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The Official Panasonic HDC-SD/TM90 Owners Thread - Page 3

post #61 of 174
12/20/11 at 12:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by michaeltsi View Post

SD90 - I will certainly try your method of setting to 1/120.

I also would recommend using manual control everywhere, this is one of the nicest feature of this camera. I used to have Canon HV20, and it has no manual control. What I noticed after I switched to TM90 that the camera doing adjustments while I am already shooting, and these adjustments are noticeable and very often simply irritating. WB can change back and forth, the exposure keeps changing all over (especially indoors), etc. While Canon did not allow any manual control, it also did not have these problem - maybe the camera did some adjustments during recording but they were very smooth and not noticeable whatsoever.

michaeltsi,
I noticed this also with my SD90 ... exposure varies indoors. In my case, it seems to have been caused by the camera going from one auto mode to another. I had faces in the scene, but they were just barely large enough to activate the Portrait Mode. I think that once in a while, the camera would go from Portrait Mode to Normal AI mode and change exposure accordingly.
I tested this later. I took a portrait of someone in Photoshop and removed the eyes, nose and mouth. I replaced them with just skin color. I then shot video of the portait displayed on my computer monitor. I would switch between the portait that had eyes/nose/mouth to the portrait that didn't. Everything else was identical. The camera would of course go into and out of Portrait Mode as the images changed (without eyes/nose/mouth it doesn't recognize it as a face and goes into Normal AI mode). Well, the general exposure of the scene changed a lot from one portrait to the other.
So I agree. The next time, I will try going to Manual Mode, even if I do decide to leave everything in auto once I am there.
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post #62 of 174
12/22/11 at 8:35am
Just saw on B&H, the TM90 is discontinued:
Quote:


This item has been discontinued by the manufacturer and is no longer available.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...Camcorder.html
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post #63 of 174
12/22/11 at 10:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by xfws View Post

Just saw on B&H, the TM90 is discontinued:


http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...Camcorder.html

Well, it's been around for nearly a year, I think. Another model is certainly on the horizon!
The SD90 must no longer be in production either, but since they have some in stock, they don't say so. It's just as good as the TM90 ... just doesn't have the onboard memory, which didn't interest me anyway. Glad I got an SD90 while it was still time!
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post #64 of 174
12/22/11 at 12:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ayman86 View Post

has anyone else noticed these?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/150711535989
http://www.ebay.com/itm/150711050156
http://www.ebay.com/itm/220906751684

im tempted to try them out.

Has anyone tried one of these yet?
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post #65 of 174
12/22/11 at 12:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dan4081 View Post

Has anyone tried one of these yet?

They look legit and are the only coded ones availible for TM90. The price is great. I have one of the batteries ordered and should receive it in the next week or so. They come from China. The other generic (non coded) have a cord that you have to plug into the TM90 power input, to get them to work. No remaining power guage. I would not want one of them.

Also, I also currently have 2 Wasabi for my Canon M40, they work fine. Shows battery guage and all.

I will let you know.

Randy
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post #66 of 174
12/22/11 at 4:34pm
I take it that the OEM Panasonic batteries for the TM90/SD90 actually communicate with the camcorder to send info on their charge level. When they say a battery is decoded or coded are they saying they have this same function?
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post #67 of 174
12/22/11 at 5:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by W Jones View Post

I take it that the OEM Panasonic batteries for the TM90/SD90 actually communicate with the camcorder to send info on their charge level. When they say a battery is decoded or coded are they saying they have this same function?

yes, that's what they are stating.
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post #68 of 174
12/22/11 at 5:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by KYRandy View Post

They look legit and are the only coded ones availible for TM90. The price is great. I have one of the batteries ordered and should receive it in the next week or so. They come from China. The other generic (non coded) have a cord that you have to plug into the TM90 power input, to get them to work. No remaining power guage. I would not want one of them.

Also, I also currently have 2 Wasabi for my Canon M40, they work fine. Shows battery guage and all.

I will let you know.

Randy

I have one of the non coded with the little cord.
It works well but is very annoying not knowing how much charge is left.

