RED Cuts EPIC Price in Half: EPIC-X Now $19,000, SCARLET Under $8K, RED ONE Goes 4.5K for $4K
We knew RED was going to respond to the recent announcement from Sony, and respond they have. RED has recouped their initial costs for the EPIC project, and that means they’ve decided to cut the prices on both the EPIC and SCARLET platform (since SCARLET shares many of the same parts as the EPIC). If you’ve been waiting to buy one of these high-end cameras, there hasn’t been a better time than now, especially since RED has created an upgrade path for their new Dragon sensor. They’ve also dropped a serious bomb with a new battle-tested RED ONE MX. Without further ado, click through for the new prices.
This post will be updated as more information is released.
These are the new prices:
- 5K EPIC-X Brain – $19,000
- 5K EPIC-X Monochrome Brain – $20,000
- 5K EPIC-M Brain – $24,000
- 5K/4K Scarlet Brain – $7,950
- 4.5K RED ONE M-X Battle Tested – $4000 (includes CF or SSD recording module)
[Update]: Looks like the RED ONE MX with the CF module is sold out, as the page is no longer available. You can always buy the SSD version and the $500 module, which is actually cheaper than if you bought the $4,000 CF and wanted the $1,500 SSD module later.
Here is what Jim said about new pricing in a post on REDUser:
As I said before, everything in the electronics world changes… usually for the better, cheaper and faster. EPIC and Scarlet just did. Right now.
We have built an incredibly efficient factory in Irvine, California and over time learned how to make EPICs in quantity, lowered our assembly costs, found better suppliers and fully paid off our NRE. When we assembled the 1st EPIC camera in Stage 6 at RED Studios Hollywood it took our team 12 hours. It took two more days to de-bug. Today we can assemble an EPIC in 13 minutes and 95+% need no re-work after diagnostics and testing. It is a testament to our manufacturing team and supply chain teams.
Since our costs are now significantly lower we are re-pricing our cameras as of now.
For those of you that purchased a new Scarlet or EPIC brain on or after Oct. 1st 2012, the next time you order accessories from RED you will receive a discount to use towards that purchase. $1000 for Scarlet and $4000 for EPIC. Talk to your Bomb Squad representative when you are ready to use this discount.
Now… here is the new pricing:
5K EPIC-X Brain- $19,000
5K EPIC-X Monochrome Brain- $20,000
5K EPIC-M Brain- $24,000
5K/4K Scarlet Brain- $7,950
4.5K RED ONE M-X Battle Tested- $4000 (includes CF or SSD recording module). The RED ONE is End of Life. Battle tested is all that will be available from here on out.
Due to high anticipated volumes, plan on extended response and processing times.
Dragon sensor upgrade is not included for any EPIC system purchased at the new pricing going forward.
Pricing is being updated on www.red.com as I post this.
So how does this compare to the old prices for just the brain? Here are the comparisons
- RED EPIC-M: $24,000 vs. $39,500
- RED EPIC-X: $19,000 vs. $34,500
- RED SCARLET-X: $7,950 vs. $9,700
- RED ONE MX: $4,000 vs. $25,000
This is big news for the camera industry. Jim has already said that he appreciated what Sony was doing with their new cameras, but that he didn’t believe they were any competition for the EPIC and SCARLET. Now we know why, and part of it is price. Since they’ve paid off NRE (non-recurring engineering) for the EPIC project, it means that the whole system is currently making money with each new camera they build — which also means they can sell it for less money. This is good for consumers, it means you can enter into the RED system for a lot less money than previously thought, and it also means the new Dragon equipped EPICs should compete price-wise with the new cameras from Sony (without most of the compressed modes of course). This also means we should see some reductions in used camera prices.
Battle-tested RED ONE MXs are a serious contender to Blackmagic and other lower-priced cameras. I don’t think anyone saw that coming. Of course they don’t feature an ND filter and are based on older technology, but you’re getting mostly everything the SCARLET can do (and more since the ONE can do 4.5K) for half the price. They are used, yes, and the boot-up time is longer, but it’s still an amazing deal.
