If you need a way to get your existing analog footage into your new FireWire-based computer, consider one of these simple solutions. Device control may not work with all analog tapes, however, but you will still be able to use the camera as the digital transcoding device even if it doesn’t. Digital8 camcorders also allow you to use the computer as a device controller, automatically starting and stopping the camera. You’ll be using the same camcorder and computer software, whether you’re working with digital or analog tape, and you won’t have to add any components to the computer. If you work with 8mm formats, the advantages of this approach are obvious. And, the camera will transcode the video to DV internally, ready for copying to your PC, via IEEE 1394. Not only do Digital8 camcorders record DV video, they can also play analog 8mm and Hi8 tapes. If your analog video collection resides on 8mm or Hi8 videotape, you might consider buying a Digital8 camcorder. You won’t be able to control your analog camcorder with your computer and must start and stop both the source camcorder and the computer software manually to capture, but overall, the analog to digital conversion process is painless. To do this, connect your analog camcorder to your Mini DV camcorder (making sure to connect both the video and the audio), and connect your Mini DV camcorder to your computer via its IEEE 1394 port. Option two is to use your Mini DV camcorder as you would an analog to video converter, as described in the previous section. This has the advantage of archiving your tapes to a better, smaller format, and will allow you to batch capture your footage. Option one is to simply hook your analog camera to your Mini DV camera and transfer your footage to Mini DV tape. There are two ways you might use a DV camcorder to digitize your footage. If you do decide to buy a new Mini DV camcorder (or already own one), you can use its analog inputs to convert analog to digital video. Using DV Camcorders as Analog to Digital Converters The advantage to buying a Mini DV camcorder over an external analog to digital converter is, well, that you are buying a new Mini DV camcorder. Price is an important consideration here, since almost all Mini DV camcorders also function as analog to digital converters (as discussed in the next section). Each clip would need to be captured manually, one at a time.Īnalog to digital converters range in price, beginning at about $300. Without a LANC connection, machine control (and batch capture) are not options. Make sure that the external converter you choose is compatible with your camcorder, and if you want machine control, be sure that the converter and your camcorder can speak the same control language. This can make the capture process much easier. Some of them offer full analog camcorder control via a LANC interface. This can be very useful if your PC sits on the floor, beside or under your desk. One big advantage of this approach is that the converter box can remain permanently connected to the PC, providing a handy desktop box to connect the camcorder. Several companies offer analog to digital (A/D) converters that connect directly to a computer’s IEEE 1394 port. There are external devices designed for the purpose of converting analog to digital video. Knowing the available options should help you choose the best analog to digital converter to meet your needs. The different methods to digitize video have advantages and disadvantages. So, even if you could connect your analog camera to your IEEE 1394 port (which you can’t), you would still need some way to convert analog video to a digital video format. FireWire cards are not digitizing tools, but are only used as communication conduits between FireWire compatible devices. Analog camcorders, on the other hand, record analog information, which can’t be transferred to the computer without first being converted into a suitable digital format. Your digital camcorder records video and audio into a digital format that is already very computer friendly. Mini DV camcorders are designed to transmit DV data down a FireWire cable and into your computer via the IEEE 1394 port. If you already have a digital camcorder, the process is simple. So, how do you take advantage of this new technology with your analog camcorder and analog footage? Many newer computers, both Mac and PC, come standard with IEEE 1394 (FireWire) ports. If you’ve recently purchased a new computer, you may find yourself straddling a digital divide. "Old" does not mean obsolete, however, and the trick is to make all of your equipment work in harmony. Most of us don’t have the money to upgrade everything at once, so we end up with a mix of the old and the new. Piece by piece, we all gradually upgrade our equipment to take advantage of the latest technologies.
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