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  1. Member
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    I've been digitising my VHS collection for the last couple of years. I always used my MacBookPro (2012) and a Canopus 300 card. I have both a NTSC and PAL recorder and my Canopus has a switch for selecting PAL en NTSC input and provides a DV output through a Firewire connection.

    All went well until I upgraded my system from Mavericks to Sierra.

    Now I can still capture NTSC tapes both in iMovie 10.1.5 and in iMovie HD (the latter with a work around), but no longer PAL tapes.
    iMovie sees there's a "camera" (my VHS PAL machine) connected, but it does not get any data input. I've double checked with a second PAL VHS recorder, etc...

    As all works well with the NTSC tapes (both in iMovie 10.1.5 and in iMovie HD) but not with the PAL tapes (using two different machines that both worked perfectly last time I used them), I can only imagine that the upgrade to Sierra is somehow responsible for this.

    Does anybody have any clue about this? And if so, how to get it fixed?
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  2. Explorer Case's Avatar
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    Not a (Grass Valley) Canopus ADVC-300 user, so I can’t test much of this.

    macOS Sierra is now at version 10.12.5, per May 15, 2017. Is your notebook updated to the latest release?
    iMovie was updated to version 10.1.6, per May 25, 2017. While the last update doesn't list a fix in this area, it usually good practice to keep up-to-date.

    Version 10.1.6 (May 25, 2017):
    • Improves stability when updating libraries created with earlier versions of iMovie
    • Addresses an issue which could lower the volume of clips after transitions

    Version 10.1.5 (April 13, 2017)
    • Fixes an issue which could add a red tint to video imported from some camcorders
    • Addresses an issue which prevented some videos shot on iPhone from appearing in the import window
    • Improves performance and stability

    [...]
    Version 10.0.5 (Aug 21, 2014)
    • The last version available for Mac OS X Mavericks (10.9.x) is version 10.0.5.
    Be prepared to go back to a version that did work (OS X Mavericks 10.9.x/OS X Yosemite 10.10.x/OS X El Capitan 10.11.x), if macOS Sierra really is the culprit. While a change that breaks PAL compatibility is strange, it is not impossible. Fewer minds (developers) will focus on keeping analog-digital converters working, as time goes on, so there will be a cut-off point somewhere to keep things as-is, as change will break the workflow. Mavericks and Yosemite have disappeared from the Mac AppStore (but perhaps still available as account-linked previous downloads), so I hope you have a local backup?

    As iMovie was also updated, perhaps Sierra itself is not the issue, but iMovie may be it. The solution may be the same: roll back to when it worked.
    Last edited by Case; 11th Jun 2017 at 15:26.
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  3. Member
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    Originally Posted by Case View Post
    Not a (Grass Valley) Canopus ADVC-300 user, so I can’t test much of this.

    macOS Sierra is now at version 10.12.5, per May 15, 2017. Is your notebook updated to the latest release?
    iMovie was updated to version 10.1.6, per May 25, 2017. While the last update doesn't list a fix in this area, it usually good practice to keep up-to-date.
    I just updated both (I was at 10.12.4 for Sierra an 10.1.5 for iMovie), but it didn't make a difference.

    Originally Posted by Case View Post

    Be prepared to go back to a version that did work (OS X Mavericks 10.9.x/OS X Yosemite 10.10.x/OS X El Capitan 10.11.x), if macOS Sierra really is the culprit. While a change that breaks PAL compatibility is strange, it is not impossible. Fewer minds (developers) will focus on keeping analog-digital converters working, as time goes on, so there will be a cut-off point somewhere to keep things as-is, as change will break the workflow. Mavericks and Yosemite have disappeared from the Mac AppStore (but perhaps still available as account-linked previous downloads), so I hope you have a local backup?

    As iMovie was also updated, perhaps Sierra itself is not the issue, but iMovie may be it. The solution may be the same: roll back to when it worked.
    I tried it with the iMovie version I always used (iMovie HD), but that has the same issue, so I doubt if iMovie itself it the problem. By elimination only the Sierra update seems to be what's preventing things to work. I think I have a back up copy of my old configuration, but I'll spend a bit more time to look for a way to get it to work on Sierra before I go back.

    Thanks for the suggestion!
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  4. Member hech54's Avatar
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    There are no settings in iMovie for PAL and NTSC?
    If you have been capturing NTSC tapes all along via your PAL(?) vhs machines.....you have actually been capturing as PAL60.
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    Originally Posted by hech54 View Post
    There are no settings in iMovie for PAL and NTSC?
    iMovie HD had a setting for saving DV PAL and DV NTSC (by choosing the frame rate per second). iMovie 10 doesn't seem to use DV and saves it as .mov. Which is fine with me as long as it would accept the incoming data stream.

    But since the upgrade to Sierra, even with iMovie HD it doesn't work anymore.

    Originally Posted by hech54 View Post
    If you have been capturing NTSC tapes all along via your PAL(?) vhs machines.....you have actually been capturing as PAL60.
    No, I have both a PAL and a NTSC VHS recorder. And my canopus has a switch that allows me to choose between the two input formats.
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  6. Member hech54's Avatar
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    I've had iPhones for years, and would love to have a Mac AND my PC....but I haven't been able to get past detesting iTunes so I don't see that happening soon. I feel your pain, although in a tiny. minuscule way.
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