DVD-Software.info

[Videod]

Hi,

I've searched the archives and not found the answer, nevertheless this
feels like a Newbie question ;-)

I have Hi8 (Sony) videotapes, and I would like to buy the equipment to
transfer to digital. I plan to buy an iMac G5 and a firewire DAC,
perhaps Datavideo DAC-100. The plan would be to digitize everything,
unedited and at relatively low compression and archive it to DVD's as
source material for future editing.

My Hi8 camera has some form of time code (I don't know it's exact
specification) that preserves the actual time and calendar date of the
video, and this is the nub of my question. I want to preserve that
information for posterity so that when I've forgotten nearly everything
of the 'good old days' preserved on those tapes, I'll be able to
reconstruct the chronology. I'm not referring here to the time/date
title that appears on some videos, but rather to a continuous hidden
record of that information that's part of the video.

What do I need to have (and/or do) in order to make sure that the
calendar date and time become part of my permanent digital record.

(I'll gladly accept advice on any other aspect of this project too,
e.g. the choice of DAC, or recommendations on appropriate software and
video format for the "archiving" step)

With thanks, Mark

[Steve McDonald]

The R.C. timecode that is recorded by some Hi-8 camcorders and
VCRs, is not transfered to a digital recording, such as on DV or
Digital8 or to a stand-alone DVD recorder. The same is true of any
datacode information that is ordinarily hidden in the Hi-8 recordings.
The only way to transfer this information electronically, is to call it
onscreen during playback from a Hi-8 machine and then it would be
permanently part of the visible picture-----something you probably
wouldn't want.

If you play back a Hi-8 recorded tape in a Digital8 machine, it
will not display or transfer the original Hi-8 timecode or datacode.
Nor will either be re-recorded along with the audio and video on a
Digital8 or DV recorder, if you transfer the signal to them by wire from
a Hi-8 machine.

There are analog capture cards that will allow you to transfer Hi-8
playback to a computer. There may possibly be some cards that will
accept the Hi-8 timecode and datacode information, re-code it and insert
it into the digitized video on the computer (but I doubt it).

You might check all the available analog capture cards for such a
capability. However, such a feature might not be listed on a website or
product box, so you might have to directly ask a customer service rep
about this. Hopefully, someone else may know of a capture card that
will do this.

You may have to make a written log of all your Hi-8 recordings and
assign each segment a number that would be entered on each digital copy,
such as on a computer or a DVD. Many DVD recorders and computer DVD
recording programs would allow you to manually enter descriptive titles
and dates as you assemble the segments. It would be a bit of extra
work, but may be the simplest way to get it done.

Actually, one other way (more expensive) to do this, would be to
obtain a DV or a Digital8 camcorder or VCR. You could make a series of
new, short clips that contained titles and descriptions on video and
also audio descriptions of each segment. Then, insert them at the right
points as you make digital re-recordings of the Hi-8 footage. You could
do this on a Hi-8 camcorder prior to re-recording the segments or on a
digital camcorder, as you do the assembly. Then, the edited and titled
digital recordings could be transfered by FireWire to a computer or a
DVD recorder.

Finally, if you made the series of titles and descriptions on Hi-8,
you could insert them as you transfered the segments directly from your
original tapes, by Hi-8 playback, over an analog connector. They could
be sent to either a computer card or a DVD recorder or to any other type
of digital recorder that accepts an analog input.

Hang on to the original Hi-8 tapes, as they may last longer than
you think. I have some that are 16 years old and they still play back
just fine.

Steve McDonald

[un8bf]

I can offer that when I transfer/capture my Hi8 tape to my harddrive
in dv format via firewire, the "hidden record" you refer to is also
transferred. I'll edit my project as needed and transfer back to
digital tape and the "hidden record" is still intact; and I can still
turn the time/date display on or off when I review the tape.

Once the dv file is converted to mpeg/avi/vob or whatever, the
time/date data is lost. If you burn the captured dv file to a dvd as
data (as opposed to dvdvideo) your time/date info will be preserved.

[un8bf]

I should clarify that I was using a Digital8 camcorder with Hi8 tape.
If you used a camcorder prior to this model than take heed of Steve
M.'s advice.

[Richard Ragon]

Buy a DVCAM deck (like a sony DSR-11). Plug in your camcorder, and
transfer the Hi8 tapes over to either miniDV tapes or DVCAM tapes.

This preservers the highest possible quality, preservers the timeline,
and preservers the timecode. If stored correctly, you will have a
lifetime, high quality archive, that you don't need a computer to work
with, unless you want to start to edit them. Which is easy, as just
popping them into the deck again.

-Richard

[Videod]

$2 K for the DSR-11. Yikes! :-)

My wife will never go for that!

Actually, I'm hoping to keep on using my analog Hi8 camera for the time
being and to stick with analog source material and digital data (DV
format) on DVD's for the archives.

Thanks both Richard and un8bf for your replies.

Both of you suggest using a digital camcorder or deck in the process.
Has anyone tried this with an analog camcorder going through a DAC into
a computer?

Thanks

Mark

[Lou van Wijhe]

Hi Mark,

I use a Canopus ADVC-55 analogue to DV converter (excellent results, by the
way) but this doesn't preserve the timecode from my Hi8 tapes.
--
Lou van Wijhe
Website: http://home.hccnet.nl/jl.van.wijhe/
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[Videod]

[Videod]

Just a note I should have made before.

The camera I'm using is a Sony CCD-TR3000 Handycam.

It's a pretty nice rig, actually. Great picture, S-Video outputs,
reasonable sound.

Anyway, I thought that might help someone who understands these things
better than I do to decipher exactly what brand of time code is used on
this device...

Mark

[Henry Padilla]

The problem is that Hi8 is NOT digital. There must have been some
mis-communication because copying Hi8 tapes to a different medium will NOT
preserve the TC.

PLAYING them in a Digital8 camcorder may. I have done this a couple of
times. Find an old Sony TRV-320 or something that takes Hi8 and D8 (I have
a 320 at home) and play the Hi8 tape in the 320 and transfer using firewire.
This will let the camera read the Hi8 date/time (it's not really TC) and
transfer the data as you would by firewire.

Do a look-see and see how much a used 320 could be.

[Richard Crowley]

"Videod" wrote ...

[Videod]

[Lou van Wijhe]

[Richard Crowley]

"Videod" wrote ...

[Videod]

It seems that the consensus on this thread is that playing a Hi8 tape
on certain D8 camcorders may allow the transfer of date/time to DV
format. Henry Padilla's done this with the Sony TRV-320. Could I ask
what camera you or others have manged to use successfully?

Mark