Sony GV-D800 cream of the 8mm crop?

[yumyum8]

A year ago I managed to snag a Sony GV-D800 Digital8 deck for $5 at a local thrift store. I used all my luck that day, and rushed home excitedly to digitize aging family movies.
I then did some transfers, Video8 to DV, which I might redo straight S-Video to ffv1 lossless, as I seem to have gotten mixed up in that the Video8 tapes are analog, and I forced a digital lossy format.
To me the outputs seem very nice though, our family is very happy with the results.

Getting off-topic... my main question is, because I've seen this unit mentioned but not much discussion on it:
Is this as good as it gets? What flaws are hidden with this unit?

I see this unit used on ebay for $700+, advertised as super rare. It sure seems like a quality unit, plays all formats (D8/Hi8/V8) and has a built in TBC; small form factor; and Firewire DV out. But I wonder if that price tag is justified, because I am looking to get another Digital8 unit, and none have DV out (maybe camcorders do, haven't looked much).

Thanks!

[latreche34]

It is no different than a camcorder without the camera part, Usually are more worn than camcorders since they are used as portable players. If you have no problems with it why worry?

[lordsmurf]

$700+ is insane. I'd never buy that, never suggest it. Buy a good low-use camera. In fact, you can get both a great Digital8, and a good Hi8, and still be well under $700 total shipped/taxed.

Some things cost more, like TBCs. But this isn't one of them. Pricing here is still low (for now).

[latreche34]

If you have the Sony GV-D800 why would you want to buy another player, It has line TBC, DNR just like any high end camcorder?

[dpalomaki]

The GV-D800 (and similar GV-D200 - lacks screen) are arguably about as good as it gets these days for D8, Hi8, and Video8 playback. They are likely newer than most Hi8 camcorders on the market. They were a niche market, and tend to be way overpriced and less common compared to camcorders with similar capability. At $5 you scored a great deal.

It is difficult to predict or assess condition without a test bench. However, they were consumer oriented and I doubt were found in many serious edit operations that would pile on the hours. Tape handling was as slow as a camcorder and the D8 format was not popular - MiniDV, DVCAM, etc dominated the early DV gear. Legacy Video8/Hi8 was already supported by professional/industrial-class gear.

As to capturing, The main problem with the DV format is the compression - it abhors noise in the video - common to a lot of analog home video. Beyond that post capture processing/restoration should use lossless formats to avoid build-up of compression artifacts. Whether or not a s-video capture from the GV-D800 looks better than a DV capture will depend on both your original tapes and capture system. The only way to know is to try it and evaluate the results.

Is it worth recapturing? Only you (and you family as the consumers/clients) can judge if it is the best expenditure of your time. Time was a lot cheaper for many of us when we were locked down due to COVID-19 then today when the world is opening up again.

[yumyum8]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lordsmurf

$700+ is insane. I'd never buy that, never suggest it. Buy a good low-use camera. In fact, you can get both a great Digital8, and a good Hi8, and still be well under $700 total shipped/taxed.

Some things cost more, like TBCs. But this isn't one of them. Pricing here is still low (for now).

Reading it as you said, getting both a Digital8 and a Hi8 definitely WILL be less than the GV-D800. I bet I could get two Digital8 with S-Video+DV units for less than the D800. Thanks LordSmurf

Quote:

Originally Posted by latreche34

It is no different than a camcorder without the camera part, Usually are more worn than camcorders since they are used as portable players. If you have no problems with it why worry?

Quote:

Originally Posted by latreche34

If you have the Sony GV-D800 why would you want to buy another player, It has line TBC, DNR just like any high end camcorder?

Oh so yes it works really well and seems kinda underused but my concern was if it died, especially while I was working on a project. I figured to ask since it really is nice, but per LordSmurf's reply... seems the price is far un-justifyable.

I am trying to find some Digital8 units from the recommended list, bit expensive for some of the models, but far less than the GV-D800.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dpalomaki

Is it worth recapturing? Only you (and you family as the consumers/clients) can judge if it is the best expenditure of your time. Time was a lot cheaper for many of us when we were locked down due to COVID-19 then today when the world is opening up again.

Thanks for your feedback, yeah it is a bit newer than the cameras.
I think overall I've never had much time myself for any project, and I do feel that the existing footage I captured is good enough. For this new project I'll be testing S-Video and DV, and asking my client what they prefer.

I would say though if a project of Video8 tapes was something rare or a studio tape, I'd make full effort to digitize it all through S-Video.

Thanks for the replies everyone