Category Archives: Reviews

Blue Microphones has a Free For All Sale

Reviews

Blue Microphones has been creating some of the world’s most unique microphones and headphones for the past 20 years. Their products are used by musicians, music lovers, podcasters, and gamers. Right now, Blue is having a Free For All sale.

Blue’s Free For All Sale is a “buy one, get one free” sale on specific styles of microphones. This offer is available “while supplies last.” Visit the Blue website to see a list of participating dealers that sell the Blue microphones that are part of the sale.

Save up to $299.99 on select Blue Mics. For a limited time, you can buy a Hummingbird, enCORE 100i, enCORE 100, or enCORE 200 and get a second microphone of the same model for FREE! No mail-in rebate to worry about. Offer only available at authorized, participating dealers.

The enCORE 100 is a studio-grade dynamic microphone that is perfect for vocals. The hand-tuned capsule delivers renowned Blue studio sound. It has reinforced construction with heavy-duty metal-plated finish.

The enCORE 100i is a studio-grade dynamic instrument mic that brings Blue heritage to a versatile stage solution. It has a specially designed and tuned capsule with custom diaphragm, venting design, and coil windings, and a custom-tuned acoustic circuit with transformer. Its rugged construction with reinforced grille and integrated guard ring protect against drumstick hits.

The enCORE 200 is the world’s first studio-grade phantom powered active dynamic microphone. Its proprietary active dynamic capsule delivers amazing detail and clarity, even on loud stages.

The Hummingbird is a small-diaphragm condenser microphone. It has a 180° rotating head for precise mic placement. Its cardioid condenser is based on the B1 capsule. The Hummingbird offers ultra-fast transient response an high-SPL handling for studio and stage.

Viewbits GNAT 1080P 60FPS HD-SDI Camera

Reviews

gnatThe team from Viewbits sent me their GNAT 1080P 60FPS HD-SDI Camera for review, and I have testing it in the Studio. This SDI HD mini camera is one of the better ones that have made it to market with a 1/3 inch CMOS sensor that is in this unit. I am willing to speculate who the manufacture is but only a full tear down would confirm my suspicions . This particular camera is tiny and can be stashed almost anyplace in the studio and is one of the reason I wanted to review it.

My main use purpose for this camera was for a product shot camera. Overall it would serve that purpose very well, the picture I captured with it was with the camera approximately three feet away from the object. Please note I did not white balance the camera for this picture but felt it came out pretty good. The lens provided is perfect for fixed length focal shots only. In later tests I did white balance the camera and was pleased with the image quality.

GNC Master 30

In my opinion this camera is not well suited for in close camera shots of an active scene. An example of that would be a interview shot  This camera would be perfect for a corner camera shot where you are trying to capture a broad area.

Let talk about the build.. The camera build is rugged with a solid SDI cable connection. Power to the unit is a little odd it comes with a multi-pin connector of which part of it can be wired up for external control. That cable attaches to a power brick that provides 12vdc to the unit. If I where to use it in a production facility I would come up with a different power supply for the unit.

The specs are pretty straight forward. It measures only 1.65 inches, or 42mm. It is a 2.1 megapixel camera with a 1/3 inch progressive scan CMOS sensor, automatic gain control, wide dynamic range, digital zoom and defog. It also supports digital noise reduction systems like DNR, 3D-NR and 2D+3D, has a C and a CS lens mount and is selectable between HD-SDI: 1920x1080p (30 fps), 1920x1080i (60 fps), 1280x720p (60 fps), 3G-SDI: 1920x1080p (60 fps) The full rundown of specs can be seen at the Viewbits website.

This camera space is heating up and the retail price of $445 is in line with other competitors. You will have to purchase a lens for the camera so be aware of that as well.  Check out all the details of this camera and others they have a ViewBits.com