OConnor C1225 0001

The 120EX is the flagship of OConnor's EX range, and the reason cinematographers put up with its 34 lb is the counterbalance. Traditional heads have a hard ceiling: past their rated payload, nothing balances. The patented EX mechanism gets around that by trading tilt range for capacity. At a full plus or minus 90 degrees of tilt the 120EX balances 30 to 120 lb (14 to 54 kg) at an 8 in. center of gravity, but wind it into EX mode and it will hold 147 lb at plus or minus 80 degrees, 188 lb at 70, and 240 lb (109 kg) at plus or minus 60. That is a working range no fixed-ceiling head can touch, and it is the difference between rebalancing a rig and simply shooting it.

Balance itself is sinusoidal and stepless, and so is the EX fluid drag, which is the ultra-smooth film-style feel OConnor has been selling since 1949. A collapsible crank knob with a digital counterbalance readout makes setting that huge range a matter of watching a number rather than guessing, and the push-and-turn sideload platform slides a heavy camera fore and aft to find its balance point without a fight. This is the Mitchell-only package: it is built on the 120EX fluid head (C1225-0003) with a Mitchell base, and includes the pan handle (2575-137) and pan handle extension (2575-135).