Waiting anxiously for the review of the one you ordered.
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post #69 of 174
12/22/11 at 7:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dan4081 View Post

It works well but is very annoying not knowing how much charge is left.

With the Chinese knockoffs you never know: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTC2CeM-YDU Also, my HDC-SD1 died when using a knockoff battery. Coincidence? Crappy battery? I don't know.
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post #70 of 174
12/22/11 at 8:25pm
Thread Starter 
Unrelated, but kind of related. I received my Wasabi branded charger today. I wanted a charger I could plug directly into a wall socket, as opposed to the brick+cord of the OEM charger. I have two genuine Panasonic VW-VBK180 batteries.

I charged both in the Wasabi charger until the charge light turned green and then put them into my TM90. Both batteries showed 1 hr 15 min of battery time.

I then connected the Panasonic charger to the camera and each battery charged longer. When the camera indicated charging was complete, both batteries indicated 1 hr 33 min of battery time.
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post #71 of 174
12/22/11 at 11:18pm
I really wonder about the generic batteries with the cord. The battery connector of the camcorder monitors the battery and turns off the camcorder when the voltage is too low. The DC input of the camcorder is designed to have a constant voltage. Does it monitor the voltage ... I don't know ... and how will it react to a low voltage? Can a low voltage damage the camcorder ?
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post #72 of 174
12/24/11 at 7:05am
Quote:
Originally Posted by HDClown View Post

Unrelated, but kind of related. I received my Wasabi branded charger today. I wanted a charger I could plug directly into a wall socket, as opposed to the brick+cord of the OEM charger. I have two genuine Panasonic VW-VBK180 batteries.

I charged both in the Wasabi charger until the charge light turned green and then put them into my TM90. Both batteries showed 1 hr 15 min of battery time.

I then connected the Panasonic charger to the camera and each battery charged longer. When the camera indicated charging was complete, both batteries indicated 1 hr 33 min of battery time.

Never noticed that with my charger except that when it turns green it isn't fully green. If I leave it plugged in over night its a full green.
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post #73 of 174
12/24/11 at 7:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ronomy View Post

Never noticed that with my charger except that when it turns green it isn't fully green. If I leave it plugged in over night its a full green.

I have the same charger, mine charges full. Most chargers continue a low rate charge, after turning green, so leaving any battery charging an extra hour or so usually helps.

I also have a wasaba for my canon m40, with no issues.
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post #74 of 174
12/24/11 at 7:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by W Jones View Post

I really wonder about the generic batteries with the cord. The battery connector of the camcorder monitors the battery and turns off the camcorder when the voltage is too low. The DC input of the camcorder is designed to have a constant voltage. Does it monitor the voltage ... I don't know ... and how will it react to a low voltage? Can a low voltage damage the camcorder ?

Don't know about the volt part. But I would think that a camcorder would just cut off, if volt got below acceptable levels.

I do have one of those generic corded batteries that came with a Sony camcorder that I got 2 years ago. I don't use it because the cord is in the way, and I am afraid it wiil accidently unplug in a middle of a shoot. But luckly that battery works (mounts directly) with the 160 LED light that I bought a few months ago, as the light does not need a decoded chip. It will run my light for 4 hours. Very handy for weddings.
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post #75 of 174
12/25/11 at 3:41am
Hi guys, i m gonna buy the tm90 in the next couple of days. I need to confirm a couple of things which could really be a deal breaker for me. I dont think there will be any better place to ask than this.

1. I will be using it to shoot continuously for 3 hrs at a stretch, i know the stock battery wont last that long, so can i plug in the charger to the camcorder and let it charge while being able to shoot at the same time ?

I read at a couple of places that you need to remove the battery or something on earlier models like tm700 and it was not possible to charge. Have they rectified this on the tm90

2. Does it have an accessory shoe where i can mount an external mic or the zoom h1 (i will be buying this for the audio recording purpose) The panasonics site says "Accessory Shoe:Yes (Cold)" What does cold mean ?

