Converting 8mm video to digital

[Victor Delta]

I would be really grateful for some help on this please. I have an old Hi8 camcorder and a few family tapes I now want to convert to digital media (before it's too late). The camcorder has a composite video o/p (via 3.5mm jack) and an S-video o/p.
What is the simplest a/d converter for me to buy to enable me to transfer the tapes to my computer (Windows Vista). If the card had a TV tuner as well that would be a bonus (but not essential).
Many thanks,
V
PS Once transferred, I already have the necessary software to do the conversion, editing etc

[ranchhand]

Your camcorder will save in analog, so you need to capture and convert to digital. In order to do that you will need a capture card. I suggest the Hauppauge WinTV250, information here:
http://www.hauppauge.com/html/wintvpvr250_datasheet.htm
Note that this is an older card, but for what you need it is great. I had a ton of older Sony tapes that I captured to mpeg2 files, and used Pinnacle to edit them.
I don't know if this card is still available, and you will need a PCI slot for it. It will accept Composit/RCA inputs from your camcorder. Note that it is advertised as "TV Capture" card so that identifies its age, but it does a great job capturing and converting to mpeg2.
Others might have more current-technology suggestions here, so hang on and I am sure more suggestions will be coming. I wish you the best in your project!

[zoobie]

Unless you're going to be doing this often, I'd drop off your few tapes at a local lab for conversion to disc. The simpliest a/d conversion stand-alone box would be something along the line of canopus/datavideo/ads converter. The cards are great for TV and high-tech complexities of tweaking but not for everybody who wants simplicity.

[ranchhand]

Not a bad suggestion to keep things simple, but I think he wants to edit them so creating to DVDs won't help him. He needs mpeg2 files that he can import into editor software.

[Victor Delta]

Many thanks for the replies. Yes, I think the capture card route is the right way forward so I shall do some further research on the current models available.

Thanks again.

[edDV]

Many thanks for the replies. Yes, I think the capture card route is the right way forward so I shall do some further research on the current models available.

Thanks again.

Not sure for current PAL cards but the ATI 650 PCIe or USB2 versions are priced @ $40 here.

These days HD tuners come with the deal.

Many other options from old BT/Connexant tuner cards to the Hauppaauge line.

Assuming S-Video from the camcorder, the main issue is uncompressed capture vs. DV vs. MPeg2. The card choice subsets mostly by format.