Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

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kyanmagic

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Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostFri Oct 01, 2021 11:03 pm

Hey!

So I've been looking into getting a decent tripod for my Black Magic 6k rig. I recently bought the Sirui SH25 which is pretty cheap at £212, but upon getting it I realise that it's minimum height is too high and the camera rig is a bit too heavy as I can't get smooth tilt pans.

The other tripod I had considered was the Nitrotech 608 series with 645 Fast Twin Alu Tripod, which is around £1200 - I'm just wondering if there is any mid ground product that people have experience with? Or another alternative to the Manfrotto that is decent.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts!
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Ian Henderson

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostSat Oct 02, 2021 3:50 am

Buy cheap, buy twice!

For this camera save your money and get a Sachtler Flowtech 75/Aktiv8 combo. You’ll never regret it and it will be worth something when you come to sell it (if you ever do).
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lost_soul

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostSat Oct 02, 2021 10:39 pm

Ian Henderson wrote:Buy cheap, buy twice!

For this camera save your money and get a Sachtler Flowtech 75/Aktiv8 combo. You’ll never regret it and it will be worth something when you come to sell it (if you ever do).


Do you really think a tripod/fluid head combo that costs more than the camera is what he is looking for? If he had that kind of money I doubt he would be putting a 6K on a tripod. I also have doubts about the 6K being heavy enough for an aktiv8. Unless he is rocking a 400mm on it.

To the OP give us an idea what your price range is.
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Creative110

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostSat Oct 02, 2021 11:20 pm

I bought a Cartoni Focus 8 head for some legs I had already in order to save a bit of money. I’m very happy with how smooth the head is. I’m running the 6k pro and some 2lb lenses…
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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostSun Oct 03, 2021 1:10 am

kyanmagic wrote:I recently bought the Sirui SH25 which is pretty cheap at £212, but upon getting it I realise that it's minimum height is too high and the camera rig is a bit too heavy as I can't get smooth tilt pans.


I’d recommend weighing the rig before settling on a tripod – the tripod payload is as critical as the counterbalance, which in turn is determined by the rig weight.

Try keeping your rig within 10 kilos, preferably around 6.

Plus, standard video tripods very rarely go below 80 cm in minimum height. If you’re looking for something lower, like around 10 cm, consider looking at hi hats, or a DIY solution.

kyanmagic wrote:I'm just wondering if there is any mid ground product that people have experience with? Or another alternative to the Manfrotto that is decent.


The Benro BV series might be a budget alternative, depending on your budget.
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John Griffin

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostSun Oct 03, 2021 7:03 am

Any alternative to Manfrotto is worthwhile…..
Smooth camera motion via a fluid head and legs is directly proportional to the price you pay - there are no cheap solutions apart from sticking to locked off shots and not moving the camera. I suggest you rent some pro gear and see what works for you as even doubling your budget may not be enough.
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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostSun Oct 03, 2021 2:26 pm

John Griffin wrote:Any alternative to Manfrotto is worthwhile…..
Smooth camera motion via a fluid head and legs is directly proportional to the price you pay - there are no cheap solutions apart from sticking to locked off shots and not moving the camera. I suggest you rent some pro gear and see what works for you as even doubling your budget may not be enough.
Yes and no. There are some overpriced products out there for sure. The Nitrotech 608 and 612 are actually good heads but the tripods they are bundled with lag behind. E-image are very good value and well built. You can get a setup that will take more than 20kg of weight for less than others do 8kg. Some of the kits come with dual pan bars, both ground and mid spreaders etc. The Sachtler products are good but are overpriced. Aktiv 6 goes up to 8kg and is more than enough for the OP. The Aktiv 8 is quite a bit more. But they are finished better and look more stylish than e-image. E-image look very industrial and tend to have small blemishes in the finish.

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John Griffin

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostSun Oct 03, 2021 5:20 pm

jonstatt wrote:
John Griffin wrote:Any alternative to Manfrotto is worthwhile…..
Smooth camera motion via a fluid head and legs is directly proportional to the price you pay - there are no cheap solutions apart from sticking to locked off shots and not moving the camera. I suggest you rent some pro gear and see what works for you as even doubling your budget may not be enough.
Yes and no. There are some overpriced products out there for sure. The Nitrotech 608 and 612 are actually good heads but the tripods they are bundled with lag behind. E-image are very good value and well built. You can get a setup that will take more than 20kg of weight for less than others do 8kg. Some of the kits come with dual pan bars, both ground and mid spreaders etc. The Sachtler products are good but are overpriced. Aktiv 6 goes up to 8kg and is more than enough for the OP. The Aktiv 8 is quite a bit more. But they are finished better and look more stylish than e-image. E-image look very industrial and tend to have small blemishes in the finish.