I m sorry , this is my first camcorder and i have no clue what some of the specifications mean. I will be using this camcorder with zoom h1 to record live concerts. Sorry i did not have the time to go through all the posts in this thread. Any input from you guys will be appreciated. If there is any other thing that i need to know or any suggestion about this camcorder before i buy it, please let me know. Thank you . !!
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post #76 of 174
12/25/11 at 4:04am
Quote:
Originally Posted by techspark View Post

2. Does it have an accessory shoe where i can mount an external mic or the zoom h1 (i will be buying this for the audio recording purpose) The panasonics site says "Accessory Shoe:Yes (Cold)" What does cold mean ?

A cold shoe is simply an accessory shoe that does not have any electrical (power or signal) connections with the camera. In other words, it is just the physical shoe mount, which sounds like what you're looking for.
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post #77 of 174
12/25/11 at 5:56am
Quote:
Originally Posted by techspark View Post

Hi guys, i m gonna buy the tm90 in the next couple of days. I need to confirm a couple of things which could really be a deal breaker for me. I dont think there will be any better place to ask than this.

1. I will be using it to shoot continuously for 3 hrs at a stretch, i know the stock battery wont last that long, so can i plug in the charger to the camcorder and let it charge while being able to shoot at the same time ?

I read at a couple of places that you need to remove the battery or something on earlier models like tm700 and it was not possible to charge. Have they rectified this on the tm90

2. Does it have an accessory shoe where i can mount an external mic or the zoom h1 (i will be buying this for the audio recording purpose) The panasonics site says "Accessory Shoe:Yes (Cold)" What does cold mean ?

I m sorry , this is my first camcorder and i have no clue what some of the specifications mean. I will be using this camcorder with zoom h1 to record live concerts. Sorry i did not have the time to go through all the posts in this thread. Any input from you guys will be appreciated. If there is any other thing that i need to know or any suggestion about this camcorder before i buy it, please let me know. Thank you . !!

1. Yes you can charge while filming. Make sure you have a long AC cord and close receptical.
2. Yes the TM 90 has a cold ( non dedicated) shoe. It will accept any camcorder mic with a standard shoe. The mic also has to have a 1/8" stereo cord. You have to plug the cord into the t90 mic input. To get sound

As far as you zoom h1, it has a tripod plug mount, it won't mount on any shoe, without a tripod/shoe adaptor. You can get one at amazon or eBay.

To film for 3 hours, I assume you have a tripod and a 32gb class 10 memory card.
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post #78 of 174
12/25/11 at 11:11am
Quote:


A cold shoe is simply an accessory shoe that does not have any electrical (power or signal) connections with the camera. In other words, it is just the physical shoe mount, which sounds like what you're looking for.

Thanks

Quote:


1. Yes you can charge while filming. Make sure you have a long AC cord and close receptical.
2. Yes the TM 90 has a cold ( non dedicated) shoe. It will accept any camcorder mic with a standard shoe. The mic also has to have a 1/8" stereo cord. You have to plug the cord into the t90 mic input. To get sound

To film for 3 hours, I assume you have a tripod and a 32gb class 10 memory card.

Thank you for the detailed reply Yes i will be buying a tripod and ofcourse a 32gb class 10 memory card. Will 32gb be sufficient for 3 hours (at max settings) or will i need more ?
Any recommendations for which brand sd card and tripod i should be looking at. For the tripod do u think the cheap $20 ones will do the job?

Quote:


As far as you zoom h1, it has a tripod plug mount, it won't mount on any shoe, without a tripod/shoe adaptor. You can get one at amazon or eBay.

Thanks for mentioning this. I did some quick search on ebay and found these

1) http://www.ebay.com/itm/Synchro-Sync...ht_11430wt_905

2) http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-4-20-Tripo...ht_2717wt_1120

Will any of these be fine ??
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post #79 of 174
12/26/11 at 5:04am
Tech part,

I don't have a memory chart handy. You can go to pana tm90 website and look up card recording times for various quality levels. But remember you also have 16g of built in memory.

As far as brand of card, any top name will do. Just read reviews.

The #2 hot shoe adaptor will work fine. Amazon also has them in the USA.

