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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 :)

DSMC FAN 2.0 UPGRADE KIT (TOP/BOTTOM)

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Gary Nice

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I did my first shoot with my Scarlet X. Had a lot of fun and love the look. But the fans can be heard on the audio. Has anyone used the DSMC FAN 2.0 UPGRADE KIT (TOP/BOTTOM)


If so does it significantly quiet the camera and is it easy to install.

Thanks Gary
 
Hello Gary,

The upgrade kit is a good start but first look at your fan settings. If not too hot you can get fairly great results using Adaptive quiet record set to 70C. As another fan option there is also the FanPlate made by Mecasax wich is interesting ;-)

Have a nice shooting.


Pat

Edit : Peter was faster the I ;-)
 
I bought the fan upgrade kit but since the firmware came out with the Adaptive Quiet mode, I have not even gotten around to installing it. I set my target temperature at 65.
 
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I use the original bottom fan and the new top fan and set my camera to Adaptive mode at 65 degrees.

I literally never even think about the fan anymore. It just works, and it's quiet.
 
I believe it was on Adaptive. Do you black shade every time before a shoot? New to the camera so just learning. The show did go significantly down once I hit record but for this shot, it was an interview so the camera recorded 25 minutes of talking before I stopped the recording so the fan was getting a bit louder.
 
Thanks everyone for the quick input. I will double check my settings
 
I set my Adaptive Fan (non-Quiet record, since I do long takes often) to 60c and it's pretty quiet. I *do* notice the exhaust air and camera body getting hot though... Especially if you're standing over the camera and/or the monitor is on top.

I would have gotten just the top-fan if it were $50... but for $250 (or whatever it is standalone), there are so many other things that take priority (plus I'm not sure it works with my top-plate).
 
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fan noise issue

fan noise issue

I am glad this topic has been raised again as it is still an issue for me. I have the top fan in and the original bottom fan and I still find the noise of the camera intrusive during long takes. I am setting the temperature to 65 degrees in adaptive mode and once it settles in it is definitely still too loud to conduct a long interview in an average room unless you are a long way back using a long lens. The best settings I ever found for the camera for long interviews was setting the fan to to about 36 in manual mode but the problem with that is of course the leaf blower effect in between which is so loud that it scares children away.

I should say that if you are outside of course there is no problem. However, the problem with noise is still a real difficulty for those trying to use the camera for documentary work.

Is anyone using the FanPlate? What I am wondering is if you set it to between 36 - 39 is it possible to conduct a long interview? What temperature does it eventually settle at?
 
One small nit - there are two "adaptive" modes; I believe one is called "Adaptive" and the other "Adaptive Quiet" (working from memory). I use the Adaptive Quiet and I believe it is noticeably better than the other. Again, I set mine at 65 but I think you could push it a bit higher.
 
Like Terry I have mine set to 65 and even with long takes I haven't had an issue. Mind you the ambient temperatures here are probably less then some other places that are having issues.
 
Rob Castiglione said:
Is anyone using the FanPlate? What I am wondering is if you set it to between 36 - 39 is it possible to conduct a long interview? What temperature does it eventually settle at?
Click to expand...

Hello Rob,

I'm using a FanPlate ;-) (to be honest I'm the developper). On my testing with it, I get the best results concerning noise (and heat). The FanPlate usually takes the cooling load of the front fan off and as it has a bigger fan (60x25mm) it can spinn slower making less noise than the new top and bottom fan.

I best like the "old" or call it "original" bottom fan as I don't like the high hum pitch noise the new bottom fan makes. I've done some extensive testing with all fan configurations you can watch and hear it here. I set the fan setting at adaptive 70C° quiet and put the FanPlate to half position. This gets me rolling 1+ hour without overheating with low noise with a room temp at 24C°.


Pat
 
Hi Patrick,

As Red has not really been able to address the sound issue I am interested in the Fan Plate. The whole fan thing has not been impressive. The original front makes too much noise which projects into the room. The replacement fan I agree is even worse making a whining noise. For those who have the pro i/o module they have to suffer the additional problem of another fan with an additional obtrusive noise. I know this because I had the misfortune of purchasing one of these and did extensive testing. So yes, I am very interested in now exploring a solution that might actually work.

I have always been concerned at running the camera at 70 degrees. This is pretty close to the safety cut off point of 75 degrees. Has Red every officially confirmed that it is safe to run the camera for extended period at this temperature and that it will not significantly affect the life of the camera?

Best Regards,
 
Rob .. not sure about 70 degrees but the camera default when you upgrade the firmware is 65. So I stick to 65. I have easily gone 40 mins continuous.
 
Hi Ted,

Thanks for your thoughts. I am really trying to find a solution to this.

I agree I am more comfortable with 65. However, I was at a shoot recently with a major client in a medium room recording an interview. Set to adaptive at 65. The noise was clearly audible. The client asked me if there was a problem with the camera. I am beginning to think that there is a basic design flaw in the camera - it is just too small to disperse the heat properly. So unfortunately, 65 simply does not work in a small to medium room for interviews. It is really quite an issue - I love the quality of the images that the Red produces, no question. However, I have to be concerned every time I get a gig to do an interview. I may have to go back to the tried and tested manual/standby mode - that worked despite the leaf blower effect in between takes.

It would be good to have confirmation from someone at Red that it is perfectly ok to shoot continuously at 70 degrees and that this will not significantly reduce the life of the camera. Has Red ever done this? I know it is all essentially silicone in there but it would be great to have confirmation and then I will cheerfully go to 70 degrees.

Best Regards,
 
Hey, just a note: if you plan on upgrading your camera to Dragon, RED automatically includes/installs the Fan 2.0 kit. If you don't want the two fans installed, or just want one, I think you notify your bomb squad rep?
 
BrendanLeahy said:
Hey, just a note: if you plan on upgrading your camera to Dragon, RED automatically includes/installs the Fan 2.0 kit. If you don't want the two fans installed, or just want one, I think you notify your bomb squad rep?
Click to expand...

After you recieve your Dragon upgrade, you can also easily take them off and put the original front fan if you want tu use the FanPlate (wich replace the new top fan and the top plate).

Regarding the max heat temp, I think RED wouldn't have given us the opportunity to go up to 70C° in the fan setting menu if this could harm the camera. I've never head RED say that this could harm the camera. But yes, fan sound is a bummer and I don't understand people with yellow names here saying it's a thing of the past.

The Epic body is too small to get a proper cooling with all that magic going on on these boards. There will allways be some noise coming from a fan, and you can hear the difference in the test i've made. So there won't be a dead silent camera (aka 5D mkII). But it's the best we can get. I'm also using a "front blimp" to cut the front fan sound projected to the scene. Usually the cameras have the fan at the back of the camera, RED's desing is the only one pointing to the front.




Pat
 
I just listened to your tests Patrick - extremely useful. The new bottom fan is hilarious. I can see that in a real life situation the Fan Plate might make a difference even without a massive baffle in front of the camera.

Several questions. How is the FanPlate powered? I assume that it is independent of the camera? Second, in the configuration that you have described - Fanplate top, original fan bottom and 70 degrees adaptive, are you able to conduct quite interviews in a small room or is there still a problem?


I can tell you the whole sound issue has had me seriously consider other cameras. Unfortunately, there is nothing out there yet to rival the Epic in terms of picture quality. Also I am heavily invested in the system now so I have to find a solution.

I understand that you are the developer as well - thanks for the disclosure. At the same time, I think you are also a person genuinely interested in getting the best sound from the camera. Many thanks for your input.

Kind Regards,
 
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