Mark IV Dual Band Wireless Headcam System

As a new user, it may take 10 to 15 minutes to properly fit an actor's helmet, build the headcam, and frame and focus the actor's face. Once you've mastered this process, it'll get much faster. It takes roughly 5 to 7 minutes per actor for Headcam operators to do this process. Once the actor has a helmet and camera fit and framed, things go even faster. For example, coming back from a break or lunch takes about a minute to get the Mark IV back on them.

No calibration process is necessary for our Mark IV Headcam to be used for recording. If you plan to use Live Studio (Faceware's realtime software), have the actor hold a neutral face, and Live Studio has a 1 button, 1-second calibration process.

If the Mark IV System is running in wireless mode, then a single battery will last approximately 5 hours. If the Mark IV System is wired, then a single battery will last at least 12 hours.

This is entirely up to the person who will track the footage in Analyzer, our technology does not require markers, although about 1/2 our user-base prefers to apply marks on the face. Markers drawn on the actor's faces can help with consistent landmark placement but does not directly impact how the software ingests the data. Small, clean dots, placed consistently day to day work best.

We use a near-zero distortion 4.3mm lens. That lens mm means we need to push the camera out a little further than other cameras with fisheye lenses. This produces excellent footage for animator reference that looks like a properly proportioned face.

This is dependant on the project itself. We usually recommend shooting at the highest evenly divisible framerate of your animation timeline’s fps. For example, you are working on a game and are animating in Maya at 30fps, we would recommend 60fps capture. If you are animating in Motion Builder at 29.97 for television delivery, we would recommend 59.94fps. We sell cameras that run at either 24/25/30/50/60 fps or 23.976/29.97/59.94 fps. Here is the full list supported by our cameras:

• 720p 60fps
• 720p 59.94fps
• 720p 50fps
• 1080p 60fps
• 1080p 59.94fps
• 1080p 50fps
• 1080p 30fps
• 1080p 29.97fps
• 1080p 25fps
• 1080p 24fps
• 1080p 23.98fps

If you are unsure, we recommend 720p 60 or 59.94 fps as our general best practice. It is a great balance between file size and detail.

They are not. For better animator reference and to better work with our tracking algorithms, we use color video in our cameras.

The Mark IV records color HD video recorded with Prores or DNxHD compression in a .MOV file.

Our Mark IV headcams do not come with a built-in microphone, but audio can be embedded in the face video by connecting an audio feed to the audio inputs on the back of the AJA Ki Pro Rack. The Ki Pro decks have Line or Mic level XLR analog inputs or AES digital audio inputs. In PCAP scenarios, most audio engineers prefer to attach microphones to the helmet itself or on the boom arm that holds our camera and then run the cable in our cable wrap and then down to the belt, where they can clip the transmitter. Then the receiver can be then fed into the mixer and then fed to the Ki Pro, or even directly plugged into the Ki Pro. In a VO booth scenario, all that’s needed is to take the feed from your audio engineers board and send a signal to the Ki Pro.

Yes, it does. We combine the video with the TC and audio at the AJA Ki Pro Rack when it is recorded. The Ki Pro Rack has an LTC input (and loop-through output) that any external timecode source (a timecode generator or Sync HD Pro Tools box) can plug into. The timecode data is recorded into the metadata of the MOV as a timecode track.

You can capture up to 5 actors wirelessly. For wired setups, there's no limit unless you are limited by the number of digital video recorders that you own. Any number of Ki Pro recording decks can be controlled from a single interface. Timecode and audio can be daisy-chained from deck to deck to assure all the components stay in sync and identical.

We use the Teradek Bolt 500 system for wireless video. The working range for each unit is 500 feet (150 meters) between the transmitter and receiver.

Yes, all of them. Integrating the systems is simply a matter of attaching markers or sensors to an actor's helmet and positioning the performance capture belt in a place it doesn't occlude or interfere with the body data. For deeper integration, our Shepherd software package can take file name and start/stop triggers from Vicon, Optitrack, and Xsens systems to automatically and accurately control the recording functionality of the Mark IV system.

Yes, markers can be placed anywhere on the helmet. We include some Velcro loop medallions in the kit to place markers anywhere you need on the helmet.

Yes, our system includes a one-year end-to-end warranty that covers every single part and component. The warranty ensures that any part or component will replace or be repaired at no additional cost, including roundtrip shipping from our Austin repair facility.

Depending on our order queue most systems ship within 7-10 business days. If needed sooner, please contact us. As soon as your order is placed, our operations manager will be in touch with shipping timelines.

Many devices, such as wifi routers and cell phones, use the 5Ghz frequency to communicate wirelessly, making it a very crowded space where interference can occur. This can lead to video drop outs for 5Ghz wireless video systems. The Bolt 6 uses the newly opened 6Ghz wireless frequency which is a significantly quieter wireless environment. It can also use the 5Ghz bands for backwards compatibility. In 6GHz Mode, Bolt 6 users will access faster connections and less interference for a better wireless experience. 6GHz frequency is now available in the US and Canada under UNII-5 government specifications. More countries will open the 6GHz frequency in 2023.

Check here for the latest updates on which regions allow 6Ghz operation.

In keeping with international laws and regulations, any Mark IV Dual Band system that is intended to be used in a region where the Bolt 6 is not certified to use 6GHz bands will have the firmware on the Bolt 6 set to operate in 5Ghz bands only. When regulations change and the Bolt 6 becomes certified to use 6Ghz bands, you can easily update the firmware on the Bolt 6 to enable 6Ghz bands. You can reach out to our support team for any assistance you may require.