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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 :)

Sound Devices PIX 240 ProRes/DNxHD Video Recorder with EPIC

Hi Carlo,
I have a PIX 240. Backing the SSD up with the RED Station would be a bit laborious, as the PIX Caddy attaches to the SSD via screws and covers the contacts that presumably also need to be accessed via the RED Station. Attaching/detaching the caddy on set would not work well.
The PIX Caddy however does have USB3, esatap & FW800 ports built in.
 
I am looking to rent a pix240 setup for two weeks starting on the 7th of Dec. Any available? My order is way back in the queue. Please PM me if any are available.
 
Sorry if this has been asked- does the Epic Hdsdi output embed audio? If so, what is the quality of the audio? The pix 240 specs say that it supports hdsdi embedded audio. Just thinking about how one would handle audio in an Epic/pix240 proxy offline/online scenario.
 
Greg M said:
Does anyone have a Pix240 in stock? I preordered from AbelCine back in September and they still haven't delivered despite charging my card the full sale price two months ago.
I don't like this practice, this will be the last time I pre-order anything from Abel.
Click to expand...
I, too, preordered from Abel and there was zero communication for over three months. I ended up just canceling and getting a refund and placed a new order with Coffey Sound in Los Angeles. Not only did I not even have to put a deposit down to get on their waiting list, but they called me with updates and got one in much sooner. I'm sure Abel works great for lots of people, but I just wanted to echo this post as the same thing happened to me.
 
Guys,

Sorry. The manufacturer pushed back delivery date and we didn't adjust at the time. Usually when a smaller item is on "pre-order" (not yet shipping to anyone) we do not take deposits. When an item is on "backorder" (soon or already shipping but not currently available) then we do. In this case we started as backorders believing the units would be shipping within a few weeks, but instead Sound Devices pushed back the release and we did not adjust. Apologies.

FWIW, if ever anyone has an issue or question please, please feel free to reach out to us to find out what is going on. Yes, we need to do better in giving you updates. But since we're on REDuser I think I can respectfully point out that backordered products have increasngly become the norm in our industry.

Haakon, our records show you ordering on 10/5 and cancelling on 10/28. Severa weeks yes, but not exactly three months.
 
A quick update...so I realized that I may not have had timecode in from epic (timecode set to ext tc via SDI)...could have sworn I set that before updating the firmware, but not 100% (it was set to freerun TOD after the update, though I had been jamming tc after any epic or pix reboots, but still got intermittent glitches). Nevertheless, after switching from freerun to external tc input via SDI, I've seen less glitches, but they're not completely gone...

A bigger problem I've found (and bummed I hadn't tested sooner) is that even when the pix is jammed to epic's timecode, the timecode written to the prores file is 1-2 frames off the timecode of the R3D. Given that the whole idea behind using the pix was having synced dailies that can be used for an offline and re-conformed to the red media, this is a less than ideal result. Has anyone else run into this issue? I've seen issues in the past with the R1 holding frame-accurate timecode, even when a lockit box is wired to the camera, but isn't part of the beauty of using the pix (in theory, of course) that it can use the epic's timecode as a master tc? Why should there be a lag? And even if there should be one, why the inconsistency? Does it have anything to do with the delay coming down from the SDI feed (the one that necessitates adding a delay to incoming audio)?

I know I've already dug myself into a trench by stepping into a feature with an untested workflow, but the timing and demands of this feature have given me little chance for proper testing, and we're now looking at a far more complicated post workflow than it was on paper...I'm trying to do whatever I can to minimize how much transcoding will be required in order to get us to edit, but now it seems like there'll need to be a healthy amount required due to the green/magenta glitches and resulting drops in audio.

Any thoughts on the matter are welcome...both in terms of getting the pix running reliably and how we can plan on minimizing post headaches down the road.

Best,
Clint
 
A. Clint Litton said:
A quick update...so I realized that I may not have had timecode in from epic (timecode set to ext tc via SDI)...could have sworn I set that before updating the firmware, but not 100% (it was set to freerun TOD after the update, though I had been jamming tc after any epic or pix reboots, but still got intermittent glitches). Nevertheless, after switching from freerun to external tc input via SDI, I've seen less glitches, but they're not completely gone...

