Which onboard camera system do you use? [Poll]

[toolo4sno]

I am conducting a poll regarding which video camera system you use for your onboard racing videos.

I allowed multiple choice if you use multiple systems (Front AIM and rear GoPro for instance).

If other, please comment below on which system you use. Other Action Cams would be: Insta360, DJI, Wolfgang, etc). Other Mospo cameras are dedicated systems generally installed permanently to the vehicle. These would be like: Kenwood, Thinkware and even custom made systems that you Frankensteined together.

I would also like to talk about the pros and cons of your system and if it does what you want it to. If you have any comments on your video camera system put them in the thread below.

[BeerBudgetRacing]

I have used go pro in the past successfully.

But....
Aim starts and stops with the car. I don't know how many times we missed recording with the go pro. Alot.
Video quality is high.
Data display is done.
New software syncs video with satellite maps and all your data.
Specifically designed for motorsports.

I always thought go pro would make a motorsports edition but they haven't.

[toolo4sno]

I always thought go pro would make a motorsports edition but they haven't.

I don't want to give away too much, but that sentence is literally why I created this poll.

[TimH]

I still pick up another Replay Mini whenever one appears on eBay for under $100. It's a real shame the lipstick format disappeared.

[jtaphorn]

GoPro Hero Session

Pros: Smaller cube size works well on top helmet.
Excellent picture
Inexpensive used on Ebay

Cons: Not always sure it is on or in correct mode. Perhaps more of a user limitation
Suffers the GOPro shutdown when it gets to warm. A problem for my reverse facing camera on the rear wing mount

[BeerBudgetRacing]

GoPro Hero Session

Pros: Smaller cube size works well on top helmet.
Excellent picture
Inexpensive used on Ebay

Cons: Not always sure it is on or in correct mode. Perhaps more of a user limitation
Suffers the GOPro shutdown when it gets to warm. A problem for my reverse facing camera on the rear wing mount

This is what I used. I had 1 forward and 1 back.
They do not last forever. It's disappointing they discontinued them.
They do not survive crossing start/finish unmounted either
Never had a problem with getting too warm as I had it mounted to the bodywork.

There is always something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Motorcycle-Fr.../dp/B07QKWDRR7

[BeerBudgetRacing]

I don't want to give away too much, but that sentence is literally why I created this poll.

And considering the president of the company was an open wheeler, you woulda thunk....

[JHerscher]

Not this thread, but FWIW I have a few videos out in the online world. I have no fear of sharing speed secrets or shame about my lousy driving habits either for that matter (actually, its more of the latter - no shame!).


I still use the good old ChaseCam system from the dark ages. Lipstick camera.


Problems I have had include

• the camera units shaking themselves to death hard mounted to the roll bar (Pinto FC).
• system turning itself off halfway through a session
• camera overheating
• forgetting to turn the silly thing on

Lately the biggest problem I have is with the format. As I now have a current generation computer, it doesn't really recognize or play the video on my .mov player. Files are recognized as a .LUP file. Still trying to figure that out!

Mostly just too much of a cheapskate to buy a current system.

[toolo4sno]

My old '18-'22 camera setup:

Camera (Over Shoulder): GoPro Hero6
Camera (Roll Hoop): GoPro Hero6
Camera (Rear): GoPro Hero7
Data Collection: iPhone/Harry's LapTimer
Data Display: Dashware 1.9.1
Audio is recorded separately

I recorded at 4K-30FPS and could get about 1hr20 min before the batteries died. If I tried 4K-60FPS I ran the risk of running short due to the battery. I think they could only go 60 minutes at that setting. I understand our regional races don't typically run that long, but I figured with prior session oil dry or wall repair my cameras could be on 15-25 minutes longer than expected. I wanted a minimum 4K-60FPS going forward.

'23 and beyond camera setup:

Camera (Over Shoulder): GoPro Hero11 Mini
Camera (Roll Hoop): GoPro Hero11 Mini
Camera (Rear): GoPro Hero7
Data Collection: iPhone/Harry's LapTimer
Data Display: Dashware 1.9.1


Both 11 Minis will be powered by USB. I bought the pass through doors and made a better seal for rainy days to protect it even better. I haven't figured out the rear camera yet, but I may get another Mini if I can find a way to mount and power it. If I can manage camera temperatures on the false grid I should only be limited by SD card size. I will probably only end up using 4K-60FPS, but could archive at 120FPS or 5.2K-60FPS.

