how to avoid drop frames

[The Linguist]

I tried winDV and captured 35 minutes of video with zero frames dropped. At this point I'm happy but hope it works next time.

[InXess]

Hmm. that proves that your Premiere is at fault eating away your precious resources. It may have something to do with lack of Premiere's optimization or a bit ambiguous environment (codecs config, bus mastering (a key), software conflicts etc.) 70 % CPU usage is high for generally file transfer (by its nature this is more compiling then encoding). Btw. I don't use Premiere, never liked it for its "take it all" appetite. Software like this needs an environment that's geared towards not interfering with its "leading" attitude.

At this point I have to say I'm very impressed with edDV readiness and systematic approach. I'm more of a common sense, a "gut feeling" kind of guy coming from my "to date" experience but edDV with his scientific inclination delivers the goods. Hats off.

This method tells more about what's going on then blindly fishing in muddy waters. Now what you need to do it clear the way for Premiere (and possibly not only). You can also check what others have to say in eg. Adobe forums.
To add: 20% for system background processes seems too much as well. There is a need to streamline things here, I'd say.

[edDV]

Assuming Premiere Pro is set to DV Project settings, I'm at a loss why it is consuming that much resource.

[InXess]

I'd have a closer look at codecs here. Something makes it work too hard. Correct me if I'm wrong but seems like WinDV has its own approach to DV codec (possibly internal...?). Sorry, just brainstorming...

[edDV]

I'd have a closer look at codecs here. Something makes it work too hard. Correct me if I'm wrong but seems like WinDV has its own appreach to DV codec (possibly internal...?). Sorry, just brainstorming...

There is no codec in the signal path, it is a data transfer from the camcorder (or transcoder) to a file on the HDD. WinDV is just a control panel for DirectShow (part of DirectX). It uses the MS DV codec only to monitor the stream. No data is changed.

Premiere does much the same thing during the capture stage. Premiere will use its own DV codec to process the file.

[InXess]

to avoid repetition I post a link (nothing revolutionary but discusses major points to observe):
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/archive/index.php/t-6268.html

and this:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/archive/index.php/t-7041.html
about the DMA issue

Funny thing, I've never had dropped frames, have all sorts of software and tools on it. Even Pinnacle Studio 9.4 (I love it for amazing scene detection without file cutting) runs like a charm.