A bigger problem I've found (and bummed I hadn't tested sooner) is that even when the pix is jammed to epic's timecode, the timecode written to the prores file is 1-2 frames off the timecode of the R3D. Given that the whole idea behind using the pix was having synced dailies that can be used for an offline and re-conformed to the red media, this is a less than ideal result. Has anyone else run into this issue? I've seen issues in the past with the R1 holding frame-accurate timecode, even when a lockit box is wired to the camera, but isn't part of the beauty of using the pix (in theory, of course) that it can use the epic's timecode as a master tc? Why should there be a lag? And even if there should be one, why the inconsistency? Does it have anything to do with the delay coming down from the SDI feed (the one that necessitates adding a delay to incoming audio)?

I know I've already dug myself into a trench by stepping into a feature with an untested workflow, but the timing and demands of this feature have given me little chance for proper testing, and we're now looking at a far more complicated post workflow than it was on paper...I'm trying to do whatever I can to minimize how much transcoding will be required in order to get us to edit, but now it seems like there'll need to be a healthy amount required due to the green/magenta glitches and resulting drops in audio.

Any thoughts on the matter are welcome...both in terms of getting the pix running reliably and how we can plan on minimizing post headaches down the road.

Best,
Clint
Click to expand...

Clint, I did a small test and it was perfectly in sync for me.... Weird.
 
What is the main difference between Pix120 and Pix240?
Have anyone tried working with Pix120?
I looked at the description of both devices, and seem to have all the same features...

Cheers,
 
Pasha Patriki said:
What is the main difference between Pix120 and Pix240?
Have anyone tried working with Pix120?
I looked at the description of both devices, and seem to have all the same features...
Click to expand...

Do you mean the PIX 220?
It doesn't have SDI I/O or timecode I/O.
 
Yes I meant Pix220.
Ok so no SDI I/O... But you can record via HDMI, am I right?
Is TC not emdedded in HDMI signal from Camera?
 
Pasha Patriki said:
Yes I meant Pix220.
Ok so no SDI I/O... But you can record via HDMI, am I right?
Is TC not emdedded in HDMI signal from Camera?
Click to expand...

220 records via HDMI.
No TC via HDMI.
This is from the Sound Devices website:-

"The PIX 220 is perfect for smaller-format high-definition cameras where time code workflows are not required."
 
HDMI standards will only carry certain signals. When the HDMI spigot on the EPIC & Scarlet is enabled you would need to test to see if the devices talked to one another. For various reasons you should be looking at the 240 for use with a RED.
 
Kyle! Thanks for the reply...

What's your setup? Just an SDI cable from epic to pix? Specific settings? Are you jamming timecode? Using epic sync cable? Half of my problem is I'm in Sicily without access to other SSDs, pix caddys, epics, etc. so it's been difficult to single out the source(s) of the problem.

Regarding the lack of frame accuracy, upon closer inspection there appears to be a drift, possibly due to dropped frames (even in clips without green/magenta glitches. Looking at the quicktime with red timecode burn-in, you can see the missing frames, which are hard to spot otherwise. Using all approved/recommended media...do I have two bum drives/caddys or a bum pix? Going to test w red one in the meantime, hoping it's not just my epic as I can't finish this film with the red one...either way answers will help me sleep at night.
 
A. Clint Litton said:
Kyle! Thanks for the reply...

What's your setup? Just an SDI cable from epic to pix? Specific settings? Are you jamming timecode? Using epic sync cable? Half of my problem is I'm in Sicily without access to other SSDs, pix caddys, epics, etc. so it's been difficult to single out the source(s) of the problem.

Regarding the lack of frame accuracy, upon closer inspection there appears to be a drift, possibly due to dropped frames (even in clips without green/magenta glitches. Looking at the quicktime with red timecode burn-in, you can see the missing frames, which are hard to spot otherwise. Using all approved/recommended media...do I have two bum drives/caddys or a bum pix? Going to test w red one in the meantime, hoping it's not just my epic as I can't finish this film with the red one...either way answers will help me sleep at night.
Click to expand...

Yes, just a sdi cable to PIX. I tested it out for about 30 minutes... I had start/stop by sdi flags enabled, and it to use SDI timecode. I did not use the epic sync cable.

You are getting green/magenta glitches? That does not sound good.

This thread reminds me of the old Quickstream DV or whatever it was called. Remember the one that would capture Via firewire so you wouldn't have to use tape? Well after about 3 different units and not a successful day of use, I threw in the towel. Hopefully this doesn't turn into that.
 
SD just released firmware update to address corrupt frames yesterday
 
Can you jam the epic and pix with timecode from the sound department? Doesnt the pix have an ambient timecode generator in it? Would it make sense to have the pix generate the timecode and have the epic use that timecode?
 
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