LP-E6 Battery Recommendations

Since the Video Assist, the Micro Cin, and the Micro Studio use LP-E6 batteries, I was wondering what's the best brands to get. Not just on holding a charge, but also for safety. You see, I current have the Video Assist and the pocket camera setup like this (picture below), and I imagine the I'll have it the same way with the Micro. And when shooting handheld, that battery on the back of the video assist makes a very good grip (with my other hand on the lens, focusing). Even more so then the pocket (especially with all that weight on top of it.)

Here's the thing. Those batteries I got were made by a cheap brand (Opteka). So far, the only complaint in reviews are the batteries not keeping a charge. But with the fear of Lithium batteries checking fire, and exploding, I'm a bit worried one day my hand is gonna blow up. Especially since the batteries feel kind of cheap, and are more designed to be inside a camera, then outside, exposed to abuse and weather.

You could say just buy the Canon official versions, but those are super expensive. The only other brand I can think of that's recommended is the Watson versions. But is there any others that's recommended? Also, how different are LP-E6 and LP-E6N when used on the Micro and the Video Assist? No difference?

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Video Assist, with Blackmagic Pocket, 12.5mm Kowa lens, and Rode Video Mic Pro on InVision Video 1/4" Adaptor.

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The batteries have a tendency to catch fire if you're not careful are lithium polymer. Lithium ion batteries are quite safe.

After my OEM Canon battery gave out, I got the Watson 2000 MA and the 1700MA batteries from B&H, for my VA and Micro Studio camera, they work great, seem to hold their charge as good as the Canon did before it SCD (sudden crib death).

So far in my experience it's the off-brand chargers that tend to fail rather than their batteries.

I agree, to that end, I bought a used Canon charger to use with my E6 batteries. OEM chargers are the only way to go, buy once -- and use the hell out of them!

I have just ordered some Power2000 LP-E6 through Best Buy Marketplace.

When I see these batteries on industry store websites they are about $15.00 more expensive.

http://www.filmtools.com/catalogsearch/ ... 2000+LP-E6

Best Buy has them at $20.00.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/power2000-c ... 1311866156

I am assuming that since the film/video industry stores sell them that they should be reliable.

Should receive them next week.

Wasabi also make good third party batteries. I have Watson and can also recommend them.


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Here's the thing--Li-Ions do not like being overcharged, but normally both the charger and the battery are supposed to have a protection circuit to prevent this, as well as other bad things from happening. However, sometimes knockoff battery and charger manufacturers skip out on it or it is defective, but there's no issue unless both the battery and the charger lack the circuit (cheap third party charger with cheap third party battery). Since a charger should last way longer than the battery and you need fewer of them, definitely go with a Canon or very reputable third party charger (check B&H) and buy your batteries third party, since besides the possible protection circuit issue pretty much all the decent third party batts use similar cells, some better than others but all the same safety. Some of the lesser brands don't last as long over time, but they otherwise work fine.

Personally, in terms of quality, I've used the gamut from Canons to Wasabi to SterlingTEK to Opteka to No-name. The one you definitely don't want to get is anything counterfeit, i.e. claims to be Canon but isn't, those tend to have the most problems. I've heard a lot of good things about STK and I use them as primary with some older genuine Canons as backup, and the former generally do last what they are supposed to but I get the feeling they are losing capacity maybe a little faster than the Canons, though they def. lasted as long at first. Though for the price, it is still more than worth it. The no-names and I think the Optekas were okay at first, but eventually lost all charger after maybe a year or a year and a half. Again, still worth it over Canons, but I'd go with something better. Something like Watson should be at least as good as the Canons, if not better, since they are AFAIK a very reputable brand. Of course, this is all just my experience so YMMV.

I plan to use SmallHD LP-E6 to D-tap cables and power everything that needs the Canon battery (the VA and maybe SmallHD AC7-SDI), as well as other peripherals, from the Switronix Hypercore 150 AB gold mount brick via a Wooden Camera D-box.

I've been using these in my 5d3 recently with performance just as good as the official Canon ones:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00E ... ge_o06_s00

I've previously used "cheap" third party batteries (Dot Photo in my case) which start failing after 12 months.

I trust in Hähnel batteries for many years now and they always have been the best choice!

It's one more thing for which to be watchful, but at least there are two batteries and you can hot swap fresh batteries until the cows come home.


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Yes Kim, you can charge the battery from the camera mains power supply, but unlike the VA, connecting power to the adapter cable turns the camera on too, so not a good idea. I came up with a cabled dummy E6 battery to connect the Micro Studio camera to my Sony L batteries.

Interesting question on the VA battery slot, it will start on 2 if it is the only battery connected, note the display is wrong way round, and is as if you are looking at the Back side of the VA, not from the front.

The display is inconsistent as far as I can see, and is displaying what the battery will have left at the current drain rate. The level drops faster in record/play mode than just in monitor display mode. I had a battery indicate low level (Watson battery) but when removed and replace back, the level went back up.

