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Anton Bauer V Red Batteries

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Scott Brown

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We're due to take delivery of our Red shortly and I'm trying to decided on the Red batteries or Anton Bauer.

AB have a great reputation and I'm leaning towards them but I'd like to hear some feedback from both camps.

I gather there were reports of some problems with AB batteries + Red cameras - have these been resolved?

Do the Red batteries offer any advantage over the AB's. Also with the new airline regulations coming into play, I'm wondering if we should avoid Lithium Ion batteries all together and run with an alternative such as the Hytrons from AB? They do however seem to be heavier and bulkier than the lithium ion's.

Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated.

Many thanks

Scott
 
The AB batts still can't "talk" to the RED regarding the batts status.

I loved AB batteries and have always used them on different cameras but it was a deal killer on this one. Thee red batteries are very nice, and are a great power/weight ratio. I also discovered you can get a vmount batt>AB converter so I can still use them on AB cameras. So it's not much of a loss.

If only they had a quad charger . . .
 
I would say that the Lion issue on planes is no joke if you travel a lot. I haven't had any problem yet, but I'm sure I will. I usually travel with all three batt chemistries because they all have their good points and bad points.

Nick
 
I'm using the AB batteries with great success.

I found the AB to V-mount adapter to be problematical, the slightest jar interrupted the current.

Now using the (heavily modified) AB plate; no problems of any kind.

Good shooting and best regards,

Leo
 
I use both. With the Red's you can use the hot swap adapter and hot swap them, so that's nice. Plus they're about half as heavy as the Hytron 140's. Maybe those who have put them into heavy extended use can chime in, but they seem to be a solid battery that holds a charge quite well.

However the 140's last longer (an hour, hour and a half, this is a guesstimate I haven't tested them side by side yet). And the mount (that's the AB QR mount for Red) is extremely solid. The AB's have a readout on the side, so I'm don't find it to be a problem that they don't communicate with the camera. The only issue I've had with the AB's was the first time I used it. The camera was acting oddly, but after a reboot, everything worked fine.

All in all if the option wasn't there to hot swap the Red's I'd probably recommend the AB's (to be clear you can hot swap the AB's, just not the 140's, and the AB's that can be hot swapped aren't rated as high as the Red bricks). As it is it really depends on your needs. Hot swapping is only good if you're near a power source you can plug into or if you have enough batteries to last the day.
 
Many thanks guys for your feedback.

Is the communication a real issue with the AB's? Is this something that could be resolved? I'm assuming we're talking about a low battery warning system?

Leo - you mentioned that you're using a "heavily modified" AB plate, can you clarify this? What have you modified and how did you go about this?

Best wishes

Scott
 
Leo Ticheli said:
I'm using the AB batteries with great success.

I found the AB to V-mount adapter to be problematical, the slightest jar interrupted the current.

Now using the (heavily modified) AB plate; no problems of any kind.

Good shooting and best regards,

Leo
Click to expand...

I was wondering about the adapter. Thanks for posting that. Good to know!

I'm about to send in my QR mount to get the newer version, what improvements have they made besides changing the angled connector to straight?


Harky
 
Scott Brown said:
Is the communication a real issue with the AB's? Is this something that could be resolved? I'm assuming we're talking about a low battery warning system?
Click to expand...

I think the readout on the side of the AB's solves this. So, in my experience it's not an issue. AB warns against over discharge, but the camera will shut off before it gets to that point.
 
david farland said:
Harky,
Can you provide a link to the hot swap adapter?

thanks,
Dave
Click to expand...

Sure it's the Switronix GPTS V-Mount Hot Swap Adapter. The only problem is they don't seem to be in stock anywhere at the moment:

@ Batteries4Broadcast

http://www.batteries4broadcast.com/extras_cart.htm

@ B&H

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/359201-REG/Switronix_GP_TS_GPTS_V_Mount_Hot_Swap.html


I ordered mine from Batteries4Broadcast, but haven't gotten them yet, they've been out of stock for a while. And it looks like B&H doesn't have them in stock either. If anyone finds a place that's got 'em please post it.

Harky
 
Harky said:
I was wondering about the adapter. Thanks for posting that. Good to know!

I'm about to send in my QR mount to get the newer version, what improvements have they made besides changing the angled connector to straight?


Harky
Click to expand...


Hi Harky,
When you return the mount for modification, all we do is change out the right angle connector for a straight connector.

All future builds of the QR-RED will have the straight connector and a different strain relief in them.

Regards,
Paul
 
There's a long thread about the early AB plate; a quick search here should find it.

AB has responded to the problems and fixed them.

Good shooting and best regards,

Leo
 
Thanks Harky....!!!


Any comments from anyone on how the hot swap assembly/contacts hold up?

Dave,
 
I travel a lot and have the Hytron 140. They're heavy but it is nice to be able to send them in cargo as you travel. It makes all the difference. With RED batteries you would only be allowed 2 batteries as "carry-on".

That they don't warn you is sometimes annoying but most of the time you look on the side of the Hytron to see what it's level is.

As for it's weight... yes that is a bit of deal killer but I've learnt to live with it, considering it's performance and that I don't have to carry it with me when I travel.

By the way don't send lithium batteries like RED in cargo. If you get caught you won't like it.


Fredrik Callinggard
 
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