Hero3 BE turns off randomly during flight.

[Quadpilot]

Has anyone come across this situation? I have a Hero3 BE mounted on my Zenmuse H3-2D, which is working fine (so far at least - I've been reading about the woes of others that have had some bad luck with their gimbals). I have the latest firmware loaded for both the Phantom and the Zenmuse - 3.14 for NAZA and 1.02 for the gimbal (BTW, is anyone else as annoyed as I am that the Phantom shell has to be opened up to update the GCU? The shell is too fragile at the screw mount points to take more than a couple of openings, and I've already had several pieces of the shell broken off where the screws are supposed to hold the top part of the shell. Poor design, DJI! I've resorted to using zip ties to hold the shell together .
Anyway, my problem is this: I notice that on several flights, the Hero3 shuts off for no particular reason, sometimes 30 seconds into the flight, other times 2, 3 or 4 minutes into the flight. Sometimes it happens when I'm tilting the gimbal down to vertical, other times without using any adjustment on the tilt (I use the shapeways tilt lever, which I physically limit in travel to 90 degrees from horizontal to vertical). So there's no pattern that I can discern for when it shuts off.
I do not use the GoPro app to control the camera, but turn the camera on to record just before flight. I have flown it in both ATT mode and GPS mode, with all gains at default. I've flown it in calm as well as windy conditions, without any of what I would consider extreme maneuvers, and there is no pattern that I can figure out :shock:
BTW, camera remained on during my last unplanned landing (oops!) in some tall grass, even though the gimbal separated from the Phantom, so I don't think it has anything to do with g-forces on the camera.
I've checked that the Hero3 is being charged by the Phantom battery. I'm shooting 1080p@60fps with Protune.
This is my first post after lurking for a few weeks. Thanks to all for the tips I've picked up so far.

 

[jonboy40]

Don't know if this will help but when I first got my Phantom I used a 64GB Sandisk Ultra card in my GoPro3 Black and found it would sometimes stop recording after just a few seconds (especially if the card already had video from previous flights on it, less so if the card had been wiped clean and re-initialised) and the camera would always freeze up when trying to play-back direct from the GoPro's HDMI port into my TV. Changing to 32GB Sandisk Ultra cards completely cleared this issue.
*Filming in 1080p 50, Protune

I envy you with a working gimbal.....!

 

[martcerv]

Nearly all recordings cut short are due to SD card issues, unfortunatly even though there are many cards sold as c10 micro SD the hero3 BE has caught most of these out as false specs. The fastest video modes are recording at 45Mbps Megabits per second which is 5.63MB/s megabytes per second. A class 10 card is supposed to mean the card can record at a sustained write speed above 10MB/s which as you can see is quite a bit faster then to BE records in. The fact that it is stopping recordings is that most of the cards arent true c10 cards but have been marketed as such because they should never fall below 10MB/s write speed from empty to full card to meet the spec.

Check this thread regarding this issue and some users testing a variety of cards to see how they go at write speed testing. http://goprouser.freeforums.org/this-is ... 12096.html

The only current card guaranteed to be trouble free is the Sandisk extreme pro 16GB micro SD card and even Sandisk only recommends this card on their site even though their c10 ultra cards should be well within spec but arent. :lol: Why do they not recommend the Ultra cards as they initially told GoPro they were the best cards for the BE but only say supported surely a camera like the BE would be recommended a card larger then 16GB unless they know its not 100% stable.

Sandisk has just put out some new Micro SD extreme cards from 16 to 64GB about double the price of the Ultra cards but these should be able to easily perform to spec needed by the BE and the next gopro version likely out in about October going by recent releases by GoPro.

I have ordered a couple of extreme 32GB cards supposedly due tomorrow and will do some full testing on both to see if Sandisk can be trusted again. GoPro has got quite a bit of flack over this issue but there is little they can do as they like everyone else assumed a c10 card was actually performing within c10 spec but most dont. To meet the spec every single card in every batch should pass a write test to within its rated speed but with the SD ultras some are and some arent from official sources. I have 2 ultra 64GB c10 cards and one has never had trouble the other has cut short a couple times.

 

[Quadpilot]

I was in fact using a Sandisk 64 GB ultra in my Hero3 BE. Thanks for the heads-up from jonboy40 and martcerv about write speed issues with this card. Since I was shooting in 1080p@60fps Medium FOV w/ Protune ON, I think the write speed could definitely be the problem.
I have researched this issue on the GoPro forum of Abe Kislevitz http://abekislevitz.com/understanding-your-gopro-part-2/ and the Sandisk card was specifically mentioned as having an issue with write speed. The Transcend Class 10 UHS-1 was mentioned as a better card. So I will give that a try to see if that is in fact a solution to my problem.
I think the other suggestion that it helps to always format the card in camera prior to use could eliminate another potential source of trouble, but can sometimes be a hassle, especially if out in the field, since in order to preserve the footage for multiple flights one would have to replace multiple cards (that's the reason I got the 64 GB card in the first place :roll:!
It seems that with microSD cards, it's buyer beware, since actual vs. claimed performance has a large gap with some cards.

 

[Quadpilot]

For those of you that would like to research what Hero3 BE shooting modes work best for your style of shooting, check out the following thread http://abekislevitz.com/understanding-your-new-gopro/ He is on the GoPro team of developers and has a lot of great info on the Hero3 BE on his forum. The part about microSD card write speeds is herehttp://abekislevitz.com/understanding-your-gopro-part-2/
Hope you get your gimbal working soon, jonboy40

 

[jumanoc]

GoPro turn off (standby mode) while not filming. Just trun that timer to MANUAL and never else go off by itself.

