| Author |
Thread: How do I transfer videos from a mini DV tape to my computer? |
    
noprayerfortheliving Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Tuesday, July 19, 2005 - 05:35 pm: |
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Hi gromit!
I got a firewire card and cable and after some initial screw ups I finally got it working with amazing quality! When I capture longer clips with Video Studio, the audio comes out of sync with the video, however, this problem is fixed by windows media player. Can you think why this should happen though?
Cheers,
noprayerfortheliving |
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New member Username: Basu
Post Number: 9
Registered: May-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, July 19, 2005 - 08:59 pm: |
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Hi Gromit,
I have some fundamental doubt regarding PAL / NTSC system. I have a SONY DCR TRV 22 camcoder, and i guess it is og NTSC system; when i run the casette from the cancoderand connect to a TV, it works fine in both PAL as well as NTSC system TV. Now, by question is when i make the DVD, from the RAW footage of data, how can i make sure the DVD will work for both PAL and NTSC system or whether it will not work like that...
Like to know your sinsere opinion regarding this...
I am a novice in PAL / NTSC difference and after receiving your reply, i may shoot some pretty silly question... but i guess that will be ok with you...
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Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 469
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Wednesday, July 20, 2005 - 09:13 am: |
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cdub,
Every time you transfer 1 hour of digital video, you use up 12G of disk space. If your computer is keeping temporary files of 12G, you will run out of disk space VERY quickly. Use "find file' to look for files over 1G, including hidden files etc. Delete the temps and you will recover your normal disk free space.
Transferring video FROM the PC TO the camcorder is sometimes a bit hairy. It often fails on me.
Cheers. |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 470
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Wednesday, July 20, 2005 - 09:18 am: |
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noprayerfortheliving,
I think what you are seeing might be just an artifact of the capture process - I have observed the same in my system. But I think in both our cases, what we are seeing is an inability of either audio, or video, to keep up during capture MONITORING. What really counts is whether the actual file is synchronised - and I think you are telling me it is in your case, thank goodness!
Cheers. |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 471
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Wednesday, July 20, 2005 - 09:21 am: |
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rajib,
Any DVD you make will, by definition, be either PAL or NTSC. If the system on which you will play the DVD does not support the original standard against which the tape was shot, use a video-editing package such as Ulead Videostudio to "render" the footage into the standard you need, prior to authoring the DVD.
Cheers. |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Wednesday, July 20, 2005 - 08:19 pm: |
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I just bought a Panasonic PV-DV202. I bought it off of Ebay so it did not come w/ a manual. I am trying to figure out if it is possible to transfer the whole entire video over to my pc rather then just the 30 second clip w/ Movie Messenger. I am recording it onto DV Tapes but I want to transfer the whole thing onto my computer. I am not sure if I have firewire ports. Is there anyway that I can find that out? I am doing it only by USB and it takes forever. I would like to buy a firewire thing if i need too asap. |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 482
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 12:44 am: |
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Gini,
Look for a port on your camcorder that will accept a cable like this:
And on your PC, a port that will accept a cable like this:
Sometimes, laptops also have the smaller style port like that used in camcorders.
If necessary, buy a firewire card/cable/software pakage for your PC.
Firewire transfers in real time, i.e. a 60 minute tape should take 60 minutes to transfer - using up around 12G of disk space, by the way. I normally only transfer 10 minute chunks at a time to be conservative as it is a bit frustrating to be 90% through a massive upload only to run out of disk space or encounter some other problem.
Hope that helps.
Cheers. |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 12:04 pm: |
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Yes that does help. Is it ok to transfer home videos to my computer-edit them and then burn them on to a cd or dvd? Is this bad for my computer? |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 12:17 pm: |
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Is there a place on my computer- such as device manager or whatever that I can look to see if I have a firewire port? I just bought a new computer w/ a dvd burner so would this be more likely to have a firewire port? |
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Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 12:58 pm: |
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i just reread your message.... 12G of disk space???? My compuber only is 512 mb and 80 gb harddrive.... i dont wanna fill up the space... what should i do? i just want to be able to edit the videos and then transfer them on to cd or dvd and get them off my computer... any suggestions? |
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| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 06:11 pm: |
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Hey
Er, can't say I see anything remotly like that.
What now?
