My short honey-moon with the 120mm Macro is over. I had to send it back to the dealer to request a refund.
The AF mechanism is broken after really not that heavy use during one week. There was a breaking noise when starting the camera. This is when the camera adjusts the AF to the standard position. Then the AF-motor spins eternally like empty without movements. This remembers me of the Leica S lens AF-problem where a small plastic part broke frequently.
I hope this is not a construction problem, but only an isolated incident. Nevertheless, for the moment I won't buy another lens, really tired of being a beta-tester.
>:( I agree with you, after the crack of the memory card hatch, and the crazy dials, and the lenses that do not come, I stop and go to the NikonD850.
A professional can not stand this >:( >:(
I am rescuing this thread because I am interested to hear from you guys if anybody had a similar problem with the AF mechanism of the 120mm.
I thought that my problem was an isolated issue, but it seems not. In the B&H commentaries there are at least 3 other guys with the same problem. One even had the problem twice, including a replacement unit. Not encouraging at all.
Well, thanks for sharing your experiences with this lens and I hope it is resolved. I was totally interested in this lens but now will hold off. The 45 and the 90 are working for me. No need to have more lenses for what I shoot. For longer lenses, there are alternatives. A shorter macro that doesn't have the problems the 120 has would be nice.
Indeed. My wife asked for the macro lens.. but I just read reviews @ B&H..
And will wait until Hasselblad reply..
For this price, such a poor reliability is nonsense
Ditto. I was already in contact with my dealer this week getting a quote for the 120mm Macro given the 10% off Offer this week from Hasselblad, but the MANY reports on failed AFs on this particular lens made me re-consider. I wait for things to settle, or how the 135mm w/ TC turns out. Not that easy to part with ~4K hard earned money with that many reports of quality control issues, or worse, assumed design problems with this particular lens.
For now, the 90mm will have to do. On that it does:
We have identified a problem that in some cases and with some lenses will cause the lens to move into the end stop with too high speed, sometimes causing damage to the gearbox. This problem does not occur with all lenses.
To solve this and prevent any damage to the gearbox, we are working on a new firmware for all XCD lenses that will stop this from happening. This new firmware will be released as soon as possible. All registered customers will get an automatic e-mail notification when the new firmware is available for download.
Any lens with a damaged gearbox, is of course covered by the standard warranty.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by this.
Quote from: Wade Smith on February 24, 2018, 09:17:22 PM
We have identified a problem that in some cases and with some lenses will cause the lens to move into the end stop with too high speed, sometimes causing damage to the gearbox. This problem does not occur with all lenses.
To solve this and prevent any damage to the gearbox, we are working on a new firmware for all XCD lenses that will stop this from happening. This new firmware will be released as soon as possible. All registered customers will get an automatic e-mail notification when the new firmware is available for download.
Any lens with a damaged gearbox, is of course covered by the standard warranty.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by this.
So that's not a faulty construction, or even worse - design issue?
Wade, thanks much for the update on what's going on here. I personally haven't yet had any problems but will be looking out for the update. Used the lens today on AF quite a bit without issues, but probably going manual only until the update is out. Good to know in the meantime.
Quote from: Wade Smith on February 24, 2018, 09:17:22 PM
We have identified a problem that in some cases and with some lenses will cause the lens to move into the end stop with too high speed, sometimes causing damage to the gearbox. This problem does not occur with all lenses.
To solve this and prevent any damage to the gearbox, we are working on a new firmware for all XCD lenses that will stop this from happening. This new firmware will be released as soon as possible. All registered customers will get an automatic e-mail notification when the new firmware is available for download.
Any lens with a damaged gearbox, is of course covered by the standard warranty.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by this.
Thanks for this information.
As this is your first post, Wade, and I do not know you, I would be interested to know, which position do you hold within Hasselblad. Also, will there be an official statement from Hasselblad? Seems this would be necessary.
I had the exact same problem with my 120mm after one week. I seems it may be a quality control issue. I am contemplating whether to purchase another. It is very expensive.
Same with mine! I got it repaired over the day.
I think they said it was not properly "tuned in"
Waitning for a FW update.
Wade:
Does the XCD Firmware 0.5.16 released on Feb. 28, 2018 address the 120mm AF mechanism issue?
The release note states that it "solves a few minor bugs."
Alex
Quote from: Wade Smith on February 24, 2018, 09:17:22 PM
We have identified a problem that in some cases and with some lenses will cause the lens to move into the end stop with too high speed, sometimes causing damage to the gearbox. This problem does not occur with all lenses.
To solve this and prevent any damage to the gearbox, we are working on a new firmware for all XCD lenses that will stop this from happening. This new firmware will be released as soon as possible. All registered customers will get an automatic e-mail notification when the new firmware is available for download.
Any lens with a damaged gearbox, is of course covered by the standard warranty.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by this.
Hi, Alex
Yes, the 0.5.16 firmware includes a fix for the AF mechanism problem seen on a few XCD120 lenses.
Wade
Quote from: Wade Smith on March 06, 2018, 01:17:08 AM
Hi, Alex
Yes, the 0.5.16 firmware includes a fix for the AF mechanism problem seen on a few XCD120 lenses.
Wade
... but NOT for all of them ! Mine has to return to Sweden.
Once the "plastic" part is broken, there is obviously no fix with firmware ....
Still waiting for a statement from Hasselblad.
I came late to this post but wanted to share my experiences with the 120mm XCD lens.
I bought one when it first came out and it out-performed my expectations-was super sharp and great to use for the macro work I do......until after about a week it stopped focusing completely.
I returned it to Sweden to get it examined and they sent me a brand new version which worked for literally 30 minutes before the exact same issues arose-no focusing in either manual or AF and a high pitch noise coming from the lens mechanism/motor.
This is poor quality control from Hasselblad concerning what seems to be an obvious factory fault(unless I am the unluckiest shooter alive).
Hasselblad needs to step up their game to maintain standards before I would even consider this lens again(which is a shame because I use my old 120HC II with adapter and the weight is frustrating for some macro work).
Nah. How frequently was Canon to fail?