To my delight my sister stumbled accross some Hi8 video that I
recorded back in 1997. Other than these 5 tapes, there are no other
videos of me or my family so it's important to me to capture these as
best I can. Any advice on what to purchase to do the video capture? I
know there is a device called "Blackmagic USB Component Video
Recorder" but I have no idea how good it is.

thanks

"Ned" <1crazyrican@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:18525118-f6b0-4a5f-9682-92dc5889d265@z66g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
The Blackmagic capture device that gets the most press is
the Intensity Pro card.

http://www.blackmagic-design.com/products/intensity/

The most likely weak point in such a project would be the
device that you have to play the tape. You mention component
video, does that mean you have a tape player for these tapes
that outputs a component signal? If so, could you post the make
and model?

Luck;
Ken

"Ken Maltby" <kmaltby@sbcglobal.net> wrote in message
newsaednSn6UOIIL9zVnZ2dnUVZ_uidnZ2d@giganews.com ...
I seem to remember Y/C being refered to as component early on.
I think some people even refered to RGB as component .
That was before what we curently refer as component became popular.

David

"Ned" wrote ...
First, whatever else you do, NEVER discard the tapes
you have in your hand. You may do some kind of capture
that satisfies you today, but may want to do something else
in the future.

Second, the equipment you play it back on plays a major
role in how good any playback (and capture) will be.
Ideally, you would play it on the same camcorder that it
was originally recorded on.

Do you have equipment to play the tapes on? If so,
what do they look like when just viewing them on a TV?

That product appears to encode to a lossy codec called
H.264 This is a popular format these days as it is used
by portable players (notably iPod), and by online video
sharing websites (notably YouTube).

You didn't mention what you think you want to do with
the video? If you want to view it on your iPod or post
it on YouTube, then that gadget would be ideal. Note
that H.264 is pretty good, but is is still rather *lossy*
which means that much of the video content is discarded
and cannot be recovered.

There are other video codecs that are less lossy, such
as DV, which is a popular format for both hobbyists
and professional use. Many people who have Hi8 tapes
to capture will use one of the models of Digital8 (D8)
camcorders which will play 8mm and Hi8 tapes and
encode to DV on the fly. With those, you can capture
the high-quality video directly to your hard drive using
nothing more than a Firewire cable.

Perhaps if you reveal what you think you want to do
with the video, people here will have more practical
suggestions for you.

"David McCall" <mccallmail@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:Bnk0k.4008$Ev.1866@trndny09...
He's probably confused "composite" with "component."

On May 31, 4:18*pm, "Ken Maltby" <kmal...@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
Oops, I do not have component, I have composite (Audio L/R and a
Yellow video cable). My father has a Hi8 deck (player/recorder) that
he picked up when we got the camera which might have more output
options. I do not know the modle information but I will check into it.

On May 31, 7:02*pm, "Richard Crowley" <rcrow...@xp7rt.net> wrote:
Hello. I plan to show the movie on my HiDef TV and put it on YouTube
and preserve it for my children and their children although I am not
sure anyone would even want to watch at that point but who knows. I
would prefer to capture it in the best possible format to allow me
the most flexibility. Maybe I can find a Hi8 camcorder that supports
firewire.

On May 31, 8:39*pm, "PTravel" <ptra...@travelersvideo.com> wrote:
Yeah, I was referring to it by the wrong name.
Thanks!

"Ned" wrote ...
The only 8mm-format camcorders that support Firewire
are the Digital8 (D8) variety. Hi8 was a pre-digital format.

On Jun 1, 9:43*am, "Richard Crowley" <rcrow...@xp7rt.net> wrote:
Okay, I looked around and found the Sony DCR-TRV280 Digital8 Handycam
Camcorder with i.Link (Firewire).
According to a review, it is backward compatible with Hi8 but not 8mm.
Sells on eBay between $75 - $200
Excerpt:
"The DCR-TRV280 is a stripped-down version of the Sony DCR-TRV480.
Both models use Sony's proprietary Digital8 format to digitally record
to standard (analog) 8mm and Hi8 videotapes. The unit is also somewhat
backward compatible, so users can continue to enjoy old home
recordings stored on analog Hi8 tapes (but not 8mm)"

Maybe this would be a good option.