Yes, if it starts on slot 1m then slot 2 will take over when slot one battery is too low to maintain the correct power. The. You can switch out slot 1 to a fresh battery, and the VA will continue to use slot 2 until it is too low, then switch back to 1.
Cheers

It is possible to charge the batteries on VA, on micro camera too I suppose.

With the pocket, I plan on buying this splitter cable. I currently use the Switronix Solo with a big Sony L batter. When the pocket starts dying, I charge it with an adapter cable. When the Video Assist starts dying, I plug it out of the pocket, and put it into the Video Assist. With this splitter, I could power both.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/743341-REG/Mace_CABLE_DC_Y_Power_Supply_Splitter.html

A simple splitter,like,this is a bad idea, and there is no isolation between the camera and VA. If you want to power two devices from a single large battery, you need a power distribution system box (BDS) which allows you to do,this, without the two devices becoming connected, it isolates the two outputs.

What you would be doing is connecting the VA and cmera DC to DC power supplies together with a big battery added to the circuit. If it shorts, you loose, you could get a reverse ground, you loose, worst case you burn out one of, or both of the DC/DC power supplies -- you loose a Pocket camera and/or a Video Assist. Either way, it is too risky, and a Bad Idea!

You might want to rethink this, and do a little research on "multi powering electronic devices from a single power source". Also see Wooden Camera power distribution system, and BDS, Inc. solutions.
Cheers

Anyone know the difference between the LP-E6 and the LP-E6N battery?

Anyone know the difference between the LP-E6 and the LP-E6N battery?

N has slightly more capacity, otherwise identical and fully forward and backward compatible. Not really relevant for third party batteries since they have different capacities anyway.

Hmm, interesting. Though this is Li-Ion, not Li-Po chemistry, and the capacity difference is pretty darn small between the two to begin with. From what I've seen in reviews, one LP-E6 lasts around ~2h of "normal" shooting, which is wouldn't indicate that high a load for such a battery, at least compared to what you'd see in R/C applications. Still, one would need to test to know for sure.

I've tested one Opteka 2600mAh battery. Went to 1% at 50 minutes, then 0 at 1 hour. Then finally died by 1:03. Which concerns me, since I believe the Canon battery is suppose to power a camera for 1:20.

Wondering which battery is able to keep the camera going the longest. Has anyone else timed their batteries?

A problem I've had with using LP-E6 batteries with non-Canon devices is with physical connection of the batteries and and the device.

The batteries have slots into which metal tabs insert to make a connection. If the tabs are not thick enough the connection may not be reliable. The problem can be compounded by wear and tear on the slots in the batteries itself.

A combination of thin tabs and worn batteries can be trouble in third-party devices; to wit, a SmallHD battery plate and Canon LP-E6's. I have batteries that won't work on the plate but are fine in Canon cameras.

Well, the Video Assist definitely eats up more juice then the Pocket. I plugged in an external battery cradle that used a 7.2/2200mAh/15.8Wh Sony L battery, and it powered the Video Assist for 1 hour and 35 minutes. While the Blackmagic Pocket it was able to power for 2 hours and 10 minutes. That explains why the Canon battery only lasted an hour and 3 minutes. However, shouldn't the canon battery have lasted longer, since it's 2600mAh, where as the sony was 2200mAh?

I doubt tha any Canon E6 battery is an actual 2600 mAh, he biggest actual output rating on a Canon or Watson is closer to 2000mAh. I have a third party battery labeled 2800mAh, but it only lasts as long as the Watson 2000mAh battery.

Battery labels are not always accurate with their mAh ratings. Given the physical size of a Canon LP-E6 is half the size of a Sony L 4600 mAh battery, the max a Canon E6 could be, given the cell sizes, is 2200 mAh, at the most, if the Sony is correctly labeled, that is.

By the way, for those who own the Blackmagic Micro Studio, how long does that LP-E6 battery last? And how high is the mAh of that battery?

The E6 battery in the Micro Studio is good for 50-60min of run time, the Watson battery is 2000mA (or 2amp/hr) rating. I have a third party one marked 2800mA, but it does not last any longer. The Canon E6 battery charger does not completely charge the larger Watson batteries, as Canon E6 batteries are rated at 1800mA, and the charger cuts off at this level of charge. So you will need something like the Watson E6 charger for the larger capacity batteries.

The E6 battery in the Micro Studio is good for 50-60min of run time, the Watson battery is 2000mA (or 2amp/hr) rating. I have a third party one marked 2800mA, but it does not last any longer. The Canon E6 battery charger does not completely charge the larger Watson batteries, as Canon E6 batteries are rated at 1800mA, and the charger cuts off at this level of charge. So you will need something like the Watson E6 charger for the larger capacity batteries.

