Love Letter To JVC KY-210 - Part 1

[@deletedhobo7405]

"I have no idea how this shit works" is a surprisingly refreshing phrase. We need to normalize not knowing everything.

[@EdwinvandenAkker]

14:35 Backfocus is where you calibrate the lens to the camera. It adjusts for the distance of the sensor to the lens elements. The point is, that when you change the focal distance (zoom in / out), you want to keep the focus set at the same distance. This basically means that when you zoom in on an object, focus, zoom out... the object should still be in focus. So, to set the backfocus, you zoom in on an object and focus with the normal focus ring (front most ring on the lens). You zoom out and adjust the backfocus. You repeat this a few times to make sure it is well adjusted. As calibration object, you want to use a backfocus card (or the so called, Simens Ring). It is like a black and white pie-chart. It makes it easier to focus the lens.

[@User0000000000000004]

"I have no idea how this shit works." "I have no fuckin clue what that does." I mean this in a platonic way, I love you.

[@WindowsG]

same

[@jjcline3295]

I help teach a tv production class, and get to play with the brand new versions of all this stuff, and I love being able to see the predecessors to everything I work with today.

[@matthewelton7393]

As a 13 year ENG veteran, it was really entertaining watching you marvel over every detail of a (very ordinary and unremarkable, except for the unusual red color) ENG camera. It brought back some of the wonder I felt back when I first started working with ENG cameras. For someone with no formal training, you figured everything out really well, including backfocus. Bravo!

[@matthewelton7393]

One thing that impressed me about this camera’s design is the aluminum flap that covers the BARS switch. Holy crap, why is this not on every ENG camera? On most, the BARS is completely exposed AND located right next to the Gain and White Balance switches, so it is all to easy to hit BARS by accident when trying to adjust gain or white balance, and totally ruin your shot. It’s such an obvious design flaw, yet Sony and Panasonic continue to make ENG cameras with this flaw even to this day. Drives me crazy. Bravo to JVC for solving this problem back in 1981. Now why didn’t their solution stick??

[@weeardguy]

@@matthewelton7393 Yeah, or what to think of the volume dials on some (many? don't know) modern ENG camera's: usually recessed in the older style camera's to protect against accidental adjustment and accesible by opening a cover that would also provide control to phantom power and such. Nowadays, they're just bare accessible and only feature some idiotic cover that breaks easily, or aren't even covered at all...

[@Aquatarkus96]

This is still, in my head, the "platonic ideal" of video cameras. When I picture a purpose built video camera, this is the exact item that pops into my head, but black instead of red.

[@drrockyr]

I shot news with one of those in 1986/87. Great camera and it was actually smaller and lighter than IKE 79E. The KY-310 was a little more comparable with the IKE in size and video quality, though I never found the 210 lacking. Teamed with a Sony BVU-6800 3/4" deck it was my favorite rig until I got a Betacam.

[@CathodeRayDude]

After two years I realized this video was incorrectly titled. I have no idea how I missed this.

[@parkerlreed]

What was the old title?

[@SnoopJeDi]

Fun fact: this camera is in RoboCop! During the scene where RoboCop leaves his storage area of his own volition, you get just a glimpse of a camera set up on a tripod and because I watched this video about this gorgeous camera, it stuck out like a sore thumb in a recent rewatch! Thanks for that little moment of enhanced context for a classic movie!

[@brhfl2812]

Your point about learning all these intricacies on the job reminds me of having gone to school for video production during the DV/HDV era and having to relearn so much on the job when I started at a Betacam shop. The extra controls the analog stuff needed because there wasn't as much headroom for error, all the differences in syncing and transport control with analog... None of this practical stuff was prioritized in my education, and it all came on the job. There's definitely something to be said for giant panels of switches vs. burying everything in a menu; getting acquainted with a new ENG camera never really felt that difficult.

[@kelownatechkid]

"'definitely something to be said for giant panels of switches vs. burying everything in a menu" I love this, thank you for saying it. This type of thing still applies to varying levels in the professional world all over and it's great. My ceph media storage cluster has 1600+ configuration variables :)

[@EdwinvandenAkker]

12:01 The switch on the lens turns from *M* manual, to *S* servo, where the motor and Wide / Tele lever (dis)engages.

[@weeardguy]

And even funnier: in these old units, it's not even a real switch, but a lever that shifts a cog/gear inside that literally decouples the driving motor from the ring. More modern servo-units (Fujinon Digi-power for example) feature micro-switches that are actuated by the same lever, but then electronically disengage the motor.

[@georgeniculescu]

S stands for Servo. the back focus adjustment is critical for achieving focus at all focal lengths. in a professional environment the focus is acquired by zooming on the subject, and then zoom out for framing and composition. the back flange not being adjusted properly would result in out of focus image when zoomed out from the subject. Also, the front REC button is there for when it's used on a tripod: right hand at all times on the handle to control pan and tilt, while the left is free to operate the button or further stabilize the camera's movements.

[@tombuck]

My first job was at a local news station in 2001 and there was an entire department dedicated to camera repair/maintenance. I didn’t understand it, but it was always cool to see the big old cameras opened up in the workshop, and it was awesome to know that so many parts could just be swapped out.

