B&H Photo News Roundup: Week of January 22, 2024

It has been a busy week involving many product categories here at B&H, with Hasselblad representing the photo corner, RED coming in hot with a major video announcement, and numerous brands making big announcements in the audio world during the NAMM 2024 show. We’ll recap all of this, plus some of our regular creative programming from this week.

Hasselblad’s Latest V-System Back Goes to 100

This week, Hasselblad announced the 907X & CFV 100C, an early entrant for camera of the year, which combines the 100MP medium format sensor from the X2D with the beloved V-system-styled digital back format of the CFV series. The new CFV 100C is bundled with a slightly updated 907X body, but one of the main assets of this system is its modularity, meaning the back can also be used with virtually any film-era Hasselblad camera or on technical camera bodies with a V interface plate.

The CFV 100C is an update to the CFV 50C II—the obvious upgrade is the higher-resolution 100MP sensor. Some of the other improvements Hasselblad made include a lighter body that sheds nearly 3 oz from its predecessor; the integration of a 1TB SSD for file storage; the inclusion of a CFexpress Type B card slot versus an SD slot; and the new back now supports an accessory Hot Shoe Adapter for easier use of an on-camera flash or flash trigger.

RED Goes Global (Shutter) with V-RAPTOR [X] and XL [X] 8K VV Cameras

On the cinema side, RED is making waves this week with the introduction of its V-RAPTOR [X] and V-RAPTOR XL [X] 8K VV cameras. These all-purpose, powerhouse models combine the impressive frame-rate range, low-light performance, and 8K resolution of the V-RAPTOR line with the global shutter advancements of the KOMODO series.

Also introduced with the cameras is the RED Global Vision suite of tools, benefited by the adoption of a large format global shutter in both cameras. Chief among the Global Vision functions is Extended Highlights, which can acquire more detail from highlight regions ideal for HDR content or soften the highlight roll-off in SDR footage, too. The second key Global Vision asset is Phantom Track, which greatly benefits those working in a virtual production environment by employing Ghost Frame and Frame Remapping for capturing distinct R3D clips per sub-frame, as well as monitor live over each SDI port.

The V-RAPTOR [X] and V-RAPTOR XL [X] are available in a variety of configurations and are being announced alongside a new RED Compact EVF, as well as an improved EVF Mount and an EVF Extension Arm. In case you’re already a V-RAPTOR user looking for the added benefits of the global shutter and RED Global Vision, there’s also an Upgrade Kit available to bring your current camera up to speed.

NAMM 2024 is Here

NAMM is finally upon us, and it’s been a hectic week for the audio world with major announcements from Sennheiser, Shure, Mackie, and more.

We got our hands on Sennheiser’s new HD-490 PRO open-back studio headphones. Our takeaway: they “produce a smooth and dynamic sound stage with very accurate frequency response, making them ideal for audiophiles/enthusiasts seeking quality cans for their media consumption, and professional engineers and producers who desire an honest, high-performance reference for mixing and producing.”

Zoom added three new models to its H Series lineup, the H1essential, the H4essential, and the H6essential. The major news here is that all three models offer 32-bit float recording capabilities and have streamlined feature sets to appeal to content creators and musicians.

Shure made some updates to its SLX-D lineup with the SLXD5 Camera Mount Receiver and SLXD3 Plug-On XLR Transmitter. There is a wide variety of system configurations available for different applications, all suiting the needs of on-the-go creators, journalists, and videographers.

Mackie announced several new products this week, including the DLZ Creator XS mixer, the MainStream interface, and the MobileMix streaming mixer. The company also announced some updates to its line of ProFX mixers and interfaces.

Heritage announced its i73 PRO series of USB-C audio interfaces, including the i73 PRO One, the i73 PRO 2, and the i73 PRO Edge. The big news with these models is the improved connectivity and ability to add the classic analog character of Heritage Audio’s 73-style preamps directly to your digital workflow.

There’s lots more to check out from NAMM 2024—delve into our full collection of announcements and our page of all of the new products.

In other news…

• ARRI announced the 360 EVO Stabilized Remote Head, a fun and unique product enabling cinematographers to make 360° spins on pan and roll axes with an ARRI camera.

• Samsung introduced the 990 EVO M.2 Internal SSD, available in 1TB and 2TB capacities.

• We’re still reliving Bild, and this week we uploaded Dan Winters’ “The Road to Seeing” lecture.

• This week’s Teton Perspectives sees Autumn Schrock riding solo and talking about photographing the moon.

We have had a week packed with new products, with a little something for all types of creators. We’ll pick it back up next week to see what’s in store for the last week of January.