I made this video for you guys. I shot my EX3 using my Sr11 and did some overcranking tests. 720x30p at 60fps, using only an Ultra II SDHC and my two kensingtons. I tried both adapters... both worked... I've done this (by mistake) on a real world shoot so it appears to work.

Any ideas?

it's converting now.. (EDIT: video is up)

PMW EX3 SDHC combo overcranking test on Vimeo

When using the Kensington/SDHC card, are you asking why overcranking 30P at 60FPS works, but does not when overcranking 24P at 60FPS.

If so, it's due to max datarate via the SDHC combo and how Sony has "probably" limited the USB datarate over the expresscard slot.

Comparing the ratio 30/24, the written datarate for overcranking 24P is about 25% higher than overcranking 30P. This probably explains why you can overcrank 30P at 60FPS.

But, bear in mind you are probably "hanging on the edge" of running out of headroom at this written datarate. I would stick to SxS for overcrank. slo-mo effects "usually" are a VERY small percentage of overall captured footage.

Erik,

I was able to shoot up to ten minutes using a variety of settings. Some failed shortly after ten, some failed more quickly. For testing, I FILLED a 16GB card with ten second clips first (which took a while) to test the cards ability to handle a bunch of smaller clips and not error. Then, after that test, I FILLED a 16GB card (another hour) shooting the TV screen - motion video non-stop.

Many settings don't fail right away. They take a bit to error out. In order to thoroughly test a card combination, you have to consider the extremes under which they'll be used. You'll be able to achieve higher framerates overcranking 30p than you will with 24p. Either way, a two minute test is insufficient to determine results.

Have you tried overcranking for longer periods?

I don't really use the slo motion for longer than about 30 seconds at a time. I was just surprised that it worked at all with the SDHC at 60fps S&Q.. after reading this thread I just thought it would fail right away..

I wasn't looking to prove you guys wrong or anything, I was just showing that I was having some apparent good luck with my card. :)

SDHC cards....seems hit or miss?
 

I have read every post I can find on this whole adapter issue. and while it does sound like a great idea in theory, does everyone who is using it feel its solid? I am just hesitant to purchase only 2 8gb cards to find out I cant trust the SDHC card technique, and then have to order some more SxS cards.

I just see some threads as recent as last month that seem to be having issues recording in 1080p mode and losing clips every now and then....

it seems like a better choice for me would be to pick up the 60gb hard drive and call it a day (yea its expensive, but still cheaper then stocking up on 16gb cards).

does this sound like an accurate assumption, or do you feel the adapter technique is rock solid?

Ian...
I'm not sure how you got that impression.
I've been involved in a LOT of these posts from the start.

It's only hit and miss if you do not use the recommended expresscard media reader and SDHC card.

The Kensington 7-in-1 expresscard reader & 16GB SanDisk Ultra II 15/MBs SDHC cards works.
Also, the new 16GB SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s SDHC cards also work.

I have these cards and four Kensingtons and have used them everyday for over two months and have never had an error.

The real problem IS you may not find a Kensington to buy. It appears over the last couple months, we've managed to buy up a lot of the Kensington 7-in-1 cards.

Just remember, these are not for overcranking. Use your SxS to overcrank.

It works. What more can we say, Ian?

maybe thats where I am getting the thought. so just make sure its the kensington, and all will be well....thanks.

Yes,
The best deal is buying the 16GB SanDisk Ultra II 15MB/s SDHC cards. Do NOT buy these on ebay. There are fakes out these that will NOT work.
SanDisk Ultra II fakes - Google Search

Stick to someone like B&H Video.

I want to second what Steven said - The Kensington is a must-have. I've had to order it as a backordered item on Amazon - took a couple weeks but they have fulfilled my order both times.

Also, the SanDisk Ultra II 16GB cards and the Extreme III 16GB cards - flawless and I can vouch for both.

Worthy of mention, however, many of us that have tried have had nothing but success with the Transcend 16GB Class 6 cards - I have a few. At least one person received a defective card, so apparently the quality control is better on the SanDisk. However, for half the price, it is a worthwhile consideration. Personally, I'll keep buying Transcend cards if they remain half the price and they continue to perform flawlessly for me. If I run into a bad one, I may change my mind.

7-in-1 Media Reader for ExpressCard« Slot, Kensington 33407 at PartStore.com

right one?

That's the one. But charging $70 for a $40 item is a genuine rip-off.

it's bullet proof for normal HQ recording if you have the right combo... one of us would have had a failure by now..

yeah, just wanted to make sure I had it right. now to find it cheaper, and not backordered! hahaha.

Got my kensington/sandisk last night. been working beautifully

I ordered the 2 Kensington readers and Sandisk Extreme III memory from B&H. The readers were backordered and turned out to be a 3 week delay. My order arrived earlier this week, so B&H should have fresh stock. I also took delivery of 2 Kensingtons readers from Compusmart in Canada and those arrived in just under two weeks and so they also should have fresh stock.

As others have confirmed all works as expected. I was surprised to actually see the EX3 door close with room to spare once the card/reader are installed. The memory card sure are tiny to move around for off-loading but a minor inconvenience considering the price.

Yeah, good thing we aren't recording to MicroSDHC!

SanDisk | Products | Mobile Products | SanDisk microSD? and microSDHC? Cards

I've mentioned this earlier in the thread but I got a defective Sandisk UltraII that I got replaced from the vendor so Sandisks QC isn't perfect either.

Also - I just got my second adapter that has been out of stock for over a month. Appearantly they are still making them!

A few weeks ago I decided to go down the SDHC route for my EX3... and duly ordered my Kensingtons (which of course are out of stock everywhere... ).