[@crafterofworlds3992]

the way you talk about this camera actually parallels very closely to my feelings about my two old Tektronix oscilloscopes, one of which I still regularly use on the bench its absolutely a thrill to work with something so high quality, so heavy and bulky and over-the-top, all-mechanical, no-nonsense so far 'above my paygrade' i guess definitely one of the best parts of working with pro equipment, even several decades old pro equipment love the video!

[@calebcourteau]

Just discovered your channel. Your enthusiasm for these old technological warhorses is infectious. I have a similar thing for 35mm cameras from the 70’s-90’s. This JVC is quite the unit. The build quality of the thing is unreal. Even among professional grade gear it’s on the extreme end of sturdy.

[@kenjamd]

I'm glad I found your channel for this specific video. My high school had a 4 year video production program (which regrettably died off not long after I graduated in 1990). Our main studio was equipped with KY-310s and had 210s for mobile rigs. I was more enthusiastic about the production and hardware aspects and not so excited to write and be on camera, and often lugged these things home with the rest of the gear for getting feature footage outside of school. I hope you can get hold of a rack mounted CCU to enable many more adjustments to the cameras operation, as would be used in a studio.

[@dreedee]

"s" is for servo. great content!! we share the same love for these things. I love it that most of that gear is older than you, and you are like a kind of camera-archeologist trying to find out why they had such quirks. keep on it!

[@unf0ld]

Your videos are really great, I’m not a camera guy but I love unusual tech. It’s a pleasure to watch someone who has a real love for their subject matter and I’ve learned so much about a subject I knew nothing about. Keep up the good work 👍

[@bouncylj]

Haha I spent the past year teaching technical camera skills and studio skills to journalists and film makers, this is really a great watch, very interesting to see the opinions of kit i work with (admittedly much older) in the hands of someone so enthusiastic to know about it

[@craigavonvideo]

I used a similar camera to this (the JVC KY1900) back in June 1985 (34 years ago). I was working for a small video production company making wedding videos, etc. Even then the KY1900's were a bit past their sell-by date and one of my jobs was setting the registration of the camera tubes using a black and white resolution chart. I always wanted a Sony DXC-M3A as they were the standard ENG news gathering camera of the mid 1980s (before Betacam came along) but couldn't afford it so ended up using the JVC. Also remember that they are only cameras, you had to run them into heavy "over-the-shoulder" (or usually around your neck) recorders. So it was nearly always a two man operation. I remember being out in a riot (after a band parade we were covering went wrong!) and seeing a DXC-M3 being taken from an American news crew and thrown across a road, almost landing at my feet! Was tempted to grab it, but feared for my safety at the time, so just left it there and got the hell out of the place!! (And the tubes would probably have been f**ked anyway.) Also worth remembering that these cameras need a LOT of light to produce a good image. I think they stated a minimum of 500 lux for a quality picture. We used to run with a couple of "Red Head" tungsten lights (800w each) for indoor use. All the best.

[@CathodeRayDude]

Thanks for the firsthand anecdotes! I actually just got a DXC-M3 in working condition so I'll have that in a video at some point - I can believe it could survive that experience given the build quality but that's a good point about the tubes, only so much that glass can handle. I've been thinking about trying to find some monster lights to use these things indoors properly; I have a bunch of tube cameras and none of them can make anything out in my "well-lit" (to my eyes!) studio/office. Thanks again for the comment!

[@craigavonvideo]

@@CathodeRayDude You should be able to get tungsten lighting kits cheap these days as everyone is switching to LEDs. A basic 3 head kit would be adequate. In work (the BBC) we used to use Sachtler Reporter 300 kits for news & PSC Crews, but they had a major flaw in that if the bulb blew it took out the internal fuse (and sometimes the plug fuse) with it - so I had to always issue replacement fuses along with the bubbles. We've since moved on to LED panels and they are soooo much easier to use on-the-go.

[@GroverTD]

That was my favorite camera I had access to in high school. The CCD’s of the time didn’t deliver very high quality video.

[@everlastingphelps]

The block position on the filter wheel is to protect the tubes. If you point that thing at the sun with the iris open, it will burn those tubes in an instant. Seriously, like 50 ms. I remember stories (before my time) of a continual f-up who came back with a HUGE dead smear across all three tubes on his camera. Swore to the chief engineer he had no idea what happened, that they must be defective tubes. Chief asked, "where's your raw footage?" Threw it in an edit bay, started jogging it forward, and about halfway through the tape, you saw him following the jet through the sky... and across the sun, leaving a black streak behind it. Which stayed for the rest of tape. "Still no idea what happened?"

[@CathodeRayDude]

oh my god, that's horrifying but unsurprising now that you explain it. phew! i'll keep my wits about me when I get around to taking these things outside.

[@everlastingphelps]

@@CathodeRayDude I think that pretty much all cameras with motorized irises would also close the iris automatically when you powered down. In any event, that era is why I am still paranoid about lens caps. I also cackle a little when @styropyro burns a CCD with one of his lasers, because just pointing a tube camera at one of his laser DOTS on the wall would likely burn it complete darkness.

[@weeardguy]

@@everlastingphelps Yep, they still do. At least, my JVC's do that. Set the iris to auto and flip the power-switch on the camera to off and you will see the ring on the lens swiftly move to C (= Close) and slowly come to a stop at the C position. As the switch on the camera is a software-switch, I can't think this is something the servo-units themselves dictate (as in: power the servo-unit without a camera attached and remove power to see what happens)

[@mndlessdrwer]

@@CathodeRayDude StyroPyro's video about medical lasers shows that even modern CMOS camera sensors can be damaged when light is waay to intense for the sensor to cope with. Though, in his case, it was from reflected laser beams literally blasting pixels off the surface of the CMOS sensor, so...