Leah |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 484
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 08:27 pm: |
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Gini,
Using your computer for editing home movies and then burning to DVD does it no harm at all. I have been doing it for 4 years with no ill effects apart from my eyes going a bit square.
If your computer is firewire equipped, you will see some text including the magic word "IEEE 1394" somewhere in the top level of Device Manager. If not, you need to buy a card/cable/software package for about US$ 20.
Although 1 hour of DV occupies 12G of disk space, often you will transfer much shorter segments than that. Plus, after you finish making the DVD, you can delete all those big files from your hard disk, restoring it completely.
Cheers. |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 485
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 09:48 pm: |
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Leah,
I think you are saying that your PC does not have a firewire port (see just above for a picture of a cable that fits a firewire port on your PC). If so, then you need to buy a PCI firewire card with cable and software for about $20.
Cheers |
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| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 09:54 pm: |
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Gromit
Oh no I definatly have one of those. I really don't know what to do! Gar!
Thanks
Leah |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 486
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Thursday, July 21, 2005 - 10:20 pm: |
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Leah,
In that case, connect your camcorder to your PC's firewire port (while the camcorder is switched off), and use a programme like Windows Moviemaker to transfer the video.
Also, see www.videohelp.com for "How to" guides.
Post again with more specific questions if you need to.
Cheers. |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Friday, July 22, 2005 - 06:30 am: |
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Hi gromit
i am having canon zr 200 and dont have firewire is it possible to transfer video using usb port? same cable made available along camcoder to transfer digital images from memory card |
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| Posted on Friday, July 22, 2005 - 11:56 am: |
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hi i have a samsung vp73 dv cam and none of my pc's will recignize it, ive had it working before, im using winxp SP2 and windows movie maker...the cam says "DV-IN" but pc doesnt see it, im using firewire cable to connect it, any help?
cheers |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Friday, July 22, 2005 - 08:14 pm: |
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hello...
i have made lots of DV captures .. and from my experience i can tell you fiew things..
need a NTFS partition as big as you can
good processor and good drivers installed into your pc
lots of patience
try to capure with canopus edius.. it has the best captured image i ever seen till now..
iuvcr is a good tool to caputre too
try to burn the movies captured .. with pinnacle it is very simple..
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Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Friday, July 22, 2005 - 09:01 pm: |
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not sure this is the right forum... but now that i got the videos on my computer i am trying to burn them to a dvd. i cant seem to get it in the right file format... i need it to be in .bup, ifo, or .bop format. My videos are played in real player or windows media. Any suggestions on changing the file format? |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 492
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Friday, July 22, 2005 - 09:22 pm: |
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kartik,
Video transfer using USB is possible so long as you have the correct drivers for your camera. However, many people experience quality issues with the result, which is why I and others recommend firewire, where the file is normally transferred with "native" DV quality.
PCI or PCMCIA firewire cards, packaged with cable and software, are widely available and very cheap.
Hope that helps |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 493
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Friday, July 22, 2005 - 09:28 pm: |
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shaune,
Is your camcorder showing up in Device Manager under "Imaging Devices" which you switch it on?
Have you installed any new software recently, including plug-ins like Real Player?
Does your camera still work on PCs outside your household?
Have you checked to make sure the problem isn't isolated to one firewire card or cable?
I am currently in discussion with another user who might, just possibly, be affected by an XP SP2 automatic update. If so, that could have some wider implications. Please check out the things I mentioned above and/or sit tight while I debug the other user. Thanks.
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bj bird Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Saturday, July 23, 2005 - 09:11 pm: |
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Hi,
I'm using this software called "Click to DVD" from Sony to edit video. It seems the default date is set to 12/31/1969. I don't know how to change that date or get rid of it. Is there anybody out there that knows how to fix this problem?
Thanks |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 501
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Saturday, July 23, 2005 - 09:23 pm: |
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shaune,
One other thing that recently cropped up was the fact that SP2 might firewall block the firewire port. See the following link for a description of that plus some other issues:
http://www.camcorderinfo.com/bbs/t112935.html
Please let me know if any of this helps.
Cheers. |
bj bird Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Sunday, July 24, 2005 - 01:43 pm: |
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Hi,
When I try to transfer edited video from my computer to the video camera it crashes. It would be about 48% done then an error would appear telling me that windows movie maker has to close. Is there any way of fixing the error so I would be able to complete the transfer?
