Bescor MP101 Video Motorized Pan Head

So here was my dilemma... I use my Canon 60D to film my son's basketball games continuous video using Magic Lantern. I set it on my 6' tripod on the bleachers or in some corner to capture the entire court... hence my problem... people walk by or worse yet STAND in front of the camera constantly. I needed a tripod that is higher than most, able to get ABOVE people standing around...So I bought the PBL Pro Heavy Duty Air Cushioned 10ft Light Stand to act as a tripod... it gets my camera up to 10 ft in the air! With the camera so high, I needed a way to adjust the view from my height... and this is where the Bescor Remote Controlled Motorized Pan/Tilt Head is the perfect solution...I put this on top of the stand... put the camera on top of that... and with the fully articulated screen on my 60D pointed to me on the floor, I can adjust the pan and tilt of the camera from 6ft using the remote control, while the camera sits on it's perch 8-10 ft high! The whole setup is plenty strong enough to hold the Bescor AND 60D with absolutely no fear of falling. (I use a common 18-135mm lens, so nothing too long and out of balance, all the weight is straight down the stand)I adjust the Pan and/or Tilt for the perfect view, and set it and forget it.The Bescor weighs about 3 lbs... and camera about 3 lbs... and the stand supports up to 15lbs, so I feel very comfortable with this setup.The camera attaches directly to the top of the Bescor with the screw head and sits high and tight on top... Once at full height, I adjust my view of the basketball court, left, right, up, down... all from my height of 6ft when my camera is 10 ft high!I'm thinking about going wireless with the whole setup using the CamRanger PT hub... but there are some battery limitations with the hub and router that only last 1-2 hours... and I use this for hours at a time sometimes... but this setup is working perfectly for what I need and the design is perfect for me right now... for weekend use... a lightweight... strong... camera tripod setup... getting my camera OVER the heads of fans for clear video... using the remote controlled motorized Pan Head for minor adjustments... perfect.

Yes, movement is as smooth as reported by other reviewers, as long as you take care of leaving space for the cables to move.On some uses, we found the control cable generated some jerkiness, but corrected it by leaving enough for rotation and movement. Also, we did confirm what other reviewers say about the slowest setting being a little too fast... at least when you're zoomed in. It gets better (slower) the more weight you add, so that's what we did and it was acceptable for our purposes, but there are certain really slow movement shots we were expecting to do that are not possible.We've used it screwed to a base on top of a table for product shots and it does a fantastic job. We've used it on a tripod and it opens up tons of possibilities for very careful, planned shots without having to go handheld or over the shoulder. Soon we will mount it on a crane (we got the cable extension and ACDC bundle, quite recommended) and will report on results with that, but based on this recent limited experience, it will get us some awesome footage.Just wish it was lighter (quite a hefty little bugger) and offered some sort of wireless control, but for this price it's just me whining. That's why it still gets 5 stars. A definite must-have on most of our shoots.

Just hooked this up to my DSLR jib and it works well. Would have given it 5 stars but the downward tilt is a bit limited. Not a deal buster but would be nice to have that bit of extra range. Keep in mind this head will fit on a tripod as well as a jib. It is designed for DSLR cameras and is NOT for heavy broadcast video cameras. Do not put anything over 6 to 8 pounds on it as all you are going to do is fry the unit and your burn up your batteries. Comes with remote and suggest for jib users to get the optional extension cord so you can run the unit in tandem with your jib tilt control for good shots. AC adaptor is standard 6 volt mini female which I had laying around and it works fine but most jib operations you don't want extra cords annoying you so stay battery if possible.

I purchased this pan head TWICE from HD Toys. The first one was a DOA, with the vertical panning dying out and a flimsy remote right out of the box and returned it. On 4/23/15-ish I repurchased this and again, a DOA. The unit looked repackaged and box was covered in something soapy. The pan head only will pan 70 degrees horizontal, with the meter on the side continuing. I again, must send this back with the 50ft cord. I think the pan head is AWESOME but I think this seller, HD Toys re-sells returned, faulty units. Twice in the span of 6 months is more than a coincidence. I will try and find this unit elsewhere.