[@DanielMorsing]

The reason you'd want the breech mount is that if you have a follow-focus system or a big matte box attached to the lens, it can be tricky to rotate the lens

[@weeardguy]

Yes, you are usually able to remove the servo-unit and mount on a studio-servo unit, that removes the zoom-rocker and other buttons for manual control, but utilizes servo-focus as well, besides the motorized zoom and iris. Sometimes, this is just and add-on motor-block that is mounted underneath the lens and is fed from the 3-pin connector and gets its controls from a tripod-handlebar focus demand, or it receives (and outputs) signals by CCU-connections.

[@ShawnTewes]

The back focus was to adjust for different cameras/sensors so that the image remained in focus throughout the entire zoom range. If incorrectly set, it would go out of focus when you zoomed in or out. Also, sensor block setting on ND filter wheel was for "auto black" balance. Auto shift simply selects white balance mode from auto to preset or memory (manual). Great video and very interesting channel.

[@CathodeRayDude]

Thank you! It didn't occur to me that the flange focal distance might differ from camera to camera, that absolutely explains why they would do this. And thank you for explaining the black filter - some of my cameras have auto-black that just close the iris all the way, but I'm guessing since the iris isn't always servo'd, this is a more reliable option. I love how pragmatic this equipment is - everything is about "what do we actually *need* to get our jobs done?"

[@kelownatechkid]

This channel + videolabguy + technology connections = perfect trio lol

[@brickman409]

It makes sense that there's no built in recorder because it wasn't always meant for recording video but rather directly broadcasting live. Also, that second camera you brought out looked so cool! Reminds me of the television cameras I would see back when I was working at a hockey stadium.

[@frugalfilmmakers]

That camera is from 1984. We had them at a cable company that produced commercials. I personally owned the KY-1900 and KY-310. We plugged then into 3/4 inch U-Matic recorders. At the company they were replaced with the Sony M7 CCD camera. I sold my KY-310 and got a BetaCam.

[@leam1978]

3:30 there was school options for photojournalism; it just tended to be a specialization of journalism that includes photography and then later art new media.

[@NonCompete]

Re: back focus, the coolest things about those bayonet eng lenses is you can zoom in, focus, and then it will stay in focus no matter how much you zoom back out. This makes it VERY easy to manually focus in the field - we used to NEVER trust auto focus and personally I still don't. So you'd zoom in, focus, zoom out. Can't do this with most still camera lenses, because they don't have that back focus adjustment. At least that's how my old videography adjunct professor explained it to me. I know when the back focus was off, you could focus at one focal length but then when you zoom in or out it would lose focus!

[@CathodeRayDude]

The term for this is "parfocal" and I don't know if it's explicitly re: the back focus though I think I've heard they're connected in some way. It's certainly also a larger mechanical phenomenon vis a vis how the lens moves the optical elements, but yeah, it's supremely cool!

[@weeardguy]

And the weird part about a wrong backfocus is that it looks so completely different than when you just pull focus beyond the subject and have everything blur. For some reason, if you're used to the effect, you can tell whether a defocussed image was done deliberately by pulling focus to close or distant, or someone forgot to adjust the backfocus. I don't use autofocus (hell, both my 1/3" lenses can't even do that and only of my 1/3" camera's utilizes a signal for autofocus with a lens I don't use as it's fully servo-operated instead of fully-mechanical) and it's always funny when you give someone a camera and the first thing they ask is 'how does it focus... because it doesn't ...'

[@arjovenzia]

Defiantly an artifact of beauty. we all have our kinks ;-D Thanks mate, glad your in an area that can get these sort of things for essentially shipping, and can share with us all. I got a Clansman radio a while ago, same kinda deal. UK Military backpack radio. its designed to take bullet hits (not square on, but it has sloped armor all over, for glancing shots. obviously the guy with the giant antenna is gonna be a target), crawled through the mud with. cost me more in shipping than the actual item. have only fired it in anger once, but thats OK, I still love it. I have a Chinese radio of about equivalent performance, that fits in my hand, no question which one I like more. one goes "bip" one goes "KE-klunk" hope this channel grows a bit, and you can feed your addiction. Gotta have a hobby ^.^

[@lishd]

love you, friend, & i love learning from you.

[@c6pcairns]

The KY-210 is definitely from the early 80's. I worked in a TV news department from around 1986 and we were kitted out with Sony BVP-3 cameras with BBV-1 Betacam recorders but we did have a KY-210 in the news room for day time news updates that would go to air every hour or so. The 210 was permanently mounted next to an on air monitor and a fill light for new presenters to go to air from with the news room in the back ground. That 210 was used for years like this. I used to own a pair of the smaller KY-1900 three tube cameras.

[@Tomasu321]

That big connector is called a socapex. They come in all kinds of sizes and its not really a standardised thing. Like the 4XLR power plug its just a off the shelf part used for whatever they needed it to do. Now a days they're commonly used either for power delivery or signaling on stage setups.