You should keep in mind that the above prices are the brain only, and you’ll still need some accessories to make them work. Also of note, RED had a deal going where if you purchased $50,000 worth of an EPIC camera system, your Dragon upgrade was free. That deal has now ended, but even new EPIC owners will be able to pay $6,000 for a new Dragon sensor upgrade.
You can find the new cameras (including the RED ONE MX) using the link below.
What do you guys think? Will you pull the trigger on an EPIC, SCARLET, or RED ONE MX now?
Links:
Related Posts
- RED EPIC-X Now Available for Ordering, SCARLET-X Increasing in Price by $2K
- RED to Cut Prices on EPIC and SCARLET Cameras November 1st, Dragon Sensor Delayed
- RED Claims Dragon Sensor Doubles EPIC/SCARLET Sensitivity, ISO 2000 Cleaner Than ISO 800
381 COMMENTS
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Carlos on 11.3.12 @ 4:34AM
Just realized my own stupidity, a Nikon to Canon adapter doesn’t exist. Never owed anything Nikon but lenses.
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Chaz on 11.5.12 @ 1:45PM
They do make the nikon to cannon adapter. They sell it on amazon and bh photo video. I use nikon on cannon cameras all the time.
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Gabe on 11.3.12 @ 10:41AM
You can change the mount…they’re probably pretty scarce, but the Birger Canon smart mount for the Red One is awesome.
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Greg Moore on 11.3.12 @ 1:53PM
Is RED planning on producing Red One Battle Tested MX cameras and selling them at $4,000 or are they just getting rid of what they have left?
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Cara on 01.24.13 @ 3:55PM
Red One Camera Bundle for Sale
RED Battery Charger w/ (3) Batteries
RED Compact Flash 16GB Cards (4)
RED Drive 640GB
Petroff 4×4 and 4×5 Mattebox
Red Dovetail
Petroff/ Zuchuto Follow Focus
Nikon Mount
PL Mount
(2)Pelican Cases w/ foam
1 HDTV MONITOR FOR Viewing(1) Red LCD Cable
(2) red drive cablesBase Production Package:
The Base Production Pack includes:
(2) Universal Mount
(2) RED handle (Right & Left)
(1) RED Bottom Plate
(1) Cheese Plate
(1) Shoulder Dovetail
(1) Top Mount
(1) Top Handle
(1) RED Cradle (including Battery Plate)
(2) 18” Aluminum Rods
(2) 12″ Steel Rods
(2) 8″ steel rods for top mount
(1) Drive clip-on holder for 19mm rodsBonus Included
(2) Soft box daylight balanced / tungsten lights + monfrotto case
(1) DV Cam Jib Crane (Can mount Red One)
(1) FlyCam 5000 Vest and Steadycam (not meant for red but included in package – good for most DSLR)THIS PACKAGE IS BEING SOLD ALL AS ONE PACKAGE – ALL OR NOTHING – WONT BE SELLING CAMERA BODY SEPERATLY!!!
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Billy on 11.4.12 @ 4:31AM
its not the kit…. its the content, you can still shoot s%”t on the best kit in the world.
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35mmdirector on 11.4.12 @ 12:20PM
I like Red cameras. They have a great look and are definitely in the top three cameras in my opinion. However, I like the look of the Arri Alexa better, and I find the suggestion that serious work is not done on the Alexa is uninformed and even silly.
The Arri Alexa is what they shot Skyfall, In Time, Drive The Avengers, and a multitude of films.plus, Joss Whedon switched from the Red Epic to the Alexa for the Avengers. The teaser scene they shot of Captain America in the gym, was shot on the Red Epic; they didn’t feel it worked for them and switched to the Alexa.
