Zenmuse GH4 Owners thread

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PMaughan

Member
You can say that again. No doubt it'll be fine tomorrow when I go to give it a damn good thrashing!

GH4 seems to it output fine to everything else I hook up to it. So not sure it's the firmware.
 

Timtim

Timtim

Member
Buzz_Roavr said:
Pete there's no rhyme or reason to it I'm afraid. Every time its a faff. I think it was the GH4 firmware update that caused the issue but I didn't have the z15 before the update so again can't comment!
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So I should leave my camera on the V1.0 firmware. There was an announcement about new firmware coming in December, but no sign of it yet. Hopefully that will sort some of these issues
 

P

PMaughan

Member
I think it's time to send my gimbal back, it's never been perfect, maybe I'm asking too much. But this problem with the live view is the final straw, tested prior to going out and worked fine, on location didn't work, back home and worked ok, on location didn't work...could be a temperature thing, both jobs near to freezing. It's been getting steadily worse last couple of months, one setting works and you think you've got it then next time it doesn't and you change the setting and it works etc etc etc.

Is anyone not having issues with this occasionally?

Anyway purpose of this post not just to rant but to ask if anyone has a good idea of the length of time I can expect it to be away being looked at? in the UK.

Thanks
Pete
 

Buzz_Roavr

Buzz_Roavr

Member
Pete that is exactly my issue. Last job I was on it stopped working on site which went down well!

I'm glad your having the same issues as it means I'm not mad!

Ben Kenobi's is working perfectly I believe.
 



Benjamin Kenobi

Benjamin Kenobi

Easy? You call that easy?
I'm still on V1 firmware on the GH4. Still no issues with the Zen or camera, and it's been flown hard for the last three months.

I have no idea why your video out is funky guys. They must be faulty at this point.
 

1lifefilm

1lifefilm

Member
ZAxis said:
My GH4 Zenmuse has just arrived so we've replacing the existing GH3 gimbal on the s1000. As it uses the same mounting points it was a straightforward affair.
All seems ok so far but its off on it first earner tomorrow so will post some results and experiences once it's been put through it's paces.
My only gripe was that it wasn't factory balanced or infact anywhere near balanced & the bolts holding the main arm on were loose so I would suggest checking them when you get one.
Lec
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Ditto..I had similar issues with my 5D Zenmuse, way out of balance when it arrived. It seems that there are she'd loads of people who have had significant probs with Zenmuse products, mine ended going back to Germany for various reasons but works a charm now ;)
 

Buzz_Roavr

Buzz_Roavr

Member
Benjamin Kenobi said:
I'm still on V1 firmware on the GH4. Still no issues with the Zen or camera, and it's been flown hard for the last three months.

I have no idea why your video out is funky guys. They must be faulty at this point.
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I think you've hit the nail on the head there Ben. V1 seems fine the update is what seems to have buggered things.

I upgraded the Gh4 before I bought the Zenmuse though so can't comment.

My dealer (not unsurprisingly) says it's the first GH4 Z15 he's had problems with.
 




Dave_EP

Dave_EP

Member
About to order an S900 + Gimbal for GH4, so I'm reading through this thread with interest. Lots of people having lots of problems, but as usual it's not clear if that's a vocal tiny minority or a large number of users over all.

From what I'm reading it seems that:

1) Better to make sure the S900 comes with longer legs. Do they all come with those by default now or are they special order?

2) The GH4 should only be run in manual mode (my default anyway), with ND filters (probably 3 stop) for filming (I do this on the ground too)

3) Photo mode seems to be limited to 12MP and 16x9? Unfortunate.

4) Some people are having problems with remote shutter in photo mode, but it should work fine if the right settings are used Is there somewhat to start stop filming (4K) remotely is do you have to start / stop on the ground?

5) Some people are having trouble with gimbal balance but there was / is new gimbal firmware that fixes most issues - what firmware should I be looking for?

6) It seems a less than perfect solution but is about the best we can expect from this level of gear at this time.

What else have I missed?
 

Stratifier

Stratifier

Member
1) Better to make sure the S900 comes with longer legs. Do they all come with those by default now or are they special order?

When I mentioned it to my supplier back in October, they told me that this issue had been addressed a long time ago and was not a concern anymore.

2) The GH4 should only be run in manual mode (my default anyway), with ND filters (probably 3 stop) for filming (I do this on the ground too)

Yes
3) Photo mode seems to be limited to 12MP and 16x9? Unfortunate.

It is indeed
4) Some people are having problems with remote shutter in photo mode, but it should work fine if the right settings are used Is there somewhat to start stop filming (4K) remotely is do you have to start / stop on the ground?

Yes you start and stop recording from the RC

5) Some people are having trouble with gimbal balance but there was / is new gimbal firmware that fixes most issues - what firmware should I be looking for?

For what's worth my experience everyting is just fine, no jello, vibration, it's initialising perfectly and there is no problem with the balance or the horizon in flight. Don't know my firmware. Got it beginning of november. I assume it is current at this time.


6) It seems a less than perfect solution but is about the best we can expect from this level of gear at this time.

I would not say that. The GH4 is better than a 5D MIII in video, for a lot less money. The (mine at least) gimbal works great, If you do more video than stills, this setup is the one to go for. It is the choice of many...

What else have I missed?

I don't like the struggling to access the SD card and the battery when the GH4 is mounted, but apparently others are ok with it.
 

Dave_EP

Dave_EP

Member
Stratifier said:
The GH4 is better than a 5D MIII in video, for a lot less money. The (mine at least) gimbal works great, If you do more video than stills, this setup is the one to go for. It is the choice of many...
Click to expand...

I totally agree that the GH4 is better that the 5D3 for video (I have both). The trouble is at this time I'm not sure exactly where the split will be between photo and video since I have people asking for both. If the split turned out to be higher for photo then it sounds like the GH4 could be the wrong choice and the 5D3 (which also means an extra gimbal) would be the better choice. It hadn't occurred to me until today that the GH4 photo would be limited to 12MP 16x9. Hmmm.....

Why is nothing ever easy?
 

Buzz_Roavr

Buzz_Roavr

Member
Mine works beautifully with the exception of live view. Today for example I had two flights with no issues but who knows what tomorrow will bring.
 

snurre

snurre

Member
Just clarifying - the 16:9 12Mpix issue is on the Panasonic account, not a Zenmuse thing. As soon as a hdmi is plugged in to the camera it reverts to 16:9. Utterly st*pid.
 

Jumpy07

Jumpy07

Member
Also worth noting.. the GH4 Gimbal works better with A2 than WKM.. I know several people now that had horizon issues on WKM.. and swapped to A2.. and issues were resolved..
 


Stratifier

Stratifier

Member
Lost: The screw holding the lens...
Damn! and I know where: in a field!
I had to remove the SD Card andcompletely forgot about it... I wonder if this screw has any kind of interest anyway, (except redundancy). I wonder if it's possible to get a new one...
Hate losing stuff! :(
 

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