Ed, glad to hear it. I didn't respond to your last post because I was afraid of my answer. Mine was coming but I have only been waiting 5 weeks. You had been waiting 10 and I was afraid to think that I was getting mine before you. But, I guess he builds them in groups. I am glad we are getting them. Mine is shipping on the 29th as well.

Just wondering..
 

I'm thinking of buying one in the next few weeks. Tell me, what do you think...it seems the thread dropped off and I need to know!

Thanks

steve,
one advice i can give is post questions on this forum. i only get promp replies when i post a question here. john seldom reply to my mail after the money is through.
i'm thankful for this forum and people here.

best of luck,
ed

Who is John?

So, is it all you expected?

John is the manufacturer of the Magiqcam. In all fairness, I assume that he has a day job and a family and doesn't do this full time. I notice that his phone hours are in the evening so I assume he is working during the day.

He is a nice guy trying to make it and, as far as I have heard, makes an excellent product, but I will know more next week when mine arrives.

This forum is excellent.

I just finished phase 1 of my new crane. Now, I get to post on that topic. :)

Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Please let me know as soon as yours arrives. Fill me in on all the details. It's important to know your reaction as soon as it arrives and you try to use it as I'll probably feel the same.

I’ll look forward to seeing you on the Jib side when you done.

Steve
Jib Op
www.kyvideoservices.com

I've had my magiqcam for a couple of weeks now. So far I haven't had much time with it mostly due to other work. However it seems to be a very well built and good rig. For the price I think it's a great deal.
I'm not unfamiliar with steadicams, but I would definetely call myself newbee as operator. I have tried bigger "real" rigs a couple of times and the big thing with them is how tired you get after just about 15 minutes with them. They really hit your back if you are not used to them. I find the magiqcam very back friendly though, and I have no problem running around with it shooting for an hour or so. It is so much easier on your body. The downside with such a light rig is that it's not as stable in the air as the bigger ones. When shooting outside, wind certainly can be an issue.

I'll write a few words on each of the parts of the rig based on my experience with it so far.

The vest:
Comfortable, pretty lightweight and easy to adjust. Haven't played with the adjustable socket block yet, but it seems to be a nice adjustment to have.

The arm:
Double articulated, feels very smooth and nice, yet small and lightweight. You feel that it's very well made. The springs are covered with some kind of black "dirt protector", pretty much like stockings pulled over the springs, which is a good thing, since the springs will easily collect dust and dirt otherwise.

The sled:
The sled uses a pretty simple construction, with telescopic parts which you can adjust to desired lenght and get it properly balanced. There are two small "arms" at the bottom of it with plates that you can mount your monitor and battery pack onto. There are also a set of weights (metal bricks) included, complete with mounting screws that will screw into holes located at the front and back of the lower sled. This will help you compensate when the monitor or battery is more heavy than the other.
The plate for mounting the battery could in my opinion have been fixed in position rather than being able to rotate and then locked with a knob. I find it quite hard to get it locked tight enough to stay completely in position.

The camera stage uses a Manfrotto/Bogen quick release plate, which unfortunately was of a bigger size than the one on my 503 head. Since the rig is made for lightweight cameras I thing the 503 plate would have been a better choice since many people use the 501/503 head for such cameras.

The stage is adjustable in both axis, but it's not as convenient as on the bigger rigs where you can really really fine tune it as shooting goes on. Of course this can be done with the magiqcam as well, it's just not as easy and precise. This is something I would like to see improved in newer versions, since it is an adjustment that you will change all the time during a day.

Worth to mention although you already heard it a dozen times before is that this is not something you just put together and it will give you great pictures. Using any type of steadicam systems requires alot (and I mean alot!) of practice and patience. If you are up for it though, you will get better every time you use it, and have a great time in the meanwhile.

All in all,
The magiqcam is a very well made rig that is pretty easy on your body and feels smooth in operation. There is no doubt that John made a great work. For the price it's unbeatable!


This was meant to be some short words on the magiqcam, but turned out a little more well covered than that. =)
Anyway, I will work out a real review of this system, complete with pictures and demo footage as soon as I get some more time with it.


Good luck with your purchase!

Regards.
Johan Lundberg

Thanks for the review but can you take a pic of the new adjustable socket block?
I would love to see how they accomplished thier version that Charles P. encourage them to add. Thanks.

Hi there Charles!

I sure will as soon as I get back home. Won't be until in a few days though. By the way, how did the music video project turn out?

It has been postpone. Actually that's great because I can finish building my stabilizer. The last part is being machined now.
BTW, I'm finishing up on my second and third book now.

The second book is how to modify the Glidecam V16/V20 models base to get a more module-like design for easier dynamic balance. The methods could also be used for any low-end models but I chose the Glidecam because it was more popular and more easy for me to modify.

The third book will just be a collection of past and present rigs with all their different variations. Basically it's just a collection of galleries.

I'm doing both books at the same time.

That sounds great Charles.

