Thank you for being a valued part of the CNET community. As of December 1, 2020, the forums are in read-only format. In early 2021, CNET Forums will no longer be available. We are grateful for the participation and advice you have provided to one another over the years.

Thanks,

CNET Support

General discussion

Sony Handycam DCR-SR45 camcorder stops recording

by grant richardson31781 Dec 30, 2008 3:15AM PST

I bought this camcorder new 2 weeks ago and it has worked great around the home. Last week I took it to the airport and mounted it in my airplane by simply leaving the camera on a tripod and strapping the tripod in the seat of the airplane.

Before takeoff I set it to record which it was doing however before my takeoff it quit recording so I didn?t get any flight footage. When I landing to my disappointment, I discovered that I didn?t get any footage due to the camera stopping.

I tried again and the same thing happened again. It quit before I took off. This time however I managed to check it while flying and turned it on to get this landing video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbYkWBD5dEo&fmt=18

The airplane is very loud, there is a good bit of vibrations generated by the engine and the takoff roll is very bumpy on grass. In flight g loads may vary from 2G to 0G but not on a constant basis.

The tripod that the camera is on is not hard mounted. It is simply strapped to a mesh seat using bungee straps.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to fix this problem? Filming from the plane was my main reason I bought the camera.

I did not turn off the anti drop safeguard during this time.


Grant

Discussion is locked

10 Posts
- Collapse + Expand Details
- Collapse -
Vibration =
by boya84 Dec 30, 2008 4:23AM PST

hard drive head parks = buffer overload= no video recording.

The problem (prolonged vibration),
the symptom (no video recorded and/or buffer overload error message),
the resolution (remove the unit from the source of the vibration),
and the workaround (disable the drop sensor)...

are all documented in the camcorder's Operating Guide and Handbook. This is not specific to Sony hard disc drive (HDD) camcorders - All HDD camcorders have the same issue. You *might* be able to rig some sort of "shock mount". It may be as simple as putting 1"-2" foam rubber on the tripod feet to isolate the tripod (and camcorder) from the plane's vibration, but we don't know what kind of plane it is, so we don't know if it is the actual plane's fuselage/motor vibration or the motor noise (loud audio can cause enough vibration) that is the source of the problem.

The other problem they all have is at high altitude (9,800 feet and above) there is not enough air pressure for the hard drive heads to work properly. This is also not specific to Sony (HDD) camcorders - All HDD camcorders have the same issue. This is also documented in the (Sony) camcorder's Operating Guide and Handbook.

MiniDV tape and flash memory camcorders do not have these issues.

- Collapse -
HDD
by grant richardson31781 Dec 30, 2008 4:47AM PST

At least I can record to a memory stick while using it in the plane.
Altitude is not a problem as I only fly up to 3000 msl. The airplane is a Kolb mark III Light sport with a rotax 503 2 cycle engine. I am not sure why it worked for the landing video.

- Collapse -
That's at least some comfort...
by whizkid454 Dec 30, 2008 5:01AM PST

Glad you're able to at least use it when you need it.

- Collapse -
sound overload
by grant richardson31781 Dec 30, 2008 5:50AM PST

Boya,

The airplane is very loud. The sound quality is not bad considering how loud it is. You can hear the thumping of the prop blades in the beginning of the video.
I have to wear earplugs under my headset or it is too loud. Being a pusher prop, the prop makes a lot of noise chopping the disturbed air right behind the camera about 3 feet.
http://s340.photobucket.com/albums/o353/grant31781/Souther%20feild%2010-4-08/?action=view&current=DSC00489.jpg

The camera sits where my head is so it is close and the plane is open to the back.

It is possible that the noise is overriding the memory as well. Someone suggested me getting a HDD for flying. That was a mistake it seems like. I had no idea that the camera would be so sensitive to this.
I guess my best option is to just use a memory stick when flying? What do you think? I saw another post that said disabling the drop sensor could lead to a HDD failure. I don?t want that to happen.

Is this a good camera that I have in your opinion?

- Collapse -
I've never heard of "sound overload"
by boya84 Dec 30, 2008 9:06AM PST

other than the audio is loud enough to cause the high amount of vibration to park the hard drive heads.

In the "Options" menu on the LCD panal, the is an "Options" selection. In there, you can select the "MicRef Level". "Normal" for ... well, Normal audio and "Low" for Low gain on the mic for LOUD audio.

