mikymu

Need some help guys. I am sick and tired of my poor quality Sony HD camcorder. The image is grainy, shakes and just **** poor under motion. The only thing I like about it is the sound. GoPro and Replay will give you stable HD video but sound like you are in a fish bowl. Is there an ideal camcorder platform that give you stable HD image and quality sound? Will better microphone give you better sound with Gropro?

I love Sean Edward's Nürburgring race video and I want a setup like it. From the video it looks like he has both GoPro and some sort of camcorder for front view recording. Need help with your suggestion!

My **** poor Sony HD camcorder



Sean Edward can not only drive, he has the best video/sound quality around!

ZSA Motorsport

im a fan of racekeeper. if you keep it simple, its pretty flawless. and you can run up to 4 cameras, it integrates it all and you can export all 4 streams or just 1, etc. plus you can also have data on the screen. and ther eis a compare feature wher eyou can sync to different videos and visually ssee the difference in laps. i did that with Eric curran at cota in the camaro. he ran a fast lap and i had motec but also then could compare visually to see his hands, where he was visually turning in, etc.

its a pretty cool system. auto turns itself on, off, etc.

maybe about 2400 for a 4 camera system.

coinboy

GoPro Hero2 - love it. Cheap and easy to use. Had a chasecam before and hated it.

mikymu

I really like the race keeper system and concept but they do not have HD video. Still waiting for them to improve video quality

Now that's a great video quality but the "fish bowl" sound of GoPro .... wish there is a way to improve sound quality

ProCoach

The external mic option for the GoPro and the Replay is very good.

The Race-Keeper is good and I think the VBOX Lite is even better. An HD version will be available in the fall. The AiM SmartyCam HD should be here within the next few weeks (how long have I been saying that?), there are MANY good choices. Sean's stuff is much more than just the GoPro...

Gary R.

Where was Baron in that video?

FFaust

Are you saying a HD version of the VBOX Lite in the fall?

ProCoach

Yes, but very high, due to the capability of writing data overlaid on HD video, real-time. It's been shown already. I think around $3K.

shizzle

I would recommend waiting till the AiM SmartyCam HD comes out (should be a couple weeks now). I've got a regular SmartyCam, and it's a fantastic package, with good data analysis software, and easy layout configuration. It's also pretty easy to integrate with CAN or OBDII if you want data from the ECU. And it's also a fair bit cheaper than any VBOX system.

ProCoach

Well, I sell and use both. There's pros and cons for each.

On your last point, while the AiM SmartyCam HD will be a great deal (the same price as the SD versions), I don't think it's fair to compare the limited logging function of the AiM SmartyCam with the MUCH better VIDEO software integration of the Video VBOX.

When you add an AiM ECU Bridge or another logger (Solo DL or EVO4) to SEND that information (more than speed, g's, lap times and track maps), the price of the AiM SmartyCam and the translation hardware approaches or exceeds the Video VBOX Lite.

It's not possible, without a great deal of work, to compare two SmartyCam videos side by side (and no individual segments at all) NOR are you able open the data analysis window synched or even with the video in it's own and within that Race Studio 2 window. That may change in Race Studio 3, but it doesn't work now or for the foreseeable future. SmartyCam video is GREAT for simple, easy and quick review of "intelligent video," or that video that has data overlaid already on it.

The logged data of the AiM SmartyCam that is available for analysis by Race Studio 2, their good data analysis software, is limited to the items that are displayed on the video background. AiM is very clear that other than RPM and TPS, there's little other information available from an ECU Bridge (which adds $250-$400 to the price of the SmartyCam), without the purchase of an AiM Logger that connects to the SmartyCam, that is available for logging and the use of the more sophisticated features of Race Studio 2.

The Video VBOX Lite and the Circuit Tools 2 software does allow comparison side by side of up to six laps, OR even better, the best segments compared to the segments from the actual best lap, which to most of my clients, is very valuable.

I don't care what kind of system people get. They all measure roughly the same thing and with roughly the same accuracy, with major differences in how easy (and customizable) they are to set up and to read that information. That's why I sell all of the major brands.

It's a great thing, this new technology! Enjoy!

FFaust

Oh

IPguy

Peter, can the smarty cam hd and xglog work together?

9972RS

what about the ease of use with the new GoPro3. You could probably sync two GoPro3s with the wifi remote.

ProCoach

Nope. XG Log=old technology. No AiM CAN to control the camera.

That's what I said, only with one more word after that!

The new GoPro 3 has fantastic quality. I synched manually with Traqmate data some GoPro Hero 3 Black Edition footage in TraqStudio last weekend and it was awesome!

9972RS

^ what would you use as data points to sync the video and data?

throttle blip and video start?