[windup]

Ok, you got a process of illimination now.

I don't know your TV so I will assume you got that set correctly. perhaps you can try another TV ?

have you got a HDMI cable ?... I got a mini HDMI adapter for a few pounds.

Try the AV output just using the yellow/red/white leads into the TV AV input. Set the cam menu to play AV.
If that fails you got a camera problem.

let us know how that goes.

I repeat.. always turn off the cam and Tv when plugging in leads.

[grahamlthompson]

Post 120 is misleading, it says AV or component. To output YPrPb component needs to be selected, AV outputs the video as composite using the yellow connection

[windup]

Ok, lets be clear here.
To play component the TV and camera have to both be set to COMPONENT, the CAMERA HAS TWO SETTINGS FOR THAT.. TRY BOTH.

To isolate a problem with Component, select the camera AV option and the TV AV input, use the yellow/red/white lead and use that either in the TV AV connections or maybe a DVD recorder etc.

I assume the camera plays back to itself with no problems.

let us know how it goes.

[redegliunni]

hello again

here's an update about the "strange noise issue"...
the guys at Panasonic Switzerland sent the camcorder back two and a half weeks ago, saying that the were still not able to find the issue... So, I tried again to clarify the situation by sending them the camcorder (that was the third time in 2 months) with a 32GB sd card containing several videos... and a nice letter saying that if they were unable to solve the problem I would have liked a complete replacement. And (finally!) after one week (that is, last saturday) I got my new SD66 (so far, no strange noises and no problems at all )

If you're interested in some low light performance tests, here's what I've shot yesterday evening:

YouTube - Bellinzona

[Tinderbox (UK)]

Great video redegliunni.

[mcstone]

Anyone had a problem with the auto white balance ? Blues turning to green ? Reds comming out very bright and vivid ?

[windup]

Originally Posted by mcstone

Anyone had a problem with the auto white balance ? Blues turning to green ? Reds coming out very bright and vivid ?

Not so far... My only gripe is that the auto setting is a bit too faded, leaving everything looking slightly washed out.
I just started experimenting with the manual settings, which you have to do while looking at the TV.

Have you been experimenting and maybe upset the balance ? otherwise I would suggest you could have a cam problem. Overall mine copes very well on auto.

speak to Panansonic support or take it back.

[spanjee]

i want to get this camcorder, but i need to know if it's videos are a file compatible with windows media player/ movie maker. If it's quicktime i won't be able to do stuff with it

[windup]

Originally Posted by spanjee

i want to get this camcorder, but i need to know if it's videos are a file compatible with windows media player/ movie maker. If it's quicktime i won't be able to do stuff with it

Depends

I just checked reading m2ts files on my XP system with WMP 9 and it doesn't.
On my Win 7 WMP 12 it does and inputs into movie maker.

You seem to missing the point somewhat.. this cam is HD and you will need to upgrade all sorts of things to take full advantage.. read a few of the previous posts on this forum regarding AVCHD and all its problems.

Depends on what hardware you got at the end of the day.

[robbbbby]

Originally Posted by redegliunni

hello again

here's an update about the "strange noise issue"...
the guys at Panasonic Switzerland sent the camcorder back two and a half weeks ago, saying that the were still not able to find the issue... So, I tried again to clarify the situation by sending them the camcorder (that was the third time in 2 months) with a 32GB sd card containing several videos... and a nice letter saying that if they were unable to solve the problem I would have liked a complete replacement. And (finally!) after one week (that is, last saturday) I got my new SD66 (so far, no strange noises and no problems at all )

If you're interested in some low light performance tests, here's what I've shot yesterday evening:

YouTube - Bellinzona

Thanks for the video.
Did you shoot in IA or manual. It seems to mee that IA causes more noise. Is that your experience too?

[redegliunni]

Originally Posted by robbbbby

Thanks for the video.
Did you shoot in IA or manual. It seems to mee that IA causes more noise. Is that your experience too?

I used iA.
Concerning the noise... I've yet to really experiment with all the manual options and I cannot tell you (at this point) if iA results in more noise.

[Sans Pareil]

Must admit ive not yet read through every post in this thread as im in a rush tonight.

