CTRL.5 vs. CTRL.3
As a 1st AC / focus puller, you trust your livelihood to your wireless follow focus system. It’s as indispensable to your career as the camera itself, and your controller needs to be reliable, powerful, and intuitive. The new CTRL.5 handset predictably invites curiosity about how it stacks up against CTRL.3, Teradek’s popular workhorse FIZ controller, and there’s a lot to talk about. Our engineers incorporated tons of user feedback and adapted new technologies to make CTRL.5 expand the capabilities of both the end user and the entire Teradek RT ecosystem.
Put simply, our team took everything users love about CTRL.3 and added a generous helping of wish-list upgrades, including a task-specific operating system that’s inspired by SmallHD’s award-winning PageOS, CTRL.OS. This blog will identify the similarities and differences between the two controllers to illustrate how CTRL.5’s groundbreaking new features and functionality can streamline your workflow and dramatically improve your efficiency on set.
Major Considerations for
Choosing Your Controller
Major Considerations for
Choosing Your Controller
- How intricate do you need to get with your tools?
- How much control do you really need?
- Does your controller need to be expandable?
How intricate do you need to get with your tools?
How intricate do you need to get with your tools?
CTRL.3 has built-in lens mapping, which allows for auto-calibrating lenses to pre-marked focus rings and accessing configurations at any time with the touch of a button. If you have a SmallHD monitor, you can use the CTRL.3 to display critical lens data as overlays – get critical follow focus information directly on your monitor including lens focal distance, focal length, iris, zoom and more.
At first glance, CTRL.5’s ultra-bright 5-inch display is the most obvious upgrade from CTRL.3, but the substantial difference becomes clear the moment you power it up: CTRL.5 is our most robust wireless FIZ controller powered by CTRL.OS, a task-specific operating system created specifically for focus-pullers. Based on SmallHD’s award-winning PageOS software, CTRL.OS lets you customize data visibility and control functions via touchscreen and/or 11 programmable function buttons. In addition to an expandable Lens Map Library, CTRL.OS lets you add unlimited digital marks, instantly review focus and iris scale, see instant rangefinder and depth-of-field information, manage third-party integrations, and more. CTRL.5 was engineered around feedback given by users of CTRL.3 over the years, it is truly an OS designed for focus pullers, by focus pullers.
A high-readability display for clearer text and brighter images, delivering faster recognition of key data when you need it most.
A high-readability display for clearer text and brighter images, delivering faster recognition of key data when you need it most.
How much control do you
really need?
How much control do you
really need?
CTRL.3 includes multiple input methods to control focus, iris, zoom, and an additional axis as needed. The force zoom joystick, iris slider, and knob as well as the customizable A and B wheels provide the fundamentals to customize the handset to your needs. The start/stop button makes it easy to run the camera remotely.
As mentioned above, the first thing you notice about CTRL.5 is its touchscreen with an ultra-bright display, it’s the most visible change from the reference screen on CTRL.3. UX preferences are now highly personal, and customer feedback revealed that most users want the ability to customize both touchscreen and tactile inputs to fit their workflow. To address this, our engineers added 11 fully programmable user function buttons to let you decide whether to interface via touchscreen, physical buttons, or a combination of your choosing. And it’s not just the UI that adapts to your workflow — CTRL.5’s lightweight, ergonomic design, upgraded housing, and a generous complement of mounting points make it easy to personalize your wireless FIZ handset with Teradek and third-party accessories.
Does your controller need to
be expandable?
Does your controller need to
be expandable?
Both CTRL.3 and CTRL.5 have standard accessories like pre-marked rings for precise control and different color silicone caps to add flare to your controller. Each also has its own Neck Strap for ease of use on set, but CTRL.5 takes accessories a step further.
The CTRL.5 controller’s ergonomic design and numerous ¼”-20 mounting points let you build it out with Teradek or third-party accessories to personalize your workflow. Custom Teradek accessories include:
Three-piece lightweight Bocote-wood Hand Grips,
including a Palm Grip to hand-balance the unit, a Thumb
Grip for traction, and a Ring Guard to protect the focus
wheel when resting on a surface.