[@justinhaase8825]

Auto shift is the white balance button...set your wheel above to the correct genre of color at the scene to begin with. Then you can have a preset button for kind of the default color temp via the wheel (up until recently it was a physical color and neutral density wheel moved in front of the sensor). The memory button pulls up the white balance you get when you autowhite, and the auto button is the sensor itself on the fly making the best white balance it can out of a situation...which usually wasn't great...but...might be good for going from one lighting color temp situation to another...like following someone from a 4300k fluorescent room to a 3000k incandescent room. More modern cameras had a preset, memory a and memory b, with the nicer ones having a slow transition between the options...which was handy at times. I spent most of 20 years as a cameraman in the field. JVC was also called the Junk Video Corporation. Sony and Ikegami were the big players. Panasonic wasn't really in the game back then. JVC usually addressed low end and middle end production stuff with their products.

[@larryeffler7108]

So you know, the “LEVEL IND” switch turns on the “zebra” display. With it on, everything in the viewfinder at 95% signal level or higher would show with zebra stripes. You used that to set the iris manually. Tube cameras hated overexposure as did NTSC SD TV sets, so you wanted to keep the highlights right below 100%. I used an Ikegami HL-53 (I think) back in the day with a busted auto-iris circuit. The CRT viewfinders were so good I could set the exposure just by looking at the image in the viewfinder.

[@StarryCactus]

As someone with shakey hands I too mourn the demise of the shoulder mounted camera. Even at the prosumer level they're getting harder and harder to find.

[@CathodeRayDude]

you can still buy a 15mm rod system and build your own shoulder mount but it's Just Not The Same

[@StarryCactus]

@@CathodeRayDude The counterweight is what makes the difference though. I'm sticking with my hand-me-down Sony HD-1000 until it gives up the ghost, or I'm forced to move to 4k.

[@weeardguy]

JVC still puts out shoulder-mount cameras for the prosumer market. But it could be other manufacturers are not that keen anymore on those, as the 'get a shitload of accesories before you can call it a camera' cameras are seem to be getting more common.

[@mndlessdrwer]

I'd be very tempted to get a busted shoulder-mount camera whose internals have gone bad and retrofit a modern sensor array into it. It would be an absolute nightmare to get the controls wired up to the controls from the vintage camera body, though, but it would definitely be a wildly educational project to undertake.

[@weeardguy]

@@mndlessdrwer The worst part about that kind of retrofits is that the sensor-block is a part that is adjusted to very, VERY tight specifications/tolerance. Besides that, the lens would most likely not accomodate the new sensor, as it's just not made to handle the far higher resolution compared to a standard PAL/NTSC image. You have more luck converting an old shoulder mount camera by replacing the internals and lens completely with the complete inner-workings of a modern prosumer camera. These will have most of the switches already present on the old camera.

[@marvinrowen5894]

Back focus is to adjust the rear element of the lens You use a focus chart to do this

[@Blizzardmane]

Late to this but I've been binging your channel. Macro focus is for focusing on close up items. A lot of good photography lenses have a mould which allow you to focus on an item which is closer than the minimum focal distance. Macro will be used for closeup recording :)

[@DFMurray]

It's part of a rare category of "True" Professional equipment. Essentially, money doesn't matter when making devices like these. The engineers don't have to cut any corners hit specific price points or or heed manufacturing constraints. They are A B C. Where A is the Problem that needs to be solved. B is a list of specifications/standards/features. And C is Fuck You amounts of money for it. You see these types of highly engineered products in the RF industry all the time (think cell towers).

[@Aquatarkus96]

Same in audio control systems when you get to the high level. A Digico console costs north of $80,000 but for very good reason. They are built like tanks and to exacting specifications. They can do anything an audio engineer would ever need to do.

[@mndlessdrwer]

I adore this kind of no-holds-barred approach to designing and building electronics. When the manufacturer knows that it'll sell regardless of the price, so they just throw the whole kitchen sink at it to solve whatever use-case is necessary for that product.

[@marvintpandroid2213]

The Japanise make all the best stuff, doc

[@lfla0179]

You with that bazooka on your shoulder looks like Marty Mcfly on a 3:2 scale. I love it. Looks awesome. Reminds me of my uncle.

[@plunder1956]

Back in the early 80s I was using the PAL version of this camera.

[@axohno]

i really like this so far^^ excited for part 2!

[@weeardguy]

Oh, about the iris (13:30): those lenses usually start with a 6-blade iris (cheap ones), not the standard 2 blade V-shape iris from consumer grade camcorders. More expensive lenses usually feature more iris-blades. This makes them more complex and expensive. And about the mount 15:40 : the fact you rotate the ring instead of the lens is because the servo-unit, with its wrist-strap, needs to stay in the proper position. (with the operators' hand basically vertical)

[@lemmonsinmyeyes]

Probably already covered, but that weird connector at the back under the flange, you could get another module that would record to vhs / beta and that adaptor was the undiversal thing to connect them. It has some fancy name I cant remember, but if you look for 'eng vhs, eng beta' etc on ebay you can probably find them

[@williamhenry1492]

I have the same model and this helped a lot I have the users manual if you’d like I I couldn’t find it anywhere on the web either

[@dvamateur]

S is for servo motor. Back focus is to set the distance of the lens back end element flange to the CCD.