Here are the pics as promised:

www.techcrew.se/magiqcam/vest.jpg
www.techcrew.se/magiqcam/block.jpg

Hope this helps, and good luck with your books!

Thanks johan. What I see though is the side-to-side adjustment. Is there one for the fore and aft? I think it is the most important of the two.
BTW, that side-to-side adjustment that they've made is a pretty smart design. Very simple. Is the screw size for the side-to-side adjustments a 5mm or 6mm? Looks pretty small to me.

If I haven't completely missed something that is the adjustment that is. I can't see anything else, and that is the one they mention in the instructions. I understand now what you were refering to.

I quote the instructions:

"The adjustable Socket Block is where the arm pin attaches to the vest. By adjusting the bearing piece towards the rear and to the right, you can minimize the arm's natural tendency to move away and to the left of the operator. Simply loosen the screws located at the top and bottom of the socket block, position the bearing where you want it, and tighten the screws back. This will take a little experimentation to get the setting where the arm will stay in one place when the sled and camera is mounted to the arm."

That's what I suspected. They have only included the sided-to-side and not the fore and aft adjustments.

The fore and aft adjustments adjusts the rig from pulling away from you or towards you. With this type of adjustment one can determine whe neutral placement of the arm and sled. That is, making the sled hoover in front of you instead of wanting to pull forward.
As Charles P. mentioned once, it is one of the reason for fatigue and I totally agree with him. I only made the fore and aft adjustment on my vest because, as I mentioned ealier, it is the one I deem the most important of the two adjustments. It has made a huge difference. I'm just need to fine tune it a little.

Either way, the adjustment on the magiqcam is a good improvement over some of the low end models. Big plus for the Magiqcam

Mine will be here tomorrow. I will take some detailed pics of all of it for those interested.

I would think the fore and aft adjustments would be critical in making the adjustments needed to "center" the rig on yourself so your not pulling or pushing it. It's all about balance. I couldn't imagine trying to run a jib with only one axis to balance on.

Indeed. I had suggested the two axis adjustment to John at Magiqcam, and he had decided to just incorporate the one axis of right to left. I agree that fore and aft is probably the more influential of the two. The rig usually has a tendency to pull away forward and to the opposite side that it is attached, so the adjustments must be made in tandem.

The new Tiffen Flyer has a two axis socket adjustment, and best of all the whole assembly uses the same mounting screws as the full-size socket block that is standard on all front-mounted vests.

I'm looking at the Tiffn Flyer but it is 6K and everytime I look, it seems I'm pushing my budget up too.

I don't know but, the Flyer is looking really good to me. I'm afraid of the final costs after all the little things you need to have are purchased too though.

If magiqcam had more than a single adjustment, I would consider it, but (to me) its better to spend a little more and have both rather than fighting the rig for years. It's just really hard to pass up Magiqcam's price!

I don't know much at all about the Flyer but it seems to be "professional" and add-ons are available and is well supported...just dang expensive.

Someone once told me , "buy the best and cry once." Gads, $6000 is a little more than I would like to spend (I can if I really feel I need to though) and just like most, I'm just not sure yet which one to buy.

Most of the work will be television and other Betacam & HD stuff, so triax adaptors, program feeds, routing of cables, connectors etc are important.

Any other options in the >6K price range?

Hej Johan. Next time, if you're going to post anything for me or Charles P. just indicate it with the first letter in the last time. Otherwise we will get confuse to whom you're referring to.

I knew you were reffering to me but Charles P. wouldn't. He and I have talked about coming up with a solution to this. I havn't found one yet.

Aah well. the fight continues. :)

BTW, share some pics with us later as well as with anyone else.

Steven wrote:
"Any other options in the >6K price range?"

Yeah, the Basson looks very interesting, but it's hard to get any comments on it. http://www.bassonsteady.com

How about it, guys?

Wayne

Yeah...Basson is out of the country though and that kinda worries me.

What I think I want is a Flyer at 1/2 the price...lol.

Anyone using a Flyer in here?

The Flyer hasn't shipped yet, there are currently only two demo models in existence. I've flown it, and I love it. It performs beautifully. I wrote about it in another thread (sorry, in a hurry and can't find it at the moment). To me, the difference in the price tag is justifiable in terms of the performance, particularly in terms of the arm. I do understand that it will be out of many's price range.

Wayne, I haven't heard positive things about the Bassoon system, from a hardware and customer support perspective. I haven't flown it, however.

Sometime when you find the thread, drop it in...I would like to read it.

It seems to me that my options are kinda limited. I'll keep my options open and focus in on the Flyer. It seems like a good, solid, mid-range choice for me and I doubt I'll ever need to fly anything outside of its weight limit.

I'll go look for some links...

My Magiqcam is sitting at home. My wife sent me pictures by email at work....... tick tock, tick tock,,,, time............ I wanna go home... I will post pics tonight of the Magiqcam for those who are interested.

Where are you Scott? ;-)

I have been working with this Magiqcam for over an hour and I am not perfect at it. I hate it... Ok, ok,ok... You all know I am kidding..

