Blackmagic Forum

I recently purchased a BlackMagic Video assist HD recorder to use with my Sony A7sii. I cannot see a frame rate icon on my VA monitor, only a FORMAT icon, which is always set to 1080p50, regardless of whether I am shooting at 50, or 25fps. I should also add, that the VA never displays FPS (regardless of whether my Sony is plugged, or not).

Additionally I am having problems with the playback function: when I scroll through with my finger, it scrolls through to the next clip, rather than forwarding/reversing within the same clip.

I also cannot change the name of my device on the "Setup" menu.

Is my unit defective?

No, not it is not. The issue is with your camera, in HD recording mode, the HDMI only outputs a 1080p60/50 signal. Here are the Sony HDMI specs:
HDMI Output: [NTSC] 3840 x 2160 (30p/24p) / 1920 x 1080 (60p/24p) / 1920 x 1080 (60i), YCbCr 4:2:2 8bit/ RGB 8bit. It also is not a 10-bit output, as rumored.

The VA will only display the signal is receives, 1080p50 shows the camera is outputting HD at 50fps, and this is how the frame rate is displayed. There is no separate fps display. Try setting your camera to 4K(UHD) 2160p30 and see what the VA displays.

Cheesy Cam added this about the Sony A7Sii:

Someone commented earlier about a problem with the BlackMagic Video Assist Recorder/Monitor stuck capturing only 1080/60p. This is actually a problem I ran into a while ago even on the Atomos Shogun, so the problem is not with the BMVD, it's with the Sony A7RII and Sony A7sII.

Even if you set your HDMI output to 1080/24, it will only output 60p 'if' you have your camera recording set to 4K/24. In order to fix (more like workaround) this issue, you have to change your camera recording to 1080/24, and then your HDMI will output properly.

Thanks for replying, Denny. Unfortunately this happens when I shoot in UHD too. I have tried various settings, including switching between PAL/NTSC.

Welcome to the wounderful world of Sony consumer cameras, with "non functioning" features on their "non-professional" cameras. Even the C100 only outputs an Interlaced signal. You can test the camera's actual HDMU output, by hooking it up to a TV monitor (LCD) then pull up the info screen on the TV and see what the hdmi signal the TV is getting. This will show you if it is the camera, or perhaps the VA is actuall not working correctly. If this is the case, then BM will take it back on a RMA and fix it for you.
Cheers

I´m experiencing the exact same problem..
When i hit record on the camera it outputs the correct framrate(*edit - and resolution) though.
Found some workarounds, but yeah.

Just solved the problem(only took me a day ).
You have to shoot in manual movie mode and make sure 4K output is correct.

Good, glad you got it sorted.
Cheers

Joakim Grass wrote:Just solved the problem(only took me a day ).
You have to shoot in manual movie mode and make sure 4K output is correct.

Could you specify the settings you used to get the Sony A7S and BM VA HD to view and record 1080p25 over HDMI?