Re: my pmw-300
 

Well, if you parallel 2 S-8U93s and run nothing else on those batteries, maybe. The maximum wattage got raised to 50W with the S-8U93's D-Tap.

Re: my pmw-300
 

Just an update/observations:

The new SWITs (the new S-8U63 and S-8U93) will always have a risk of throwing a battery error when powered up after being externally depleted by D-tap, USB sources, or by battery plates on lights/monitors/etc.

This is because the battery misreports it's capacity/level based on what it was when the camera was last powered up and/or it resets it's readings to misreporting a full battery. If this is depleted when the battery is not powering the camera, it doesn't smart-update when cold-booting the camera until 2 bootups later, 1 of them where the camera is almost guaranteed to throw a battery error. (The camera will power up properly the first time in certain scenarios, and report a full battery with the proper minutes remaining, but the wrong voltage and charge percentage info, which also happens most of the time when hot swapping to any coded SWIT battery from any other coded or genuine battery. Genuine batteries properly store the last charge percentage when the battery is not in use. The next reboot causes the camera to throw a battery error almost guaranteed, as the capacity and actual charge level needed to be updated. Sometimes if a battery is just left to discharge, using it after a while will immediately cause a battery error.)

Dramatic changes between battery levels between 2 SWIT batteries might also cause this, so might switching between revisions of the 8U63. (for older cameras like the XDCAM EX cameras. I own both the first revision of the S-8U63 and the new S-8U93) This is most prominent during cold swapping batteries. As a theoretical preventive measure, I've been leaving the DC IN powered by the BC-U1 on bootup and while hot swapping to prevent this. You cannot reliably cold swap these batteries without voltage being fed to the DC IN and having the DC IN connected. (for a field operation, you may want a D-tap to XDCAM EX cable during bootup, then yank it after the camera boots up. Alex, this is incentive to provide a regulated 12V D-tap to EX series cable for troubleshooting these batteries on cameras with hot swap capability. Sorry PMW-100, 200 and PXW-X200 users, you'll have to cold swap and deal with battery errors.)

These observations were made with a PMW-EX1R on the latest firmware. YMMV with other cameras.

Re: my pmw-300
 

Jack if going V Mount I use these plates that have regulated 5v, 7.2v and 12 volt outputs.
Sony V Mount Battery Plate Power Supply LP E6 for DSLR Camera Rig 5D2 5D3 7D | eBay

I then buy these power supplies and cut the cables off. They are cheap enough. The cable end has the proper pin plug to suit the Sony EX/PMW cameras. I just terminate the cut cable with the supplied correct cable plug that fits into the 12 volt output on the V Mount plate. A bit of solder and heat shrink does the job!
Fit Sony EX3 EX1 PMW EX3 XDCAM EX Camcorder Power Supply Charger AC DC Adapter | eBay

Another plate I use is the Hawke Woods VL-CA4X which sandwiches between an existing V Mount and battery, it has a quality regulated 12v 50watt D-Tap output that on my FS700 can power a B4 servo zoom lens.

I do notice Hawke Woods do now list a V Mount unit called a VL-P300 that they specifically list for the PMW-300. I would imagine it has 12v out as is specifically listed for the 300.
VL-P300 | V-Lok Camera Adaptor - Sony PMW300 - 1x Power-Con - Hawk-Woods Ltd

Chris Young
CYV Productions
Sydney

Re: my pmw-300
 

I just ordered and a recived a Switronix EX-L96UD updated from BH photo and tried it on my pmw-300 and it worked, it gives me minutes meter in my viewfinder and im not using any special adapter. I was surprised

Re: my pmw-300
 

The pigtail design still will cause issues in the long-run and the one I sold was getting tons of battery charging errors when it was bumped around with the pigtail plugged in. I had to give up on that battery and I sold it AS IS for $5.

The S-8U93 is great, but you still need a D-tap to Sony EIAJ connector to troubleshoot the batteries in case you boot up to a battery error.

Edit: Ooooh. A D-tap to PXW-X160/X180 adapter... http://www.hawkwoods.co.uk/Prods/Product/PC-19

Re: my pmw-300
 

Wow. A sizable chunk of my observations were false... The S-8U93 will do this no matter if the DC IN is connected if the battery is first attached to the camera. Unlike the older pigtail batteries with no coded data, when the camera receives bad battery info data, it will spit out a battery error no matter what if externally depleted upon cold boot, EVEN WITH THE DC IN CONNECTED. Most of the observations regarding it reporting a false full charge were correct, but you need to use the DC IN, then turn on the camera, THEN plug in the battery. (Unless that's wrong too) When powering these batteries after external depletion, you have to leave the battery bracket empty upon bootup... (and this is still a theory)

Edit: It will happen no matter what. There is no avoiding occasional battery errors with the new SWITs. But if you have a hot-swap capable camera, you can get out of the software lockout after putting the battery in the camera after the camera has booted from DC power with no battery in the slot much easier than if you can't. (Again, sorry PMW-100, 200 and PXW-X200 users.) The method I just described to use DC with the battery slot empty, then slot in, out, then back in should work on cameras with hot swap capability.

Re: my pmw-300
 

Another update:

The S-8U93 will even do this even if there's a minute change in charge from background drain. It will successfully boot one day, then a minute change in charge will cause a battery error. Temperature fluctuations can cause this too! HAVE THAT D-TAP TROUBLESHOOTING CABLE OR YOUR BC-U1 DC CABLE READY.

Hot swapping is the only way to solve this, and the Sony engineers have made that hard on newer XDCAM series cameras excluding the 4K models.

Re: my pmw-300
 

What those Sony engineers have done regarding battery compatibility is right up there with the Adobe Illustrator programmers encrypting the text content within the Illustrator file format in order to frustrate the Corel Draw programmers when they were updating their import filter for the next version of Illustrator.

It's fun and games in a competitive industry. Probably a lot of swearing and/or giggles behind the scenes, too.

Andrew