Canon Hi8 A1, need more info

[lipwak]

Hi,

A friend gave me an old Canon Hi8 camcorder. I am not sure of the model number except that A1 Digital appears on it and in another location, Canovision 8. On the bottom where the faded bar code is for the serial number it says "Canon A1DigitalA". It was manufactured in Oct 1990.

I can get it to play, rewind, fast forward, eject and load the tape but can't see any playback in the eyepiece or when I hook up to my tv with either the yellow RCA connecter or an S-VHS connector. I cannot hear any audio either but I see the meters showing some content when playing back. I've tried the headphone and audio RCA outs.

I am heistant to try recording until I can tell what's on the sole tape that I have.

I have looked for manuals but haven't found any yet. The Canon site has a few for Hi8's but I am not sure which model mine is.

I can post a pic if that would help.

Many thanks for any help on figuring out more about this camcorder.

Cheers,

John L

[aedipuss]

"Canovision 8 A1" came out in 1989.

[edDV]

Does the camcorder have Hi8 lables anywhere? "Canovision8" usually was associated with the Video8 8mm standard. A Video8 camcorder will not play Hi8 tapes.

Here is what I'd do.

1. Play a known good Video8 tape. If you don't have one proceed to next step.
2. Buy a fresh 8mm Video8 tape. These are still available in most pharmacies or Radio Shack type stores.
3. Record some fresh material and see if it plays back.
4. If the camcoder has video inputs, try to record from these and play back.

[lipwak]

Yes, it does have Hi8 written in at least two places and the tape is indeed Hi8 (metal 120). I'll check out some new tape.

Thanks!

It appears to have video and audio outputs but they aren't marked as outputs. I have a silver RCA-like output with an "A" near it which I guess is an audio output, a yellow one (with a "V" near it) which would be video, a digital audio connector that is just a square mount with a small round protruding hole, then below that, audio left and right RCAs, then below that, what could be a remote control port and an S-VHS jack. All of this is behind a door. There is also an edit switch here. I've tried it in both positions to see if one would allow me to see playback.

I recognize all but the silver RCA-like one. That may be some sort of audio connector.

I wonder if they also serve as inputs for editing?

[edDV]

OK, S-Video connector confirms this is a Hi8 model. Most models in those days had input capability. Some used the same connectors, others had breakout cables.

You need to find a manual for this.