Do cheap miniDV Cams 'PLAY' tapes as good as expensive ones?

[justinluck]

Ok, I have spent a few hundred dollars for a bunch of miniDV tapes that were recorded for me with a 3CCD camcorder. The problem is, I want to view these tapes, but I don't own a miniDV camcorder.

I plan to borrow a camcorder from someone to transfer the tapes, but I am worried because the person uses a 'cheap' GS-65 camcorder.

Ok, I know, miniDV tapes are 'digital', but does it really not matter what quality or price the camcorder is that is used for transferring miniDV tapes onto the computer? If my tapes were recorded with a 3CCD camcorder, will the video quality transferred to the computer be the same even if it was read by a lesser quality cam?

Are the mechanics that play miniDV tapes relatively the same within most camcorders regardless of their optic capabilities and other features?

I know that VCRs all have their quirks and none play a video tape with the same quality. Has the miniDV format fixed these issues of tracking and head alignments?

Will the picture quality of the original tapes be faithfully transferred using an inferior camcorder?

I know I keep stating similar questions, but I really want to know!

Thanks so much!

[junkmalle]

What's recorded on tape is already digitized and compressed. When you send from the camcorder to the computer via firewire it's not much more than a file transfer. You won't lose any quality (unless there are transfer problems of course.) I suppose a really cheap or defective camera might have trouble reading some tapes.

There might be a little difference in the analog output if you connect the camera to a TV with a composite or s-video cable. Just because the cheaper camera is likely to have cheaper circuitry to convert the DV back to analog.

[turk690]

Even with an inexpensive DV camcorder you'll get all the info on tape bit by bit if it's working ok. One concern should be the LP/SP issue. Tapes done on one camcorder with a view to it being played back in another should be recorded SP. If LP is used playback on another might cause audio and/or video to mute if tracking is unsuccessful. This is probably where a more pricey DV camcorder will beat a cheaper one: successful playback of more LP -recorded tapes.

[justinluck]

Thank you for your comments guys!

These tapes have 1 hour recordings per tape. That should be SP right?

How long can LP recordings be on one tape?

[unclebud]

"How long can LP recordings be on one tape?"

90 minutes with an 60 minute tape.
120 minutes with an 80 minute tape.

[dipstick]

I do this all the time.

I shoot video with my 3 CCD camcorder and use my 4-year old 1 CCD dv-cam to transfer to PC. I do it mainly to cut down on wear and tear on my "Good Camera". No data is lost in the transfer.

[justinluck]

Hey Guys,

I want to thank you for all your replies. I really appreciate the feedback!

Well, I found out that the camcorder I'm going to borrow is not a GS-65, but a GS-19. The lowest of low!

Will this camcorder still be able to faithfully transfer the tapes? As long as they were recorded in SP right? Sorry guys, I guess I'm just being paranoid

[edDV]

Hey Guys,

I want to thank you for all your replies. I really appreciate the feedback!

Well, I found out that the camcorder I'm going to borrow is not a GS-65, but a GS-19. The lowest of low!

Will this camcorder still be able to faithfully transfer the tapes? As long as they were recorded in SP right? Sorry guys, I guess I'm just being paranoid

It should work fine so long as you transfer IEEE-1394 digitally.

This assumes the playback is functioning correctly. If the heads are dirty, you could get pixel dropouts. It doesn't hurt to run a cleaning tape for a few seconds before making an important transfer. This should be done every ~20-50 hours of record-playback but for an unknown camcorder, I would clean it first.