CX-171 voltage switch
 

I picked up a Panasonic CX-171 to start my airborne video project. I understand this is a 12V camera and I can convert it to 5V. I looked at the attached daughter board and it looks like it's substantially more than a voltage regulator. Has anyone done this before?

RE: CX-171 voltage switch
 

Also, is the heat sink necessary if this camera is operated at 5v?

RE: CX-171 voltage switch
 

I understand that the daughter board is only needed for 12V operation and that the heatsink is not needed if the 12V board is not used. A couple minutes with your voltmeter should confirm what is going on at the connector and will help verify the 5V operation. Cyber-Flyer has hacked his, so maybe he will chime in and share what he learned.

RE: CX-171 voltage switch
 

Thanks RC-Cam. I'm still a sceptic, but I tried it. Sure enough, it's putting 5V into the camera. I hooked it up and it worked. Only thing I'm concerned about is that it got a little hot. Ambient in this room is 68f and the board got up to 120f. The heatsink attaches to the camera board, not the VR board so I stuck it back on and it was soon at 100f. The heatsink weighs 7g (compared to 12 for the camera alone) so I wish I knew the tolerance of the camera.

-Ben

RE: CX-171 voltage switch
 

A 50f rise over ambient certainly indicates the heatsink is needed. Sounds like the CX171 is a bit power hungry.

BTW, the CX161 runs about 5f over ambient. It is a very efficient little fellow.

RE: CX-171 voltage switch
 

I can confirm the need for the heatsink on the CX171, I purchased the 5v version (no daughter board) and it came with a pretty substantial heatsink, considering the size of the camera!

Regards,
Bill