[@eastkingstonnh]

JVC has an excellent archive of their legacy product cut sheets

[@kstark4963]

We used to use a heavy NiMH battery belt to power our ENG cameras at the local cable station back in the early aughts. They were three-CCD miniDV camcorders with about the same shoulder-mount body size.

[@ynda777]

(NiCd)

[@weeardguy]

@@ynda777 Uhuh. NiMh really was used in the AV-industry. Even better, I wouldn't be too surprised if the AV-industry started using them first as they provided such a huge benefit over NiCd's (the memory-effect). My JVC GY-DV500 came with NiCd's, but one could buy far more expensive NiMh's and even more expensive lithium-batteries for them.

[@mbob4337]

I'm amazed that the mic foam hadn't fallen apart. I've been using a shotgun mic for 13 years. And the foam ripped not even reaching 8 years.

[@lurkersmith810]

I found a (virtually) perfectly working Ikegami HL 79E, which was the ENG camera people used to drool over, and I got it for $10! (Ikegami invented the hand held video camera in the 1970s. Before then, news crews used 16mm film.) I think the lens alone was about $10,000 back in the day. (My "Ikie" sits on a shelf next to my recliner and watches TV with me.) Any prices you see for ENG cameras usually did NOT include the lens, which could cost as much as the camera or more. They were built like tanks because they stood up to major abuse in the field. Of course, the FCC had very strict rules about video quality, hence the ton of adjustments on the camera the studio engineers had to make before sending it out into the field. (Yours was probably a studio queen, by the excellent condition of it.) Great: Now, in addition to radios and record players I want to collect old broadcast video equipment! I hope you have a 1 inch Porta-Pack, or at least a U-Matic recorder to go with that camera! Then you'll be ready to shoot that next Reagan press conference! Trivia: What did HL stand for in Ikegami's camera line? A: Handy Lookie!

[@CathodeRayDude]

Oh gosh I forgot about Handy Lookie, I'd heard about it before but I gotta bring it up in some context. I better buy another Ikegami so I have an excuse. I DO have a umatic deck, in working condition!! But I don't have a cable to connect to this camera, so I'm gonna have to wait until I can get another of the same era to do it up right. Thanks for watching!

[@lurkersmith810]

@@CathodeRayDude Well, thanks to you, I just bid on a Sony DXC-M3, a much less attractive contemporary of your JVC, and one I used to use quite a lot back-inna-day. All you need is 12 volts into the camera, and a BNC cable to take composite out, and feed that into the VTR. You don't need the big umbilical unless you have a portable and need start and stop control from the camera. Also, they did make studio controls and viewfinders for many of those ENG cameras, so you could find that basic camera with full size viewfinder, maybe a bigger (as in light gathering) lens, and tripod (pedestal) mounted controls for zoom, focus, etc.

[@markamber1480]

Here at the CRD channel only disaster and police brutality count as news. 2020: sounds about right. /s Thanks for the videos. I am really enjoying your channel!

[@R_Squared933]

If I remember right, the 210 was announced in 83, and distributed in q1 84.

[@benjaminschwartz7616]

"I took off the wrong panel, so now I'm going to take off the right one." *Proceeds to remove the left one*

[@theVHSvlog]

I've been on the hunt for a 3 tube camera for a few years. Really want the Panasonic wv-v2

[@FelixWheatfield]

I would assume that locking ring is for quick-release purposes in case something needed to be changed in action.

[@marvinrowen5894]

Bars puts color bars to test the signal The cover is so you don’t accidentally hit the switch while recording

[@xmlthegreat]

Yep exactly what came to mind immediately

[@wattehel]

FYI this is still how those types of lenses are made today in 2021. Also if you use the camera outside or have very bright light never point the lens of a tube camera at it it will destroy the tubes. That is why the filter wheel has a closed position.

[@DanafoxyVixen]

"This thing is worthless, it has no value" um yeah I disagree. Tube cameras definitely have a 'look' to them, the way the light trail's bright objects etc. I know many consider it an unintended distortion but it certainly has its charm over CCD shot video especially when going for things shot with a 70's/80's vibe. I would argue that they have a niche place that is still useful to some

[@mndlessdrwer]

If I were shooting footage for a flashback in a film or something and it was meant to be set in the era where these kinds of camera sensors were common, I would absolutely want to shoot on one of these instead of faking the effect in post-production. You can never overstate the immersion that you get from authenticity. Especially for the people who grew up watching the news shot on cameras like this. It's like trying to fake the effect you get from a VHS recording. People who lived with VHS will always feel that kind of uncanny valley feeling when someone's faking the effect instead of recording onto film.

[@hxdmain]

Compared to camcorders and the modern day these cameras were extremely repairable. In NYC, at the time, you HAD to know about Armatos. On monday morning there would be a line around the block of news teams and wedding videographers waiting to get their rig repaired. There was no issue that would keep you from next weekends gigs if you got there quick enough. A whole craft waiting to be forgotten, if it isnt already.

