Alternative to Red-Ram

[Kevin Liu]

Hey all. I posted this over on ScarletUser forums, but they seem fairly dead so I'm reposting here in hopes of getting a clearer answer, since this isn't really a Scarlet-specific question.

I've been doing some research and I think that I want to purchase an S35 Scarlet. However, while looking at digital storage solutions for it that are currently available right now, there are only three options that I can see:

* Red-Drive
* Red-Ram
* CF Card module and CF cards.

Based upon what I have read, it seems that a harddrive solution is really only usable if you plan to have very little motion. While I don't plan to, say, take my Scarlet with me while doing extreme sports, I would like to take motion shots, and don't want to risk dropped frames. CF cards seem relatively expensive, and don't hold very much footage. That leaves Red-Ram. However, Red-Ram costs $4500, which, quite frankly I won't have the budget for after purchasing a Scarlet - even if it's worth that much.

My question is, is the interface between the Red One and the Red-Ram a proprietary one that is not possible to duplicate with other SSDs? (This is assuming that the same interface will be used for Scarlet). Or are there other, more cost-efficient solutions for SSD's with a sustained read/write of 200 MB/s for the purposes of capturing 4k video? I know that they exist out there, but if I buy a SSD by itself, will it be able to interface with the Red One/Scarlet?

 

[Dominic Jones]

All of the drives are proprietary, at least in terms of controllers and firmware - you can't just buy a shell and put whatever you like in there...

However, barring moderately extreme situations the Red Drives are fine - you can shoot handheld with them with no problems, unless you're going nuts! In normal shooting conditions you'll be fine, although some CF cards or a Red RAM is a good idea in case you need to do vehicle shots, aerial shots or other problematic shots (rifle fire and drummers don't get on well with them either!). They really are perfectly fine for 95% of shooting though, and you could always hire other media for the odd occasions you need them, if you're on a budget...

Cheers,
Dom.

 

[Jason Osterday]

I've done aerials, drummers, handheld running through various terrain, gunfire, and vehicles (including being strapped into the bed of a truck) and I've never once skipped a single frame on my RED Drive. In fact, I've never skipped a frame period, regardless of the media used. Knock on major wood with fingers crossed.

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

Using the ET shock mounts, I have not had any trouble with the drives except for on one occasion. Before that, no real troubles either when the drive was mounted securely in something like the uGrip fastening box or even securely in the RED cradle if you get it tightened down right.

The problem occasion I mentioned we were shooting in a foundry and there was a low-frequency rumble or hum that was just right to make the drive unstable. So we used the RED-RAM. I know some people have used the drives on aerial rigs, but I would definitely go for the RED-RAM there. Same thing with vehicle mounting, especially if any performance driving / high speeds or whatever are involved.

 

[Kevin Liu]

Hmm...I'm definitely not planning to shoot any aerial shots or such - this will really be my first camera and at most I will be planning to shoot in a vehicle (I'm splitting the cost of everything with a friend I think). Even so, the $900 for a 640 GB drive is pretty steep. Still, it's far better than $4500, and I'm glad that I cleared up the misconception about dropped frames. So for walking, running, and vehicle shots I probably wouldn't need a Red-Ram? What about a shock mount?

At the moment, I'm looking at a total budget of approximately $15k to $18k for camera, lenses, drives, matte box, tripod...pretty much everything. Is that doable?

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

I would say that your budget is realistic for a Scarlet set-up. You will probably want to ask this question again and take a look at what is available as Scarlet gets closer and we see what new (if any) recording options will be available.

For the drives, Element Technica makes a good shock mount. I highly recommend them and they, combined with their v-lock system, makes mounting drives a lot more convenient. Once agin though, the shock mounts and v-lock accessories are kinda expensive. But well worth it.

 

[Dominic Jones]

I've done aerials, drummers, handheld running through various terrain, gunfire, and vehicles (including being strapped into the bed of a truck) and I've never once skipped a single frame on my RED Drive. In fact, I've never skipped a frame period, regardless of the media used. Knock on major wood with fingers crossed.

Fair play - I haven't had serious issues either, but every time I've done a promo I've had to switch to CF for the drummer (although after the first two I do it by rote, so perhaps just had a bit of bad luck with the first two - speed of drumming is perhaps a factor, too) and once when doing a "shakey-cam" shot - other than that, no issues.

That's using the Red Cradle to mount the drive...

But I essentially concur - it's not the issue it's made out to be...

Cheers,
Dom.

 

[Tim Morten]

Using the ET shock mounts, I have not had any trouble with the drives

Likewise; the ET shock mounts have been great.

 

[Kevin Liu]

Hmm...sounds like that could be an option. I guess I'll have to wait to see until Scarlet comes out. Until then, I'm planning on buying a Nikon D5000 to tide me over on the stills/video department...I have a few old Nikon primes I'm planning to use and I figure that if I can't compose something interesting with the D5000, I don't deserve/probably shouldn't go out on a limb and purchase a Scarlet anyway. I guess I'll be thinking of it as a test...to see if I can actually manage to translate the images I see in my head/while I'm writing into video.