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What about the quality of the motion?
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jonstatt

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostTue Oct 05, 2021 12:25 pm

John Griffin wrote:
jonstatt wrote:
John Griffin wrote:Any alternative to Manfrotto is worthwhile…..
Smooth camera motion via a fluid head and legs is directly proportional to the price you pay - there are no cheap solutions apart from sticking to locked off shots and not moving the camera. I suggest you rent some pro gear and see what works for you as even doubling your budget may not be enough.
Yes and no. There are some overpriced products out there for sure. The Nitrotech 608 and 612 are actually good heads but the tripods they are bundled with lag behind. E-image are very good value and well built. You can get a setup that will take more than 20kg of weight for less than others do 8kg. Some of the kits come with dual pan bars, both ground and mid spreaders etc. The Sachtler products are good but are overpriced. Aktiv 6 goes up to 8kg and is more than enough for the OP. The Aktiv 8 is quite a bit more. But they are finished better and look more stylish than e-image. E-image look very industrial and tend to have small blemishes in the finish.

Sent from my SM-G998B using Tapatalk

What about the quality of the motion?
In my view, the motion quality with a Pocket 6k and a moderate lens such as a Tamron G2 24-70 is very similar on all 3 manufacturer's heads. The E-image head that I have despite the 15kg rating is probably ever so slightly the best with the least wiggle but it is heavy.

Cheap tripods and heads are a false economy but super expensive ones are too. That was the main point I was trying to express.

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostTue Oct 05, 2021 1:26 pm

lost_soul wrote:[
Do you really think a tripod/fluid head combo that costs more than the camera is what he is looking for?


Apart from my monitor, the camera is the least expensive part of my video kit. My tripod cost more, most of my lenses cost more, my lights cost more. This is a normal situation when you're using Blackmagic Design cameras.
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Phil999

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostFri Oct 08, 2021 11:38 am

exactly. Even as an amateur in my case, tripod and lights were more expensive than the camera. One should invest in a proper tripod first and shoot with camcorders and smartphones.
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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostMon Oct 11, 2021 1:34 pm

kyanmagic wrote:Hey!

So I've been looking into getting a decent tripod for my Black Magic 6k rig. I recently bought the Sirui SH25 which is pretty cheap at £212, but upon getting it I realise that it's minimum height is too high and the camera rig is a bit too heavy as I can't get smooth tilt pans.

The other tripod I had considered was the Nitrotech 608 series with 645 Fast Twin Alu Tripod, which is around £1200 - I'm just wondering if there is any mid ground product that people have experience with? Or another alternative to the Manfrotto that is decent.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts!

Hey Kyan, if you are still looking for a Tripod and head, B&H has a deal going right now for the next 14 hours from the time of my post here. You save USD$420.00 and can check it out here.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/ ... gc_gc.html
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Travis Hodgkinson

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostMon Oct 11, 2021 10:19 pm

My R&G go to is the 504X and 645 Fast Alu Legs. There just ins't enough of a weight saving for the price difference to the Carbon Fiber version. Supports 12Kgs on the head, with counterbalance around the 7kg mark. It's a flat head to, so it mounts to just about everything.
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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostThu Oct 21, 2021 4:30 am

Travis Hodgkinson wrote:My R&G go to is the 504X and 645 Fast Alu Legs. There just ins't enough of a weight saving for the price difference to the Carbon Fiber version. Supports 12Kgs on the head, with counterbalance around the 7kg mark. It's a flat head to, so it mounts to just about everything.


Thanks for the feedback. What ball did you take to go along the head?
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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostThu Oct 21, 2021 6:34 am

The Manfrotto 100 Half ball. I also have a Benro 100 half ball short.
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Travis Hodgkinson

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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostThu Oct 21, 2021 7:12 am

Here's the Benro half ball.
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Re: Alternative to Manfrotto Nitrotech 608?

PostThu Oct 21, 2021 8:29 am

Travis Hodgkinson wrote:The Manfrotto 100 Half ball. I also have a Benro 100 half ball short.


Thanks!

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