[@weeardguy]

It's still a thing, but has shifted more to PCB-swapping and FAR more software-investigation. I have the service manual on both my JVC GY-DV500 (a MiniDV beast from 2000) and my JVC GY-HM750, a shoulder mount 3 CCD FHD camera. Where the DV500 already records a shitload of data in internal logs (faults, statuses, temperatures and what not) and communicates between every PCB with a secret JVC-known bus-system, the HM750 is basically a computer with an extensive amount of memory on board to set and save just about anything from manufacturers' calibration data, to user settings, faults, temperatures, fan hours and everything I forgot. The JVC GY-HM850 I also own (3 uncompensated-for-rolling-shutter-CMOS FHD), the successor to the 750, can even communicate with attached and supported lenses to apply Chromatic Abberation Correction (CAC) to the image before it is recorded on the card(s). The controller in the servo-unit has calibration data from that specific lens exposed to test-images burned into it, telling the camera exactly how it performs at its different zoom, focus and iris ranges and applying corrections accordingly. This suddenly makes a rather shitty CAC-compatible lens perform like a top-notch lens. From the mechanical problems magnetic-tape based systems suffered from, it has now gone to more into non-hardware problems. Hell, there's even a port on all cameras mentioned above to just read out the internal fault-memory by computer (and the right software on it...)

[@ClaireMcHardy]

My guess regarding the ND ring having a fully closed setting would be for a quick black balance without needing the lens cap or for a quick sensor cap while changing lenses in challenging environments. Quite smart really.

[@larryeffler7108]

The fully closed setting is to protect the image tubes from “burn in” when the camera is unattended. Saticon and Plumbicon tubes could be damaged by being pointed at the sun or even a bright studio light for too long, even if they were powered down. With the camera turned off, it would be easy to accidentally point the camera in the wrong direction and have the sun focused on the tubes. The dark setting in the filter wheel cuts off all the light and protects the tubes.

[@UNSCPILOT]

People joke about things being built like tanks, well, this thing might be even more rugged than a tank, and I kinda love it

[@clurkroberts2650]

This camera was used for industrial videos mostly. Sony and Ikegami were the industry standard. The JVC brand was a lower priced budget camera, but not common.

[@qwertyasdf66]

It would be awesome to see these these old cameras retrofitted with modern digital internals.

[@Asiertxu1974]

NICE 3 tube CAMERA!! :-)

[@reptilez13]

Jvc is a weird, red headed stepchild of a company - Sony Lite lol.

[@EduardoNiehues]

Seeing that modular viewfinder made me wonder, would it be possible to use the viewfinder CRT as a shitty tiny television and hook up composite video into it?

[@CathodeRayDude]

Almost without a doubt, yes. There are a few videos on here where people have done exactly that. Not sure what to look for - try "nintendo on viewfinder", I'm pretty sure someone did that!

[@plushifoxed]

@@CathodeRayDude yeah, I remember seeing an LGR video on that, pretty neat

[@sio2709]

If you still would consider repairing this camera, you might get away with just replacing the bipolar electrolytic caps. We are talking about ~15 caps in total. I fixed my KY-310 with the same flickering issue. It's also out of calibration, but that's another topic ;).

[@Pericles_89]

recently walked into these vintage huge cameras on ebay, and I have been thinking about them almost daily, yt recommending this video was from god himself!

[@CyclonesWorld]

God damn that thing is like military grade hardware.

[@GuilhermeTrojan]

17:10 so you don't a cap if you're gonna leave the body without the lens

[@tanuki2k]

S stands for servo 😉 (loving this video/channel btw)

[@UnOrigionalOne]

Ah yes, the classic nightmare multi-pin connector

[@fireballninja01]

probably blocks the filter to keep the sensor clean while switching out lenses

[@bakonfreek]

I went to school for TV news type video crap and I can confirm what you said about "noone knows". Now, I ended up dropping out about a year in (because I was 19 and stupid), but from what I've gathered, the subsequent years are basically the same as the second semester of the first year, but with internships further down the line. That established, all they teach you in school is how to write and how to edit. Using the equipment (like, actually using the cameras as well as composing your whole shoots) is basically entirely autodidactic. Even editing is very basic. If you want anything technical, you're not going to get it with a degree and several tens of thousands of debt, you're only going to get that on the VideoHelp forums. Like, they talk about journalistic integrity, but equipment history is never touched (which is odd because they have equipment including U-Matic tapes and players in the equipment closet).

[@eastkingstonnh]

They were popular with local access stations

[@bjs2022]

The JVC KY series orange cameras starting with the KY-2000 were poor man’s three-tube cameras. They were for the industrial market, not broadcast. They utilized mirrors instead of prisms that were in the much more expensive “broadcast” cameras by Sony and Ikegami. The KY-210 may have had a prism. The back focus adjustment was necessary on all removable lens cameras so that, when properly adjusted the focus “tracked” from telephoto to wide angle. That means when you focused on an object in telephoto and then zoomed back to wide-angle the camera would still be in focus. Every time you removed or changed lenses you had to do a back focus adjustment. It was done a wide open iris for minimum depth-of-field. The filters included standard 3200° Kelvin (clear filter) for artificial light electronic preset and 6000° K preset for daylight. For more accuracy you did a white balance by viewing a white card or surface.

[@dvamateur]

Whenever something happens in the city, and the news cast comes in, I don't really care about the subject, I only look at the camcorders. The one that made my jaw drop was a brand new Sony XDCAM HD, in gray/silver color. It was beautiful. Forget the news. I am looking at the camcorder.

[@weeardguy]

Indeed. It's especially that bit which I don't understand about the photocamera-as-videocamera-hype. Yes, they have their advantages (though large-sensor-interchangeable-lens camcorders are so common by now), but when I hear and read about all the problems people encounter (just a few things: grip, battery-life, no power-zoom, 'I can't connect my professional mic...) as they seem to think those photocameras are videocameras, I just can't understand why they didn't just get a videocamera that just does all that, except for (sometimes/mostly) not provide you with the depth of field they want (which, for interviews is usually something you do not want anyway).

