Focus Firestore FS-3 Quick Start Manual

QUICKSTART GUIDE

For Operating System Version 1.2

INTRODUCTION

Thank you for choosing the Focus
Enhancements’ FireStore FS-3 DV Disk
Recording Module for DV Camcorders.

The purpose of this QuickStart document is to
introduce the features and operation of the
FireStore FS-3. The complete User Guide is
available on the CD-ROM that came with the
FireStore unit. It is advised that users get
familiarized with the product by reading the
User Guide before attempting to use
this product. If you are unable to locate the
User Guide or require further assistance,
please visit:

www.focusinfo.com/support

Alternatively, contact your Focus
Enhancements FireStore dealer/distributor.

.

PHYSICAL FEATURES

Your FireStore FS-3 features two main
surfaces, the front panel and the rear connector
panel.

Front Panel

The front panel contains the backlit LCD and
9 buttons for controlling FireStore’s functions.
The top row of buttons act as soft keys and
provide the function displayed on the bottom
of the LCD.

The front panel also features a tally light,
infrared remote sensor and power switch.

PAGE 1

FireStore FS-3 QuickStart Guide

REAR CONNECTOR PANEL

The rear connector panel features a 6-pin
FireWire port for DV video I/O (A), a 6-pin
FireWire port for connection of external
FireWire drives or a computer (B), a 4-pin
XLR DC power input (C) and a 3.5mm
control cable input for RS232C, GPI or
optional wired remote control (D).

MOUNTING TO A CAMCORDER

The FireStore FS-3 is designed to mount
directly to full size DV camcorders. It is
designed to mount between the camcorder
and the battery system. FireStore FS-3 features
either Anton/Bauer, V-Mount, PAG Lock or NP
mount plates allowing quick connection to most
camcorders featuring these battery systems.

Mounting to Anton/Bauer, V-Mount or
PAG-Lock Equipped Camcorders

To mount to camcorder's featuring either an
Anton/Bauer, V-Mount or PAG Lock battery
system, do the following:

1) Remove any connected battery from the
camcorder's battery mount plate.

2) Connect the FS-3 unit to the battery mount
plate on the rear of the camcorder.

3) Attach the battery to the rear of the FS-3 unit.

FireStore FS-3 QuickStart Guide

PAGE 2

(A)

(D)

(B)

(C)

Mounting to NP Battery Equipped
Camcorders

To mount to camcorder's featuring NP battery
systems, do the following:

1) Remove and disconnect the attached
battery system from the camcorder. Consult
either your camcorder's documentation or
documentation from your battery system for
more detailed information on removing the
battery system. Leave any existing rubber
gasket between the camcorder and battery
system in place.

2) Mount the NP adapter plate to the rear of
the camcorder with the supplied four screws
(the plate mounts to the rear of the camcorder
utilizing the same mount holes the NP battery
case mounts to).

3) FS-3 features a two wire connector with black
and red cables that connects main power between
the FS-3 and the camcorder. Connect this to the
equivalent connector on the rear of your camcorder.

If you are using a digital battery system that
passes battery life status to the camcorder, and
are using a camcorder that is compatible with
these systems, connect the following cables
between FS-3 and camcorder: (FS-3 NP
version only.)

Anton/Bauer Digital Battery System

- Grey and Orange Cable

IDX Syncron Digital Battery System

- Blue and Red Cable.

4) "Hook" the FS-3 to the adapter plate on the
rear of the camcorder (these hooks are unique
to the FS-3NP model). Insert the supplied
gasket between the plate and the FS-3 unit.
Harness any loose cables into the "Hidey­Hole" on the FS-3.

5) Once mounted, secure the two captive
screws at the base of the FS-3 to the camcorder.
Ensure that no cables are "pinched" between
the FS-3 and the camcorder.

6) Re-attach the battery system to the rear of
the FS-3. Ensure to connect all cables and
utilize the supplied gasket between FS-3 and
the battery system. Harness any loose cables
into the "Hidey-Hole" on the FS-3.

FireStore FS-3 QuickStart Guide

PAGE 3

CONNECTING A FIREWIRE CABLE
BETWEEN FS-3 AND CAMCORDER

Connect either the 6-pin to 6-pin or 6-pin to 4­pin FireWire cable between the FS-3's "DV
I/O" port and the camcorder's DV interface

INSERTING AND REMOVING
FIRESTORE FSHDD-1 FIREWIRE
DRIVES

The best way to get to know the FireStore
FSHDD-1 FireWire HDD is by studying
the supplied manual. The manual provides
detailed instructions and illustrations.

INSER

TING THE HDD: Insert the drive
into the slot on top of the FS-3 unit. Ensure
that the power switch on the bottom side of
the drive is set to “On” before inserting. The
drive will only insert one way and features a
“key” on one side to prevent incorrect
insertion. Press down on the drive handle

firmly until the handle meets the top of FS-3.
If power is on, you will observe the power
LED light up green.

