Fear of SDHC cards

[Craig Seeman]

I’ve been using them since January and have never lost a clip. I’ve never even had a media restore message. When you get the cards test though throughly. I run them through twice with a continuous record. I then do a series of short clips keeping to the stop/start rule of waiting until the file is written before starting again. Keep in mind these cards are not like hard drives. They really don’t have moving parts that fail. If the card has a defect you should be able to find it fast.

[Bob Mark]

I’m very glad to hear that. I will follow your suggestions. Thanks.

Bob

[Noah Kadner]

Works fine for me.

Noah

Writing RED: The Ultimate Guide to Using the Revolutionary Camera!. Unlock the secrets of the DVX100, HVX200 and Apple Color.
Now featuring the Lens Adapter Guidebook, Sony EX1 Guidebook,
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[Rod Minott]

I then do a series of short clips keeping to the stop/start rule of waiting until the file is written before starting again.

Hi Craig,
Can you please elaborate on the start/stop rule? When using SDHC cards, how much of a delay is there after pausing record before you’re able to resume recording your next shot? Doesn’t this limit/slow down run and gun shooting situations where events are unfolding quickly? How does the start/stop lag using SDHC compare to using SxS cards?

[Michael Palmer]

Bob,
I took the $70 gamble (Transcend 16 gig SDHC class 6 card/MxR adapter) and tested it for a few cycles and I completely trust that it is a viable alternative to the pricey SxS cards. At a tenth of the cost it works for me.

Good Luck
Michael Palmer

[Michael Palmer]

I’m not Craig but the rule is that you must give the camera buffer time to complete the recording to the SDHC card before continuing the next clip. Just because you pressed the stop button and the Tally light goes off doesn’t mean the camera isn’t still working sending the data to the SDHC card. If you look at the card slot light it will remain RED up to 10 seconds, you must wait until it turns Green to continue or to remove the card.

Good Luck
Michael Palmer

[Rod Minott]

Thanks, Michael. Is there a difference in the buffer time between the SDHC and the SxS cards? In other words, are the SxS cards faster and the SDHC cards slower?

[Michael Palmer]

The SxS cards work from the Express 34 bus and the SDHC cards work from USB technology. So yes the SxS is way faster technology. Plus as Craig has said many times here that Sony limits the USB controller so you can’t take full advantage of the USB data transfer capabilities.

Good Luck
Michael Palmer

[Enrique Orozco]

Using 16 Gig Sandisk Ultra (plus MxR adapters) since January with my EX3… NEVER had a problem….

good luck

Enrique Orozco R.
iDEA DigitalVideoStudio

[Craig Seeman]

Much of what I do is run and gun. I rarely have reason to start recording less than 5 seconds after I stop.
Having to offload a full SxS card on the other hand is a major handicap. Having to carry the laptop to do that is a major handicap.

Two 32GB SDHC cards keeps me going for nearly 4 hours and it’s easy to buy a couple more if needed. That’s not financially viable with SxS for me.

I generally have no problem giving the camera 5-7 seconds to finish the write after I stop recording.