Thanks |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 504
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Sunday, July 24, 2005 - 07:25 pm: |
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bj bird,
In my experience, transferring video back to your camcorder is less reliable than capture. Can you try transferring the video in smaller chunks?
Cheers. |
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| Posted on Monday, July 25, 2005 - 10:26 pm: |
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Hi
I just purchased a Canon ZR200. My question is this...Can I use my camcorder as a webcam? It came with a USB cable but I do not know if that is streaming or what I need to do to use the ZR200 as a webcam or if it is even possible. The owners manual did not cover this. I went to Canon FAQ's and could not find the info. I do not have a firewire card in my computer, but will buy the card tomorrow and install. Thanks in advance for your help. Dave |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 517
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Monday, July 25, 2005 - 10:35 pm: |
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Dave,
If your User Guide doesn't mention anything about webcam, it is probably not included in your camcorder. However, there are 3rd party software packages to achieve this:
http://www.orangeware.com/endusers/webcamdv.html
Cheers. |
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| Posted on Monday, July 25, 2005 - 10:44 pm: |
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Thanks Gromit..
I just bookmarked that webcam site. I appreciate your help and have noticed that you seem to be the camcorder guru in here. Great site and thanks for your help to me and others. I am surprised that JVC, Sony, Samsung and some of the others advertise their camcorders are able to webcam and that Canon really makes no mention other than in BestBuys website....where it says "USB streaming capability allows camcorder to function as a webcam, but yet their tech support, FAQ's or Owners Guide makes no reference to it being possible or what to do. Thanks again. Dave |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 518
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, July 26, 2005 - 01:22 am: |
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Dave,
You're welcome, and thanks for the nice comments! Actually, there are other contributors whose knowledge (and actual contributions) are far beyond mine, but I'm pleased to help where I can.
Cheers. |
Shankar Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Tuesday, July 26, 2005 - 11:15 am: |
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Gromit,
I bought SONY DCR-HC21 mini dv camcorder, and yesterday bought a firewire cable.
Now the question is, I recorded a video , and now looking to transfer it to my HardDisk. I used WMM to capture with firewire.. It made a mpg file of around 140 MB for 51 minutes of video.
I couldnt see a option for making an .avi
Burnt a VCD using pixela, and the quality was not good.. audio is superb but video is blurry and sometimes choppy...
Also, wanted to know, how to download perfect quality video from the Mini DV.
Not sure, if I am using the firewire in the right way..
Thanks in advance !!
Shankar |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 521
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, July 26, 2005 - 06:50 pm: |
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Shankar,
You should be aiming to capture as ".avi" or "DV". That will give you "perfect" quality, plus a file size of 12G per hour.
If you can't achieve this with WMM, try downloading a copy of Ulead VideoStudio or Roxio VideoWave.
Cheers. |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Thursday, July 28, 2005 - 04:13 pm: |
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Hi,
Could someone please advice me a bit - I've tried most of the tricks for now but can't get things solved.
I have Sony DCR-PCxxx, PC with WinXP and 3-port FW1394 card and cable all set up. But when opening my capture sw, say MGI VideoWave > there is no 'video' device available - which means I cannot capture my DV to computer for further editing.
Anyone?
Things look fine under control |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 535
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Thursday, July 28, 2005 - 06:07 pm: |
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Pasi,
First thing to do is to check whether your camcorder appears under "Imaging Devices" in Device Manager when it is connected and turned on.
If YES, you have an application problem. Try re-installing your capture application or downloading/installing a different capture programme. If NO, you have a system hardware or Windows problem.
Please try it out and get back to me.
Always ensure that your camcorder is turned off when you are connecting the firewire cable.
Cheers. |
New member Username: Basu
Post Number: 10
Registered: May-05
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| Posted on Monday, August 01, 2005 - 07:55 pm: |
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HI Gromit,
May be you dont remember, i disturbed you a lot about a lot of problems regarding DVD Capture and Editing and burning, finally i bought a laptop and tried all. However, i have few issues..
1) I captured the video from my handcam to the PC, using Windows Movie Maker, a 55 clip is of size 11 GB, . teh quality is pretty good.
2) I edited the clips and is now ready for the next step.