Yes, disabling the drop sensor will allow the hard drive to "work" but with that vibration, you run the risk of the heads scruffing the hard drive platters... not a good idea to use this workaround in your environment.

Flash memory and miniDV tape do not have this vibration issue...

- Collapse -
cool plane, by the way...
by boya84 Dec 30, 2008 9:31AM PST

do you want to record the WHOLE flight or certain segments... or?

If I had my choice, I'd be looking at a camcorder with a wired remote (LANC) so I could start/stop when needed. And it would be easy to set up a monitor (like a 8" battery powered portable DVD player with AV-in capability) so I could see what the camera sees...

- Collapse -
Flash drive options?
by grant richardson31781 Dec 30, 2008 10:17AM PST

Boya,

Thanks! I really enjoy flying my little plane! I just want to record parts of the flights such as takeoffs landings and some inflight maneuvers and general flying.

I just checked and I can still return the camera to circuit city. I am considering getting another one with flash memory. I want to stay in the same price range $350 or less. Since I am starting over it would be nice to have an external mic jack as well. Some people told me to get sony as it was the best in there opinions. I need a good camcorder with a good Image stabilization system and good optical zoom that will not suffer from the vibration and noise in my plane.

I looked at the flash card camcorders and out of the ones in my price range( Samsung Sc-Mx20 $250, Canon fs 10 $399, JVC ererio GZ MS 100 $329, Panasonic SDR S7S $229 and the Canon FS100.
The FS 100 seems to be the best one at $299. It has a remote, Dolby digital sound and low light. Keep in mind I want good quality video from my plane and from around the home. Does low light mean infer red like sony?s nightshot plus?

I could not find any indication if any of these have external mic jacks. Does these record in MPEG-2 format?

What do you suggest? In your opinion which is a better camcoder the Sony DCR-SR45 that I have or the cannon that I am thinking about or any of the others?

Thanks

Grant

- Collapse -
You are painting yourself into
by boya84 Dec 30, 2008 1:02PM PST

that proverbial corner.

Actually, I'm fairly certain they all have a wireless (infrared) remotes - this mean line of site from the front of the wireless remote to the front of the camcorder. I was thinking more along the lines of a wired remote (LANC), but we don't need to get bogged down in that.

On this revised list, I think the Canon FS10/FS11/FS100 are your best bets... they have a mic jack - I don't think the others do. That is the good news - but you do need to know that they do not have any manual audio control.

Manual:
http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&fcategoryid=2544&modelid=16185#DownloadDetailAct
See page 84 - at the bottom about distorted audio... No remedy tells me no manual audio control. There are ways to control this - but they contribute to the price. At least there are no warnings about vibration (or altitude). Chances are the others do not have any audio control, either... and perhaps you don't care.

Only Sony camcorders have the built-in infrared emitter. These non-Sony camcorders open the aperture wide, slow the shutter and try their hand at "acceptable" low light. It will be grainy.

Check page 102 for the file type (MPEG2). You still may need to convert them - it depends on the editor you use. For just playback, VLC player (among others) is quite versatile.

Pages 50 and 103 have information about the external mic connectivity.

Given the vibration issues, flash memory or miniDV tape are your best bets.

- Collapse -
camcorder
by grant richardson31781 Dec 31, 2008 12:31AM PST

Boya,

Thanks,

I think I am going to try the memory stick in my sony and see if it works 1st. Its a 45min drive to return the camera and only a 10min drive to get a card. So far I like the camera other than the issues I am having.

Grant

- Collapse -
Problem with recording stopping in mid flight
by rfcrain Sep 8, 2013 1:38PM PDT

I tried using my Sony HD camcorder (Super steadyshot HDR-SR11)and it stopped recording in mid flight so I tried using my wife's camera "Nikon Coolpix AW100" it's full HD, Waterproof, Shockproof, built-in world map WITH a flash card! I thought this would work great "shockproof" Nope, Same problem. it ran for about 14 minutes and it stopped.
I don't understand why it's not working. I fly in a Piper Cherokee and my videoing is bellow 6000ft
Any suggestions?

Back to Video Cameras forum

CNET Forums

Operating Systems
Software
Electronics & Gadgets
Hardware
Tablets & Mobile Devices
General Help
Brand Forums
Roadshow Autos
Off Topic

Other Forums

Forum Info