I know quality on 16:9 is not great on the PD/VX. I'm thinking about moving to an HD camera to shoot in HD. The thing I need is very good sound. I know I can record sound totally separate from the camera itself, and I do that some time with my VX and 150, so that is a possibility, and with the noise reduction and HQ capabilities in Soundtrack I know I can get a decent audio even when I can't use separate audio.
I would definitely prefer to stay with Sony if possible, and must have XLR. Beyond that I'm not picky. If I can get an HD to shoot as good a quality in 16x9 as my PD does in 4x3 I'll be pleased.
Any suggestions? I'll even move away from Sony if I have to, but I'd rather not.
bill

See my other response to the previous thread. The FX1000/Z5, FX7/V1 or even FX1/Z1 will all do what you want. All depends on how much you want to spend and whether you are okay with an external XLR box like a BeachTek or JuicedLink, or want it built-in.

Best bang for the buck: FX7
Best value with XLR: V1
Best picture/low-light with XLR: Z5
Best value with best picture/low light: FX1000
Most Cinema-like picture: FX1
Most Cinema-like picture with XLR: Z1

Other thing to note: The V1/FX7 are virtually identical, ergonomically, to the cams you're used to.

__________________
Adam
Proud owner of 8, no, 7, no, wait, now NINE Sony HDV cams. Checking into rehab next week.
"There are no experimental failures. There's only more data."

adam,
thanks for taking the time to share such good info.
It's very helpful. I saw on ebay and XLR HD with the code Sony HVR-A1J
Do you know anything about this camera?
All these codes Sony has makes things really, really confusing.
anyway, thanks again.
bill

Probably fine if you don't care about a warranty and read Japanese.

This thread explains all the codes:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/open-dv-...menclature.html'

I'd stick with the US models, personally.

If it starts with HVR it's a "pro" model with XLR. If it starts with HDR it's Consumer, no XLR. Look for the "U" suffix for US models. J is Japan, E is Europe (PAL), A is Asia, P is Pacific (Australia, etc).

__________________
Adam
Proud owner of 8, no, 7, no, wait, now NINE Sony HDV cams. Checking into rehab next week.
"There are no experimental failures. There's only more data."

Adam,
all this is super helpful in looking for an HD to begin with. I'm seeing a number of used Sony HVR-HD1000U. I wonder if you know anything about this model?
bill

Yeah, I have one. It's an HC7 in a huge shoulder mount body. Great cam if that's what you need but only has one chip and struggles in low light, if that is important to you. Not at all like a VX/PD. Most manual controls accessed via touchscreen. No XLR.

__________________
Adam
Proud owner of 8, no, 7, no, wait, now NINE Sony HDV cams. Checking into rehab next week.
"There are no experimental failures. There's only more data."

No XLR---Argggggggggggggggggggh!

And if you bolt the XLR adapter box to the bottom, there's virtually no way to use it handheld/shoulder-mounted. No problem on the tripod.

__________________
Adam
Proud owner of 8, no, 7, no, wait, now NINE Sony HDV cams. Checking into rehab next week.
"There are no experimental failures. There's only more data."