The zoom s really sensitive. What are you recording, in what type pf area, and how far away will you be? Do you plan to record straight to zoom, then dub sound later, or plug zoom into mic input on tm90?
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post #80 of 174
12/26/11 at 6:13am
Quote:
The #2 hot shoe adaptor will work fine. Amazon also has them in the USA.

ok thanks

Quote:
What are you recording, in what type pf area, and how far away will you be? Do you plan to record straight to zoom, then dub sound later, or plug zoom into mic input on tm90?

I will be recording different live music concerts at different locations. I will mostly be close to the performers and i will mount zoom h1 on top of tm90 and record audio using h1. What i was thinking if it is possible to record both on h1 and on the camcorder at the same time, that ways when i am editing my videos i have more options on which audio to keep.
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post #81 of 174
12/27/11 at 8:00am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tyee View Post

But, there is always a BUT, I can't seem to get HDWriter to output a single fine, it always splits to the 4GB size when "File Output". I want a single file because I import it into MultiAVCHD to build my Blu-ray disc and using the 4GB split files muxed with tsmuxer causes audio sync issues. Each 4GB section has a different ac3 delay. I spent all yesterday trying this and that to get it in sync and finally did, but if the app could do it itself it would be better.

Hello,

I just purchased this camera and am surprised there isn't more on this, I searched everywhere with no answer.

Any file over 4gb (over 22 minutes continuous recording in 1080p/60p mode) gets split on the internal 16gb memory. I have no problem with burning avchd to dvd with HDWriter (it joins it together), but I want to drag and drop or output a single 1080p/60p file.

Is there any internal setting to stop it from splitting the file?
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post #82 of 174
12/27/11 at 8:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by techspark View Post

ok thanks



I will be recording different live music concerts at different locations. I will mostly be close to the performers and i will mount zoom h1 on top of tm90 and record audio using h1. What i was thinking if it is possible to record both on h1 and on the camcorder at the same time, that ways when i am editing my videos i have more options on which audio to keep.

Just be aware that the zoom's built in mic is very sensitive. If mounted on your camcorder, it will pick up your hand movements, on the camcorder. It will also pick up about everything around you. You may want to mount the zoom on a light stand, and place it close to the band. Or add a directional mic to it, or to your camcorder.

I use mine at weddings, with a lapel mic attached. I put the zoom it the grooms pocket, and attach the lapel to his coat. it pick us groom-bride-pastor very well, and does not pick up other noises. I use an on camera directional mic, to pick up singers, music, and all other sounds.

Either way, you will want to experiment with the zoom's manual settings, rather than auto.

Randy
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post #83 of 174
12/27/11 at 8:16am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nzk14 View Post

Hello,

I just purchased this camera and am surprised there isn't more on this, I searched everywhere with no answer.

Any file over 4gb (over 22 minutes continuous recording in 1080p/60p mode) gets split on the internal 16gb memory. I have no problem with burning avchd to dvd with HDWriter (it joins it together), but I want to drag and drop or output a single 1080p/60p file.

Is there any internal setting to stop it from splitting the file?

All AVCHD camcorders have this 4gb limit. I have not found a "join only" feature, to give me 1 file, for export, to external NLE. But as you said HDW will join them, if you are using it as a NLE.

There are other 3rd party (free) software that is suppose to be able to do this, but I have not tried them.

So far, I have just drag and dropped individual files into Avid and Pinnacle NLE.

Randy
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post #84 of 174
12/27/11 at 10:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by KYRandy View Post

All AVCHD camcorders have this 4gb limit. I have not found a "join only" feature, to give me 1 file, for export, to external NLE. But as you said HDW will join them, if you are using it as a NLE.

tsMuxer can do it, but it may de-sync your audio a little. There seems to be a workaround involving eacto, I haven't tried it myself.

BTW, the Canon camcorders record in 2GB segments.
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post #85 of 174
12/27/11 at 10:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ungermann View Post

tsMuxer can do it, but it may de-sync your audio a little. There seems to be a workaround involving eacto, I haven't tried it myself.

