firestore fs-100 and hvx200

[Craig Schober]

anyone have experience using firestore fs-100 with the hvx200? i cannot seem to import any 1080 24p p2 files into fcp.

a simple 4 or 5 step walk-through would do me a world of good and work much better than the scarce documentation from panasonic and focus enhancements.

[Robert Lane]

Craig,

I sympathize 100% with your predicament; I went through the very same experience with HDV and the Firestore FS4 Pro HD.

Aside from double-checking the capture settings in the Firestore, you might want to call Focus tech support and get clarification. Don't be surprised if they're not 100% on the ball with this (they weren't last summer/fall) and if that's still the case, I'll try to help you through this as much as possible.

It will probably require a telephonic troubleshooting session rather than notes here on the forum - too much info is required to make sure everything from the camera, FS4 and FCP are setup properly.

Let me (us) know how you fare with the people at Focus. I've got time this week to help you get this figured out.

[David Trenkle]

Craig, I don't have any answers just some advice like Robert. I too had issues with Focus in December with the FS-4HD recording with the JVC HD-100. The marketing info and rep told us it would record 720/24P. What they didn't tell us was the FCP did not support 720/24P at that time only 30P. What I learned is that Focus won't give you the info unless you ask the right question. It was only after we tried to ingest 720/24P into FCP and called with that question that we were told it didn't support 24P but would in the near future with an update, even though every time we spoke with them leading up to the purchase we mentioned recording in 24P. The conclusion is to be persistent for answers and if it doesn't work right now they are very good about updates.

That being said I have ordered an FS-100 only after a handfull of phone calls asking very specific questions, including: Will the FS-100 be able to record in all formats listed in the literature? and Will all of those formats be supported by FCP? The answer was yes. Hopefully, my doubts will be laid to rest.

Hang in there, Craig we're all in this together!

[Robert Lane]

Craig,

What David said.

Keep us posted on your troubleshooting progress and if you find a solution to your Focus-woes. If nothing works out we'll help you navigate a solution.

[Barry Green]

May not be related to your firestore at all. What version of FCP are you running? 5.0.4 doesn't support 1080/24p.

5.1 has some support for 1080/24pA, but not for 1080/24p.

[Craig Schober]

thanks guys. i got in touch with a firestore tech support guy yesterday. i actually received a few reply emails and a phone call but i missed the call. he pointed out a selection in the firestore to me for "organizing p2" and that got my files transferred over to p2. now i've got my files in fcp for editing so that's cool.

the fs-100 is getting easier to operate but still gives intermittent firewire connection errors. never during actual recording but it won't always start back up after i stop it briefly. and some clips are garbled in the head end. seems like the drive needs to ramp up speed and get established even after it gives the ok to record.

their tech support is responsive enough. i just worry when i am emailed and they tell me they'll be doing testing all next week and will let me know more when they know more.

[Craig Schober]

Originally Posted by Barry Green

May not be related to your firestore at all. What version of FCP are you running? 5.0.4 doesn't support 1080/24p.

5.1 has some support for 1080/24pA, but not for 1080/24p.

i'm running fcp 5.1 but now that i got my files imported properly as p2, it seems fine...even as the 1080/24p that i shot!

what exactly do you mean by support? the 1080/24p stuff seems ok.

my next question is more about fcp. i shot 720p at 60 fps but the p2 files simply look normal in fcp. am i missing something obvious or do i need some kind of special download for fcp for transfer of varibale frame rates?

[Robert Lane]

Originally Posted by Craig Schober

...seems like the drive needs to ramp up speed and get established even after it gives the ok to record.

You're absolutely right, Craig. Any HDD capture system even a Powerbook or MacBook Pro needs a few seconds after you hit RECORD or CAPTURE NOW to get up to speed and get's it's internal buffer flowing properly.

Consider it like shooting to tape; you should always give yourself at least 5-10 seconds of free run in RECORD mode to allow the transport to stabilize. Most dropouts and any digital blitter from a DTE capture device will occur during the initial record-startup phase.

The issues of the intermittent connection errors and the Firestore not starting up after being paused are unfortunately a common issue that I asked Focus to address last year. Looks like they didn't get around to fixing those operational bugs and are some of the reasons why my team and I decided not to use it.

If you like the Firestore workflow you'll just have to get used to these little bugs and annoyances. Make sure you give yourself "stabilize" time when starting a clip, be careful with sudden camera movement and make sure your physical connections between FS-4 and camera are solid.