3) Here comes my problem, now i have to convert this .avi file to MPEG2 or MPEG4 ( may be ) . My software is converting at 8 mbps rate, the quality is compromised, the generating size of mpeg2 file is of 3 GB, it is almost 75 % compression.
My question is what will be configuration, like resolution , bps if we want to make a good quality video. What is the best option .. i have to convert the avi file to some other compressed format....
And, finally please tell me whatr is the best application available to convert avi to mpeg2 or mpeg4 ( is it better than mpeg2 ) , and is there a free version for thsi software..
Rgds,
Basu
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Bronze Member Username: Basu
Post Number: 11
Registered: May-05
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| Posted on Monday, August 01, 2005 - 07:58 pm: |
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Gromit,
One more quick question , as i mentioned in the previous mail, at 8mbps rate, the quality is not good, however i can afford to have a better rate, but my software does not allow that granularity...
Could you suggest me some software whoich convert avi to mpeg, with some configurable parameetr , like resolution or rate with smaller granularity..
and, if some free version are avilable.
Thanks again,
Basu |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 546
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Monday, August 01, 2005 - 08:59 pm: |
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Rajib,
To make DVDs for playback on a set-top box, I use Ulead Moviefactory which is not free, but does do a good job converting to MPEG-2 (the coding used in DVds) and it handles all the menus etc.
In Ulead, I always use "best" quality, which equates to 7 Mbit/s. I chose Ulead after comparing several programmes for quality. Another contributor called "chico" also has some suggestions on this point.
Cheers. |
Bronze Member Username: Basu
Post Number: 12
Registered: May-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, August 02, 2005 - 01:37 am: |
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Hi Gromit,
What is the format in which the camcoder stores the data.. is it divx or avi... What i mean is when i connect the camcoder to PC, one big file of size 11 ~ 12 GB for 1 hour casette had been created... what is the format of that created file is that divx or avi or something else ....
that will be the input of MPEG2 encoder ...
Did you heard about the ImTOO MPEG Encoder ? it is free and it sounds decent ..
Cheers,
Rajib |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 548
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, August 02, 2005 - 05:53 am: |
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Rajib,
The 12G per hour file saved when transferring DV to your PC is .avi. You can view that as "native" DV.
The .avi file is the input to the CODEC that makes the MPEG-2 files used in the DVD. However, the MPEG-2 files are multiplexed into a single file with a .vob extension. That is part of DVD "authoring".
See www.dvddemystified.com for more technical details
I never heard of ImTOO.
Cheers. |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Tuesday, August 02, 2005 - 11:31 am: |
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We (the Engineering Department) purchased a Canon Elura 65 for corporate-wide training and presentation videos. After the purchase, we found out that our I.S. department does not allow Firewire ports on corporate computers. Reasons being: too expensive, allows employees to gain access to corporate computers with personal devices, active policy that allows only USB 2.0 ports to be installed on corporate computers. Right now, I'm doing everything at home, but that's not sitting well with I.S. either. They have recommended that we purchase another camcorder that uses USB 2.0 video transfer.
Is there a good DV camcorder that is designed for USB video transfer? I have searched, but the ones I have found that mention USB are using it for still picture transfer. I welcome all comments and suggestions.
Thanks |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Tuesday, August 02, 2005 - 11:31 am: |
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We (the Engineering Department) purchased a Canon Elura 65 for corporate-wide training and presentation videos. After the purchase, we found out that our I.S. department does not allow Firewire ports on corporate computers. Reasons being: too expensive, allows employees to gain access to corporate computers with personal devices, active policy that allows only USB 2.0 ports to be installed on corporate computers. Right now, I'm doing everything at home, but that's not sitting well with I.S. either. They have recommended that we purchase another camcorder that uses USB 2.0 video transfer.
Is there a good DV camcorder that is designed for USB video transfer? I have searched, but the ones I have found that mention USB are using it for still picture transfer. I welcome all comments and suggestions.
Thanks |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 552
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, August 02, 2005 - 06:18 pm: |
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Bobatam,
You can equip more than 20 computers with firewire for the price of a new camcorder!
I am not much of a fan of USB transfer, although some people have found it very effective.
Assuming that your delivery medium will be DVD, it might be worth looking at DVD camcorders. Then, you don't need to connect it to the PC at all unless you want to do editing.
