Sony has just released a significant firmware update for its full-frame FX6 cinema camera. The free upgrade, which is available to download now, provides a large number of improvements to the popular five-year-old cinema camera.
Most significantly, the v6.00 firmware adds the Big6 menu display, which has become a popular feature of more recent cinema cameras, including the Hollywood-favorite Sony CineAlta Venice 2, and the recent Sony FX2.
The new home screen option allows you to easily monitor six essential parameters in Movie mode: FPS (frame rate), ISO, Shutter (speed/angle), Aperture or ND Filter, Look, and White Balance. This proven BIG6 (Home) screen contributes to smooth, intuitive operation, and provides quick access to Variable/Fixed parameters.
Additionally, the Sony FX6 now gets support for Blackmagic RAW format, allowing you to export in this video format when using an external recorder.
Three new functions can also be usefully assigned to custom buttons. These additions are Crop Select, LUT On/Off and AE Level/Mode.
The full list of new features and changes are as follows:
- Adds a home screen (BIG6) where you can easily review the shooting settings and equipment configurations when shooting movies
- Improves the display layout of camera status and settings to enhance visibility during shooting and video playback
- Allows you to add the following assignable functions to the Assignable Buttons tab:
- Crop Select
- LUT On/Off
- AE Level/Mode
- Changes the notation of the 1/50 shutter speed to 1.2F (1/50) when the system frequency is 59.94P
- Improves the network configuration method as follows:
- Changes the classification of the network menu in the Full Menu
- Adds the ability to change network settings on the status screen
- Displays an explanatory message when camera operations are disabled due to configuration limitations
- Adds support for the Camera ID and Reel Number settings on the status screen
- Changes the display when the Camera ID and Reel Number of the next clip are changed
- Adds the Index screen to the status screen
- Ends support for WPA and WEP functionalities. You instead use the more secure WPA2 or WPA3 moving forward
- Adds support for connecting the smartphone to the Internet while connected to the camera via Wi-Fi Direct
- Adds support for displaying network speed on the shooting screen
- Adds support for the following Monitor & Control functions:
- Frame rate settings for S&Q Motion
- Setting attributes and deleting of 3D LUT files
- Low-resolution mode for network monitoring
- Adds support for a new HLG Mild Base Look preset when the target display is HDR (HLG)
- Adds optical density (logarithmic notation) to the display format for ND filter light transmittance level
- Improves the image quality when using a User 3D LUT file
- Adds support for importing/exporting scene files from external media
- Improves auto focus performance when the system frequency is 29.97, 25, 24, or 23.98
- Adds support for the HDMI Focus Magnifier function
- Adds support for external recording of Blackmagic RAW when using RAW video output via HDMI
You can download the new v6.00 firmware from Sony's FX-6 software support page.
The full list of new features and changes is as follows:
See our full Sony FX6 review, and read our guide to the best Sony lenses for video