 

[martcerv]

I use the 64 gb cards and format in camera only never deleting files on the computer as this sometimes causes issues on some operating systems. If I need to I just leave all files on the card until I can dump them and only 1 of my 2 cards has ever had the issue.

If you need the 64gb capacity the new extreme sandisk should be the go but its about $130, the 32GB cards I ordered a couple days ago with stock eta 1-2 days now has eta of unknown listed. That means I dont know when they will make it here but I will do all the testing I can on it to see if we have a solid option for the H3BE.

Abe is great very helpful to most users and a master with the GoPro cameras, his blog is worth a read for anyone wanting to get the most out of a gopro or editing in general. He also is answering user questions at the goprouser forum whenever he gets a chance out of his busy schedule while working for gopro.

 

[Quadpilot]

Jumanoc, I beg to differ. I never use standby mode and always turn on the Hero3 just before flight and start recording just before takeoff (Anyway, the Phantom battery provides continuous power to the Hero3 when it is connected, so I don't see how standby mode is an issue unless the camera is left on after the Phantom battery is disconnected. Even then, the camera battery will start charging through the zenmuse gimbal as soon as the Phantom lipo is hooked up again).
I have yet to confirm my theory that the Sandisk 64 GB Ultra was the problem, but I'm pretty confident that is the case, as it has been shown to be unable to handle the write speed of the Hero3 in the modes I was using to record (1080p@60fps Medium FOV with Protune enabled). In Protune the camera instructs the processor to increase the bit rate to some 45Mps, which the advertised write speed of the Sandisk is supposed to be able to handle, but has been proven by several individuals (see martcerv's post above) to not live up to the task. I have a Samsung 64 GB UHS-1 Class 10 card on order from Amazon with an advertised write speed of 70 Mps that has received some good reports. I will report my findings as soon as I'm able to get some flights with the new card.
Of course, I think I could have solved the issue if I had turned off Protune, but I'm unwilling to give up the advantage of being able to have much greater control over the footage in post processing that Protune offers.
martcerv, I wanted to give the Sandisk Extreme Pro 32 GB a try, but can't find it anywhere, so I thought I'd try the Samsung first. I don't really need 64 GB, but the advertised write speed on the 64 is the same as the 32 GB Samsung, so why not? It's around $65 at Amazon. Anyway, thanks again for steering me in what I hope is the right direction. Happy flying!

 

[Quadpilot]

Quick correction to my earlier post: The Samsung 64 GB microSD card has a READ speed of 70 Mps, it writes at 20 Mps. :roll:

 

[martcerv]

Just be aware if the sandisk card you ordered is not the new extreme model, still untested as I dont think they are available I ordered a couple 32GB cards but have just been told they wont be here til the 30th this month.

The Ultra cards are the ones that arent always up to spec, you also need to take note the difference between megabytes MB and megabits Mb. The gopro recording rates are written in Mb/s or also Mbps which megabits per second and cards are rated in megabytes per second MB/s.

1 MB = 8Mb so a class 10 card which is rated at a minimum write speed is 80Mbps and well within the speed needed for the gopro. The testing found using many micro sdhc class 10 cards is that most cant even handle the 45mbps of the H3 BE for a sustained period writing to the card. Going by specs every card rated at c10 should easily be able to do all modes in the current gopro range but most fail to meet the class rating.

If you ordered a Sandisk Ultra you may want to change that to the new Extreme cards.

Here is the new extreme 64GB, should be able to handle all modes but still untested.
http://www.sandisk.com.au/products/memo ... acity=64GB

Here is the old Ultra 64GB that sometimes has issues with the GoPro
http://www.sandisk.com.au/products/memo ... acity=64GB

Also avoid buying cards from private sellers or ebay as there are lots of fakes around which will cause nothing but troubles.

I really dont like how they market the cameras of speeds "up to" but the simple fact is that all sandisk cards except the extreme pro and possibly the new extreme cards do fail to meet basic c10 class rating of sustained write speeds at or above 10MB/s or 80Mbps

 

[Quadpilot]

Getting my Samsung 64 GB card today (claimed 70 Mbps transfer rate) which is well within required 45 Mbps rate for Protune. I'll post again when I fly/record with new card to see if the H3 BE will sustain record in flight with Protune enabled.
BTW, I did try turning Protune off with my old Sandisk Ultra 64 GB card, and flew several flights with no interruption in recording. So I DO think the card speed is the reason that the H3 BE will stop recording when Protune is ON. If, and when, the new Sandisk Extreme cards come on the market, I will give one a try.
BTW, one thing I learned from Abe Kislevitz's blog is that Protune should be turned OFF in low light situations because of the excessive amount of noise created. Resolution suffers, of course, but noise is significantly lower.

 

[crdodd]

My GoPro Hero 3 used to shut down until I upgraded the firmware. No problem since.

 

[Quadpilot]

I've flown several flights with my new Samsung 64 GB microSD card (Class 10 UHC-1 with claimed 70 Mps read/20 Mps write speed) in my Her03 BE recording in 1080p@60 fps Medium w/ Protune ON and have not had a repeat of the camera shutting off prematurely in flight. Most flights lasted between 6-7 minutes.
It's a small sample, I admit, but I think the logical conclusion is that the card speed was the problem (I was using a Sandisk Ultra 64 GB card). I've got a new Sandisk Extreme 64 GB microSDXC card on the way from B&H Photo which I will also give a try (80 Mps read/50 Mps write).