Multiple MiniDV camcorders to NLE PC...

[PC Master]

Well, from what you're telling me, it sounds like it very well may work. If not, I'll just have to live with grabbing tapes off post-recording.

[PC Master]

Okay, here's a bit of an update.

I finally have gotten around to researching this again. From what I can figure out (both from available specs I've seen on PCI firewire cards, plus 2 PCI firewire cards I currently have, plus those another person I know has), most cards feature a single FireWire controller on the board, with multiple ports attached to it. Now, unless this single controller manages to handle multiple busses (which, I would imagine, would be a pain to write drivers to work with), it seems that what I'm wanting to do is indeed doable.

I'll be getting a second firewire cable to play with, and possibly a hub, at some point in the future.

Now I just need to see if there's a way to make my FireWire signal go 50 - 100 feet without buying a bunch of repeaters. Anyone have some ideas on that? Ideally, I'd think Category 5e cable (commonly used at 100 megabit speeds, though rated at 500 or 600 megabits from what I've heard), or Category 6 (used for gigabit networking) could be used without much loss, if the appropriate converter and amplifier were used.

[ivanarias]

Hi guys,

Fascinating thread.

So here's something I'm trying to do which seems sort of a reverse of this effort so I thought some of the same minds that had addressed the previous might look at this here rather than starting a new thread...

I want to 'export to tape' from Adobe Premiere Pro but to multiple camcorders at once.

Would a Firewire Hub work? I'm wondering if Premiere Pro would be able to do device control through a hub or would get confused as to which camera or not work at all.

The point is I want to create some backups of the final edited product and right now I have to sit through real time recording to each MiniDV and Hi8 that I record onto; it would be great if I could record to them all at once in one fell swoop, so to speak.

I've considered having one of the cameras go out to a composite switcher thing and then back into another camera and so on (but only on an older Sony Hi8 camera that allows for recording back onto itself through that plug); but it would be so much simpler if I could just do the dump once from the computer straight to 3 or 4 cameras through firewire at once.

Any ideas or experience in doing this?

[edDV]

...but it would be so much simpler if I could just do the dump once from the computer straight to 3 or 4 cameras through firewire at once.

Any ideas or experience in doing this?

The only problem would be device control. You may need to manually start remote recording. I run DV out to several devices at a time and they all see the input even when looped through a computer. I've never used a IEEE-1394 Hub but I'd bet that works as well.

[JohnnyMalaria]

Regarding the *input* side of things....

Our Enosoft DV Processor can capture from multiple devices simultaneously.

Getting this to work on a single Firewire controller is hit-or-miss. It depends upon what DV devices are connected and the order in which they are both connected (e.g., which of the (typically) three ports) and powered on. Separate Firewire controllers are less troublesome.

Many applications that can capture can only use one device at a time and, often, won't even let you select the device you want if you happen to have more than one connected.

The beta program for the software will end soon and I expect to release the full version in February after one more round of beta testing. It will be available free of charge for personal use.

[ivanarias]

Thanks John, but what I need is the *output* side of things as you know

I've purchased a VM-20FW 1-20 Firewire Distributor/Hub, having been advised that it would allow recording of video footage from Adobe Premiere Pro 2.0 onto multiple firewired devices simultaneously by repeating the signal sent out by the software. It doesn't appear to be working...

I've got firewire running from the computer out to the VM-20FW into Port A (also tried Port B, and also tried using it as a 1-4); then I have the cameras firewired to the next 4 slots on the DA. Three are to cameras and the fourth is to a DV/Analog converter which then runs to a composite DA that goes out to 3 VCRs. The DV/Analog converter isn't ackowledged by the VM-20FW when it's plugged in, but I figured that might be because of the nature of that connection.

However, the 3 cameras are acknowledged through the VM-20FW which is evidenced by the computer acknowledging 3 firewire devices having been plugged in.

But when I go to record onto those cameras from the software editing program, it only successfully activates one camera to start recording when the software is set to "Activate Recording Device"; so, I tried turning that option off and just setting each camera to start recording manually when the software starts to send the footage. But that doesn't work either. It's always ONE camera that records, the 2nd camera runs its counter as if it is being recorded onto, but there's no image showing on the screen and it's not recording anything, and the 3rd camera is just ignore altogether with no counter running or image being recorded.

Any idea what's going on? I thought this device would simply repeat the exact identical signal to each output firewire device, so why is only one camera recording when all three were acknowledged?

Thanks in advance!

[RichShumaker]

I am going to try this out when I get a chance. Using multiple DV cams into a single card.
I was going to try to use 3 low cost Via Eden boxes with a linux distro to write the files to a NAS server using a Gigabit Hub.
If I can use 1 or 2 or 3 IEEE-1394 cards in a single PC and write the DV files to a NAS server it will probably cost me less overall depending on the cost of the PC.

Each IEEE-1394 card would allow me a single video source without overtaxing the Card I do believe.
I do know that there is a solution that will transfer a single firewire source over 100 ft. and it cost about $150.00 for the boxes. I do not have a link but I will look for it to post up.

Using the Via Eden solution you would put the Via Eden boxes at the camera and then run CAT-5 cable to a Hub and write the files to a NAS RAID-0 stripped array. Then when you were done the shoot you would attach your editing software to the NAS and do your editing.
BTW the Via Eden solution is a THEORY I have not tried it yet.