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VHoldr Contour HD Camera

Sid Lambert

Well Known Member
I split this off from the In-flight Self Portrait thread.

The video I shot was using the VholdR Contour HD (Not the 1080p Contour) http://vholdr.com/contourhd/helmetcam

The camera shoots 720p HD video in a single compact system. I did open the device right out of the box (Don't tell my wife) and add an external mic jack because as we all know you can't hear anything in an RV without getting a ton of wind noise. I now have a small mic from Radio Shack that I stick inside my headset earpiece so the camera hears what I hear when I plug the mic in.

The camera is easy to use. You turn on the main power and then it has a magnetic slide to start and stop recording. The lens rotates 270 degrees so you can mount it practically anywhere. I think it shoots 135 degree in HD mode and 90 in SD mode. I assume they just ignore the data to the side but I have not used SD mode yet.

The mount I used for the outside video is the mount that comes with the device. I did not use their adhesive as it failed on my headset while sitting on the ramp. I used regular 3M outdoor mounting tape available from the RV isle as Home Depot.

All-in-all it's a neat camera that seems pretty tough and shoots good video without the need to install a video system with a bunch of wires and complexity.

Below is a picture of the mount. Sorry, there is no magic. Just tape and an airplane.

IMG_0074.jpg
 
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Sid I just bought the vholdr ContourHD 1080P a few weeks ago and realized the ONLY limiter to this cam was the fact that we couldn't have in-cockpit audio! ...looks like you've solved that!!!

Would you be willing to share how you did the mod? Did you use some kind of resister to control the gain/volume level of the incoming audio?

Thanks Sid! VERY WELL DONE! :cool:

- Peter
 
OK, to add an external mic is fairly easy as long as you are comfortable voiding the warranty.

Again, you will void the warranty if you do this.

Remove all the screws from the lower case. Slide the case off.

Position the lens to it far most counter clockwise position and remove the screw holding the lens cover on. Unscrew the lens cover.

Unscrew the remaining screws holding the body together. Separate the case halves.

Unsolidier the existing internal mic.

Drill a hole the exact size of your external mic lead in the front left side of your camera. Drill through the internal shell as well as the external cover.

Slide the external mic lead through the case and soldier the leads to the board. Put some more hot glue on to keep the leads from moving. The center lead should be the hot or out contact.

Reassemble the camera.

Take the existing mic and solder on new leads to the male portion of the connector.

I found this tutorial after I modified mine...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8Q9gKT3d90

Good luck. If you built an airplane this should be a piece of cake though.
 
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Hey thanks Sid!!! This is GREAT!!!

...and thanks for the clarification on voiding the warranty! I read that on vholdr web site but for what this camera costs, it's worth the risk for me! (...a few tanks of gas through the RV!)

I'll keep you posted on how we do in the opertaing room! :D

- Peter
 
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VholdR HD Camera

For those interested in an external mic jack for this camera, there have been many suggestions for this on their forum and the official response follows:

Sorry but we will not be able to make a unit with an external audio input for this version. It is certainly on the chart for the next unit down the line though!

Thanks,
---
-Nate

[email protected]
 
External Mic Options

Our system offers an external head set patch cable. The MotoCam Shockbox is capable of recording 4 camera angles at once and fully controllable from inside the cockpit.

PN 11-07112 pic1.jpg


motocam staggerwing custom mount sm.jpg


Let me know if you have any questions?

Tim
http://www.MotoCam360.com
 
Modded Contour HD 1080p

Did some surgery on Peter F's 1080p last night to enable external audio. No clue why he trusted me.:D Maybe the late nights with the new baby have made him "logic challeneged":)

Took about an hour and turned out pretty nice!
IMG_8802.JPG


IMG_8803.JPG


Video after the latest Snopocalypse clears out of the upper midwest!
 
Did some surgery on Peter F's 1080p last night to enable external audio. No clue why he trusted me.:D Maybe the late nights with the new baby have made him "logic challeneged":)

Took about an hour and turned out pretty nice!

Video after the latest Snopocalypse clears out of the upper midwest!

Pete, What are you using for external audio input? I know you use an in-the-ear headset, I can't imagine that you're flying around with mickey mouse ears on just to have a mic in the ear cup. Did you just wire up to the internal mic location as well?
 
CA Audio Out

Scott,

I just patch right into the Clarity Aloft audio in and it provides audio out as well. Yes - the mic jack is wired in to the internal mic.
 
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At Light Sport Group we have been working with Vholdr to introduce the Contour HD 1080P A/V-ator Edition. The unit is modified with a proprietary circuit that cuts out noise while allowing both ANR and standard aviation headsets to plug right into the unit, without endangering aircraft intercom systems. Aircraft alerts (Traffic, low oil pressure alarms, etc), ATC communications, and intercom chatter are all recorded onto the unit. It simply plugs into the aviation headset which keeps things very simple for the user. We include a strong suction cup mount, 8GB memory card, and we provide a 90 day warranty on the unit.

Vids here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-pmISkWLx8

and here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5RxpoammPU

You can check out our site at www.LightSportGroup.com

We originally aimed this at the flight training segment since it has been very beneficial for students at our school (they can see DVDs of flights so they tend to comprehend more of the instructor's input and can "fly" the same flight over and over again). Again this is the 1080P version; we do not yet offer a 720P. We're also working on software that will make editing very simple, which will be an option in future versions.

I certainly understand that those of us who build aircraft like to tinker with things themselves, I just thought I'd post as we haven't sent out press releases yet and this is an alternative that includes a warranty.

Chris

CFI/CFII-H, CFI-S (ASEL)
www.LightSportGroup.com
[email protected]
 
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