Hope that helps.
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New member Username: Bluepres
Miami,
FL
Post Number: 1
Registered: Aug-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, August 02, 2005 - 09:27 pm: |
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Here's the deal. My camcorders eat my mini DV tapes when I transfer them. They record fine, but rewind and transfer poorly. So I want to find the cheapest alternative to transfer mini DV cassettes to my computer without using my digital cameras. I've read about the GVD1000 but that's too much cash for me. Is there no other way to do this? I don't want to do anything but transfer digital film to my computer, but don't want to ruin my cassettes or cameras in the process.
Any suggestions???
Thanks much! |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 553
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, August 02, 2005 - 11:53 pm: |
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Pres,
Apart from the GVD1000, I am also aware of a dual VHS/DV deck, but it's again rather pricy.
This may not be the message you want to hear, but if your camcorder is eating tapes on playback, then it is probably only a matter of time before it starts to demand a similar diet during recording as well. Mechanically, recording and playback are (as far as I know) identical.
My advice therefore is to try normal user-servicing tips like head-cleaning, and if that doesn't work, get a qote for professional repair - or bite the bullet and get a new camcorder. Buying equipment specifically for playback is probably only delaying the inevitable, and giving you an unnecessary intermediate expense.
Cheers. |
Bronze Member Username: Basu
Post Number: 13
Registered: May-05
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| Posted on Tuesday, August 02, 2005 - 11:59 pm: |
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HI everybody ( definitely including Gromit ! ) ,
Does anybody know a decent and free avi to mpeg encoder , which may be available in the net... I downloaded Tmpg encoder and teh quality is fantastic, but unfortunately it is a trial version and will expire in a month...
Any help ...
And one more stuff, one good DVD burner ( of course Freely abvailable ) is also will be of much help..
Rgds,
Rajib.
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Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 554
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Wednesday, August 03, 2005 - 04:31 am: |
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Rajib,
Re (1), I'm sure you will find something here: http://www.videohelp.com/convert#4;10
Re (2), sorry, can't help you, but didn't you get an app with your burner?
Cheers. |
Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Wednesday, August 03, 2005 - 09:28 am: |
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Hi Gromit,
I finally got time to try my new toy (The model is IOGEAR 2-Port USB 2.0 and 2-Port FireWire/IEEE 1394 Combo PCMCIA Notebook Card Model: GUF202 ). I love it. I had no problem transfering my video to my laptop. Just want to get back to you. Again, thanks for your help on this.
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Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 558
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Wednesday, August 03, 2005 - 06:15 pm: |
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Bee,
That's great to hear! And thanks for the feedback.
Cheers. |
Bronze Member Username: Basu
Post Number: 14
Registered: May-05
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| Posted on Wednesday, August 03, 2005 - 08:13 pm: |
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HI Gromit,
Sorry to bother you again. Now, my problem is the burned DVD is not playing at my DVD Player, however it is playing at the notepc.
I have no clue whatsever for this...I make the VIDEO_TS and AUDIO_TS folder form the encoded mpeg2 file, and i have no idea what i am doing wrong. Could you help?
Do you know , is it possible to play the DVD at my laptop and see it in the TV.My laptop Model is HP Pavillion DV4023 E.
Please take me through this final step of being a Movie maker.. will ya?
I am sure you will ... Thanks in advance..
Rgds,
basu.. |
Bronze Member Username: Basu
Post Number: 15
Registered: May-05
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| Posted on Wednesday, August 03, 2005 - 08:55 pm: |
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Hi Gromit,
For your information, i am using Windows Movie Maker to capture, TMPG Encoder to convert to mpeg2, and TMPG DVD Editor to edit and burn..
may be this will help you to sort out my problem...what i mention in the previous mail..
Rgds,
Basu ( Rajib basu actually ) |
Silver Member Username: Gromit
Post Number: 562
Registered: Mar-05
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| Posted on Wednesday, August 03, 2005 - 09:26 pm: |
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Rajib,
Explore a commercial DVD in your computer to understand the file structure. The MPEG-2 files are multiplexed into .vob files.
I do think you need a DVD authoring package - I'm not familiar with the features of TMPG DVD editor. Ulead Moviefactory is my recommendation.
Cheers. |
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