bebob, well known for their gadgets and tools for professional videographers, has released yet another handy-dandy tool that makes the lives of camera operators just a little bit easier.

Users of the Sony HVR-DR60 hard disk recorder have struggled with mounting the unit to the cold shoe on the top of various camcorders. Raising the profile of the camera more than 6 inches, on some camcorders it also caused the microphone housing to bend downwards. Obviously, this is a less-than-optimal mounting position. Some users of HDD recorders mounted the recorder to a tripod or belt, and while this works, it still involves a tether and loss of freedom.

bebob have developed the Box. The Box is a lightweight aluminum cage that mounts the HVR-DR60 hard drive and battery, and then mounts beneath the camcorder. The aluminum frame contains a sliding bracket for easy access to batteries or the HDD unit.

Weighing in at approximately one pound, this cage is lightweight but exceptionally tough. We mounted the Box beneath Canon XLH1 and Sony HVR Z1 and HVRV1U camcorders, and barely noticed any difference in weight, but very much appreciated the additional platform the Box offers.

The HVR DR60 mounts to the Box rail via the battery mount found on the top of the DR60 unit. Batteries for the DR60 are mounted in front the DR60 unit, easily changed without removing the bracketing system. The bracket provides ample room for even an FP970 battery, so if long record sessions are part of your workflow, the Box is accommodating. The battery mount also offers a Hirose 4-pin connector for powering accessories on the camcorder, such as wireless units or other devices.

The Box mounts to a camcorder's bottom mounting system via the standard 1/4-20 top screw system. The bottom of the Box provides for either 3/8 or 1/4 mounting to a tripod, as well as hole mounts. Both sides of the Box offer threads for mounting additional accessories. There are two release buttons, one on each side, that will release the housing, allowing fast access to the HDD unit.

It's not perfect. Threading the 1394 cable through the housing isn't entirely obvious; once the cable is threaded through the Box, it's in place to stay. The upside of the cable challenge is that the 6-pin connector on the DR60 is protected. Reaching the controls of the DR60 is less than efficient during recording as well; we found it best to put the unit in remote control mode (controlled via the camcorder start/stop) and leave it running. If the controls do need to be reached during the shoot, it's a simple matter to press the release buttons on the side of the Box, and slide the housing. However, this cannot be done smoothly, so you'll need to stop the recording process first.

When mounted on a tripod, the Box will fit on most systems without any additional issue. Obviously, the Box adds approximately 3" of height to the camera; this shouldn't be a challenge in any environment. We loved how the Box raises the camera off the ground for a ground shot, and balances the various cameras for hand held shots. Another side benefit, is that although the DR60 is very quiet, it does make a small amount of noise. The Box moves the DR60 nearly 12" away from the microphone mount on most HDV camcorders.

Although it's a very simple design, elegant and pleasing in its appearance and function, it is a well thought-out box that not only solves a problem, but provides excellent protection of the somewhat fragile HDD unit. We're very pleased with the concept, design, and durability of the product. Thanks, bebob!
The Box is also available for the Firestore FS-4 or FS-100 HDD recording devices and the VM series for VMount batteries.