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Best Production Monitor in 2018?

Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman

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I'm looking to upgrade my production monitor, something with dual SDI inputs, between 17-24", not too heavy, can do PIP and has little or no delay (this part is very important).

Any recs? What are you all using? How do clients like them? I've been asking people on set and there's been surprisingly little consensus so far.
 
The same thinking here. I think I will buy an Atoms Sumo. Any thoughts from users?
 
flanders

if color is important
 
I recently got the new osee 21 inch and ive been pretty damn happy with it on set.
 
I find the Osee needs a little sharpening, but colors are good.
The only crucial thing missing on the OSEE is the cross conversion, to be compatible with every shoot.

And it's too bad the LEMO 2 output works only with DC.

They replaced my fleet of JVC DT-V DT-E for the better, but one thing I liked more about the JVC was the free calibrating software. With the OSEE, you need a 2500$ Calman licence.
 
Love my Flanders DM240. I was patient (maybe 2 months) and scored a demo unit for $600 discount. Highly recommended.
 
Tom Bostick said:
SmallHD 1703 P3X has been very good, and has all of those features.
Click to expand...

Same. I've had mine for a long while now and it's been bullet proof.
 
Thanks for the responses. I was under the impression Panasonics and TVLogics are the industry standards. Are you guys finding otherwise?

For the Flanders, is delay not an issue? I owned an AM210 and there was a slight delay even at fast processing speed. Most clients/directors didn't mind, but some did.

And is there an argument for buying Osee's other than affordability?

I've used the SmallHD 1703 P3X and liked it too. Definitely considering that.
 
Agreed on Sony

Agreed on Sony

I own the Sony oled and small HD 24” hdr. The small HD has a killer design and many useful features and with the hood is bright enough to see outdoors easily . The Sony being an Oled has the better picture, but is skimpy on toys. If I could smoosh them together it would be The ultimate monitor. I can see use cases for both. As a reference monitor I’d pick the Sony. But if I’m running around outdoors the small HD wins. Some ACs prefer pulling focus off the Sony and others the small hd. Hope that helps. Also, professional calibration is a must.
 
This may be a dumb question, but why is it that so few use a 4K capable monitor for monitoring when shooting in 4K? Even that $5000.00 Sony someone linked above is still a 1080 monitor. For that price you'd think the Sony would be a 4K monitor. But no. It isn't even UHD.

Is it because 4K isn't all that distinguishable from 1080 on monitors under a certain screen-size that 4K displays are not more widely used when shooting in 4K? Or is it more that the cost of true 4K displays is prohibitive?

Anyone using a 4096x2160 capable display in acquisition, in the field or in-studio?
 
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John David Pope said:
Why would anyone NOT choose it? Cost.

There. Glad we cleared that up. :smilewinkgrin:
Click to expand...


The beauty of RED is they offer many price points, so you have every level of user from blockbuster all the way down. The higher the level you go the higher the expectation of what gear is used on set. On many sets something like the Sony or Flanders would be expected. And, it would be calibrated on a regular basis professionally. This lets both you and the client know that there is a reasonable expectation of the look on set carrying over to post. Is $5000 a lot for that? Is $50,000 for a camera body too much as well? I don't like to shoot with out my Sony, and Small HD AND Astro waveform if I'm doing something technical like green screen. Oh and my flicker meter. None of this is cheap, but at a certain level you can't make mistakes and all of these tools are essential mostly when something goes technically wrong.

As to 4k video out few cameras including RED have 4k output. No Teradek or similar device transmits 4K and if you think $5000 is a lot look up what a Sony or Canon 4k on set monitor costs. My bet would be with DSMC3 we will get 4K out (as will more cameras like Arri when they launch a 4k mini) and by 2020 prices for 4k on set monitors will come down a bit and we will see more adoption (I hope).
 
Thank you for the explanation as to why monitoring in 4K is such a rarity. And also for the feedback on the smallHD monitor and Sony OLED monitor. It's a dilemma: the high-brightness of the smallHD is so useful outdoors...but that Sony, what with its deep blacks, is luscious. I'm working more with an OCEE budget.
 
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What do you need it for?

DP Reference monitor -- Sony Oled or FSI LCD are pretty standard these days -- with the difference being whether or not the DP prefers Oled blacks or LCD blacks.
DP Operating monitor -- I recommend a TV logic 7 (or 9?) dual input monitor. This is a great monitor for DPs that operate one camera (e.g. A Cam) while also wanting to monitor another camera (e.g. B Cam) because its one of the rare small monitors that lets you toggle between two inputs (like a bigger monitor).

AC focus monitor -- SmallHD hi bright. They've got strong cases and don't require hoods (although a good hood can still help a lot). Size of the monitor varies from place to place. I find LA likes big monitors for ACs -- 24, 17, 13. Until recently, here in Vancouver everyone was on a 7, almost as a point of pride. I don't first, but if I did I'd use either a 13 or a 17 if I only had one monitor and 24 and 7 if I planned on two of them -- the small one for tight areas and the big one for general comfort.

Important caveat. Wireless integration. Its a thing. If you're a Teradek user you might want to consider how you integrate your wireless and your monitoring. Cables, boxes, power. No fun. If you're going to spend a lot of $$ make sure you think ahead on this one...
 
Since we're all trying to forget the last few years I figured to ask here (old post) instead of starting a new one.
What about of late in regards to field monitors?
I sold my Osee 15.6 (thanks Phil for the GB on this one) and need something in the same price range.
I can't justify SmallHD pricing so that's out.
Im in the under 1200 USD range.
There seem to be a lot of options at BH e.g. Feelworld, Elvid, Marshall, etc...
The Osee was a rugged workhorse, took a beating in so many environemnt.
Not the greatest tech but it worked.
Any tips would be cool :)
 
I'm currently using a high end LG 4K HDR display and a recently acquired Panasonic BT-LH2250 1080P production monitor for post on our first feature. Honestly, even though the Panasonic is nicely calibrated, the color is not far off from the modern 4K HDR of the LG computer monitor. For our next feature, we purchased a Lilliput 28" 4K monitor that's pretty nice for the money but I haven't hooked it up for post as it's going to be our big on-set monitor.
 
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