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  1. bravo1224
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    Hi, newbie here -

    This is going way back, but I used to use a program called DVHSCap to capture lossless footage from my Canon HV20 and it would create a raw file. I've lost the software since then and was wondering if anyone knows if it can still be downloaded anywhere? I've googled for hours but can't seem to find anything (for Mac, that is). Any help would be appreciated!
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  2. Video Restorer lordsmurf's Avatar
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    Last edited by lordsmurf; 1st Jun 2020 at 18:48.
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  3. bravo1224
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    Thanks, lordsmurf! The Firewire SDK 26 doesn't seem to be available anymore but AVCVideoCap seems to be doing the trick. Downloading through firewire to an *.m2t file is probably best way to capture a lossless raw file off a Mini DV camcorder, right? Thanks again!
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  4. Originally Posted by bravo1224 View Post
    Thanks, lordsmurf! The Firewire SDK 26 doesn't seem to be available anymore but AVCVideoCap seems to be doing the trick. Downloading through firewire to an *.m2t file is probably best way to capture a lossless raw file off a Mini DV camcorder, right? Thanks again!
    Yes, that is the ONLY way to do it. The Firewire on my Sony FX-1 (also an HDV camcorder) blew out, so I tried capturing from the RGB ouptut. However, I soon realized that this involves uncompressing the HDV and then recompressing with the capture card, so I ended up with a new set of compression artifacts.

    So, I spent $450 to have the Firewire repaired.

    One small correction: the HD video on your camcorder is stored as HDV, not DV. The two both get recorded to the same tape cartridge (HDV prefers a more expensive tape formulation, but you can record just fine on standard, older DV tapes). It is important to make this distinction because capture programs like WinDV or Scenalyzer, which were designed for the standard definition DV format, won't capture from an HDV camcorder.

    I use the HDV capture built into Vegas, my NLE. It works great.
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  5. bravo1224
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    John - oof, the things we do to get footage off these darn camcorders! Good to know that Scenalyzer won't capture HDV footage as that was going to be my next step, thanks.
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  6. Originally Posted by bravo1224 View Post
    John - oof, the things we do to get footage off these darn camcorders! Good to know that Scenalyzer won't capture HDV footage as that was going to be my next step, thanks.
    The other thing that convinced me to get the camera repaired is when I used a local guy to do the transfer. He had a transfer business that he had moved from a commercial building to his house. I went there, started the capture, and waited two hours while the tapes played and captured to my laptop.

    However ...

    During that time I watched while a steady stream of people came to the house, not to have their tapes transferred, but to buy dope. The guy's main business was dealing dope!! I'm pretty much a "live and let live" kind of guy when it comes to things like that, but I realized that I probably didn't want to do that every few months. So, since $450 was a lot less than the $3,500 it would cost to get an equivalent camera, I had it fixed.
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  7. Video Restorer lordsmurf's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by johnmeyer View Post
    During that time I watched while a steady stream of people came to the house, not to have their tapes transferred, but to buy dope. The guy's main business was dealing dope!! I'm pretty much a "live and let live" kind of guy when it comes to things like that, but I realized that I probably didn't want to do that every few months.
    Best "professional" = amatuer story ever.

    I don't think you ever told me that. You've been holding out on us!
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  8. Originally Posted by lordsmurf View Post
    Originally Posted by johnmeyer View Post
    During that time I watched while a steady stream of people came to the house, not to have their tapes transferred, but to buy dope. The guy's main business was dealing dope!! I'm pretty much a "live and let live" kind of guy when it comes to things like that, but I realized that I probably didn't want to do that every few months.
    Best "professional" = amatuer story ever.

    I don't think you ever told me that. You've been holding out on us!
    Some day I'll tell everyone the story of a job I did for the NSA (yes, the ultimate "spook" organization). It's even funnier than finding myself in the middle of a major drug dealer. It involves Tom Petty, copyrights, and top secret clearance.
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