Any experiece with these remote control tripods?

[brodwidr]

I've noticed that ebay has a few versions of video tripod with fluid heads and LANC compatible remotes so you can control the camcorder without having to physically touch it (and shake it.) These are a lot less expensive than the professional models. Anyone know if they are any good?

For example:

http://cgi.ebay.com/60-REMOTE-TRIPOD-W- ... dZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/REMOTE-TRIPOD-W-10F ... dZViewItem

These are available with a "buy it now" price -- but I am leery of buying something that could be extremely flimsy, as opposed to shelling out for the Bogen video head 700RC2 for about $80 with a separate remote, or the best Sony of the bunch which is the Sony VCT870RM

Also, I notice that some of these claim to have variable speed zoom. But I notice that my camcorder (Sony DCR-PC9) seems to only have two speeds of zoom (fast and slow.) So, is the variable speed zoom capability of the remote limited to the range of speeds that the camcorder itself can support?


Anyone have any experience with these?

thanks in advance
- David

[zoobie]

I looked at these and just figured they were cheapos which they are...I don't think they even have a bubble level
Just played with the Sony VCT870RM at a Sony Style store...another cheapo...more of a toy...but read on
Some guys buy these cheapos, rip off the LANC, and put it on their Gitzos and Bogans...hey...it works
A real fluid pro tripod with a half bowl level willl set you back at least $500
It really depends on your needs, level, and budget
What's the plan?


I just bought a Sony HC5 HD cam and will need absolutely perfect leveling especially with HD

[brodwidr]

I was thinking of buying the 10 function unit, which is available, it seems, from B&H for $50 and taking off the remote.

I have a bogen 3011 tripod leg set from my still photography activities, and was thinking of getting a Bogen 701RC2 mini fluid filled head for it.

http://www.amazon.com/Bogen-Manfrotto-7 ... 244&sr=8-1

That, plus the remote I salvage, seems to be a pretty good setup for $150 incremental cost. What do you think? My camcorder's a DCR-PC9 so we're not dealing with a lot of weight here.

- David

[zoobie]

The pros like a condensed little controller on the pan handle...When you start to get long size controllers, the thumb has a hard time reaching the buttons...unless you have long thumbs or can slide your hand up.
I agree on more functions than just the zoom...I guess you'll just have to try it out and see if it works for you. Make sure you can return it if need be.
Perhaps report back and tell us how it worked.

[brodwidr]

I'm reporting my experience with the remote on the VidComp TT 1000rc tripod. This is based on using it with my Sony DCR-PC9 camcorder. I bought the unit for about $50 online at a major camera/video supplier, but a similar item is available on ebay. If you are shopping on ebay note that this is the one described as a "ten function" remote rather than an "eight function" remote.

Here is what it looks like:


here's what I concluded after working with it a bit.

1.) First, the tripod head itself is very poor for video work. Even though it is advertised as "fluid effect" head, it isn't even close. It's very sticky when you first start moving it.

2.) The tripod remote has the following features, which work to varying degrees as described below. See picture for placement of controls.
- a zoom in and out button which works accurately.
- a knob that you turn to change the zoom speed, which has 8 or so different steps, ranging from quite slow to really fast. THis works well and is unique among remotes below the professional level.
- the same knob also has a variable speed setting which has the zoom action start out slow, but then jump to a medium speed as you hold the button down for a while, and then again jump to a high speed. The transition from speed to another is very abrupt and this feature would not be usable in actual taping.
- a button that mirrors the record button on the camcorder.
- a button that mirrors the still photo button on the camcorder
- a pair of buttons that move the focus point in and out, but only if you have pushed the on-camera button that enables manual focusing. If you have not set the camcorder for manual focusing this does nothing.
- an on/off slide switch which seems to turn the camcorder off, but was unable to turn it back on. (testing only on my one camcorder)
- an edit search button forward and back to find the end of the current clip or beginning of it. I did not test this.
- a button that toggles the on screen display of camera information on and off. This could be useful in certain situations.

3.) From an ergonomic standpoint, the unit is designed to be operated by the same hand that is moving the tripod head. Turning the handle to lock the tripod head in position will cause the remote to twist away from its normal face up position. YOu can reset it by grasping the housing of the remote while holding the knurled knob in your other hand, and pushing the remote inwards, towards the tripod head, against the pressure of a spring built into the housing. This motion frees the remote from the knurled knob. Then you can twist it to the right or left as needed, and when released, it will lock in position. It takes two hands to accomplish this repositioning, one to hold the knurled knob and the other to push the body of the remote toward the tripod head. It's a bit of an awkward action and you can't do it while attempting to move the camera smoothly.

4.) From the standpoint of build quality this unit is fairly cheaply made. The speed control knob (which is really a switch with detents not a continuously variable knob) had greater resistance in some postions than others. It did not work smoothly, but it did work.

4.) One question I had was whether the remote was removable and could be attached to the arm of a more robust tripod head. The remote seems to be removable from the tripod lever by removing four small phillips head screws. I haven't done this yet, since I haven't decided if I'm going to keep this item, but it seems pretty simple. It would probably be a bit of a challenge to remount this on another tripod head, since it wraps around the arm, and a better head will have a much heavier arm.

Conclusion:
I was looking for an affordable remote that could provide slow and smooth zooming while using the camcorder on a tripod -- since I find it very had to manually zoom my camcorder without jostling it . This unit seems to do this, at a price much lower than any professional remote. All the other inexpensive remotes have two speed zoom rather than fully variable speed zoom. So if you need this specific function, or need the ability to focus manually without touching the camera this unit might make sense. But the poor build quality, poor ergonomics, and difficulty of reattaching the remote to a more robust head definitely limit the appeal of the unit.

[zoobie]

Thanks for the review. I didn't think these small units could cut the mustard. When the head is mostly plastic, you know you're in trouble. I had a cheapo fall over on me overseas and the whole thing broke.

I've since gotten the Giottos cam controller from B & H ($30) and stuck it on a Davis and Sanford 7518 tripod. It's working very well for an entry level professional video setup for a total of $200

[brodwidr]

On that Giottos cam controller (this is the model RC-2020 right?) what is the speed of the zoom? And is it a single speed or a double speed zoom?

I did a little more investigating on the VidComp unit and learned a couple things: First, the remote comes off the tripod arm easily and can be used as a separate unit. Second, the slow speed on the zoom is very nice and slow -- it takes about 23-24 seconds to go the whole way from wide to tele.

If one really wanted to be a hacker, the pc board in this thing is only 1" by 3 1/4" and can be removed easily and repackaged in something more robust. That's beyond what I want to do, but it's possible.

thanks.

[zoobie]

yes...the rc-2020

There's at least 2 speeds on the zoom...regular and extreme if pushed twice...sudden and unusable in most cases
Dunno the speed of the zoom but it looks close to stock.

I agree...there's really not much in these boxes at all...maybe $4 worth of electronics...but the average consumer doesn't know this, of course