8mm Camcorder footage to DVD

[susanann]

I have a number of 8mm camcorder tapes which I would like to transfer to DVD. We used to have a DVD Recorder on which I have copied this footage to DVD+R but did not realise you had to finalise the discs, this recorder is now beyond repair so cannot finalise them. The DVD's will not play on any other DVD player so I need to do them again as I still have the original tapes. As i no longer have a DVD recorder is it possible to do this on the computer.

[yoda313]

Well actually you might be able to access the recorded unfinalized discs with isobuster. I have seen that recommended for unfinalized discs. HOWEVER I have not used it personally for that need so I can't relate personal success or failure with it.

Is this regular non dv 8mm footage? If you have a dv camcorder you can transfer to dv-avi using a firewire cable. Actually I would think if these were playable in a dv camera you could still transfer them that way even if they weren't originally shot in dv (as long as it fits the tape port on the dv camera - again I don't have dv camera so I can't comment specifically - only offering possibilites).

Assuming you still have the original camera and assuming it is analog only with no dv output than you will need a capture device of some kind on your computer. What type depends on your budget and available ports. If you have a desktop I'd recommend securing a used hauppauge pvr250 capture card. It does an excellent job of hardware encoding to mpeg2 for easy dvd creation.

If you are on a laptop you will need to do some research on usb capture devices. There are a bunch on the market. Some obviously better than others. You can go through this list to find more:

https://www.videohelp.com/capturecards

[edDV]

"8mm" tape can mean

Video8 (analog)
Hi8 (higher quality analog)
Digital8 (DV format)

Which type do you have?

Also, what is the camcorder model number?

[susanann]

Its a Sony Video 8 Handycam CCD-FX500E PAL 8. The tapes just say 8mm on them so i am not sure which they are.

I have tried Iso Buster as Yoda 313 suggested and it does seem to find some files on the unfinalised DVDs but i am very lost on quite what to do with it from there. Its not an easy program to use, as I am not very skilled at all.

[danno78]

Try VOB2MPG. This smal software will save the whole content (DVD Video) from DVD in to a one file (mpg file).
The tapes are Video8.

[susanann]

I have managed to extract the folder Video TS with Isobuster to my hard drive, which I read should contain all the files. I then copied it to a DVD which actually copied and played fine on the computer. When I try to play it on my DVD player though I have a picture only and no sound. Cant understand this. Have tried it in two DVD players which both should take DVD+R but only a picture no sound. Tried copying it a second time in case there was a problem first time but still the same.

[yoda313]

Try burning the video_ts folder with imgburn. Use it in build mode. It will detect it is a dvd format and correctly format the disc for you.

Chances are you probably burnt the disc as data instead of a dvd video.

[susanann]

Thanks yoda313 I used imgburn and they now work fine. Have I lost quality transferring with Isobuster to Hard Drive then copying to DVD? They are not very good quality to start with being recorded on 8mm so losing anymore is not very good. The only other way I could do it is to buy and new DVD recorder and record all the films again. Very expensive.

Next job after this is to sort out my newer tapes which are recorded on Mini DV.

[yoda313]

Glad you got it working.

Have I lost quality transferring with Isobuster to Hard Drive then copying to DVD?

No. This is all digital transferring. The quality you got with your dvd recorder was locked onto the dvds. What you did was merely copy the data to a new disc. Nothing was altered.

The only other way I could do it is to buy and new DVD recorder and record all the films again. Very expensive.

If you really want to re-record them you might want to try a computer capture card. THough its not as simple a setup as a settop unit. Its not difficult but it lacks the convenience of just hooking it up to the tv.

which are recorded on Mini DV.

For those you will be transferring those with a firewire cable correct? That will get you an exact digital copy on your computer. From there you can edit the file however you want to and author a dvd. For instructions and programs check out the guides on this website. Dvdauthorgui or avstodvd as well as multiavchd are good free programs to check out. Though some are a little more straight forward than others.

Also please, please, please save your original tapes from all of your projects. Even if you don't think the quality is where you want it you should not get rid of the originals. You can always go back and recapture from the original tapes.

[susanann]

I have not got a firewire connection on my computer for the mini DV transfers. Is there another way to do it or have I got to get a firewire connection installed on my computer?

[yoda313]

It may or may not. You'll have to look. If you have a desktop you can get an inexpensive firewire pci card to install into your computer. I'm not sure what you'd do if have a laptop without an internal firewire connection. In that case I guess a realtime dub with a usb capture device would be your only option (or borrow a friends laptop with a firewire connection? - but the files will be large 13/gb per hour).