PV500

I have a PV500 and I've been having several issues. 1. It overheats and stops recording. 2. the sound randomly cuts out. Are there any of you who have problems with it like I do? Did I just get a bad unit? I think it overheats because there's no airflow when in the holster it came with. Any ideas how to overcome that at least? I think the sound problem is actually in the camera itself but I'm not sure. Any ideas would be appreciated.

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Wish I could help, but I never had issues with the various loaners I got from EPMS back in the day.

Their holster had a fair amount of space at the top and bottom corners, so maybe that is something to look into.

Have synthesizers, will travel...

Mine didn't come with a holster. I always wear clothing with pockets, and I wear tunics over my pants, so no one can see what's in my pocket. I put the recorder in my pocket, it's smaller than most wallets, so it's no big deal. I've heard that the sound problems are caused by a bad connection in the wire, mine has never done it, but I've thought seriously about getting a spare wire for just in case. But then I don't do video shops anymore, mostly because I don't do apartment shops anymore.

Why do you not do the apartment shops anymore? Is it because they are so long?

NO Artemis, I found once I moved here that I couldln't plausibly lie about wanting an apartment. And the racism in this state is way too much for me to deal with.

I haven’t had any issues with sound or overheating. One time I did have an issue where it stopped recording video in the middle of a shop, but I discovered it was a corrupted SD card. I also keep the camera in a pocket and cover with my shirt, so I have no experience with the holster. Like morledzep said, I have thought about getting a second wire as well. Try testing it in your pocket instead and see if it continues to happen. Such a bummer when you have an equipment failure issue while doing a video shop.

If it is a loaner send it back. If you own it, it is time to get a new one. I use an excersie mic belt for mine, and any issues I have is because of user error. I have lost more shops putting my hands in my pockets than anything.

I do own it. I bought one of those belts and thought it would help but didn't get to use it because my dog chewed it apart for some reason. Do they really help with the heat? I would think it would be better being less constraining than the holster. I think the sound issue I'm having is do to me dropping the dvr while the camera was still attached to my shirt. It tugged the cable pretty good but I didn't think it was enough to break it but I guess I was wrong. I'm going to get another camera and buy another exercise belt.
Thank you all for your input, it's much appreciated.

Yes the camera cables are pretty fragile, and the sound is the first thing that goes out. I also just carry the DVR in my pants pocket. I cut a small hole in the pocket to run the wire.

@mystery2me wrote:

Yes the camera cables are pretty fragile, and the sound is the first thing that goes out. I also just carry the DVR in my pants pocket. I cut a small hole in the pocket to run the wire.

I use this exact setup also most of the time, although I occasionally use the holder attached to my belt. I live in the desert and have never had an overheating issue with the DVR.

So, mine arrived today.

Still charging the battery before formatting the memory card and trying out the cam.

The latest version is quite nice. It has USB-C, and the mic is now incorporated into the button cam, so no second wire to futz with. And it has a little wired controller for starting/stopping. Comes with lots of different size buttons, and I was able to go with a smaller one that makes it way easier to install into my shirt. I used a double-sided adhesive square to mount a cut down velcro cable tie to the back of the cam so I can adjust and secure for a good camera angle.

It also came with the same belt holster that previous loaners came with.

Between Grace Hill and EPMS I have 4 shops this week, paying a total of $890, so the purchase will be covered quickly.

Have synthesizers, will travel...

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/09/2025 11:38PM by CoolMusic.

Congrats on getting your new unit! You wouldn't happen to be in the Kentucky area are you? Someone came through and gobbled up all the high dollar shops within like 100mi of me. Lol

Nope... I'm in Utah, snagging all the high end shops :-D

Have synthesizers, will travel...

Rick, It probably wasn't Cool, He doesn't usually wander this far East. And I'm not entirely sure Kansas is passable right now, last I heard it was under water.

Forgot to mention, the new cam/mic combo attaches to the recorder. via a solid locking connector.

So much more convenient than having to use two different unsecured plugs. I used to run the cable through the holster flap to ensure they didn't detach.

Have synthesizers, will travel...

@CoolMusic wrote:

Forgot to mention, the new cam/mic combo attaches to the recorder. via a solid locking connector.

