charges from a wall-wart (included in the price) and cost me £15 brand new ($25).

OK, the phone is 4v and the FS4 is 12v but that shouldn't make a charger on its own cost ten times as much.

If Nokia can charge my phone from a wall-wart then I'm sure Focus can manage it for the FS-4.

When you talk to the Focus management can you check if this present charger is just a stop-gap? If it is I'll wait for the real thing (even a deluxe wall-wart shouldn't be more than $50).

Ray Liffen

Using FS-4 while Changing Tape
 

I now have an FS-4 that works. What setup and procedure works best from experience for continous recording of an event with a FS-4/tape combination without stopping the recording on the FS-4 to change tapes in the XL2?

From my experience with the PD170 you have to put the FS4 into manual mode (ie start the recording on the fs4 by pressing the record key twice(once puts it in record pause I think).

That way if you change tapes on the camera the fs4 will carry on recording, however you will need to be careful of camera noise picked up by the camera whilst you are chaging tapes. I used this method during the church service of weddings which can tend to be longer than a tapes worth.

Regards

Mark

FS4 and dropped frames
 

Hi, a fellow videographer had me do some editing on my g5 from an FS4, my first opportunity. Final Cut hd express... It was his first try using the fs4. I was shocked he would use this drive without testing it first. I ran it through the paces, the unit wouldn't work without a battery attached and the files all had to be rendered and were in pieces; short cuts. We had to export each audio track separtely or the video would drop frames. We had to reimport the audio and if we did not follow this proceedure we dropped frames. Also save didn't work and we lost all our changes (we cleared prefs to get video to output to camera). We have accounted this (not saving correctly and audio problems) to the weird format that FS4 put the files in. I think we had a DV download format. Working with Mac systems perhaps we should have gone with Quickstream?

Thanks Mark for your advice. I usually record from off camera mic sources or a feed from a house sound mixer board to avoid noise around the camera (like audience noise) but your point is good about tape changing noise (like the sound the transport makes when it ejects the tape.

Regards also, JeffM

What file type did he set the FS-4 to record?
What do you mean the files were in pieces? Each shot should be in a separate file until the FAT32 limit is reached, then a new file continues the existing shot.
I don\'t understand what "DV download format" is?

I fail to see how the NLE not saving can have anything to do with the FS-4 or its files. Did you copy all the files off to your A/V drives or were you trying to edit on the FS-4?

The FS-4 doesn\'t use weird file types, it is compatible with macs & pc\'s, that\'s why it uses FAT32 but you must set the type according to what edit system you will be using. Check that the FS-4 is set to .mov.

I\'m not familiar with Macs so I\'m sorry I can\'t be any more help than this, but if you provide a bit more specific information I\'m sure some FCP experts will be able to help you.

FS4 thanks
 

I am sorry I don\'t have more info on this. I did not record the footage and did not set the fs4 myself. I was only the recipient of improper settings it seems. Perhaps the breaking up of the video was due to an improper setting. Whatever the error in settings was, it played havoc with our attempts to edit and save.

Thank you very much for your comments, I will relay them to my friend and see if they help!