Hi8 takes MiniDV tapes??

[OM2]

Hi8 and MiniDV - different formats
I've read up and know the difference

I've been researching camcorders for sale on eBay
MANY Hi8 camcorders are being advertised as MiniDV
The pictures ALL show a miniDV tape

Am I missing something?
I thought Hi8 tapes were a different size?
(I say this having never owned one)

For example, take this camcorder:

http://www.sony.co.uk/product/sdh-hi-8/dcr-trv14e

The website clearly says it's Hi8 - so it must be Hi8?

Why are so many people advertsing Hi8 as MiniDV?
Are they all wrong?
Are Hi8 tapes MiniDV tapes?

Can someone help solve my confusion

Thanks


OM

[jagabo]

Hi8/Video8 Playback: NO

It's a mini DV camcorder.

[OM2]

hmmm...
why is it listed unnder hi8 on the sony website in that case?
let me know what u think
thanks

[edDV]

hmmm...
why is it listed unnder hi8 on the sony website in that case?
let me know what u think
thanks

Video8 and Hi8 are analog Y/C (color under) formats recorded to 8mm tape.

DV (formally DV25) is a digital YCbCr format independent of media.

Digital8 is an 8mm tape format that uses the same tapes as Hi8 but records DV format at double tape speed vs. analog Hi8. Hence a 120min Hi8 tape can record 62min of DV in a Digital8 camcorder.

Now it gets confusing.

Some Digital8 camcorders can also play analog Video8 and Hi8 tapes and convert on the fly to DV format over Firewire (IEEE-1394). Some Digital8 camcorders also directly convert analog inputs* to DV format over Firewire. Not all Digital8 camcorders have these features so check first.

MiniDV is a separate incompatible tape format that also records DV25 format. The exact same format as Digital8.

DVCAM is a variation of MiniDV that records DV25 to wider tracks (fewer minutes) and has some special features of interest to broadcasters.

With me up to now?


* In the UK digital camcorders with analog inputs were taxed much higher than those without so analog inputs quickly disappeared from UK digital camcorder models. Another example of tax policy destroying a great product. No taxes were raised but the UK consumer suffered an inferior product experience.

[jagabo]

why is it listed unnder hi8 on the sony website in that case?

I think that is an orphan page. You can't get to it via the menus. I suspect it's simply a leftover page and it just looks like it appears under the Hi-8 menu. You can clearly see a Mini DV logo on the camcorder.

[OM2]

guys: thanks for the replies
that was really useful + educational!

[leemidi]

HEY! Anybody ever tried to physically modify a Hi8 cassette tape to play back in a Mini-DV player - like reload to a Mini-DV cassette or splice into one?.?..

[Cornucopia]

I think you mean D8 (digital, using DV compression), not Hi8 (analog, using Y/C storage) - as was ALREADY MENTIONED above.

No, it is NOT physically possible. Video8, Hi8 and D8 are all "8"mm wide tapes. DV is ¼" (aka 6.35mm) wide. The amount of tape is TOO BIG to fit into a Mini-DV player. D8 can use Metal Partical tape, while DV only allows Metal Evaporated. The recorded track pitch is different (because of different speeds, among other things), the guard band thickness is different, the azimuth is different, etc. DV spreads a frame's worth of data stream onto 10 "tracks", while D8 spreads it out onto 25.

Scott

[leemidi]

@Scott - Hey Man! Thanks so much for the response. I'm not technical but curious about the possibility of cross-format interoperability. You never know,
unless you ask
leemidi