Sony a6400 Overheating Shooting 4k Video

[@BrentTimm]

Thanks for posting this! I'm close to buying the a6400, but I'll be doing a lot of 4K in 90+ temps, so I'm a little nervous.

[@AlphaShooters]

I need to do further tests with mine but it seem quite random as to whether it overheats or not, and I've seen other tests in higher temps where it hasn't overheated. It's an awesome camera so I'd say it's worth taking the risk but buy it from somewhere that has a good returns policy. All the best, Tim

[@tcolondovich2996]

If you're shooting any video while you're moving, you won't like this camera. I used a GoPro Hero 7 Black Edition and an a6400 while on a trip in Japan recently. Almost all video taken with the a6400 while moving was so inferior to the video taken with the GoPro and it's image stabilization, I didn't even keep most of the video from the a6400. Video while moving with the GoPro was smooth as butter. When mounted to a tripod, and not moving, the a6400 records video that is significantly better than the GoPro. My a6400 never overheated when recording video, allowing recording of just over 90 minutes on the OEM battery. When I recorded video using this camera, I had either 128gb or 256gb Samsung U1 microSD card in the camera with a minimum write speed rating of 90MB/sec. I was using a wide angle lense that is very small physically, and maybe dissipates heat better. Indoor recording and outdoor recording. Indoors was 75f with no air circulation in a dojo recording multiple people moving towards and away from the camera throughout the video, auto focus set to continuous, wide area.

[@nakiradams]

I have the same problem, the automatic shutdown protection system is set in standart. I read out there that it has to be set high. I will test! Regards

[@gutomakoletseatagain3140]

Interesting, thanks for the video! Have you tested this in 1080p? Do you know if it overheats when using 1080p?

[@humbertoteski]

i filmed an event with the a6400 (1080p). 4 hours with 1 pause (15 minutes) and i haven´t overheating problem.

[@gutomakoletseatagain3140]

@@humbertoteski That's awesome! And, thanks for the response!

[@AlphaShooters]

I've not had any issues with 1080p

[@AlphaShooters]

Buy the Sony a6400 or Check Prices/Deals & Reviews 👉Amazon (US) - amzn.to/2LKMmQJ 👉Amazon (UK) - amzn.to/2zC05SZ My Sony a6400 Resources 👉Accessories Guide: www.alphashooters.com/cameras/a6400/accessories/ 👉Lenses Guide: www.alphashooters.com/cameras/a6400/lenses/ 👉Sample Images: www.alphashooters.com/cameras/a6400/sample-images/ 👉Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/sonya6400shooters/ My Amazon Store (US) for Alpha Shooters 👉www.amazon.com/shop/alphashooters The above links are affiliate links. If you decided to buy something after clicking a link, I may receive a small commission.

[@memphismusicvideos]

Would you run a test with external power and see what happens?

[@AlphaShooters]

Sure will do Steve. Will be next week now though as I'm not going to get a chance this weekend. All the best, Tim

[@bikingchupei2447]

i've just finished watching gerald undone's video "Sony a6400 Review - What's Been Improved & What Hasn't". he's done quite an extensive test starting from 6:50 , seems like there will be some difference if you expand the screen to let the camera cool more efficiently.

[@AlphaShooters]

It does sound like he's tested it extensively, but then goes on to say he's had no overheating issues with the power off temp set to high. This definitely hasn't been my experience. You can see at 4:42 in my video I shot with the power off temp set to high, the a6400 is on a tripod and the LCD is also pulled away from the body but it still overheated at 63 minutes and turned off at 66 minutes. But then my next test on a slightly cooler day with a little more breeze and the LCD not pulled away it didn't overheat. My experience with overheating has been that it's quite random, at least with my a6400. But it's still way better than my a6300 and a6500. All the best, Tim

[@bikingchupei2447]

that being said, continuous 60+ minutes is still good enough 4k recording time for me, had my eye on fuji x-t3 first because it has 4k60, but i'm really not impressed that it has a 20 minute recording limit.

[@Princeton_James]

@@bikingchupei2447 colors and quality are much better on the Fuji though. It's worth paying 600 more for an external monitor which increases record time.

[@ecmjr]

Disappointing... I was about to get it. I was hoping that the 6400 would be a solid/reliable camera for recording very long footage.

[@AlphaShooters]

Hopefully you have better luck than me. I've see plenty of other overheating tests where it hasn't overheated. Which makes me seriously wonder if there is something wrong with mine. Although I've also seen others saying that their a6400 overheats too. I've yet to try it with a dummy battery and usb charger to see if this makes a difference.

[@wm1573]

Why and where would you film over 1hour straight anyway? Lol

[@uHnodnarB]

@@wm1573 weddings, sports events, and concerts are some examples that come to mind.

[@wm1573]

@@uHnodnarB here's a pro tip: stop filming for 1 second and keep going again

[@uHnodnarB]

@@wm1573 I'm not saying you can't take breaks in between, but like for important life events like weddings, I think every second does count. It just seems like you're making excuses for one of this camera's potential flaws.

[@RandyHanley]

Is there a good Sony camera that does not overheat when recording 4K?

[@tre.portrays]

Great video, but do tell me how did you manage to get 1hr22mins 4K on your battery test but barely get 66 mins with this overheating test? What was done differently to achieve such a long record time?