[@nabijaczleweli]

Really cool explanation of what is, to me at least (the camera's roughly twice my age), ancient technology! One question, though: you refer to it in the video as the "KY-210" (i.a. 2:25), but the title specifies it as "KY-201" - a typo/variant?

[@Beauregard42]

Do you happen to have an extra one of those, or is that one for sale? I have the JVC BR-6200U VHS semi-pro recorder deck that goes with it, and the 14 pin to 10 pin camera cable, but no camera.

[@everlastingphelps]

You got the "what" on back focus but you didn't get the why. The lens can be attached to any number of heads, because they are standard mounts. So you have to adjust it for that. Even between the same models your backfocus can be a little off between serial numbers. (In any event, at a TV station you have a chief engineer who is going to demand to check out your camera every so often and calibrate everything, including the lens, and he wants to be able to fix the back focus. That's the real reason for a lot of what you see, because the station wouldn't issue a PO until the Chief approves it.) The why on why you need to adjust it (and normally don't care on a still camera) is because you use zooms in video, and especially in ENG. It's the same reason you can jam a quick focus on the same controls you can do a slow Nixon zoom with. You need to set up the back focus because we are trained to focus the camera by zooming in all the way, focus at that point, and then zoom out to compose the shot. Then, if you need to zoom in or out after that initial composition, you are still in focus. On a still camera, you wouldn't care and would just fix the focus, but you are doing it live on video.

[@CathodeRayDude]

The dynamics of the optical formula are completely wild to try to understand, but now that I've gotten a couple more cameras and swapped lenses I'm starting to get it. I gotta learn how to set backfocus correctly, in fact - my new 2/3" Pana completely disagrees with the FFD of the JVC I took the lens off of, and I just futzed with it until it looked OK. I'm gonna go out and shoot field footage with it and make a fool of myself by getting infinity completely off on most of it otherwise.

[@everlastingphelps]

@@CathodeRayDude The quick and dirty method is open the iris as much as possible zoom in completely on a distant target set the focus zoom back out completely adjust the backfocus until it is in focus again. Zoom all the way in to verify and repeat until you can zoom in and out with the target in focus for the entire focal length

[@weeardguy]

@@everlastingphelps Yep, and if you want to get more visual feedback if you're doing it right: use a Siemens starchart or (when you don't have one or you do have one but no one to hold it): a brick wall or something with a repeated pattern. Those objects, and the starchart especially, will peak like hell when you get the (back)focus right.

[@trailblazingfive]

Racing red; looks dope

[@charlie_nolan]

Where do you find these? I can’t find anything like this online for less that $500. I’m currently setting up my own analog TV channel and it would be great to have a nice old pro video camera instead of just a camcorder that I use as a video camera

[@weeardguy]

Go for a JVC GY-DV500 or 5000 or so. That camera was a major hit around the 2000's and is thus sold in quantity on Ebay. As it's fully digital, you'll have less trouble getting a decent output out of it...

[@charlie_nolan]

@@weeardguy thanks

[@mndlessdrwer]

There will always be a place in my heart for the sense of nostalgia that video recorded on these old cameras can engender. I hope your channel takes off!

[@KarpisMaksudian]

my first Pro camera was JVC KY2700, awesome camera for that time

[@bartolomemiro9004]

Hi , cuando tenia unos trenta y siete, yo vendia esas camaras en Puerto Rico,recuerdo hacerle el white balance jijiji, si esa camara como la ky 2000 no tienen muerte, te felicito por tener una y poder traer el pasado a futuro , tengo unos 65 anos de edad , y si es un cadilac ,perdon por escribir en mi lengua materna , pero de esa manera tienen un home work transalate , good blees , Mr; Miro

[@CathodeRayDude]

thank you!!

[@plisskentv6501]

Super good video

[@marvinrowen5894]

This hooks to an external video recorder The pin connector is standard

[@mndlessdrwer]

It wouldn't surprise me at all if JVC made an adapter plate to pass power and the signal feed from that hidden multi-pin connector to a docking point for a video recorder. For those somewhat infrequent times when they needed to rush someone out to a scene without the ability to get the full camera crew together. Throw some form of tape into a recorder, strap the recorder onto the camera body, and be on your way. Or you could go the umbilical cord route and use a waist or back-mounted video recorder tethered by a cable to the back of the camera.

[@astolfo14]

Very beautiful camera and thanks for take the time to show Your love for it. I'm also a enthusiast of this kind of amazing artifacts. For sure the quality image will surprise You. Is standard definition like you said but a very special image. I make a test image of mine also, are you welcome to see my video. Take care of this camera, it will work for long time, more than whatever new camera. Enjoy it!!!

[@moforex]

yeah there were/are degrees in video. I have one.

[@Chaoticmass]

OS/2 Warp, nice

[@MrPants69]

Did this end up at re-pc? I just got this same camera there and I had to laugh that when I looked it up, your video was the first to pop up.

