First troubles with new L&M housing for Canon G30

[hanifarudiver]

Hi all!
I recently bought the new L&M housing for the Canon Legria G30 to replace my previous L&M Bluefin housing for the Sony CX550.
The reasons I wanted to change is the better processor in the Canon and his ability to work under low light conditions.
This is my fourth L&M housing.
When I carefully slipped the camera for the first time into the housing I found out that this camera is so big that there is almost no place between the lcd-screen and the innerside of the housing...That is also the place where L&M has put the infrared cables which are passing through the remote signals to the handles. (please forgive me if I do not use the right terms). The cables are not really solid attached, but they just slip in the entrance of a hole leading to the handles themselves. The only way they are attached is by a plastic plug that holds them on place. Because there is so little space in the housing, the lcdscreen touches (pushes against) these cables when you enter the camera. Probably the cables were not well put on place in the workhouse of L&M, as a result the cables came out of there place and the left handle didn't work...
This is not a pleasant experience when you have already a problem like this. After each (depends on the size of the battery)dive you have to repeat this action, I'm worried this is not very reliable. I preferred the connection with the cables like my Sony.

I also regret that the backpanel of the housing is no OLED anymore, I understand the manufacturer doesn't deliver these anymore. It didn't seem a big issue but underwater it's a big difference; the oled screen is 15% bigger! So for me this is a step downwards...

So I tried to put the old oled screen on the new G30 housing and that works fine, although you should not put old parts on a new housing to improve it... The only thing that does't work with this oled-bakpanel is to change from AF to MF with the button on the right handle. Is there a way to fix this? I think it must be possible to change in the menu with the left handle, but I have my doubts and it will not be handy.

Thanks in advance for all comments!

I hope to hear other experiences with this housing!

PS The quality of the video is very good also in low light!

 

[Erix]

Hey There,

In February this year (2014) I bought the same L&M Bluefin for my new Canon G30 (as my previous Bluefin Pro with my Sony XR550 flooded, seems like we have the same experiences as this camera is quite the same as your previous CX550 - only mine had a hard disk inside). Althought the camera is quite better, the housing is a firm disillusionment. Ok it doens't fit with the camera-handgrip, but that grip was easily taken of so that if you are a bit gentle the camera fits in without moving the infrared-cables. So that I can advise you already.
But more important when using the special tray for the G30 there is always vignetting (even if stabilisationsoftware is set on 'off') so we had to make a new hole to put the camera more in front, but by doing this the flip-lens couldn't work anymore. Now when the camera is put more in front, the vignetting is gone even when the stabilisingsoftware is put on dynamic. That's quite good when you are filming in current or rough sea.
Indeed, also the 'normal' lcd-screen is a step back in comparison with the oled-screen in our former Bluefin Pro. Seems that the guys at L&M aren't quite interested anymore in making their housing-customers happy. (Although I sent in movies with the vignetting they even denied that it was possible!!)
They are focussing on their lights... sadly also in this compartiment they are really doing no good. I had 2 Sola4000's, 1,5years old... nice lights but the charge-contacts always corroded so I needed to scrub the contacts before each charging and sometimes even put conductive gel into the holes otherwise there was no contact between the pins and the corroded holes. Now at my last divetrip to Norway both Sola4000's flooded althought I did no deeper dives than 55m. And the lights should stand 100m according to L&M. Again all responsibility was denied as if I myself ever could be responsible for flooding my videolights (no, I really never tried to open them!). So now I'm looking for new videolights but no L&M ever again! Ok, you can have sometimes a bad product, but a bad service is something else. I hope this helps in chosing a housing after this one.

But coming back to your question: you need to take the handgrip of the camera, then move the camera+tray gently down the housing (of course with your camera-screen in open position), then it is possible to get the tray in without moving the ir-cables out.

 

[drbill]

So what did you guys do with the monitor backs for the old CX550V housings? Did they work (post flooding probably not)? I'm trying to replace the one on mine as one of the PCBs went out.