Just about to purchase.
 

Hello All
Would the quality of a PAL Z1, shooting in NTSC (60i) be equal to an NTSC Z1 shooting in NTSC(60i)?

Don't think there's such a thing as a "PAL Z1" (nor "NTSC Z1"), which means you can relax - a Z1 will shoot in either format at the best possible quality at the flick of a switch (and a restart!)

So it begs the question why do Sony Make Z-1E and Z-1 U?
Europe/United States/ and Japan? Z-1 J or P?

The monikers are correct.

Probably the product only varies by the type of plug and the packet of warranty documentation in the box (and any local goodies thrown in - I think I got a copy of Vegas free with my Z1-E).

BTW - Hi Martin! Good to see another DVdoctor Ex-Pat!

Hiya Dugi...small world!!
 

Welcome to the forum, you'll like it here. I'm looking forward to receiving your old camera soon.

The Z1E is the one you want, the video quality is the same on all models. Have you got one on order yet?

The build quality of the Z1 is great, mine has seen some action but still looks/works flawlessly, Not for the first time, I filmed a power tools corporate all day on Tuesday on a building site in the snow and rain.


Although you're a seasoned pro I'll offer my accessories advice.

Personally I use Swit S-8970 batteries now (I also have some Sony970s and lots of Hahnel 960s but they have all aged).

I leave my Sony .8 wideangle - VCL-HG0872 on the Z1. There are wider options, but the Sony is a great bit of glass (full zoom through) The Vocas DV wide mattebox fits straight on it without the rails. There's a cheap indian knockoff, but I don't know if it will fit directly. Nice big top flag to keep the sun and rain out.

I have several VariZoom Lanc controllers depending on the mounting. The VZ-Rock is my favourite on the tripod bar and jib/hothead. Then a Stealth Zoom on a DVRig/Multirig which is a must for steady handheld shots.

Regards, Duncan.

Just to echo the same, there's no difference in quality of PAL/NTSC between the US and Euro models. But there's an old thread somewhere that discusses a possible difference in the analog signal to a monitor between the two models. This was originally mentioned in Adam Wilt's Z1 review in DV Magazine, you may be able to find it on their website. He claimed the colorspace was different using s-video output in PAL. In a thread here, some people agreed with this while others did not. It was a non-issue for me so I never dug any deeper (doesn't affect recording, capturing or using analog component video).

My Z1 will be 3 years old this summer and still meets my needs just fine. There are a lot of other cameras to consider in todays market however. Regarding LANC, be aware that this is one area where Sony messed up. I don't believe this has been fixed - correct me if I'm wrong. But you cannot access the slow zoom speeds with a LANC controller and that's a big problem for me shooting performances. I no longer use a LANC controller for this, just the rocker switch and it's a hit or miss proposition that way. I wish Sony would fix this - see the following: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=55047

Thank you for all the explanations gentlemen. Very helpful.
Boyd, I need the Z1 because half my work is for Japan and half, UK. ( Canon wanted an extra 500$ to get me a switchable 50i/60i XHA-1)
Camera (Z1E) arrived this morning from Creative somebody-or-other.
It'll get used in anger next week in Cork & Dublin.
I'll not be back in the UK until 1stMarch, Duncan. I plan to DHL your camera on Monday the 3rd.
Dugi
PS Thanks for the ancillary gear tips. ( is 0.8 the widest adapter that Sony do?)
Dugi.

We have a couple of the Century Optics lenses for the Z1. We have a .7 and a .3 fisheye. The .7 is a zoom through wide lens, which is nice. http://tinyurl.com/35gfdj

Now you have me thinking Jeff. How much is an extra 0.1 of W/A worth?...
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...2BSI%26otn%3D4

That is a good price for the Sony. The Sony does work well.
I made a mistake--We have the Century Optics .6 (noticeably wider than the .8), which is $370 at B&H.

Here are the Pros & Cons for me : The Sony gets threaded onto the filter threads of the Z1. We use a metal ring filter to prevent stripping the threads, but even without the filter the lens is very slow to get on and off. Additionally it makes a "howling" sound no matter how fast or slow it is done. The Century optics is a partial zoom through (up to 6x), and mounts with a quick bayonet style mount with a locking collar. When the wide lens is used in a quiet space, such as a church or in a courtroom it is impossible to add or remove the sony, because of the screeching noise. The Century optics is a fast mount, and is thinner & lighter. I think the sony may be a full zoom through lens though, allowing you to use the full zoom range of the camera with the lens attached.

Z1 Lanc
 

Hi Boyd,

My Z1 will be three years old in June. Used it in Turkey, China, Guatemala, and on the way to Cambodia and Indonesia. I use a Canon LANC controller, that can change speeds (choice of 5 settings) and solves the speed problem for me.

Regards,

Jack

Jack: you got your Z1 at exactly the same time as mine :-) But take a look at the link I posted. Can your LANC allow you to zoom from full wide to full telephoto any slower than 22 seconds? If so, then that is a result which nobody else seems to have achieved. My much less expensive PDX-10 could do a 45 second slow zoom.

Jeff: I also have the Century Optics 0.6x. Like all their products, it is well made. But the optics are very disappointing. It has rather extreme barrel distortion, which can create an interesting effect in some cases, but gets rather ugly indoors where you have lots of straight lines. And aside from that, it's rather soft. I think this can be a helpful accessory, but certainly not something you want on your lens very much if you're looking for high quality images.

I'm also looking at a wide for my Z1 - from this thread, it sounds like the Sony is the one to go for assuming you don't need the extra width and won't be taking it off the camera too much!
I want to use mine with a merlin - but that's the subject of another thread!!

Ditto+Fully Zoomable

Jeff, to fix the issue of noise, take a bar of soap and put a very very small amount of soap on the ring threads.... now screw on the lens a couple of times to spread the soap around all the threads...

it doesn't take much soap, an amount where you can't actually see the soap.