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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Another Remote FF thread...

Unfortunately thats the one feature we don't have at the moment. I'll see if have that ready for next years NAB ;) I know who you are talking about though, she came by our booth at NAB this year.
 
Darren, Glad you like it :) We really think that two versions is the way to go.. especially at our price I don't think anyone feel cheated if we come out with a better one next year. Plus the receiver will carry over to the pro model so you can buy just the remote when it becomes available.

For the iris motor... we are trying to see if we can work a slider in but the main thing im worried about is wear and tear. A pot based slider is really noisy and they tend to leave gaping holes in the enclose that let moisture and debris in. I'll do my best to figure out something elegant but no promises :)

For the range scaling thats not a problem... the system automatically finds the limits of the lens and automatically scales the full range of the knob to the range of the lens throw. If you need to tighten up on a specific area of the lens throw then that might be something we can do as well.

Alexander... you are truely a sick man ;)

Ya I had read that the pro-controller will work with reciever and that is great.

As for a seperate iris control it is a bit of a must. Most well trained focus pullers will always take a quick look at their focus and iris on a controller everytime roll camera is called before rolling the camera. Considering the VF remote unit will become the main tool a focus puller of mine will use I would find a seperate control for iris a must. If a slide is a problem another wheel puck system would be an okay choice. Just please don't make the one wheel have a switch that allows it to control different motors. This would just cause often mistakes.

The automatic setting for the focus throw on the controller will be a great feature.

By the way Alexander is really not that sick he just has a bit of a crush on me.
 
Unfortunately thats the one feature we don't have at the moment. I'll see if have that ready for next years NAB ;) I know who you are talking about though, she came by our booth at NAB this year.

You had a booth at NAB? Damnit! I would have came. It was my first year, I was a bit bad about planning things out, I didn't even know that Apple had an event that I could get into. My goal for next year's event is to not be so clueless about goings on. I heard the party to be at was the AJA party and I didnt't make it to that either!
 
This is probably a silly question, but could two remotes be used to "talk to" one receiver to control both focus and iris?
 
As for a seperate iris control it is a bit of a must. Most well trained focus pullers will always take a quick look at their focus and iris on a controller everytime roll camera is called before rolling the camera. Considering the VF remote unit will become the main tool a focus puller of mine will use I would find a seperate control for iris a must. If a slide is a problem another wheel puck system would be an okay choice.
We can map toe separate remotes to one receiver... see glens question...
I'll do my best to get a slider in there but like I said before - pots suck. If I can find a solid state solution that would allow me to put a mechanical slider in place that is sealed off then I'll go that route.

Just please don't make the one wheel have a switch that allows it to control different motors. This would just cause often mistakes.
It will be able to do that... what if I make it hard to accidentally switch the axis... maybe a lockout switch to prevent accidental button presses?

This is probably a silly question, but could two remotes be used to "talk to" one receiver to control both focus and iris?
Yup, we can do that...
http://www.reduser.net/forum/showpost.php?p=65793&postcount=34
 
Very nice design
I'd like to buy one of these

when are you going to put it into production?
 
Michele, we expect to have it out by the end of the year. BTW.. here's another view of the remote with a neck strap loop and serial port connector for hardwired use.
 
Hi Bruce
i think the white disc is under the knob

you can see the marker
 
So where's the big white disc for making marks? Can you slot that in? So far, RedRock's seems more usable for filmmaking.

Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com

Bruce, can you clarify what you mean by its more usable for filmmaking? What makes it more usable? If there's something wrong with our design then by all means let me know - I want to make this something that people will use.

BTW.. the white disk is actually a drum. I have found that its a little easier to write the numbers down. With the flat design it seems like the knob is always in the way. Maybe thats just me :)
 
I'm sorry to say: redrock is a really fascinating idea and not expensive, but for me it wouldn't be professional enough. Saw it at NAB an it feels a bit cheap to me. I understand, for that price but I would love to pay a bit more for a better materialisation, there is a german word for that: haptisch. My feeling is, that Curt and his brothers will find the best solution between price and professionalism.