My first impressions are that this is a very well made product. First rate components.

Now, after balance and such, I immediately noticed that a for and aft adjustment is a must and the Magiqcam doesn't have it. I find myself having to lean way back to keep the arm from taking off forward.

It took maybe about 30-45 minutes to get a good balance. I am still nit picking it, but it wil lwork for now.

The unit is very smooth and somewhat easy to control. Having never flown anything before, I was a little scared about how it all works, but this unit will make learning easy. Any problems are my fault, not the Magiqcam.. :)

I will post some pictures later and get a nice wide open space to really train myslef on the in's and out's.

Have fun with it Scott!

just received mine, well sort of. its in my parent house. will get to open it tomorrow. i'll try to post some pics on monday if possible.
i hope its worth the wait.

ed

<<<-- Originally posted by Scott Balkum :

Now, after balance and such, I immediately noticed that a for and aft adjustment is a must and the Magiqcam doesn't have it. I find myself having to lean way back to keep the arm from taking off forward.

Yeah, thats what I though and it has also been my biggest concern...

It only makes sense that you must balance on both axis to become "neutral." This would greatly reduce the amount of "lean-back" to off-set the rig. Sadly, because of this one little detail, it will take me out of the >$2K range. (good-bye savings...sniff...I will miss you...)

Steven:

If it makes you feel better, the Flyer not only has a 2-axis socket block, it has (compared to the other rigs in this weight class) a much more sophisticated and easier to use set of camera adjustments at the top stage; a very smooth gimbal; the ABSOLUTE best arm in its class (the biggest selling point) and an extremely good LCD monitor that is actually daylight-viewable. I have not gone on record as endorsing a Tiffen Steadicam before, and in fact haven't owned that company (or the previous holder of the Steadicam's license, Cinema Products) equipment since 1996, but I am an enthusiastic fan of the Flyer. I am shooting a short with the Mini35 in a few weeks and I have actually elected to use this rig instead of my own full-size setup as an experiment, and I feel fully confident that my operating will not suffer in the least, something I could not say about any other rigs. But again, the difference between $2K and $6K, while minimal in the pro Steadicam world, is a big deal for most DV users and thus the compromises are usually acceptable.

Thanks Charles,

I dunno but that sounded like a solid endorsement if I ever heard one.

I was "wishful thinking" but realistically, I know I have to move up to this price class.

I had to make the same decisions when I bought my Jimmy Jib and doing the research makes all the difference. No one wants to spend more then they need to.

I already knew there were many advantages, and had already made allowances to budget for the Flyer.

I would really like to know what your review is after you shoot the short with the Flyer. I understand at that price point you can’t have everything, but I feel confident that this will be a solid, mid-range rig that will easily pay for itself within a year. Fortunately, I don’t need a “full-blown” $66K rig but one with the ample features you have already described.

This gets back to what I was calling “feel” and “I” as a buyer have to decide at what price-point I have what I think is needed to perform my job. So far, the Flyer is the only one I feel comfortable with. What is really needed by me is, to strap one on myself, and have a go at it. It seems that may be a while, since none are available at this time, so your review will be very important to me and I’m sure, to others.

I would like to talk to you further by phone if we can, as I have some detailed questions.

I spoke with John on Friday about the block adjustment. There was something interesting that he told me that I didn't see. The adjustment for the block side to side, also affect for and aft. The block is actually not mounted vertically on the harness. It is mounted at an angle. He said he did this after to speaking with Charles and trying to come up with a happy medium. If he had to manufacture a 4 adjustment block, the price would have to go up considerably. By offsetting the 2 position block, as you adjust the screws so that the top of the block moves right, it ALSO moves back....

This actualy worked. I adjusted it and, low and behold, success. A great design innovation that saved money and works.

So far, very, VERY pleased with the design and unit.

Well, something I did not see or make out. I still don't notice it. A close up pic would probably do ;)

I finally made some hires pics of the rig. I know it's been a while and you can flog me if you wish. The pics are at http://www.viproductions.tv/magiqcam

They are not small (between 1.3-2.5 Mb per pic) but if there is anything else you need to see let me know.

Thanks for sharing Mark. Great pics. A little big in size but great.

I know they are large, that's why I gave the warning. Wanted to make sure noone said they couldn't see anything. Sometimes people want larger pics, some want smaller. Can't make everyone happy I guess.

No problem Mark. What kind of barttery are you using? I noticed it is being supported by small ball-gimbal type piece.

I am running two types of cameras on it so for the HD10 I use camera battery but for my DV500 or betasp, etc.. I wire into the dual NP1 battery pack. That pack also runs my lcd monitor.

Thanks. Two more questions. Is the dual arm have one or two springs per section? How does it perform?

Hey Mark,

How does the DV500 hold up with it. I'm assuming this is a JVC GY-DV500. I have the same camera (with a Cannon 18x6.5 lens) and this would be really important since this will be my primary camera most of the time.