However after a few months of ownership im noticing a few issues with my SD60 that are pretty annoying compared to camcorders of the past of which ive had no such issues.

1) Audio clipping - on (admittedly) very loud sounds the audio maxes out so the sound is clipped resulting in very poor results (like white noise and beyond). All my other (cheap) camcorders whilst not producing stunning sound replications in such conditions have at least managed not to max out like this. Ive noticed this at an airshow and and a steam train centre when the whistle is blown. Any ideas - all settings default (obviously this is difficult to keep re-testing as i dont have my own steam loco or jet!). With stabilzation off its not there (wide angle) but the image is very wobbly on zoom as you would expect. PS I see theres an audio gain control feature but I havent had chance to test yet but I hadnt had to use on others Ive owned and both my mates who have panny cams have had to switch on theres.

2) Windcut about worst on any camcorder owned.

3) Stablizaton - Im renowned as a steady hand yet on this camcorder with stabilization on I get a jittery image, not an excessive shake so stabilization is working to a degree (worse on zoom). Big movements seem to be ok but it cant sort the minor movements it seems, its like the stabilzation only turns after a short duration of movement then unaturally halts the moevemet. I think others on here have mentioned similar and elsewhere too. Others have sent theres back due to this others say theres no way theres does it. Whats going on?
PS On a GOOD tripod its fine (as you would expect) but on a cheap tripod with a little breeze it does it. You dont need much movement at all. Once again, not seen this on any other of my other camcorders.

Finally just to point out I have raised these with panasonic who intially came back very fast (to make sure I wasnt doing anything stupid with it) but have heard nowt since!

[LittleGreyCat]

Just got our new SD60.

First impressions are good - I didn't expect it to be so small and light.

A quick test shows that it takes good pictures; impressive zoom but wide angle could be wider for indoor shots.

Our Panasonic TV plays the movies without any problems and the preview screen is good - scroll through the different scenes and it plays the thumbnail at one side.

Now about to try and install the HD Writer software and see if I can edit the test footage and copy the result to another SD card and play it on the TV.

I was also impressed (didn't realise) that I got a £30 voucher from Amazon.
This is likely to go on the spare batttery plus charger kit.

Now installed HD writer which informs me that frames will be dropped during playback to match the current environment of 8 fps(!).
Say what?
Is this the dreaded inefficiency of AVCHD playback?
I think I'll be trying other editing packages.

Cheers

LGC

[mikethelaserman]

8fps sounds like an old computer or a laptop with uninspiring graphics capability.
If HD Writer only manages 8, then most of the other editors will be as bad or worse, so sort out the computer before spending on new software!

Use the performance tool (under control panel/system) in Windows Vista or 7 : a graphics score of under 5 would confirm this diagnosis.

[LittleGreyCat]

Originally Posted by mikethelaserman

8fps sounds like an old computer or a laptop with uninspiring graphics capability.
If HD Writer only manages 8, then most of the other editors will be as bad or worse, so sort out the computer before spending on new software!

Use the performance tool (under control panel/system) in Windows Vista or 7 : a graphics score of under 5 would confirm this diagnosis.

When I first got the system I ran the performance rating tool and it rated the system as 5.0.

More detailed:
Processor 5.3
Memory(RAM) 5.0
Graphics 5.9
Gaming graphics 5.4
Primary hard disk 5.6

The help information says that there is no current rating higher than 5.9 (but the computer is now over a year old).
So when tested the graphics rating was at the top of the measured range.

It is an Intel Core 2 Duo T8300 2.4Ghz.
4 Gb RAM
Display adapter NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT

I know that it won't do incredibly fancy stuff with AVCHD but it is a reasonable spec. and should be well able to play BluRay discs (if it had the optional BluRay drive fitted).

So a rating of 8fps seems a little harsh.

Cheers

LGC

[mikethelaserman]

The spec of your PC is a bit better than mine - and mine plays HD Writer previews smoothly.

So two other possibilities -
Is your Nvidia driver up-to-date?
Is the graphics card running at full speed, or has it been partially disabled to save power?

[LittleGreyCat]

Alternatively, HD Writer could just be telling lies.

No problems with playback - it doesn't look to be dropping any frames.

