I bought two from B&H on 5/2/08. One was in the 3000's and the other in the 4000's.

jenny,

did you check the time stamp on the battery included with your new EX1's?
i got mine last week and the battery was stamped 3/28/2008.

paul

Mine are 2-07-2008 and 12-19-2007. I assume I am safe since my serial numbers are over 2000, or do I need to update my cameras?

b&h only sells authorized sony pro gear.
should be good.

i heard the latest firmware is 1.0.3, not sure if this is correct.


paul

I checked my cam for the vignetting issue and also the backfocus, and could not find a problem with either.

Until just now, I did not know how to access the service menu to read the firmware version. But now I do, and it shipped with V1.05_0405. I picked it up from a local distributor, I do not know how long they had it. If anyone really wants to know, I could try the Fed-Ex tracking number on the label.

The serial number is XXX313X.

So as far as I know, the cam was updated already although the packaging was sealed.

On the backfocus issue, I tried to duplicate the problem reported by others by checking at all 3 ND filter positions, to no avail it seems correct.

to see the firmware and confirm the serial number, just press all 3 buttons in the back together, namely menu, select, and cancel.

this also allows you to get into some of the internal service manual functions, like fixing some stuck pixels if you have some.

the sony xdcam pro support at 800-883-6817 is very thorough and will walk you through anything you need with our EX1.

yes, tom, the latest firmware is 1.05_0405 and my serial # is in the 57xx with battery stamped 3/28/2008.

paul

...it does seem like the battery is draining fast though, while on the cam not in use.

tom

i have not seen this with the u60 battery. after a job of 2 hours and 4 days, i still get 3 lights on the battery.
are you using the same battery and are you using it at high altitudes?

paul

I'm using the battery that came with the cam, at Denver's elevation 5280 ft, yes.

Thanks Paul! I felt stupid asking and have been trying to find that out on my own before asking. You saved me lots of time.

Received mine last week. S/N is in the 5000 range.

John

I received my EX1 about 10 days ago from Abel, and I was able to get a 70xx s/n. Looks like there's a real range of stock out there, as they first told me that the most recent unit in stock in their LA branch was 55xx. After checking with the NY branch, I was able to get the newer unit. NY branch said they recently sold a ton of cameras, some of them to Columbia University- I assume that's for the film program. Firmware is v1.05_0405, and battery stamp is 08/05/09 (May 9th 2008, I guess).

I've been traveling and haven't had a chance to use the camera for more than a few minutes, but when I get some time I'll check to see what the status is on the various production bugs. I can confirm that the battery drain issue has been fixed- after leaving the fully charged BP-U60 on the camera for 24 hrs, readout went from 279 min to 263.

so!
this is where my annual fund contribution is going....
good grief.

paul

you're way off on that. your contribution actually bought a small part of an sxs card.

I've tested the backfocus, vignetting, and battery drain issues, and everything looks good. I did an IR contamination test, and it's not perfect. Not sure if this is improved over previous units or not. The attached image shows the test, shot with tungsten light.