[@CathodeRayDude]

Yup! Congratulations, haha, feel free to tell people it's the same one. I just got to a point where I realized I hadn't touched it in 3 or 4 years and it was just taking up space, and I figured if I dropped it off there it would end up in the hands of somebody who wanted it, and wouldn't you look at that, that's just what happened. By the way, I believe it does work, it almost certainly just needs a recap and you'll get a good picture out of it again. As it is, it'll work for about a minute and then the image slowly starts dying

[@Modemasaiatis]

I got the same series camera for years now, I didn't remember where I got it, but it's ky-1900ch model. Was watching your videos and noticed one on your shelf. Now I know that it's not much of a thing😂 I'd used it once as a prop in red bull soap box race and now it's on a shelf too.

[@Patrick_AUBRY]

The CCD and CMOS They where available and plenty. My 1987 camcorder used a CMOS and my 1991 used a CCD but those where not used in professional equipment because they where not able to meet broadcast spec until the Sony Hyper HAD sender for there 90k$ BetacamSP ENG camcorders of the 90's.

[@sergeyserovich6503]

My favorite Things I own* Sony BVP-3 APS Betacam 3-tube video camcorder and Ikegami HL-79D together with Sony VO-4800 3/4 Digital Recorder :)

[@GrumpyFrogProduction]

s is for servo - on the lens

[@1-eye-willy]

the worst thing to come out of the 70's: iris flares, reverberated hifi's, and the commercialization of disco

[@BushidoBrownSama]

Not a CCD, or a CMOS but a secret 3rd thing.

[@Rompler_Rocco]

Before I lose the thought: The only reason I haven't been collecting camcorders is that someone once told me that they are all brimming with surface mount electrolytic capacitors which have all leaked and are virtually impossible to repair. I believed it because like every Tascam 238 deck needs a whole new board because of those caps. But, um... I'm starting to doubt my commitment to avoiding camcorders. Was that good information, anyone? 🤔

[@CathodeRayDude]

it was good information, for many of them. I have a couple that are in extremely dire condition almost certainly for this reason. others are perfect after 30 years.

[@Rompler_Rocco]

@@CathodeRayDude Thank you! I certainly didn't expect you to answer that. Sorry to hear it is a true thing you have to deal with, though ;) 🙏👍

[@mndlessdrwer]

Breaking out a desoldering station with an order of replacement caps is the bread and butter of vintage electronics. Honestly, as long as you're willing to invest in some degree of fume extraction, leaded solder, and lots of paste flux, then repairing your electronics isn't as difficult as it may seem. Quality flux and solder go a long way to making such repairs easier, as does having loads of solder wick and a solder vacuum. Mechanical or pump operated, solder vacuums or solder removers are incredibly useful when dealing with through-hole mounted components, which become increasingly common the older you go with your electronics. Tricks to know when soldering: -The bigger the glob [of flux] the better the job. Flux is easy enough to clean off and inexpensive enough that wasting some to make sure your solder doesn't oxidize and start acting up while your working on it is worthwhile. -Lead-free solder is the work of the devil and should only be used when there's a chance you'll be consuming or soaking in something that contacts it, like plumbing. -Always try to buy the best quality replacement capacitors you can afford. They're the things most likely to fail again if you cheap out. Resistors, diodes, triodes, transistors, chokes, transformers, etc.; as long as they meet the necessary specifications to do the job where they're going, there's typically not as much justification for splurging on those. The exception is always Hi-Fi audio equipment, where you may want to just go ahead and splurge as much as you reasonably can for better tolerances in performance. And whatever work you do on one channel, you should do on the other, after measuring and matching components for both channels to reduce channel imbalance. -You don't have to spend a lot to get a workable soldering station, but getting one that also does hot air is useful for dealing with surface-mount components. -When dealing with surface-mount components Kapton tape is your friend. Stick it on the board over surrounding components to keep them from lifting or shifting while you're reworking nearby. It's also really helpful for rework on double-sided boards if you're concerned about things falling off the backside as you heat the board. -Take pictures and/or have the circuit diagram handy for whatever you're working on. Not all companies think ahead or have the space on the board to silkscreen on the component identifier markings and their values. Best to have some way of knowing how it should look before you pull things off the board.

[@Rompler_Rocco]

@@mndlessdrwer Wow, THANKS for such a thoughtful chunk of advice!! I know just enough to understand how spot-on it is. Definitely going to copy that comment and keep it handy. I'd love to not be so overwhelmed tackling repairs. Again, much obliged!! 🙏🙏👍

[@craigavonvideo]

Had just typed a whole explaination of the various terms through this video but lost the whole post!! Bugger. ENG as opposed to film gathering, Servo zoom control, back focus to set parfocal tracking of a zoom lens, detachable parts for easy maintenance or setup as a studio cam. Canon B4 lens mount system. There was more, but I can't be bothered going through the whole video again to pinpoint them!

[@CathodeRayDude]

Thanks for the comment - so do you know if Canon originated the B4 mount? I've been trying to figure that out. It seems like they never made any ENG cameras, and Sony/JVC never made any lenses, so I've always wondered who designed the mount.

[@craigavonvideo]

@@CathodeRayDude No, it was a sort of industry standard thing from the 1980s with Sony taking a lead. The two main manufacturers of lenses were Canon & Fujinon, with Sony, JVC, Ikegami, RCA, Phillips and Thompson making the cameras.

[@mclovinpo]

I don’t like how you said it’s not like you’re gonna use it, I would use the shit outta this