So much more convenient than having to use two different unsecured plugs. I used to run the cable through the holster flap to ensure they didn't detach.

What unit did you get? The NEO. I use ECO and had to go to Amazon to purchase one.

Mine is the NEO Pro. Ordered via Amazon as well.

Have synthesizers, will travel...

Where did you buy your PV500 from?

@CoolMusic wrote:

Mine is the NEO Pro. Ordered via Amazon as well.

I've not used anything but the ECO. How do you like the NEO? Does it record longer than 10 minute increments.

Not sure about recording time yet. It took overnight just to charge the battery. I'll be working with the rig tomorrow morning before I head out to do my assigned video shops for the day.

Initial impression is the NEO is way more solid than previous models I've worked with.

Have synthesizers, will travel...

Alrighty... my first shop with the PV500 is done and submitted.

I have opted not to bother with the wired remote controller, simply manually starting the recording before slipping the recorder into my pocket.

I did run into a snag with Wondershare UniConvertor which I have used for years for both audio and video file conversion. It is now making inflated .mp4s from the .MOV files in the PV500 memory card. The 500 still records in 10-minute chunks, but the software was creating resulting files that were over 20GB!

The conversion site recommended by EPMS doesn't handle files over 500MB unless you pay, so that was a no-go.

I ended up with a free Adobe Express account which seems to do the job just fine, even if it takes a bit of time. For the pay for most of my video shops lately ($250 - $325) it's worth the wait.

Have synthesizers, will travel...

Are you recording in 1080p and/or at 60fps? They only require 720p@30fps so that might help with the file sizes.

I'm recording at the default settings. My next 11 shops are for Grace Hill. Do they support the lower resolution?

Have synthesizers, will travel...

Most places prefer 720p just because of the file size limitation. I haven't worked for Grace Hill so I'm not positive but I would bet they prefer it too.

I'll reach out to them and ask after I check their guidelines again.

Have synthesizers, will travel...

@Dino29 wrote:

@CoolMusic wrote:

Mine is the NEO Pro. Ordered via Amazon as well.

I've not used anything but the ECO. How do you like the NEO? Does it record longer than 10 minute increments.

The (original) ECO 1 will record in 19-minute segments when set to 720p. I am still using the one I bought new in 2012, but I would like to buy another one if anybody has one they would sell. The ECO 1 is apparently no longer manufactured. I wonder what the stupid reason was for limiting the file segments on the new PV-500s to 10 minutes. It makes no sense at all.

@RickCan1 wrote:

Are you recording in 1080p and/or at 60fps? They only require 720p@30fps so that might help with the file sizes.

If anybody knows of a PV-500 that records 720p in 19-minute segments, please let me know which model does so.

@CoolMusic wrote:

I'm recording at the default settings. My next 11 shops are for Grace Hill. Do they support the lower resolution?

Any resolution higher than 720p is a PIA to playback on a pc. I started back in 2009 recording in 480p. That resulted in fewer file segments and a nice size for viewing on a pc, but the video was not as clear. A few years later, I changed to 720p and have been using it ever since. All the companies, including Grace Hill, have accepted the shops.

@AZwolfman wrote:

I wonder what the stupid reason was for limiting the file segments on the new PV-500s to 10 minutes. It makes no sense at all.

Actually it does. Some OS's are object-based, with a limit to individual object size. Your assessment of the recording time at 720/30 would tend to support this when it comes to the PV-500, along with the way the recorder automatically starts a new file when the previous one maxes out.

I had to deal with this for years with Kurzweil's 2nd-generation synthesizers, which had an object size limit of 64k (!)

No one song could be bigger than that, which meant you had to use a "song" for each section of your composition, then piece them together in whatever order you wanted them (another object) on a different page. Called an "arrangement", it could make for really long playback because each step was only a few bits of data - the song to be used and which instruments should be playing during that one iteration.

Have synthesizers, will travel...

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/16/2025 01:29AM by CoolMusic.

I do not see what object based operating systems and music synthesizers have to do with restricting the file sizes to so few minutes for covert video shopping. I suspect that most covert video shoppers use the PV-500 and use either Windows, Android, or Apple/Mac based OS to view the video playback.

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