Well again, what we showed was a prototype, and does not reflectthe final build quality. That's the risk that's taken when you show proto gear - people can easily mistake it for the final product. Most of it was printed via a 3d printer, so there you have it.

Regarding price/performance in general, I can't speak for Curt but I suspect he may look at the same opportunities Redrock does. The film (or should I say filmmaking) equipment market hasn't changed much over the years, and as a result the products are typically either well built and ungodly expensive, or poorly made and only sort of ungodly expensive. The opportunity exists to bring good quality products to market based on advances in good design tools, modern manufacturing, and (at least reasonably) smart people. The price Redrock charges reflects what we believe is a reasonable price to pay for a fully functional piece of gear - price *is* a design consideration, much as price *is* a buying decision as well. I don't think anyone would argue preston or arri is a junk product. If we all could afford them we wouldn't be building 'em. Now, are you going to get twelve cupholders and a 1000hp ducati engine in the non-arri "car"? Probably not, but that's the great thing - we broaden the spectrum of options. You can decide for yourself what price/feature set meets your needs.

I am perfectly content for folks to underestimate Redrock products, and find they are better than expected. Much preferable to the other way around :)


Brian
 
Hi Curt,

what do you mean with "drum"?

I think a tiny confusion to me is that the disk has been recessed at the bottom.
Maybe a little question for ACs or people with more hardcore focus pulling experience (Finner?): Do you map the lens markings to a 360 degrees arc or just a half arc or even less of the disk?
 
BTW.. the white disk is actually a drum. I have found that its a little easier to write the numbers down.

This is what he means... I think this is how Alexander would use it <ducks for cover>.

alfinnerfocus.jpg
 
Well, the focus ring on our unit is a cylindrical piece of plastic that goes over the knob. There are small arrows on the side of the unit that you pull focus to (like Jeff has above). Its essentially the same way that its done with Bartech. We have arrows on both sides so if will work right or left handed. The main reason for recessing the knob was to reduce the overall height. We wanted to make it compact enough to put in your pocket if you don't want to use the lanyard.
 
maybe you already told this but anyway... the controller can store and repat the movements?
 
One thing I see looking at this design... Just visualizing how I would end up holding this over long periods of time, it would be in my left hand, with the face of the controller facing to my right for easiest access to let my right hand turn the dial. The markings on the drum would be nearly straight on -- this is good. I'm not sure what to make of the buttons on the face.... I would want something that could be controlled without looking and without trying to hit flat buttons to toggle modes. But a device that could be picked up and you knew just which function would do what. I like Finner's suggestion of the slider as a possibility. Another couple ideas that come to mind are: What about a multi-position dial. By default it adjusts focus.. Push the dial in and it adjusts zoom? Could be spring loaded so you don't have to pull it out. What about a trigger switch that when depressed and you turn the dial it adjusts one funtion. The trigger could even be a 3-position rocker. 1 position is iris, one is focus, 1 is zoom.

I guess I just see room for errors when the focus puller may be in a hurry and forget to check which LED is lit over which button or presses a button by accident between takes, etc.. Maybe I'm over-analyzing.

The other question I have is about the markable drum. Realistically, how could it work with three separate functions? Or do we assign it to a single function, like the zoom control, and then the drum is disengaged and doesn't rotate when the other two functions are being used?

Edit > When I said above that I want to be able to use it without looking. I mean that the only part of the controller I should have to look at while operating it is the markable wheel/drum and otherwise should be able to operate with my eyes on the set or monitor.
 
Well, the focus ring on our unit is a cylindrical piece of plastic that goes over the knob. There are small arrows on the side of the unit that you pull focus to (like Jeff has above). Its essentially the same way that its done with Bartech. We have arrows on both sides so if will work right or left handed. The main reason for recessing the knob was to reduce the overall height. We wanted to make it compact enough to put in your pocket if you don't want to use the lanyard.

Ok, I get it. Thanks!
 
Hi Curt,
is this correct: the current model has a rotating white cylinder, of which you can normally see about 1/4 to 1/2 of the whole scale ?

If yes, I'd suggest you change that to the standard flat white disc that stays put: much easier to use if your markers stay at the same absolute place at all times, plus then we can always see the full scale.

Just my 2 cents.
 
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