Sony HDR-SR11 useful for skydiving?

[Vlad 0]

Hi folks,

I've heard that harddrive cams do not work for skydiving. What about this one ?

It can record to memory stick instead of hard drive.http://www.amazon.com/Sony-HDR-SR11-Definition-Camcorder-Stabilized/dp/B00123XZNI/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&s=photo&qid=1206035699&sr=1-18#moreAboutThisProduct

[pilotdave 0]

I'd guess that it either lowers the quality of the video for recording onto the memory stick, or it fits very little video on one. But even if it worked, why would you want to wear a hard drive on your head that you're not using (and are probably breaking)? Just get a CX-7, which is designed to record onto solid state memory...

Dave

[Vlad 0]

the most important reason to get a cam is that we have a child on the way... and every summer I go to very long expeditions to Siberia. So, I prefer to have both harddrive and memory stick.

BTW, are there mounts for this type of cameras ?

[DSE 5]

*Allegedly* the SR11/12 park the heads when the memstick is inserted.
No difference in quality, same encode regardless of which storage is used. I've been promised an SR 12 for about a month now. I hope to test one soon, and that way we'll know for sure. Encoding wise, it's a very fine camcorder.

[pilotdave 0]

I assume that a lot less video fits on a memory stick than with the CX-7 since it's not using AVCHD... is that true?

Dave

[DSE 5]

Perhaps you're thinking of a different camera? The SR11 is AVCHD. has the same encoder as the CX7, but has Exmor™ DSP, so it should be *slightly* better in low light and extreme light.
SR11 also is slightly higher at up to 16Mbps, and is native 1920 x1080 vs 1440 x 080.

[pilotdave 0]

Ahh... didn't realize that. I thought the hard drive cams encoded in a different format... (it doesn't actually say AVCHD anywhere in the description).

Dave

[DSE 5]

They did. In the past, HDD units were MPEG 2. Now pretty well everything is MPEG4/AVCHD

[johnboy 0]

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*Allegedly* the SR11/12 park the heads when the memstick is inserted.

It would seem to me the hard drive could still develop issues even if the heads are parked. Am I wrong on this?

[DSE 5]

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*Allegedly* the SR11/12 park the heads when the memstick is inserted.

It would seem to me the hard drive could still develop issues even if the heads are parked. Am I wrong on this?

How?

[johnboy 0]

If it's a concern for humidity or pressure changes, does it matter whether the heads are parked or not? From your short response, I would have to guess not. Anyway, back to my corner....

[DSE 5]

Johnboy, it's an honest question. I don't know that it won't hurt the platters if the heads are parked. Yet I don't see how the heads or platters could be harmed if they do lock down.
If you've got a suggestion about how one or the other might be damaged, I'm all ears.

[Vlad 0]

Could you advise me whether there is a mount for this camera ?

[DSE 5]

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Could you advise me whether there is a mount for this camera ?

Vlad, a mount for which camera? There are several mentioned in the thread.
If you mean an SR11, it's no different than any other camcorder, it'll mount on top of your head. It's too wide for a side mount.

I'd suggest you'd be gambling if you buy one before we know for *certain* that the camcorder parks the head and shuts down the platter when using an MSPD.

[Vlad 0]

DSE, if that is not too much of a hassle, could you please explain, what "parks the head and shuts down the platter " means ?

I've actually never used a camcorder either for skydiving or for anything else in my life. But since I need one now, I would like to get a decent one, suitable both in the air and on the ground.

[DSE 5]

Hard drive camcorders cannot be used for skydiving (see Sticky).
"Parking heads/platters" means the HDD is locked down, not powered up, and in a safe-state for transport. We know the camcorder parks the heads. What we don't know (yet) is if the platter is locked, and that no power is sent to the HDD.
That is important.
if you want one compatible for both, the CX7 is your current best-bet, IMO.

[Vlad 0]

THank for replying.

CX-7 is memory stick only cam as far as I understand. How much video in its best quality can fit on a 8gb card ?
Quality wise, are there any critical differences between 11 and 7?

[DSE 5]

Doesn't matter if it's MSPD or HDD, the signal that goes down is identical. Just different storage methods.
The 11 has a better encoder/DSP, but outside of that, they're the same. Same lens..

[parachutist 2]

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How much video in its best quality can fit on a 8gb card ?

In the CX7 I get 1/2 hour per 4-gig card in highest quality mode. So it should be 1 hour for an 8

[johnboy 0]

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Johnboy, it's an honest question. I don't know that it won't hurt the platters if the heads are parked. Yet I don't see how the heads or platters could be harmed if they do lock down.
If you've got a suggestion about how one or the other might be damaged, I'm all ears.

So just for the sake of curiosity and knowing approximately squat about hard drive construction, I poked around a bit and my guess off of what I'm reading says there really shouldn't be any damage if the heads are parked and platters not spinning. The air pressure at sea level is apparantly what keeps the heads from bouncing off the platters at sea level, so naturally as altitude increases and air pressure decreases, more potential for bouncing. The big question would then whether the heads are actually parked as to whether I would want to try and jump the camera or not. I probably wouldn't either way since there is more likelyhood of platters and heads bouncing at altitude. In my experience, skydiving isn't always the smoothest activity!

I don't know if this actually adds anything to the conversation or not, but at least I educated and amused myself for a while. Thanks for listening to me ramble!

[elton01 0]

Hey guys,

I know this is an old thread. I probably should leave it closed, but just in case anyone was wondering "did they ever have a definitive fix for the SR11 HDD conversion to SSD?", well yes there is one. If you go to:

http://www.activemp.com/SSD/solid-state-drives.htm

and look at the:

SaberTooth ZX
1.8-inch PATA ZIF

This gives a drop in replacement for the 60GB HDD. You order the 64GB version and it will drop in place of the original drive. All you need to do is format and it works like the original, except uses less power. It gives a huge recording time; 476 minutes of HQHD and completes a beautiful setup for a skydiving platform. I've put this in the altitude chamber at work and run it thru ESS (Environmental Stress Screening) and vibe profiles while recording. Flawless.
Examples of what it has seen has been 12000 ft at 60 degrees C, then ramped down to 3 degrees C at 15000 ft. I've had no issues at all.
*Keep in mind this is not my primary use camera and it was given to me by the mother in law for this conversion. If you decide to do this, make sure you have backup in case you fry your SR11*
Now that I've completed this, I'm going to use the SR as my jump camera, and keep the CX500 as a family camcorder.