BTW, the Canon camcorders record in 2GB segments.

Ungerman,

That's good to know about the Canon. I havn't had a long enough recording with my Canon M40 to discover that.

Assembling my TM90 files in my NLE, have not been an issue for me either, since I realize it does that. Coming from HD tape, the first time I made a long recording, i did not know that. Had a split at a delicate point.

Randy
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post #86 of 174
12/29/11 at 1:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nzk14 View Post

Hello,

I just purchased this camera and am surprised there isn't more on this, I searched everywhere with no answer.

Any file over 4gb (over 22 minutes continuous recording in 1080p/60p mode) gets split on the internal 16gb memory. I have no problem with burning avchd to dvd with HDWriter (it joins it together), but I want to drag and drop or output a single 1080p/60p file.

Is there any internal setting to stop it from splitting the file?

you could refer the B&H or contact panasonic's customer service
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post #87 of 174
12/29/11 at 5:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by KYRandy View Post

All AVCHD camcorders have this 4gb limit. I have not found a "join only" feature, to give me 1 file, for export, to external NLE. But as you said HDW will join them, if you are using it as a NLE.

There are other 3rd party (free) software that is suppose to be able to do this, but I have not tried them.

So far, I have just drag and dropped individual files into Avid and Pinnacle NLE.

Randy


Quote:
Originally Posted by Ungermann View Post

tsMuxer can do it, but it may de-sync your audio a little. There seems to be a workaround involving eacto, I haven't tried it myself.

After doing more research to merge files into one file directly without quality loss, I found theses options:

Free option:
tsMuxeR & eac3to and this tutorial, http://avchdvideos.blogspot.com/p/jo...hd-videos.html

Pay option:
Aunsoft Final Mate

I will try the free option and see how well it works.

Thanks
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post #88 of 174
12/29/11 at 5:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nzk14 View Post


After doing more research to merge files into one file directly without quality loss, I found theses options:

Free option:
tsMuxeR & eac3to and this tutorial, http://avchdvideos.blogspot.com/p/jo...hd-videos.html

Pay option:
Aunsoft Final Mate

I will try the free option and see how well it works.

Thanks

Very interested in your results!
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post #89 of 174
12/29/11 at 7:17am
Any recommendations on SDHC cards?

I plan to record everything in 1080p/60p

I was looking at these cards:
SanDisk Extreme HD Video 16 GB SDHC Class 10 Memory Card (SDSDRX3-016G-A21)(cheaper)
SanDisk Extreme 16 GB SDHC Class 10 Memory Card (SSDSDX3-016G-A31)

The only difference I can find is the limitation of "A21" is that it normally operates at 20MB/s and only achieves 30MB/s in devices that support UHS-I.
If your device doesn't specifically state "UHS-I" A31 would be the choice.

It looks like the camcorder supports "UHS-I". http://panasonic.jp/support/global/c.../hdc_tm90.html
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post #90 of 174
12/29/11 at 11:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nzk14 View Post

Any recommendations on SDHC cards?

I plan to record everything in 1080p/60p

I was looking at these cards:
SanDisk Extreme HD Video 16 GB SDHC Class 10 Memory Card (SDSDRX3-016G-A21)(cheaper)
SanDisk Extreme 16 GB SDHC Class 10 Memory Card (SSDSDX3-016G-A31)

The only difference I can find is the limitation of "A21" is that it normally operates at 20MB/s and only achieves 30MB/s in devices that support UHS-I.
If your device doesn't specifically state "UHS-I" A31 would be the choice.

It looks like the camcorder supports "UHS-I". http://panasonic.jp/support/global/c.../hdc_tm90.html

UHS cards are backwards-compatible with non-UHS devices. I interpret that page as saying the camcorder can work with UHS cards, but not necessarily make use of the UHS-I speed rating. It doesn't really need to - a Class 6 card would be more than fast enough for TM90 AVCHD 1080/60p video at the highest quality setting (Class 6 = 6 MB/s = 48 Mb/s). So therefore I would go with the cheaper of the two.
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