Ned wrote:
Don't buy a special device just for those tapes. Just take it too one
of these video conversion places where they can convert it to a miniDV tape.

-bill

On May 31, 1:26 pm, Ned <1crazyri...@gmail.com> wrote:
Rent or borrow a Sony Digital 8 camcorder. Many models can play Hi8mm
(analogue) tapes with better results than the camcorder that
originated them. Verify that yours can. All Digital 8 camcorders
output "iLink" ("firewire", IEEE-1394) digital signals your computer
can record if it has a firewire port or adaptor card. This is by far
the superior way to capture the tape's content, as it goes from the
camcorder to the computer as digital data, not analogue, with NO
further compression. DO NOT invest in anything purporting to transfer
video via a USB port. Once the video is on your hard disk (~13 gb per
hour as "DV" or "miniDV" data), your can compress it as required for
web, DVD, etc; archive the original 13 gb/hr data onto (multiple) DVD
ISO data files; keep the Hi8 tapes forever...they cannot be replaced.

On Jun 1, 3:18*pm, webpa <we...@aol.com> wrote:
Wow! This group has been great!!! I almost ended up buying that USB
adapter at bestbuy but I am so glad I came here.
I have been asking around to see if anyone has a D8 camera. If I can't
find one I will buy one on eBay and sell it when I'm done.
Thanks again

Ned wrote:
Where are you located Ned?

I'll loan mine to you for free if your local.

-bill

On Jun 2, 11:35*am, Kill Bill <killb...@goblowme.com> wrote:
Hi Bill, that's really nice of you. I'm in NYC but I already located
one which the owner says is new, in the box and never used. He wants
$125 for it and I will be meeting him this evening.
I'm a little skeptical that it has never been used after all these
years but I will see for myself tonight.

Thanks!

"Ned" wrote ...
Be sure that it is a model that transcodes analog tape
into digital before you buy it. There are reports that
a few models do not have this feature.

On Jun 2, 1:04*pm, "Richard Crowley" <rcrow...@xp7rt.net> wrote:
Hi Bill, it's the DCR-TRV280. I read a review on it which I partially
pasted below.

"The DCR-TRV280 is a stripped-down version of the Sony DCR-TRV480.
Both models use Sony's proprietary Digital8 format to digitally
record
to standard (analog) 8mm and Hi8 videotapes. The unit is also
somewhat
backward compatible, so users can continue to enjoy old home
recordings stored on analog Hi8 tapes (but not 8mm)"

On Jun 2, 1:04*pm, "Richard Crowley" <rcrow...@xp7rt.net> wrote:
Richard, thanks for the warning. After I read your post I went back
and did more reading and found this:

"Sony's Digital8 product line released only two Digital8 camcorders,
the DCR-TRV480 (capable of playing back Hi8 and 8mm tapes) and the DCR-
TRV280 (plays back only Digital8 tapes). Only the entry level DCR-
TRV280 with a 1/6" CCD was officially the only Digital8 camcorder
still available through 2007, until it was also discontinued by Sony
in early September, with it no longer being available on the site.
Although the TRV280 is still widely available new online, the TRV480
is still also available new, but extremely hard to find and somewhat
overpriced especially because many people still want it to convert
their 8mm and Hi8 tapes"

Apparently, the TRV280 will not work.
Thanks again, it saved me a trip and $125

Ned wrote:
Oops.. To far away. I was hoping that you were in LA, and I would just
loan you the camera for the capture. You only need it for about 1-2
hours. But, too far way..

-bill

Hi Ned,
Obtain an Digital8 model that plays Hi8, The Sony TRV320/520 was one model
that could do this.

It converts the signal to a Firewire acceptable signal to get in into your
computer for further processing.

You can also play this back from the PC into any miniDV camera that has a
FireWire recording capacity, this process is in theory lossless, this way
you have a spare copy.

Regards,

Martin


"Ned" <1crazyrican@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:18525118-f6b0-4a5f-9682-92dc5889d265@z66g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...