ADVC-100 or Sony Digicam

[jimby452]

Has anyone tried both the ADVC100 and a Sony digicam. I have narrowed my capturing device to one or the other and I was looking for an opinion on which captured better.

[SLICK RICK]

What are you wanting to do, VHS to ......., TV to ........, etc........., or do you need a video camera?

SLICK RICK

[Will Hay]

Good point SLICK made, if you have a video camera without passthrough then buy the ADVC-100.
If you don't have a video camera then buy one with passthrough.
I understand there's nothing much between them in terms of quality and although I've not heard of any issues with regards audio/video sync from a camcorder the ADVC supports it.
Personally I wouldn't want ot put my camcorder through so much use, I prefer to use it for recording footage and use my ADVC for analogue > digital conversion.
Will

[jimby452]

I guess I should have mentioned my intent. I have about 20 old personal VHS tapes that I want to convert to DVD. I have an old Panasonic VHS-C cancorder that could be updated, but I really don't have to. Kids are grown. My thoughts were that after I convert the tapes I would get more use out of the Camera then the ADVC-100, that is, depending on the video quality is almost the same from both.
I just picked up a new Dell8300 P4 3GHz, put in a second hard drive and 1Gb ram. I have a JVC SVHS player/recorder with TBC. From what I have read in this forum, it seems that firewire DV is the the least complicated way to go and the results are excellant. I have not yet decided on what software to use. Any thoughts whould be appreciated. thanks

[FulciLives]

Quality should be about the same either way so it depends on what you want to do.

Keep in mind that either will be fine for converting VHS from your JVC but with the cam you have a nice new cam which is nice but if you want to capture in the future from say TV then the cam will not let you do timed unattended recordings yet that is possible using the Canopus ADVC-100

So that is something to consider.

But if you really think that you will only ever use it for the few VHS tapes that you have then get the cam as it will surely come in usefull in the future.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[Will Hay]

...but if you want to capture in the future from say TV then that is possible using the Canopus ADVC-100

Hey John,
How?
Thanks,
Will Hay, duplicate, numerous posts a speciality

[FulciLives]

...but if you want to capture in the future from say TV then that is possible using the Canopus ADVC-100

Hey John,
How?
Thanks,
Will Hay, duplicate, numerous posts a speciality

Well I don't have the Canopus ADVC-100 but my understanding is that ScenalyzerLive will let you do scheduled unattended recordings.

Of course the Canopus ADVC-100 does not have an RF input so you need to use a cable/satellite box that has analog video and audio outputs (which all seem to have these days) or you need to use a VCR as a tuner.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[EricB]

I have used both and decided on the camcorder route. Most of the time, you're not using your camcorder and it sits in a case. Mine is always connected to the computer via a VCR (for tuning). I've been doing this for a couple of years and it works great. Its a lot easier to explain to your wife that you are buying a camcorder instead of a "video conversion device" ! I also bought a previous generation camcorder so the price was not that more than the Canopus unit.

[Leoslocks]

You could capture from the JVC SVhs deck using a an adapter for the 'C' tapes. Capturing is just the first step and using a DV pass through might very well be the simpliest approach to a finished product.

Have you tried capturing from the SVhs deck?

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[indolikaa]

Digital Camcorder Passthru myself.

But you won't go wrong with the ADVC-100. If Will Hay can use it, it has to be an excellent piece of technology.

[zeus163]

As far as timed recordings go, there was a guide here a while back about setting up macros for timed recordings. I love that guide because I used the macros with a cam pass through option and use it with the Canopus. Now I don't have to set the alarm any more. Of course, there have been human errors which I won't get into.

I'd go for the Canopus ADVC 100. I ultimately went that route as the pass through option while great would go out of sync for me after about 30 minutes. Of course, if you are capturing TV shows you could always re-sync in Premiere or something, which is what I would ultimately end up doing. However, for long captures I wanted to do from older VHS tapes (concerts) that was not an option. If everything you are trying to capture is under 30 minutes, you're fine, if not, you could run into problems. I've read about others having this problem. I don't have this with the ADVC 100 at all.

I also capture from TV through the Canopus. We have digital cable at our house (simply a ruse since all the local stations are still analog anyway) that has outputs. I have a monster cable from the digital cable box to the ADVC 100 and then firewire into the computer. I love it.

[drewson99]

I too used to own an advc100 but sold it on eBay when I got my new camcorder.

also, I wouldn't worry about the extra mileage on the camcorder. if you are using passthrough then it is all solid state components and therefore it shouldn't make much of a difference in the camera's overall life.

[Will Hay]

Digital Camcorder Passthru myself.

But you won't go wrong with the ADVC-100. If Will Hay can use it, it has to be an excellent piece of technology.

........cheeky bastard
Will