HPX2000 vs HPX3000 AVC Intra

[Helmut Kobler]

On the bright side, the difference between a 3000 and a 3700 Varicam isn’t nearly as much as the difference between a 2000 and a 2700 Varicam. So you can feel better about buying a 3000 over a 3700.

The 2700 offers built-in AVC-Intra, Film Rec mode, variable frame rates 1-60, CAC, and a few other things that a stock 2000 lacks.

But the 3000 already has AVC-Intra by default, and Film Rec, CAC, etc. What you get with the 3700 is variable frame rates of 1-30 (this doesn’t seem that useful to me anyway, since there’s no slow motion), and a couple other tweaks, but nothing that really makes a big impact on the overall image, in my opinion.

[Jeremy Garchow]

[Helmut Kobler] “(this doesn’t seem that useful to me anyway, since there’s no slow motion”

unless you’re shooting 24 then you will get a wee bit of overcrank.

Great points, Helmut. The 3700 will also offer dual link out.

Jeremy

[Mike Bannon]

I have a film background, I do TV commercials and animation. Shopped a lot of cameras at NAB Convention in April. Then had both HPX3000 and HPX2000 side by side for a day, ended up ordering one of each. They both look good, but by the time you factor in actual retail (not list price) and add the optional AVC-Intra card ( ~$3000) to the HPX2000 side of the equation, the price difference is more like $14,000 to $15,000. Not chump change, but you probably get what you pay for.

The Hpx3000 has an optical block that is twice as large as the HPX2000.

If you are blowing it up to 50′, it may be worth the true full-raster 10 bit imagery of the HPX3000. I’ve never regretted erring on the side of overkill as one needs to take the possibility of future gigs into account.

A reputable Panasonic re-seller might provide you with footage from both cameras for comparison. Our re-seller was very helpful. Maybe you can put a shot or two through your whole work flow ending with the projection.

The AVC-Intra 100 codec imports into Final Cut with a (free) download from Panasonic, and the latest Avid release deals with it natively.

Mike Bannon