The Hero 11s will overheat with no airflow and high performance settings in about 25 minutes. I have a remote, but it hasn't worked for me yet with multiple cameras and I need to properly time my audio recording with the video and that is done out of the vehicle.

I am taking advantage of the Hero11 Mini's dual mounting fingers. As someone who has lost and then miraculously recovered a GoPro at PIRC; I want some redundancy there. I am working on some ABS 3D printed mounts that use both finger mounts on the Mini.

[mikey]

I have two replay minis and visor cam v4. Sometimes I would put an old GoPro on the back of the car and sync the video up later with the data. I wanted to do the AIM system, but could not find room in my cockpit for the head unit controller.

anyone looking for the replay mini HD might want to try Dave and Ellen at veracity. To my surprise they still had a couple on the shelf earlier this year I bought one and a buddy bought one so I don’t know if they have any left. They gave me a great blow out price deal.

the visorcam is neat but leaves a lot to be desired for image stability. And if you are in a car that requires you to move your head a lot then the video can be hard to watch.

[Extreme1]

Replay, it’s easy as long as I remember to turn it on.

[stonebridge20]

AIM smartycam bullet.

I go to the track and drive my car.

I go home and watch every session I did throughout the weekend.

I will never own another GoPro in my lifetime.

[BeerBudgetRacing]

AIM smartycam bullet.

I go to the track and drive my car.

I go home and watch every session I did throughout the weekend.

I will never own another GoPro in my lifetime.

Exactly.... I spent way too much time doing the GoPro shuffle. Are they charged, are the on..... and on and on...
And when they didn't work it - my wife hated them - and was PO'd at me.

I never think about the camera now - bad because sometimes I forget to wipe the bugs off the lens!

Next on the list:
https://www.aim-sportline.com/us/pro...dual/index.htm

[teamwisconsin]

Of the 19 Formula cars we have in house (F1, FA, FB & FF), 16 of them have camera systems. 15 of those are AIM HDGP 2.2 systems, the other 1 is a VBox. The VBox is large and expensive but the front and rear integrated cameras are pretty cool. If one has the space and budget it might be the way to go. This is some onboard from that car: https://youtu.be/ry8kJ-VBQI8 I've also driven a GTP car where they had one camera pointed at the driver and one pointed forward, I guess if your driver is making questionable decisions with his tools it might be helpful as well.

The AIM systems are pretty good. 2 of them have been problematic and needed to go back to Italy for repair/service, and 1 of those 2 has never quite worked right and always given us some issues, despite throwing lots of parts and love at it. But I suppose 1 out of 15 is pretty decent odds.

My only issue is that the HDGP 2.2 isn't in stock anywhere. I know AIM is going to be pushing the SmartyCam 3 but my experience with all AIM products over the years is that they do their beta testing on the customers. Their customer service is excellent and if you don't mind being a tester it's not a bad way to go. But I think I'd rather stick with the 2.2 for the time being until they get whatever bugs the 3 will have worked out.

[problemchild]

AIM smartycam bullet.

I go to the track and drive my car.

I go home and watch every session I did throughout the weekend.

I will never own another GoPro in my lifetime.

Agreed. There is no other option for people that want to get video 98% of the time (while never pushing a button).

[douglap1]

Of the 19 Formula cars we have in house (F1, FA, FB & FF), 16 of them have camera systems. 15 of those are AIM HDGP 2.2 systems, the other 1 is a VBox. The VBox is large and expensive but the front and rear integrated cameras are pretty cool. If one has the space and budget it might be the way to go. This is some onboard from that car: https://youtu.be/ry8kJ-VBQI8 I've also driven a GTP car where they had one camera pointed at the driver and one pointed forward, I guess if your driver is making questionable decisions with his tools it might be helpful as well.

The AIM systems are pretty good. 2 of them have been problematic and needed to go back to Italy for repair/service, and 1 of those 2 has never quite worked right and always given us some issues, despite throwing lots of parts and love at it. But I suppose 1 out of 15 is pretty decent odds.

