Pros & Cons of V-Mounts over RED Volts

[Rick Augustus]

I'm really considering going from my rig having the Quad Battery Module to a V-Mount battery system. I have no experience with V-Mount batteries and would like to know what some of the Pros & Cons of having V-Mounts are. Thanks for any and all imput....

 

[Shane Kelly]

Cons: weight and size, compared to revolts
Pros: longer run time, industry standard ( available everywhere ), d-tap outputs.

 

[Tyler Bourns]

I really like having both available as different shoots or setups seem be better fitted to each system. By having both, I have flexibility on using the most efficient method for the jobs, and then backup juice is available worst case scenario if go through all of the batteries...

 

[Christopher Barrett]

I set my Epic up with V Mounts. just went over to RedVolts with the Dual and Quad modules. I've got 8 RedVolts, Quad charger and a Travel Charger. That seems to be enough batteries to cycle through a day of shooting. I prefer the form factor of the dual module. Module adapter + Dual Module + 2 RedVolts is comparable weight and runtime to a 90wh V Mount setup. Runtime to weight ratio is a little better with V Mounts. I like the way the RedVolts integrate with the system and being able to get rid of the battery cable from the V Mount. I'm sure a V Mount system will run you less cash.

I may still hold onto my V Mounts. It is nice to have backup power as Tyler mentioned.

 

[Maik Müller]

+1 on Christophers post, i have nearly the same setup and like it a lot. I feel no need to go to V-Mounts. For me, the Dual-Module really does the trick in terms of weight and size, compared to the Quad (which use only if i need the extended runtime).

A few more things: The DMSC-modules don't block and stress your power-connector on the brain, don't block the module-connector and are really easy and quick to swap or unmount. And having only one type of batteries for the back-module and side-handle is also a plus.

So, my 2c, given that you already have some REDVOLTs and a Quad-Module, you should consider getting the Dual instead of switching to V-Mounts.

 

[Nick Pasquariello]

Pro: V-Mounts are a widely used standard (as are Anton Bauer) so more people, including those that do not own Red cameras or equipment, are likely to have synergistic equipment. Whether that means you borrow or rent from them or they borrow or rent from you or everything is shared on set between multiple camera types.

Not a pro or a con: there's no wrong answer. Whatever you decide on, as long as you can get through a day keeping your camera powered, it really doesn't matter if you do it with RedVolts, V-Mounts, or a trailer full of hamsters running on wheels. Sure, you may prefer one solution over the other, but I wouldn't stress about it too much. See if you can borrow or rent some gear and try each setup. You'll figure out real quick if you have a preference, or just don't care.

 

[Rob Castiglione]

This is a tricky one but I went the V mount route. One red battery will last 2 hrs at least.

I really cant bear the loose cable and was considering the red volt route until Red announced the new battery module which will allow direct power throughput from the camera without a cable. Can't wait!

 

[Julio Quintana]

Sooner or later you will want to mount a non-Red LCD, wireless follow focus, Teradek bolt, etc. on your camera. You will need a power source, and D-taps are pretty universal, at least for now.

I started off with ten Redvolts and three travel chargers. I still own them, but I almost exclusively use my four v-mounts and dual charger because it is way less hassle and not that much heavier. Plus if I'm shooting in remote locations and won't be able to charge batteries, I can call any rental house and pick up some extra v-mounts. Try calling around to rent extra Redvolts and you'll quickly see the limitations of that format.

 

[Antti Pirskanen]

Slot-in wireless mic receiver adapters come with a V-slot attachment and pass-through power. They are actually quite handy if you have a Pix Prores recorder attached to your camera. This is one of the reasons I chose V-slot batteries. I also have redvolts, but I use them in the side handle only as a reserve power source during hot-swapping.

 

[Ben Scott]

Just sold 3 of my 4 redvolts and one charger. Any battery that last 30mins and takes hours to charge can't be relied upon as far as I'm concerned. If you have a dual/quad adapter then great, but by that time it would be cheaper and possibly lighter to have v-mounts anyway, plus you get all the d--tap benefits.