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Markus Haken on 11.4.12 @ 5:16PM
could anyone point out which accessories would be needed to get the red one going? (just basics)
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john jeffreys on 11.4.12 @ 7:09PM
-monitor (the red 5.6 and 7″ monitors are pretty cheap used, other than that, any hdmi/sdi works)
-batteries (so red brick(s), charger, and mounting plate)
-media (the cheapest redmag ssd is 48gb, 500 bucks, and you need the redstation reader. you can also use a red drive, which is 320gb or 640gb for a few hundred used, but its a big, heavy spinning disk so say hello to dropped frames)
-lenses (PL mount or you can find the nikon mount used for cheap and use manual nikkors, etc)
-rods, mechanical stuff like mounting arms and cheesplates and things, leave a hundred or two aside for that.-
John,
I heard that there is also cheaper option using V-mount batteries with adapter that could last longer. Not sure the pricing though. But based on the given by John here, the total additional item could cost additional USD 2-4k depending whether it is new or used.
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john jeffreys on 11.4.12 @ 9:44PM
Yeah, you can use any v-mount battery along with the red plate or 3rd party v mount plate. GMP (global media pro) seems to be a popular budget option…I believe Koo did an article on it/mentioned it back when he got his Scarlet.
The one thing that a lot of people seem to overlook (including me, as I prepare to take the plunge into 4k for 4k land) is that you need a FUCKTON of accessories for a red, and the camera price is a fraction of the total package…I did not even mention a tripod (o’conner 50 seems to be the best for the budget, 50lbs weight at 1100 dollars used), a fast computer and tons of ext. hard drives, a well made shoulder mount, follow focus, etc.
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Funny thing is, by the time I am able to afford a RED one they’ll either be sold out or something even better will come up. Crazy!
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So I’m thinking one would want to get as many third party accessories solutions as possible instead of original red ones – so most of the additional cost is not spent on this one camera, but can be used in the future for other camera systems as well.
I already figured one would have to bite the bullet regarding media (at least for now), so Redmag+Red Station it is.
However when it comes to powering the beast, third-party would be the way to go. Anyway, I’m having a hard time finding everything that is needed to get a v-mount battery to power the R1. Is there a proper solution for mounting v-mount batteries (like the ones from GMP) to rods? I guess this would make more sense then to go directly onto the back of the R1, again in light of compatibility with other cameras.-
I am heading the same way as I already have V-mount batteries and the plate. Just not sure what cable to use. As for rig I already have enough to handle this 5 ++ kg system.
However, the media is again making me thinking whether I should get this Scarlet as Scarlet does send 1080p out of its HDMI to be used with Atomos Ninja recorder which I already own. But then justifying it that way makes me wonder where does the 4K advantage comes into picture right?
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Josh on 11.5.12 @ 12:18PM
Something like this should allow you to mount your battery to rails. http://woodencamera.corecommerce.com/RED/Power-RED/Battery-Slide.html
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david on 11.5.12 @ 4:02PM
Can anyone tell me if the hi bit rate CF cards like the lexar 600x compare at all in reliability and image quality to SSD/Red Mags??
Could this be a good cost effective alternative to the expensive red mags? or is getting the Red one Mx with the CF slot just a waste ?
Also can you even use 3rd party CF cards? or is it locked down to RED brand CF cards like with the SSD’s?
Thanks!
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David,
I have asked the same question to a RED Rep that they assigned to help me in my purchase the same question (exactly). If he answered, I will provide you later. However, if Khoo can help (or Joe) they will intervene here.
Thanks
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Just got a reply from one of the REDuser member and here is his statement:
“CF’s are a lot less expensive, but of course they hold less. I believe you have to use RED-branded CF cards…you can’t use most 3rd party CF cards (although I think some Lexar will work)…and I think the largest size RED card is 16GB. Also, even the RED-brand CF cards have limitations in data rate (REDCode) that they can record because of the read/write speed of the media…for example you can’t record REDcode 42 (the highest data rate). ”Hope that helps answering your question too David.
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51 pingbacks
Potentially very stupid question for RED One: If I get a Nikon mount, can’t I just mount a Canon lens with a Nikon to Canon adapter?