By technical editor Matt Allard:
The eagerly awaited first firmware update for the Convergent Design’s Odyssey 7Q recorder is finally here. After a nearly month long delay, due to the requirement of certifications for Convergent Design to use Apple’s ProRes, the wait is finally over.
I’ve been waiting to see a good quality compressed codec added to the 7Q. The lack of it was the unit’s main weakness. Now that this has been addressed the 7Q is sure to find it’s way into a lot more shooter’s kits.
Sony FS700 and Canon C500 users will see the biggest benefits from this new firmware announcement.
The following new options are now available:
– HD ProRes 422 HQ
– Added recording modes for the Sony FS700, including 4K RAW and 4K RAW – to – HD ProRes 422HQ (superior to in-camera HD)
– UHD and 2K 12-bit on the Canon C500.
I’ve gone into detail about what these new features mean in a previous article that can be found here.
Mitch Gross of Convergent Design had this to say:
“I’m particularly excited by our new “4K2HD” shooting mode. This takes the 4K RAW signal from the FS700 and we transform it into a really high quality HD signal that is recorded in Apple ProRes (HQ). Not only is it a recording format improvement by capturing 4:2:2 10-bit at 220mbps in Apple ProRes vs. the camera’s internal 4:2:0 8-bit at 25mbps in AVCHD, but we actually really like the quality of our de-Bayering and HD conversion, which we believe renders a higher resolving image with better contrast and richer colors with no color fringing. I can’t imagine why anyone would ever shoot to the internal cards again — it’s like getting a brand new camera.”
You can download the firmware here.