REMOVING

THE HDD: Slide the HDD
release latch on the FS-3 top plate toward the
battery system. Once slid as far as possible,
hold the latch while at the same time grasping
the FSHDD-1 drive handle and pulling the
HDD out from FS-3.

GETTING STARTED

Once FS-3 has been mounted to a camcorder,
a power source has been provided and the
FSHDD-1 FireWire HDD has been inserted, it
is now possible to prepare FS-3 for use. When
powered up for the first time, the FS-3 LCD
will display “Welcome to FireStore” and
possibly “Please Wait...” depending on the
disk drive being used.

FireStore FS-3 QuickStart Guide

PAGE 4

If a FSHDD-1 FireWire HDD comes from
the factory, it should be configured and ready
to use. If the message “No Disk Detected”
appears, ensure you have a FSHDD-1 FireWire
HDD inserted properly. If the message “No
Format Detected” appears, you will first need
to partition and format the inserted drive. FS-3
will prompt you through the steps required to
perform a format.

WARNING: Formatting

will erase all data on disk!

Once ready for use, the FS-3 default Splash
Screen will appear as follows:

Use the MENU and SOFT KEYS on the FS-3
front panel to navigate and make changes in
the menu system.

One of the first tasks to perform is to set the
date and time in the FS-3 Setup menu. This
forms the basis of file naming.

FS-3 Menus

To enter the FS-3 menu, press the MENU soft
key. The MENU screen will display on the
FS-3 LCD.

By pressing the soft key, it is possible to
scroll through the MENU items. Pressing the
“SEL” soft key will open a SUB-MENU for
particular menu items that have a right
pointing arrow.

To set DATE and TIME, navigate to SETUP ­> SET DATE&TIME and then set DATE and
TIME individually.

File Identification, Naming and
Scene Marking

FS-3 files are identified by TRACK and
VOLUME (disk drive) number on the LCD.
For instance, a file on the FS-3 LCD identified
as 1-043 is clip number 43 on Volume (disk) 1.

On a computer, files are identified by their
base file name made up of DATE and TIME.
For instance, a clip named 20030615-210943-

01.mov is a clip that began recording at
9:09:43PM on June 15th. 2003.

Clips can also be organized into pre-named
folders on the disk drive using the Scene
Marking feature. If a clip has been Scene
Marked, it will be displayed in brackets
(e.g. <XXXXXX>) above the soft key labels
on the LCD. Mark clips during REC, STOP
or PLAY modes using the optional remote
commanders or by pressing SHFT+DISP.
While holding SHFT, press DISP to scroll
through available folders. At the close of a
session, select MENU -> UTILITIES ­>ORGANIZE FOLDER. See the User Guide
for more information on Scene Marking.

FS-3 Main Features

Spend time navigating through the FS-3
MENU System. FS-3’s MENU has eight main
menu categories: Record Mode, Play Mode,
Play From, Control Mode, HDD Bypass,
Record Format, Setup and Utilities.

FireStore FS-3 QuickStart Guide

PAGE 5

Functions in the FS-3 MENU include:

RECORD MODES:

NORMAL RECORD - FS-3 front panel or
remote control trigger of record.
RETRO DISK

- Constantly buffers video in a
loop to a determined amount of space on the
HDD so that when record is triggered, a retro
time period can be added to the beginning of
any clip.
RETRO CACHE

- Same as above, but utilizes
a 10 second data buffer to cache video instead
of the HDD.
LOOP

REC - Allows video to be recorded
while in normal record modes as an endless
loop on available HDD space.
SNAP

- Any record trigger will result in only
a single frame of video being recorded to disk.
TIME LAPSE

- User definable time lapse

setup menu.

PLAY MODES:

PLAY CLIP - When play is triggered, the
selected clip will play from start to finish and
then pause.
LOOP

CLIP - When play is triggered, the
selected clip will continuously loop play from
start to finish.
LOOP

ALL - When play is triggered, the
entire contents of the HDD will loop play
from start to finish.
PLA

Y ALL - When play is triggered, the
entire contents of the HDD will play from
start to finish and then pause.

PLAY FROM:

TRACK LIST - Plays all clips from the HDD.
FOLDER LIST

- Plays clips from within a

specified folder only.

CONTROL MODES:

LOCAL - FS-3 front panel or remote control
of operation.
A

V/C - Control of FS-3 via a computer
connected to the “DV I/O” FireWire port on
the Connector Panel. Not for use with
camcorder recording/playback.
SYNCRO SLA

VE - Control of FS-3 Record
and Record Pause via camcorder’s standard
tape record trigger.

HDD BYPASS:

Allows the connected FireWire HDD to
be mounted/dismounted to a computer
without removing.

REC FORMATS:

Allows selection of particular DTE
Technology native NLE file format prior to
rec ordi ng. Choices are RawDV, AVI Type 1,
AVI Type 2, Canopus AVI, Matrox AVI,
QuickTime and Avid OMF (all files are in
DV25 standard.)

