Gates Deep Red has arrived:
We have added a Gates Deep Red
housing for Red One to our lineup. This housing is a
real magnum opus of design. It is well thought out and
flexible. John Ellerbrock has gone to great lengths to
incorporate customer requests. He also took the extra
steps of polishing the design using feedback from
extensive beta testing. This unit is extremely easy to
handle and adapts easily for fresh or saltwater use. We
have posted brief videos on Vimeo which demonstrates
just how well balanced “Avalon” is. The three videos
were shot on the EX 1 and edited and posted by Mike
Luzansky. They can be found here:
http://vimeo.com/4860954.
For those of you who have not
followed the development of Deep Red, I will describe
some of the features. First, the unit is standard with
two geared lens controls, for iris and focus. It is also
equipped with a motorized zoom control for a total of
three smooth lens controls. The lens gear drives are
mounted on posts. These LGD’s can be moved in and out,
giving one the ability to ‘hit” a variety of lenses.
Also, the posts and drive shafts are easily replaceable,
should more reach be needed to accommodate longer
lenses.
The other part of lens adaptation,
the optical part, is accomplished through the use of
“port extenders.” Basically, this is a spacer between
the main body and the dome port. Each lens will have a
kit composed of the proper sized port extender,
calibrated rings for describing iris and focus, which
mount on the control wheels, and if needed, a longer set
of posts and drive shafts. Gates will have a list of
currently supported lenses posted soon. Everything on
the Red One body is accessed by the housing controls.
This includes the joystick! The LCD monitor housing also
gives access to all four LCD buttons, via magnetic
switches. The user has full control of the camera
system. Gates is well known for its reliable mechanical
control, and this time they have really outdone
themselves. There is a slight departure from their usual
strategy in that the record function is accessed through
a lever hitting an electronic switch. Also, there is the
previously mentioned motorized zoom. (I believe both of
these features were requests from Howard Hall.) This
enhanced level of access to camera features is for now
unique to Deep Red.
The unit is relatively easy to
reload. Remove the monitor housing, lay it down next to
the main body, and then remove the rear shell. The
battery and drive are right there, easy to replace.
Buoyancy and balance are achieved by mounting included
ballast weights. Weights can be moved around, allowing
one to quickly optimize the rig to individual
preference.
“Avalon” is equipped with the
following:
Plastic dome port.
Red 18‐50 mm lens port extender. (PE286)
Moisture alarm (redundant as the units are standard with
seal check)
Gates microphone
Coming soon: HD SDI monitoring, bulkhead connector for COM
These are to be installed as soon as “Avalon” returns
from her first adventure. More lens choices will be
added.
For more information and pictures
please go to the Gates web site.
http://www.gateshousings.com/DEEPRED.html
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