Conceivably it could be dropping 8 frames per second taking the playback down to 17fps but I don't think so.

Must remember to check the "don't tell me again" box to stop it warning me every time I play something back.

At least I can import and play videos and with a bit of luck edit them as well.

I shall be looking at other editing packages though.

Still photos indoors are nearly as good as my Sony K750i mobile phone so I won't be selling my Nikon D40X any time soon.

Cheers

LGC

[senu]

Originally Posted by LittleGreyCat

Alternatively, HD Writer could just be telling lies.

No problems with playback - it doesn't look to be dropping any frames.

Quite likely

I shall be looking at other editing packages though.

Good idea HD writer is felt by some to be a PITA

Still photos indoors are nearly as good as my Sony K750i mobile phone so I won't be selling my Nikon D40X any time soon.

Even Panasonic cant "spin" that
Hold onto your DSLR

[Lisame]

The battery of the SD60 seems powerful. How long does it last on average?

[Sans Pareil]

Originally Posted by Lisame

The battery of the SD60 seems powerful. How long does it last on average?

Depends on how much you have it on whilst not recording, how much zooming you are doing and temperature of the environment you are in. Roughly speaking about an hour seems typical.

[Lisame]

An hour! That sounds very bad for a 1790mAh battery. Guess an additional 3000mAh battery is a must.

Is there a way (firmware?) to record at 720 50p?
Is there a way to record at 120fps?

This SD60 is on my list, but I am a bit surprised that even the SD700 does not offer some additional software features that cheaper toschiba and sanyo models do.

[hulkhogan]

hi folks

looking to get this beauty end of this month when payday arrives!

one question though - i wont be actually burning the vid's onto a dvd or anything but mostly just putting them on a portable HD that i plug into my samsung b650 lcd.

would it play directly from file transfer or would i need to change the format?

what format does it record on? i saw a vid on youtube where the user was saying it was a panasonic own format?

the samsung lcd is quite good at playing a variety of formats from the avi to mkv stuff. so ideally i'd like to just switch the files over to the portable and plug it in to watch the stuff.

Hulkhogan,
my vid from this is saved in the same flavour it comes in. no changes. Its avchd, not panosonic specific.
YouTube - Sea eagle meets seal on the isle of mull with Alex Sally "IMPROVED HD PLAYBACK"
straight from the pc it plays fine and you can plug it into a tv with hdmi socket...I guess a modern tv will play avchd or you might need a £20 media player..
hope that helps
alex
btw all formats /saving and rendering are a bit tempermental ...and take a bit of patience imho

[MLOC]

I`m trying to figure out how to record 16:9 from my camcorder to tv.
I have the settings on the camcorder set to 16:9 but when I play it on laptop or tv it`s all stretched. Is there a way to get it to look normal when I watch it on tv?

[Lisame]

Dear Panasonic SD60 owners.

I looked on ebay and could not find one seller, so perhaps it is not possible or I am looking wrong.

Is it possible to ad a macro lens, tele lens and a wide angle lens to the SD60?

[Tinderbox (UK)]

The SD60 does not have a filter thread , so i doubt it.

[hulkhogan]

is there two different versions of this camcorder??

like an original release and an updated one a few months later etc?

[heathaze]

Quick question for owners...

I've just about to pull the trigger on one of these. Planning to use it for vlogging / interviews etc. indoors.

I'm wondering whether I need to buy an extra battery for it (I'll probably pick up a spare eventually) or if I can run it off the ac power supply? Any setbacks (power supply noise on the audio or video)?

I understand that you charge the battery on the camera itself. Does the ac supply give you enough juice to both operate the camera and charge?

Thanks folks!

[beedj]

Hi can anybody recommend a 'just-fit' case for the SD60 ... ie to take the camcorder only (with battery) - the question seems to have been asked a few times on here already but I can't see an answer ...

Thanks

[Rookies]

Originally Posted by beedj

Hi can anybody recommend a 'just-fit' case for the SD60 ... ie to take the camcorder only (with battery) - the question seems to have been asked a few times on here already but I can't see an answer ...

Thanks

Panasonic make one that is perfect fit 19.99 very god it is. John Lewis stock it too