My only issue is that the HDGP 2.2 isn't in stock anywhere. I know AIM is going to be pushing the SmartyCam 3 but my experience with all AIM products over the years is that they do their beta testing on the customers. Their customer service is excellent and if you don't mind being a tester it's not a bad way to go. But I think I'd rather stick with the 2.2 for the time being until they get whatever bugs the 3 will have worked out.

We had some recurring problems with an AIM system in an older formula car that I had, and it turned out to be EMF interference from the "dirty" electrical ignition system. We had to move some of the electronics around, and use a shielded cable. After that it ran flawlessly.

That VBox video quality is quite amazing - thanks for sharing.

[ric baribeault]

AIM smartycam bullet.

I go to the track and drive my car.

I go home and watch every session I did throughout the weekend.

I will never own another GoPro in my lifetime.

Gopro

I go to the track and drive my car.

I go home and watch every session I did throughout the weekend.

I see how poorly I drive and decide to never use the GoPro again.

Ironically, I destroyed a car at Watkins Glen and the damn camera was still attached to the only piece of bodywork still attached to the car.

[Rick Kirchner]

I loved the Replay cameras. I got one of their big buttons that provided clear switchology and feedback. Problem was, it killed the camera. By that time their customer service had gone to **** (they were on the way between two of my work sites, so I could easily drop by) and not only did they not refund the price of the button, or fix it, they replaced it with something $50 cheaper and charged me to repair the camera.

Hard to beat the format though. Ive been tempted to try some of the Amazon copies.

There's this:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B088HJKGLZ...v_ov_lig_dp_it

Also a couple of cameras there that are designed for rifle scopes.

Hard to find a sports cam anymore without a fisheye lens. That was another nice feature of the Replay.

[DanW]

I have the AIM Smartycam GP2.1 picking up data from my MXL Pista.
The I have the brake pressure, throttle position and the other usual rpm/speed/gps/g's data feeding into a dashboard in the video.

I had someone look at my video and immediately identify I was "double braking" when changing down gears going into certain corners. Correcting that error helped me pick up almost a second a lap. He also showed me where I was late back to full throttle. Only about 3-4 seconds a lap to go....

[lowside67]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6C3Mxt5e2E

My setup is a simple Gopro Hero 9 with the data from my Motec logger overlaid after the fact on my computer. Takes approx 15 minutes to sync and compile a video to include the data and upload to Youtube.

-Mark

[mark elder]

The Smartycam seems bomb proof and fool proof. Excellent. But the image quality is average at best and their image stabilisation is years out of date. Even their 1 hour podcast of their latest products reveal that their new products will not be much better.

The Gopro has excellent quality (esp if you use higher frames per second and higher quality). Modern SD cards can easily cope. Their image stabilisation is amazing. Starting at Gopro 7 but 8 is great and 10 is fantastic.

The issues with Gopro is they turn off without warning The solution is 2 fold.

X~PWR H8 All-Weather External Power Kit for GoPro HERO8 with 36" Cable


Brand: 3BR POWERSPORTS


This is an external power kit that is very very reliable. It stops the Gopro turning off. You either use an external battery pack (lasts maybe 8 hours) or you buy the simple step down box of electronics that turns 12V to 5V with a USB outlet (costs less than $15) and if you wire this to the ignition or the master switch you have all day power.

[lance3556]

Love my AIM camera, but this whole discussion on cameras and the extent that some go to is another reason racing is getting expensive. I would not have a camera if it were not mandated and I hope they never mandate a rear facing camera.

[2BWise]

It really depends on what you intend to do with the footage you record.

1) If it is purely for data analysis then an integrated system like the AIM is a no-brainer.

Start the car, camera runs, always get the footage, and it overlays in a simple step

2) But if it is for actual video production an action cam will be the only answer.

The flexibility of a Gopro (or similar) is hands down the better solution. Even compared to the HD AIM Smartycams the video quality is so much better, but that's what its designed to do. Get pretty video footage.

I have a hard time watching 20 mins of race footage from a single forward mounted camera. In the moment, in the car, its super intense. After the fact its not nearly as appealing. Clip it all together as a highlight reel afterwards with multiple cameras, angles, and shorten up to a watchable time frame and golden.

[FVRacer21]

I started out with a FLYCAM which was designed for model airplanes - quality of video was not there, but what a revolution.
Video from 2007 here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aC7tr7bgFsc

Looks like the company may have morphed into RunCam https://www.runcam.com/ They have some units which can be remotely turned on - so might have some applications for us.