SETUP:

HDD PORT - Allows FS-3’s HDD port to
switch between HDD connection and DV I/O
loop through.
SET

DATE & TIME - Allows for setting date
and time for file naming purposes.
OS

VERSION NO. - Displays the current
system software version.
OS UPGRADE

- Allows update of system
software.
TC MODE

- Allows different timecode modes
to be selected including external TC, record
run TC, Regen TC and Free Run TC.
TC SET

- Allows Timecode or User Bit values
to be preset.
IR

- Enables or disables the FS-3 infrared sensor.

FireStore FS-3 QuickStart Guide

PAGE 6

GPI - Allows selection of GPI port function
including disabled (RS232C), Pause/unpause,
Index/New File and Rec Snapshot.
BACK LIGHT

- Allows FS-3 LCD backlight
to be on, off or auto off (backlight goes off
after one minute of no activity).
CLIP

PREVIEW - When selected, allows the
first frame of each clip to be displayed on the
DV video out when navigating from one clip
to another.
AUDIO CORRECTION

- Allows different
levels of audio correction to be used during
a recording.
KEEP

PREF - Allows the "Keeper" button to
mark clips to a single Keeper folder or
multiple folders.

UTILITIES:

ORGANIZE FOLD
Organizes all scene marked or keeper clips
into respective folders on the HDD for easy
NLE access.
ORGANIZE OMF

- Organizes all Avid OMF
recorded clips into a folder named “OMFI
MediaFiles” so that the Avid MediaTool is
able to use the clips in the Avid Timeline.
DELETE CLIP

- Allows the selected clip
to be deleted.
FORMA

T - Allows any drive to have a
completely new FAT32 format added.
FORMATTING WILL ERASE ALL DATA!
P

ARTITION - Prepares any unrecognized or
blank HDD for formatting.
REP

AIR - In the event that a file is damaged
during recording, repair will fix the particular
file.
FILE NAME

- Displays the Base File Name
(Date and Time) of the selected clip.
F

ACTORY RESET - Allows factory settings

and values to be restored to FS-3.

UTILIZING FS-3 CLIPS IN A
NON-LINEAR EDITING SYSTEM

FireStore FS-3’s unique DTE Technology
allows clips that have been recorded to disk
to be immediately available to a non-linear
editing (NLE) system’s timeline without
having to capture, transfer or convert the
files first.

After a recording is complete, remove the
FSHDD-1 FireWire HDD (or external
FireWire HDD) from FS-3.

Connect just the FSHDD-1 FireWire HDD
to a Macintosh or Windows computer system
with an OHCI compliant FireWire port.
FireStore utilizes the FAT32 file format, so
the same disk will mount to both Mac and
Windows systems.

In most cases,
the computer will
power FSHDD-1
from its FireWire
port. If not, an
external power
supply may
be needed.

Once connected, FSHDD-1 will mount as a
standard removable FireWire volume. Each
clip on the disk represents a press of REC and
REC STOP.

FireStore FS-3 QuickStart Guide

PAGE 7

FireStore FS-3 QuickStart Guide

PAGE 8 MANL-0904-02

With DTE supported NLEs, it is possible to select
IMPORT file and make the entire disk content
immediately available to the NLE timeline. Note: Avid
user’s will need to follow some additional steps. See the
FS-3 User Guide for more detail.

FS-3 LCD DISPLAY AND TALLY MODES

The table below details the different LCD and tally light characteristics when used with different
FS-3 control, record, play and stop modes:

PLAY/REC MODE FS-3 LCD TALLY

Stop STOP Off
Pause ll PLAY Off
Play > PLAY Off
Rec (Pause) ll REC Blink
Normal Rec (Rec) REC On
Retro Disk (Stop) L STOP Off
Retro Disk (Standby) L REC Blink
Retro Cache (Stop) C STOP Off
Retro Cache (Standby) C REC Blink
Loop Record (Stop) O STOP Off
Loop Record (Standby) O REC Blink
Loop Record (Rec) O REC On
Snap (Stop) STOP Off
Snap (Standby) ll SNAP On
Snap (Rec) ll SNAP On
Time Lapse (Stop) STOP Off
Time Lapse (Pause) ll T REC Blink
Time Lapse (Rec) T REC On

CONTROL TYPE FS-3 LCD TALLY

AV/C* (Stop) A STOP Off
AV/C* (Rec Pause) ll A <REC TYPE> REC Blink
AV/C* (Rec) A <REC TYPE> REC On
AV/C* (Play Pause) llA PLAY Off
AV/C* (Play) A ALL Off
Syncro Slave (Pause) ll Y <REC TYPE>REC Blink
Syncro Slave (Rec) Y <REC TYPE>REC On

* AV/C is only for use when FS-3 is connected to a computer system. To control
FS-3 from a camcorder, use Syncro Slave Mode.