I lost my first lense cap among other vital stuff (my remote!) on a gruelling shoot in Belize. I borrowed a second cap from my friend just before taking off to South Africa last year. I remember hearing the second lense cap hit the floor of a van after an all-day drive - when we stopped the van - it had somehow vanished. I thus began my quest for replacement caps - and none of my fave stores seemed to have the right size. Being a bit of a "Professor on Gilligan's Island"- type I decided to set my personal radar scope on lense cap style objects - I first tried tennis ball can lids, coffee cup tops, you get the idea - the other day I went to my local store gazed down the snack shelf - and well - the rest is history. Thanks for asking!

I have the Pelican 1520 hard case for my VX2000. It is great! Plenty of room for VX2000 and accessories. Has good protection (even water proof) for the camera. I have demonstrated to friends how strong it is by putting my VX2000 in it, laying it on the floor and standing on it. I think Pelican makes some of the best cases on the market. I use Pelican for all my cameras. Check B& H and Camera World of Oregon for prices.

Budd

Pelican Hard Case
 

I have the Pelican 1550 Pro. I have enough room in it for my VX2000 with the NP-F960 battery attached, 2 extra NP-F960 batteries, a filter set, the remote control, 5 mini-DV tapes, a wide angle lens, (and room for a 16:9 lens attachment), user's manual, Azden SGM-1X external mic, Studio 1 XLR-Pro XLR adaptor, and cables. I wish I got the 1550 that had wheels! In fact, I just may get a larger Pelican case with wheels later this year. Hope this helps.

Edit: I also forgot to add that we use pelican cases in the military to safely store our laptops, night vision goggles, certain weapons, cameras, etc. These cases work very well in brutal environments. I would not hesitate to have my VX2000 checked at an airport. In my opinion if you could carry the VX2000 onboard in a soft carry-on case, I would do that. Just to keep the "baby" close, per se.

VX2000 Companion website updated
 

Added Dan Ballmer's PD150 review and a few other little things...

http://www.dvinfo.net/vx2000.htm

Not quite on topic, but I noticed the other day that a LOT of the links (in "Resources" mainly I think it was) on your "Son of a watchdog" page no longer exist (404). Just thought I would let you know :).

Oh, and one more thing, a spelling mistake in the bit youve just updated: "both studio and independane" - independant?

Thanks for spotting the typo, Dan -- it's fixed -- plus I added an article, a superb technical one about PD150 audio by Jon Tatooles.

"Son of Watchdog" is in sorry need of a complete overhaul; considering how old that camera is, I'm kinda waiting on Canon to give me a *real good reason* to re-do that website (keep your eyes peeled).

...and just for the record the word is spelled with thre 'e's - that's independent!..(a very important word for us DV pioneers).

That's one of those words that always confuses me.....

/me writes note to myself.... "must remember 3 e's"

Good Job!!!!

Lou Bruno

the Outer limits of the VX 2000 manual!
 

Time to get out the manual and explore! I'm interested in what people think of some of the wackier functions on the camera - slide show, memory mix, to name two - also the 'inboard' digi and pic effects...Anyone have interesting tips, random discoveries or downright amazing applications to share?

Spilled Soda on VX2000 - PLEASE HELP!!!
 

I spilled a Sprite on my camera (don't ask) and am bummed out. Everything seems to be working except for the switch that allows me to choose the function (vcr/off/camera/still). It is stuck on still camera mode whether it is in any of the other positions. I think my warranty has warn out, so I need help figuring out what to do.

I would like to take it apart and clean that contact so that I don't have to pay a lot to have it repaired since that is (I think) the only thing wrong with it. Are there any guides online to disassembling a VX2000?

What are the repair options for this camera?

Thanks,

r

Howdy from Texas,

I strongly reccomend against disassembling your camera. You could seriously bugger up things worse than they already are. Best thing to do is send it in to Sony service and pay the $250. From experience, I can tell you that in the future you will be much more careful with your camera. ;-) Good luck,

I'm batting about .500

I've fixed some stuff and I have a closet of stuff with the panels off and a cup of screws. Keep looking for help. If I knew how the thing comes apart I might go for a bit of playing around. But the tolerances on the heads, etc. will be tight! Any mistake could be costly. Maybe up to $250 nudge nudge wink wink

sony vx2000 vs dsr-pd150 in low light conditions
 

I currently own a sony trv-900 and film alot of low light conditions in dark clubs and bars. I have had difficulties with picture quality with the sony trv-900.


I am interested in knowing how does the sony vx2000 compare to the sony dsr-pd150 in very low light conditions, and which is better in this situation.

i found them to be the same in low light -EXCELLENT
same chip, same electronic's ...