Then I bought cheap Vivitar sport cameras. Between $40 - $60. I would still be using the first one but it rained and it was not in the waterproof housing (better quality without) the second is my backup and still going.

I used my son's GoPro (not sure the model) and that was working very well but recently gave up the ghost - I have not had time to see if it can be repaired.

I got a CAMBox as a gift and it worked well - once you go to know how to use it. A little jumpy and bouncy, but very accurate as to what you see. Right now it is going back (at their request) because the battery is not fully charging - luck to get 10 minutes on a "full" charge. As noted above - 1 hour is needed

I will probably get a AKASO Brave or SJcam to fill the requirements - as backup to the CAMbox

The question is - what are the BASIC specs we need?

• I would think we need a camera that has about 1 1/2 hour battery life (hard wire?)
• Replaceable batteries for quick turnaround
• An external stop/start switch
• Waterproof construction
• Designed for a tether
• And since there is a danger of damage on a formula car - something under $300.

Is that unrealistic?

ChrisZ
FV#21

[CheckeredFlag]

For ease of use with telemetry overlay, you can't beat AiM but their stuff is mega-expensive for a "camera". We use an AiM SmartyCAM GP HD 2.2 bullet camera on the FE2. At Mid-Ohio in October, Gabe rented an SRF3 so we tried out a GoPro Max 360. Wow, the GoPro Max was a LOT of work to get done right and I mean A LOT OF WORK, especially overlaying the telemetry data from the AiM EVO5. Also, you gotta remember to turn the GoPros on and off; the SmartyCAM is, well, smart in that regard. We then tried the GoPro Max on the FE2 at ARRC but because of the level of difficulty in the video production workflow, we may not use it again.

For the SmartCAM, I use CyberLink PowerDirector Ultimate and have a pretty good workflow for it. With the GoPro, you gotta do so much more work with first exporting the video via GoPro Player, which strips the GoPro's native sensor data in the current version. Additionally, the GoPro 360 video is super-large and they're split into 2GB "chapters", so you gotta stitch them together via a command-line app or in your video editing software. I used RaceRender for the GoPro video so that I could add the AiM telemetry data (gear, throttle, etc) to the video since GoPro doesn't have that available in their videos; that sync process was a real challenge, too.

TLDR: AiM is pricey, but unless you like all the post-production work it is a huge time saver. GoPro makes much higher quality video than AiM, but is a lot of work in post-production.

[azjc]

Been think about this setup - seen it in $399~$450 range

STZ-RF200WD | Dashboard Camera | Car Electronics | KENWOOD USA

[FVRacer21]

Been think about this setup - seen it in $399~$450 range

STZ-RF200WD | Dashboard Camera | Car Electronics | KENWOOD USA

My son was considering that - waiting for a little more user feedback but the only thing I don't like is the fisheye lens.

At least in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnvkMRZn5q8

But gives a wide range.

ChrisZ

[Graham Rankin]

The video that Ethan shared earlier in the thread on an FA is superb, but in our application on the SwiftFA the VBOX video quality is underwhelming, not because its a bad system, because its totally the opposite with tons of features. At 10,000 RPM the car vibrates so bad that you get the rolling wave effect. Tried every trick to reduce the vibration but still noticeable.Is it a problem ? Not really, but when your expectations are not met its a bit disappointing.
Would I recommend the VBOX? Absolutely yes, just be wary if have a car that really shakes. i’ll be trying the Aim GP2.2HD next if they ever get restocked.

Graham

[schiconst]

ION on amazon $90.00 Buy 2 !! Works great

[Lyngengr]

I started with a GoPro, but had recurring issues with the lenses cracking. Needed to be in an underwater housing I guess.

I saw the Garmin Virb and because it could overlay data I switched to that. No problems with cracking lenses. Good image quality, but like the GoPro you had to turn it on before each session.

Switched to the SmartyCam 2.2 a couple of years ago. Great integration with my Evo4. I replace the lens cover once a year, gets pitted from track debris. Only issue I've had is with the SD card, just make sure you power-up the camera after inserting the card to confirm it recognizes the card. Don't like the really nervous g-load plot in the overlay, probably need to use a slower sample rate to smooth things out.