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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 :)

Scarlet-W RED Right Angle Power Connector... different angle possible?

Tim Milgram

Tim Milgram

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So I have a bit of a technical dilemma. I have my Scarlet-W set up and balanced on my Letus Helix Jr. The cable I got from them to power the camera off of the Helix battery (http://letus35.com/red-power-cable-for-helix/) has a right angle connector which points *away* from the red dot, which causes the cable to stick out to the right when plugged into the Base Expander (see photos). The problem is that when panning left, the cable bumps into the right handle on the Letus and chaos ensues.

I spoke to the Letus people and they said that the connector for the RED is standard and that Letus doesn't actually make it; they simply make a cable with a part provided by RED and can not change the angle. Ideally, the angle would point the same side as the red dot, rather than opposite, thus going inward rather than out.

Does anyone have experience with custom power cables? Someone from RED maybe chime in and give me some insight on what can be done?



 

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Philip Lima said:
You have a couple options... The best way to do it is to get or make a straight end cable instead of an angled one. The quick/cheaper method would be to get this extension cable: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ..._wc_172000_alterna_power_extension_cable.html which would give you more of a cable mess, but would also solve your problem. I use the extension cable on my Movi rig setup with my weapon and jetpack and it works perfectly.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the reply! Sadly coming out straight back wouldn't work either because it would bump into the back part (what's behind the camera) since it would stick out like 3 inches before it can bend out of the way. It would be fine for regular mode but going into low mode would be impossible.
 
Tim Milgram said:
Thanks for the reply! Sadly coming out straight back wouldn't work either because it would bump into the back part (what's behind the camera) since it would stick out like 3 inches before it can bend out of the way. It would be fine for regular mode but going into low mode would be impossible.
Click to expand...


That's the reason I had to purchase a jetpack for my weapon. If you do a lot of gimbal work, I'd recommend doing the same as it's a slick and simple solution.
 
Philip Lima said:
That's the reason I had to purchase a jetpack for my weapon. If you do a lot of gimbal work, I'd recommend doing the same as it's a slick and simple solution.
Click to expand...

The irony is that I chose to get the Base Expander because I thought it was a slick and simple solution given that it is considerably smaller depth-wise and also slightly lighter than the Jetpack so it would work well for the Helix gimbal. It's a little crazy that a cable can't simply be rotated somehow. Buying the jet pack now means I literally wasted almost 2 grand on the Base Expander. Pretty painful...
 
Tim Milgram said:
The irony is that I chose to get the Base Expander because I thought it was a slick and simple solution given that it is considerably smaller depth-wise and also slightly lighter than the Jetpack so it would work well for the Helix gimbal. It's a little crazy that a cable can't simply be rotated somehow. Buying the jet pack now means I literally wasted almost 2 grand on the Base Expander. Pretty painful...
Click to expand...

You could build or purchase a cable, but that will be fairly expensive and/or time-consuming. The problem is, you need a cable that wouldn't make any sense in any other use. If it was an angle connector going up it would block the hd-sdi port. If it went left it would block the v-mount and if it went down it would likely interfere with any tripod use. For your specific use case, having the cable angle down would probably be the cleanest method from what I can see based on your photos.

That said... I would highly recommend getting that cable I first liked to from BH, I have a feeling you would be able to make that work with some finessing and that would be far easier and cheaper than your other options. Where are you located?
 
Tim Milgram said:
So I have a bit of a technical dilemma. I have my Scarlet-W set up and balanced on my Letus Helix Jr. The cable I got from them to power the camera off of the Helix battery (http://letus35.com/red-power-cable-for-helix/) has a right angle connector which points *away* from the red dot, which causes the cable to stick out to the right when plugged into the Base Expander (see photos). The problem is that when panning left, the cable bumps into the right handle on the Letus and chaos ensues.

I spoke to the Letus people and they said that the connector for the RED is standard and that Letus doesn't actually make it; they simply make a cable with a part provided by RED and can not change the angle. Ideally, the angle would point the same side as the red dot, rather than opposite, thus going inward rather than out.
Does anyone have experience with custom power cables? Someone from RED maybe chime in and give me some insight on what can be done?
Click to expand...

I'm waiting for my Scarlet-W and I'm about to order a Helix Jr too. Did you ever solve this?
 
I'm in the same boat. I have a Scarlet-w, the Jetpack, and the I/O Connector. NONE of them work right. The i/O connector is the best bet, but you can't go suitcase because the right angle cable extrudes too much.

On the Jetpack, the right angle prevents the cable from being inserted into the Jetpack. The red dot would have to be opposite on either the cable or the Jetpack to work - neither which are configurable.

BOTTOM LINE - I may try the straight extension cable with the jetpack, but that just seems like a lot of cable for no reason.

****Any chance RED come up with a different angled cable for us helix users?****
 
Peter Normandia said:
****Any chance RED come up with a different angled cable for us helix users?****
Click to expand...

LETUS should just make them. It's costs about $350 in NRE to have a lemo-type connector re-oriented to keep the pin alignment the same but change the angle of the barrel. I'm doing it now for RTmotion motor cables for the OMOD OMMAND RT.

Just bug LETUS to do it. They know what to do.
 
Mark L. Pederson said:
LETUS should just make them. It's costs about $350 in NRE to have a lemo-type connector re-oriented to keep the pin alignment the same but change the angle of the barrel. I'm doing it now for RTmotion motor cables for the OMOD OMMAND RT.

Just bug LETUS to do it. They know what to do.
Click to expand...

You got it! Thanks Mark.
 
Mark L. Pederson said:
LETUS should just make them. It's costs about $350 in NRE to have a lemo-type connector re-oriented to keep the pin alignment the same but change the angle of the barrel. I'm doing it now for RTmotion motor cables for the OMOD OMMAND RT.

Just bug LETUS to do it. They know what to do.
Click to expand...

Oh, and by the way, i got your top plate for my scarlet-w and its perfect for me. Just what I was looking for.
 
Just an update here:

I received the extension cable and tried it out with the jetpack. It works perfect. The length is not an issue for my setup as it has just enough slack to be clipped to the rails. Thanks for the recommendation.

Obviously, adding the jetpack ($950) plus another ($120) cable to a ($175) cable from letus just to power the camera is a bit steep. However, money aside, I used the helix jr with a Scarlet-w powered by a switronix hyper core (75) / digital i/o b/c I had a small gig before the extension cable arrived. Huge difference for me. So much lighter with the jet pack / cables. The battery barely was long enough for the large plate, and the 2 pounds or weight addition (battery/ digital i/o) was significant over time and for stabilization.

Here's some quick phone snaps: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/2917pexqaz8mb5h/AAD9ZLqZLwJMi5qFmWDvSNZ7a?dl=0
 
Cedric Gall said:
I'm waiting for my Scarlet-W and I'm about to order a Helix Jr too. Did you ever solve this?
Click to expand...

Sorry for the slow reply! I did! Turns out there's a removeable rubber ... I don't even know what to call it... (you can see it in the picture coming off of the metal part of the cable). Once removed, it actually can rotate without hitting the arm. The rubber piece I believe is meant to protect the cable at its weakest point (where it goes into the metal piece) but it's a risk I'm willing to take. The rig works great now!
 
Tim, Cedric, Peter
How is the Scarlet w (+ base i/o + still lens + filter + 4.7 lcd) working for you with the Helix Junior?
I wouldn't promote knock-off products, but I'm sure you can ask Ebay's "D-tap to 1B lemo" sellers a custom one.
 
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