Seriously? Their own website claims the battery can last up to 90 minutes of recording, which is true when used with Canon cameras. I guess Blackmagic just designs their products to be very heavy on the power consuming. I was really hoping the upgrade from the Nikon EN-EL20's to the bigger Canon LP-E6's would make a difference. Because 90 minutes is very reasonable, with 20 minutes used on in-camera setups, and an hour used on recording. But 50-60mm? I imagine it'd be worst then the pocket by itself, compared to pairing the Video Assist with the Micro. Because instead of 1 battery every hour, it's 4 batteries every 2 hours.

The VA gets better battery life. There is no recording on the Micro Studio, it is on or off, the VA however, should get 90 min no problem on two 1800mA batteries. Also, The Micro Studio camera is running a bigger cooling system and fan, which the Pocket lacks. Again, since I was using a Canon battery charger, I might not be getting thr batteries fully charged, so you may get a little longer operation time. Also, mine is based on having the camera on and off several times during theses tests, so continious running times might be longer. But, you should not have any issue getting three 20-min. shooting sessions on one charge of the battery. Also, the VA battery meter indicator is a little off, shows less battery remaining that there actually is.

A simple splitter,like,this is a bad idea, and there is no isolation between the camera and VA. If you want to power two devices from a single large battery, you need a power distribution system box (BDS) which allows you to do,this, without the two devices becoming connected, it isolates the two outputs.

What you would be doing is connecting the VA and cmera DC to DC power supplies together with a big battery added to the circuit. If it shorts, you loose, you could get a reverse ground, you loose, worst case you burn out one of, or both of the DC/DC power supplies -- you loose a Pocket camera and/or a Video Assist. Either way, it is too risky, and a Bad Idea!

You might want to rethink this, and do a little research on "multi powering electronic devices from a single power source". Also see Wooden Camera power distribution system, and BDS, Inc. solutions.
Cheers

What about this? Would this do?

http://motionnine.com/shop/dcbattery-voltage-adapter-with-dc-cable-coupler/

Edit: Never mind. Found out the first port is 12v (which can power the pocket and micro), however the second port is 7.4v. Which a normal monitor that's fine. But the Video Assist needs 12V. So it's only a good solution for monitors that only need 7.4V.

First, I did not see the message about using real names until after registering, so my real name is Gene Rodrigues. I already sent email to Tony Rivera.

I shoot still and motion wildlife photography and own a combination of Canon, Watson and Wasabi batteries purchased for my 7D and 5D series bodies. I also use the batteries on at least one external monitor. I charge them all with Canon chargers either plugged into AC receptacles or while in the field to the inverter on a Sherpa 50 or Sherpa 100 Battery Pack. Most of my Canon batteries are about four years old and are beginning to fail. The Watsons are three years old and going strong. The Wasabi batteries range in age from two years to six months old. I have not experienced any problems with the Watson or Wasabi batteries. The charge on all of them seems to last about the same. Time will tell if they last as long as the Canon batteries. There are significant price differences among the three brands. The Watson and Wasabi chargers work fine, but I own at least four Canon chargers and prefer to use them instead.

I just started testing an external battery distributed by a company called Lanparte that features a dummy battery connected to an external battery with three times the power of an LP-E6 battery. The dummy battery is installed in the battery compartment and I have the external battery connected to my rig with mil-spec velcro. The battery door needs to be removed from the camera to allow the cable the pass through the camera, so I am covering the battery compartment opening with gaffers tape. So far, so good.

As noted by others, 3rd party battery ratings can be inaccurate. I have 4 Wasabi LP-E6 batteries rated at 2600mAh. I have yet to get more than 2 hours of continuous use on the MBVA with a pair of these attached.

Would the BMVA be safe to operate with one of the battery systems that are used for recharging laptops and cell phones? I'm thinking something like the units from RAV Power or Anker, available on Amazon for $100 or less.

http://www.amazon.com/RAVPower-23000mAh ... lt+battery

http://www.amazon.com/Anker-20000mAh-Mu ... lt+battery

Any 12-15VDC power source is going to work on the VA. But the laptop battery solutions found on Amazon and elsewhere are large, cumbersome and not all have full 12VDC batteries in,them, theymusema DC/DC power supply,to create the various voltage outputs, putting an additional power drain on their battery. They are also designed as "charging" systems, designed to charge or extend the life of a devices own intenal battery.

A much simpler solution is to use regular, larger camera batteries, like Sony L battery for a more compact solution, available in 4000+MA, or the larger 14.5VDC ENG camera battery with the appropriate battery plate. I have a inexpensive IndiePro Sony L type battery holder, that hold 2 Sony 7.5 VDC batteries to create a 15VDC power for a BM Pocket/Micro Camera or the Assist. Plates are available for other types of video camera batteries, like Panasonic, or Canon. This is a much more practical solution, available,in 1-4 battery configurations, and uses readily available larger video camera batteries. The battery holders have a 1/4-inch screw or rail bracket to,attach the battery to your rig.

I just received two battery adapters from starvingartist101.com that adapt Sony batteries into the Canon slots. They cost $20 each including shipping (in the U.S.) Then I got two Sony high capacity batteries and a charger for $45 on Amazon. It's been running a playback file on my Video Assist for over 12 hours now.