Confused: best transfer from Hi8 to PC MP4?

[ozstar]

Hi,

I have been using a TI1394 card with Win 10 via a DV out on the camera however since the latest Win 10 update it has been nearly impossible to get ti working due to the driver.

I would like to know what gets the best quality from a Hi8 camera ?

The S-Video cable, the DV out if one can get a Hi8 cam that has one, or via the AV/OUT mini jack?

I have a Mini Dv which I can use as a conduit from the Hi8 S-Video and audio to the PC via a Firewire (using Win XP) but not sure what gets me the best vision.

I bought an EasyCap which does not work at all now after 2 weeks and I am thinking of a capture card or USB capture card again but not sure what is the best an most economical.

I bought a Sony Handycam TRV320E with a DV out to the Firewire card in the PC but it has stopped working and would try and buy another but on Ebay someone has outbid everyone over the last few weeks and now when reselling, has pushed the prices up for Hi8's to $500, $700 etc. Cheapest is now over $400. They used to be $150 up.

Anyway, any help on getting the best vision out of the Hi8 to the PC please?

I have just found this in my old cards box ..

Winfast TV 2000XP. Any good?

I have seen these. Any reviews?

AVerMedia C039 EZMaker 7 USB Composite Capture Device

DIGITNOW! VHS to DVD Digital Converter, Video Grabber Capture VCR VHS Cassette Hi8 TV, RCA to HDMI Player

Thanks

oz

BTW I have looked at the cards here but I am in Sydney Oz and the mails here are horrific at the Covid moment and need it as now as I can.

[dpalomaki]

Many iLink/firewire/IEE1394 camcorders only work reliably with the so called "legacy" IEE1394 driver. Win 8 and Win 10 did not provide or install it, but Win7 did provide it as a non-default option. You can obtain a copy of it from Microsoft web page. The copy that comes up is listed for Win8 but also can be installed on Win10. It may require manual install of the legacy driver.

It may be that Win10 reverts to the new driver after automatic updates.

In an ideal world s-video may would be the best approach for capturing Hi8 tapes, but a lot depends on the specific equipment you are using; including Hi8 player, capture device, capture file format, and TBC.

[BW37]

You might try a different 1394a card. I used an older TI card in Win 10 which required the legacy drivers to work. I've since installed an LSI based card which Win 10 immediately recognized and installed useful drivers. It still shows as installed in Device Manager since the recent upgrade from Win 10 Ver. 1809 to Ver. 1909. But I haven't actually tried it out.

Before the update, the driver even made the 1394a port visible in VirtualDub though it still just "transfers" a DV file with all it's limitations. It is NOT a lossless capture.

This eBay search works in the US: "Dell H924H Dual Port IEEE-1394 PCI"

Specific hits:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-H924H-...8AAOSwMiFetyDe

https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Dell-H9...72.m2749.l2649

Using the DV output from the TRV320E to the 1394 card should be comparable to using the miniDV as a "conduit" to convert analog to DV. The DV codec used might be slightly different but they should be very similar. You'd have to compare to know if one is better. Either way you are doing the analog to digital conversion one or the other (TRV320E or miniDV camcorder). Using the TRV directly might let you control the device transport functions from the PC. It won't if you use the miniDV between.

I can't comment on any of the other capture devices you list, but they all will likely not work or work poorly in Win10. You might follow the website of the manufacturer of your latest device to see if they put out a new Win10 driver.

BW

[ozstar]

Thank you so much guys I will follow your advice.

Some bad news though. The 320E menu buttons on the top, started flashing on their own, then stopped and I have not been able to get it working since. One repair shop said $450 to $500 to fix if he can find a compatible part and another said he wouldn't try.

Fortunately the guy whom I bought ot from has refunded the A$180 I paid. I still have a Hi8 not working, a Canon A1. I do have 2 Hi8 Samsungs. a VP- L750 and a VP-W80 but both only have a s-video and mini jack av, so I am back to needing a good s-video to PC. I will revisit the links here to see if there has been any good economical suggestions.