Three-piece lightweight Bocote-wood Hand Grips,
including a Palm Grip to hand-balance the unit, a Thumb
Grip for traction, and a Ring Guard to protect the focus
wheel when resting on a surface.
A low-profile bolt-on Monitor Mount featuring a
rosette with removable anti-twist pins spaced for
SmallHD monitors for incredible stability and the
ability to mount additional accessories.
A low-profile bolt-on Monitor Mount featuring a
rosette with removable anti-twist pins spaced for
SmallHD monitors for incredible stability and the
ability to mount additional accessories.
A lightweight Kickstand that supports the CTRL.5 at a 90º
or 45º angle on a flat surface or mounts to the top or
bottom of the handset to provide additional ⅜”-16 and
¼”-20 mounting points.
A lightweight Kickstand that supports the CTRL.5 at a 90º
or 45º angle on a flat surface or mounts to the top or
bottom of the handset to provide additional ⅜”-16 and
¼”-20 mounting points.
A case with custom foam, screen protector, and hand strap
(coming soon).
A case with custom foam, screen protector, and hand strap
(coming soon).
More Features and Functions Coming Soon to CTRL.5
More Features and Functions Coming Soon to CTRL.5
Like any operating system, CTRL.OS is designed to be flexible, expandable, and easily updatable. Our engineers are constantly working on new integrations and control interfaces to make the UX as powerful and seamless as it can be. Upcoming integrations in our pipeline include:
- Full WiFi Camera Control, beginning with
RED® and expanding to other cameras - Third-party rangefinder integrations for expanded distance points and readouts
- Other third-party production technology
The Robust, Scalable,
Teradek RT Ecosystem
The Robust, Scalable,
Teradek RT Ecosystem
Both CTRL.3 and CTRL.5 are fully cross-compatible with the Teradek RT hardware and software ecosystem, including MOTR.S and MOTR.S MAX motors, MDR.S and MDR.X receivers, the TOF.1 Rangefinder, SmallHD Overlays, and camera run/stop cables for RED®, Sony, ARRI, and Canon. Both CTRL.3 and CTRL.5 can utilize CTRL.1 as a simultaneous iris control when the cinematographer wants to control exposure at video village.
Ding, Ding, Ding: Let’s Compare!
Ding, Ding, Ding: Let’s Compare!
Now that you know everything you need to know about CTRL.3 and CTRL.5, let’s figure out which controller is best for you. The bottom line is, you need to know the demands of your job before you decide.
Do you need all your settings easily visible at all times, with the ability to change things on the fly, quickly and efficiently? Are you working with complex builds and gear that need to be synced and adjusted in real-time? Do you need an operating system that can anticipate your needs and make it easier to make adjustments? CTRL.5 is the on-set workhorse that gives you easy access to all the controls and settings at your fingertips. With an interactive touchscreen and programmable buttons that allow you to streamline your workflow unlike ever before, CTRL.5 will make on-set focus-pulling life more efficient and easily adjustable when those inevitable changes happen.
Conversely, are you working on a budget and need the tried and true, no-hassle, lens control hand unit to get the job done? Do you need a compact, lightweight focus-pulling controller that has a battery life that lasts and whose process is known? CTRL.3 fits the bill. This no-nonsense controller has become the industry standard for reliable on-set focus pulling for good reason. The integrated grip and a small display for changing settings ensure you can pull focus comfortably and adjust when needed.
Conclusion: Two Excellent Controllers, One Game-
Changing Ecosystem
Conclusion: Two Excellent Controllers, One Game-
Changing Ecosystem
As you can see, CTRL.5 stays true to the core functions, features, and performance that made CTRL.3 such a popular handset while building on them to create something radically new, yet comfortingly familiar. The result is an infinitely-customizable wireless lens-control platform with an integrated 5-inch touchscreen and the first-ever task-driven operating system designed specifically for focus pullers. That being said, the best controller for you is the one that best fits your workflow — there is no loser in this match-up!
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