PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

One of my biggest fears, and I'm sure it's the same for other videographers, is that the camera will fail in the middle of a shoot. This happened to me the other night. Luckily it was a 2-camera shoot so I had another and I sent my helper back to the office to retrieve a third one.

I don't know what happened. It had been recording for about 5 minutes and I was changing the frequency on my wireless mike when it happened so I don't know if it gave a warning or not but when I looked up at it, it was dead. Blank, nothing, nada nothing in the viewfinder or any other lights. It had been running off AC so I put a battery in but still nothing.

So I was wondering if anyone knew of a fuse or something that could be replaced. I've looked on the internet but have not been able to find anything.

Luckily I had just purchased the X160 so I can still do the 2-camera shoots that I have lined up if I have to send this one off for repairs.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

Did you notice any of the 'magic smoke' coming out of the camera? :-)

Well, this will have to be a good one. According to the service guys it's had pretty much nil issues so far. Most interested to find out what went wrong with the camera.

Andrew

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

No magic smoke. Just my luck that I'll set some kind of precedent.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

When I had a JVC HM200, the camera went totally dead one night. It was on, then poof! No power.
It was a fried main circuit board. I'm not saying that's your camera's issue, but mine had the same symptoms.
Luckily it was under warranty and was fixed for free.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

were you running off the supplied ac adapter?

i had a problem many years ago with a sony ac adapter that didn't handle a mains surge very well and fried the power board in the camera.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

Yeah, using the PS that came with the camera. I make sure that each camera I use is powered by the one that it came with.

Sony has had my camera now for 3 weeks and I have not heard anything from them at all.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

As an update, Sony repair says the M.C.B. RE-320 (COMPL-NC) and the M.C.B. RE-321 (COMPL-NC) boards were bad and had to be replaced. $1600 bill to fix.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

I just had a odd issue with my pmw-300, using a battery camera was on and battery died. I put a new battery on and camera went on i saw a image in viewfinder for a second and then it went blue. menu partially worked, i could play back clips from the sxs card just fine. But i cant record or even get into full menu. Camera was dropped at Sony on Friday late .

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

well I just got my estimate to repair my pmw-300 it needs a new Board a dcp-64 that and labor is 2745.00

its absurd, not happy

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

Not surprised you are having problems. This camera has been around since 2011, and is showing its age. Come on Sony, let's have a 2016 version of the 300.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

"This camera has been around since 2011"

Not true. The PMW-300 was announced in June 2013 and I bought it as soon as it was available in the UK which was at the start of 2014...

http://www.shootingimage.co.uk/MoreI...ny/PMW300.html

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

I got mine in 2014 and it's been 99.9% wonderful.

Andrew

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

After the second time I toasted a camera, I started asking questions. Now I try to always run on batteries but some times it is not practical so I carry a UPS and plug my AC adapter into that.
Lots of hotels, churches, etc. have electrical problems, especially in downtown Atlanta hotels. I even fried a laptop due to a surge!

No more problems.....yet.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

Yeah, it's a always a good idea to at least have a good quality surge protector to plug your camera into when battery power is not an option. I use only Sony batteries on my 300 also. The cost is higher, but for peace of mind it's worth it.

I actually took a chance and bought my 300 used on ebay. It had been used on a reality TV program, so I was pretty nervous about how it would hold up. One year and over 500 hours later, it hasn't missed a beat. I love the camera, and often get remarks from people that "it's nice to see a REAL camera", or "that looks like a SERIOUS camera". It's not 4K like my other cameras, but it is by far the best camera that I have owned.

Re: PMW-300K1: It finally happened (problem)
 

I have run into a power problem with my 300. I cannot get a battery to connect. I can only use the power supply to power the camera. I am not sure exactly where the problem lies, if it's the battery release button not engaging/disengaging problem or something else. The pins that align with the holes in the battery appear to be straight and not bent. Has anyone else experienced this?