In the meantime for the miniDV tapes, I found an old XP Box and the capture worked right off the bat.
It found the NEC 1394 and the cameras. It worked with WinDv and Movie Maker which I had never used before.

I use a Sony TRV30E and a Panasonic GS-400 for this.

Also found an old WinXp laptop with a DV as a port and have it working now too.
This also has the last version of Ulead Media Studio 8 which I used to use before Corel bought it, killed it and merged it into Video Studio. So pleased as I have some MS8 sessions still on an old HD. Some nifty experiences ahead I'd say.

Still will try for the Win 10 to work too.


EDIT: So have I got it right that these Dell 1394 card work with Win 10 x64 1909 ?
If so I will buy from good ol' US as there are none here in Oz to buy that I can trace. Postage is more than the unit :-)

[BW37]

I'll test the Dell card tomorrow with an actual miniDV transfer and get back to confirm it doesn't just show up in Device Mgr. but actually works.

That Dell card was sold under other names so maybe a better search would find one locally. Play with different versions.
Try this search "(dell, adeptec, lsi), (1394, firewire) card". There are a lot of results but most look correct. I think what is critical is the LSI chip on the card. Sadly, the chip is usually covered by a sticker, but by comparing, I think you can determine it's the LSI chip under the sticker. Adaptec sold them as AFW-2100. Make sure you get the right height rear bracket. They come in both normal and low profile.

Here's what shows up in device manager:
LSI driver.jpg

Good luck!

BW

[dpalomaki]

FWIW, the Canon A1 Hi8 machine (if it is the A1 Digital) from the early 1990s, likely suffers from the bad SMD electrolytic capacitor problem. Beyond that it was a good camcorder for its day.

One issue with IEEE1394 drivers and cards. New devices need to have retained backward compatibality with the old camcorders, etc. Not always assured, which is part of why the newer IEEE1394 drivers don't work with many older MiniDV camcorders. The joys of working with legacy gear and file formats.

[ozstar]

Thank you guys. Yes I loved my A1 and was sad they said they couldn't fix it. Just sitting here like a trophy! Boy did it do some traveling !

That's what gets me about this evolving technology thing, so many times the working units become collateral damage in the pursuit of tomorrow. My old fashioned saying was," It if ain't broke, don't fix it" ! But that saying has gone out the window along with much of our way of life.

Anyway I'm trawling the web to find one of the 1394 LSI cards closer to home.

In the meantime the old XP's boxes are churning away with Movie Maker. I have about 85 miniDVs to copy and about 60 Hi8's.

Only problem really is time, as I have to move the files from the PCs to a 2TB USB, then copy it them over to a 4TB where I am storing them as 4 doesn't work with XP.

[BW37]

Good news.

I just finished testing the LSI 1394 card in Win 10 Ver 1909:

Works fine with the my miniDV camcorder (Canon Elura 85). Tried with ScenalyzerLive and with the capture portion of Magix Movie Studio 14. In both, the interface seemed fully functional, allowing transport control from the PC, etc.

Also works fine with my Digital8 camcorder (Sony DCR-TRV520). Same as above: transport functions and capture seems to work fine.

I've never used scenalyzer before so I stumbled a bit getting it to work with my set-up. I don't think it likes newer, larger drives. Everything is partitioned and formatted Layout: Simple, Type: Basic, NTFS, but it couldn't write to a 4TB partition returning a "disk full" error (or similar) with plenty of available space. It captured fine to my 500 GB SSD C: drive. I'll have to play with it more to understand. The Magix program had no trouble.

Both camcorders are NTSC and I only did short tests just to confirm basic functionality.

BW

[ozstar]

Excellent news. Many thanks. Hand in the pocket now ready to buy in the next day or two. So far no luck with any LSI in Oz tho'.

I have Magix Movie Edit Pro 17 and Video Pro X 11 and use Power Director 365 for really quick things I have to do, plus they have some excellent free effects etc. which I even use in the other products.

-- merged --

Looks like I may have found the ohly thing thats looks like it. AFW-2100 Adaptec.

I have contacted the seller to check the LSI.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Lot-of-3...EAAOSwtOZcdMh1

[lordsmurf]

Hi8 or Digital8?