At the same time I also purchased some very inexpensive "Unitek" readers on eBay (AU$6.43 which is approx US$4.00!!) with the view to using them just to off-load the data to a laptop so that I didn't need to tie up the Kensington adaptors... Lo and behold, they work in the camera!! Didn't want to come up and say anything until I'd given them a good workout... Done multiple card fills over a 3 week period - both long clips and short ones - and have not struck a problem running either 1080i or 1080p... Coupled with a Transcend 16G Class 6 SDHC card (AU$50) I have no problems capturing 1080i 50i HQ... Over-cranking on 720P is fine up to 52fps... Fails after about 15 sec @ 53fps... Now I'm keeping my Sony 8G and 16G cards specifically for over-cranking... 16G for less than AU$60!!

Okay, there is a down-side... in that the door covering the card slots doesn't close (even on the EX3...) by just the smallest amount... When I get brave (or maybe a cheap 2G card), I might have a go at filing down the end of the SDHC card in order to allow the door to close, but hey! I'm happy that these things work!! For "inside" shoots, they're great!

....just thought I'd share the info....

how about Transcend Express34 SSDs?
 

I just came across the Transcend Express/34 SSD units.

Does anyone think these even have a chance of working?

Transcend 32GB (MLC) Express Card/34 Solid State Disk SSD Transcend SSD 32GB (MLC) Express Card/34 Solid State Disk Detail Page

-Greg

It MIGHT work - if the listed specs are accurate. It only needs to be able to write at 5MB/s so support EX1/3 in HQ modes.

Does this Sandisk reader do the job? I don't see it mentioned among the posts (but there are a lot of them!): Sandisk SDAD-109R? I can't see the Kensington at B&H.

If that works and the door closes on the EX1 ... wow.
Wayne

I have to admit...
 

Is there somewhere ... please ...

a complete explanation about all these bits and bytes and MB and Mbit per second
and so forth??? Where can a read that a card matches the required specs or better said
is read and write speed in MB/s bites or Bytes, is the datarate in HQ 35 MBits or MBytes?

I am confused (and never was good at maths, I must admit).
Someone please enlighten me. Thanks.

all video rates are usually in bits (little b=little bit big B=big Byte).
1 Byte= 8 bits.
so 35Mbits/s= 4.375 MBytes/sec

Usually, capacity (size) of a device is expressed in Bytes.
so a sandisk card is 16GBytes running at 15Mbit/sec or 4.375MBytes/sec.
You still have to guess if the unit is described using 1000 or 1024 multiplier.....

anyway, even if you know all of this, it stay useless since experience shows that card rated at good values are still unable to function properly.

It is a bit like "lumens" or "watts" when applied to consumer electronics.
Marketing B.S is very creative at using science....

Peter,

You really couldn't find this information in this thread? It's been detailed two or three times in the past NINE HUNDRED POSTS! AAARRGGHHH!!

Seriously, though, this has become a cumbersome and even daunting thread for those stumbling across it to find out information. I suspect we'll need to answer many of of the same questions over and over.

I know this question has been posted before but I still have not seen the true
answer... ( have seen workarounds)

The question is " has anyone found a card holder or case that is specific to these cards "


Thanks

Ah, les suisses. Ils savent comment expliquer une chose compliquee
en deux phrases. Merci Francois.

And for all those non-fracophonians: Appreciate such simple explanations and come
back for further explanations if necessary ;-) P.

Giroud you can't have it both ways.
You say
35Mbits/s= 4.375 MB/sec
then you say
15Mbits/s= 4.375 MB/sec

Which is it?

Ronn I think this is a typo and should read 35 MBytes in both cases.
Nothing else makes sense to me.

Greg - hey my friend I didn't know you had an EX1. Good to know if I need a 2nd - and vice versa. My contact info is at kilby-dot-tv .

As for this transcend 32GB card - why don't you buy one and let us know? :)

That cards write speed is 8MB a second. Considering real performance is usually around 2/3rds of what's stated (the sandisk 15MB a sec are found to be what, 9?), that leaves no headroom whatsoever for HQ recording.

Good one Greg!
 

According to the specs, it can write at "up to" 8MB/s (and reading at 18MB/s) - I think the SDHC cards we're all using are writing around 6MB/s - so it sounds to me like it might work.

Good point Jon - guess we'll have to see.

Are the Transcend 32 Gb cards faster than the Lexar SSD Express 8 Gb?

Based on what we've discoverd through many tests, the bottleneck is NOT the SDHC or Kensignton expresscard, but how fast the EX camera communicates to these expresscard USB devices. Sony either did this intentionally or bad coding for USB transfer. My guess is they set a limitation intentionally. Even their own PHU-60K is limited on the expresscard USB interface.

Just a quick update on Kensington 7 in 1 card availability. Ordered a couple from Amazon.com on Fri 11/14 with Amazon's notation that cards are out of stock and they would notify of shipping date. Later that afternoon, received email that cards would be delivered between 11/19-11/21. Received confirmation of shipment with tracking number on Sat 11/15.

Also decided to try a couple of Transcend 16gb cards which, at $28, is less than half the price of the SanDisk (which has been working well for me). By all indications, Transcend should perform as well.

They've worked great for me!

I tried them. They fit great, but they're too slow for HQ, and I think even SQ. They would record for a short time then error out. I returned them. If they did work they'd be a great deal. I measured the speed on my Macbook Pro with some benchmarking software and they were quite slow, so I believe this was the problem.

It's the class 6 8 and 16gb cards that work without issues, I am sure that the pioneering members of this forum will soon let us know when there are new products that work.