[@AlphaShooters]

Thanks. Like I mentioned in the overheating test it’s seems to be random as to whether it overheats or not. Although in this test there was a slight breeze and it was a couple of degrees cooler which might have helped avoid the overheating, the settings were the same. Tim

[@tcolondovich2996]

I wonder if some people just get lemons, or is it the microSD card, or the lense? I have no problem recording 4k indoors on this a6400 camera until the OEM battery runs out around 90 minutes. Same outdoors. Default setting for overheat temperature. Samsung U1 128gb or 256gb microSD card. Each time I used a wide angle lense that is much smaller than the lenses tested in the video above. Maybe it dissipates heat better? My theories.

[@AlphaShooters]

I've tried different lenses and SD cards but my a6400 still overheats unfortunately, so I probably got a lemon as I've only heard from a few other people who have had overheating issues with the a6400.

[@JonathanNg]

Thanks for sharing the results of this test. One thing I've been wondering about this camera for longer recordings if the videos get split into multiple files around the 4GB mark or if it's able to capture 1 big file? Also is your Ninja V able to capture long videos as 1 big file?

[@AlphaShooters]

This is normally due to the SD card that you are using. If you are using an SDHC card then it uses FAT32 which has a max file size of 4 GB. If you want larger file sizes you'll need to use SDXC cards. Most cards over 32GB are normally SDXC and under 32GB are SDHC. Yes you can record larger files with the Ninja V.

[@JonathanNg]

@@AlphaShooters thank you. This is really helpful.

[@Serenoj69]

Yes well....29 march you uploaded. Not really warm in the UK by any means. I have seen Panasonics GX80 overheat just shot of the maximum time you could do it....but that was with 38 C in the shade.

[@robertogarcia6773]

Hello I like your videos very much. I want to ask you is if you can upload a non compressed video with out any treatment from your camera like one minute for example where I can download to see if my pc can support videos from the Sony a6400

[@jessedameron7985]

Do you know how long the a6400 might last indoors at 1080p? I'm considering an a6400 with a power bank for use as a webcam.

[@AlphaShooters]

There's not normally any overheating issues when shooting in 1080p.

[@UNAI_IKER_Music]

Hello man, do you know if the 6400 overheats sooner if Im charging the battery while Im shooting? also it has to do with the fact Im using wifi for smart control with my iPad? Thanks man!!!

[@AlphaShooters]

It’s not something that I’ve tested I’m afraid. Although charging at the same time will generate more heat so it might contribute to overheating faster. I’ve not tested if using the wifi remote with the iPad will make any difference. Possibly if you don’t have the cameras lcd turned on and use the iPad instead this could help to prevent heat buildup but again it’s not something I’ve tested.

[@justcarryonnow]

When it turns off due to overheating, do you lose the entire video footage or does it save before it shuts down?

[@AlphaShooters]

It definitely saves the footage first. Never lost anything due to overheating. Tim

[@Hondanovich]

@@AlphaShooters How many time its needed to start again continuous shooting?

[@Flusswanderer]

Isnt there a 30 minutes recording Limit?

[@AlphaShooters]

The 30 minute limit was removed on the a6400 Steve.

[@relaxvideo3d]

thx. what about fullhd/60p? No overheating at all?

[@AlphaShooters]

Mine hasn't overheated shooting at 1080p yet. It also appears to be quite rare that the a6400 overheats shooting 4k, only a few others have commented that it does.

[@humbertoteski]

@@AlphaShooters i filmed an event with the a6400 (1080p). 4 hours with 1 pause (15 minutes) and i haven´t overheating problem.

[@corbajan]

My a6400 overheated during shooting in HD 50p after 44 minutes. Never happend before. I am using it for over year and suddenly this. Is this reason to return camera to seller? (We have 2 years warranty).

[@AlphaShooters]

Strange if it has been working fine for now. Were you using a different lens or firmware at the time? Shooting indoors or hotter weather? If it does it again I'd definitely consider returning it within your warranty period.

[@corbajan]

@@AlphaShooters I used original Sony lens 16 - 50. Firmware has never been updated, so I really don't understand what happend. I was shooting indoor with temperature around 23°C. I think that problem happend cause I used patona (not original) battery wich was always trying to charge, so it was heating more. I had camera connected to powerbank for longer battery life.

[@AlphaShooters]

@@corbajan The battery could be the issue. Some produce more heat than others.

[@AndrewLazarevBlog]

it depends of static or dynamic scenes you filming. camera turns off with overheting while CPU encoding h.264. More is here: andrew-lazarev.com/overheating-sony-a6000-a6300-a6500-en/

[@CeeworldMedia]

For some reason I'm getting the overheating error message AS SOON as I turn my camera on....and then it shuts down. It's doing this without me even having used my camera at all in the past 10 hours... This is so weird, do you know what this could be due to? I know some people may have overheating issues from recording for too long, but I haven't been recording AT ALL, and my camera has been OFF, for HOURS. So is this a glitch or something? It was working fine two days ago when I was using a 32GB memory card, and now when I just switched that one out and replaced it with a 64GB memory card, it's giving me that weird, "Internal temp high, allow it to cool" when I turn it on, and then shuts right off. Anyone know what this is? Because my camera is DEFINITELY not overheated whatsoever, and I just bought it Brand New 4 days ago. Thank you for any help you can give

[@AlphaShooters]

Sorry for the slow reply. Did you get this sorted? I'd definitely be sending it back as this shouldn't be happening. Tim

[@CeeworldMedia]

@@AlphaShooters yes I did thank you 😊. There was something faulty with the camera so I sent it back and they sent me a new one!

[@AlphaShooters]

@@CeeworldMedia Glad to hear that you got it sorted! :)