VideoHelp Forum
+ Reply to Thread
Results 1 to 14 of 14
Thread
  1. Member seven1970's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Australia
    Search Comp PM
    I have a Sony HC9 video camera.

    My old laptop had a firewire port.

    This one does not.

    How else can I connect the video camera (its an old Mini DV cassette camera) to my laptop?

    Here is the camera:

    http://www.amazon.com/Sony-HDR-HC9-Defin…



    No expansion card slot on my new laptop.

    It has a VGA connector and HDMI.


    Dont have the old laptop anymore.
    Quote Quote  
  2. aBigMeanie aedipuss's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    666th portal
    Search Comp PM
    should've thought of it before you bought the new laptop. sell it and get one with a firewire port.
    --
    "a lot of people are better dead" - prisoner KSC2-303
    Quote Quote  
  3. Member seven1970's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Australia
    Search Comp PM
    Originally Posted by aedipuss View Post
    should've thought of it before you bought the new laptop. sell it and get one with a firewire port.
    I was going to sell my camera, but now I have a use for it.


    Any solutions to give, or just trolling?
    Quote Quote  
  4. Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    United States
    Search Comp PM
    Unless the laptop has an ExpressCard slot (and few do now) you are out of luck. There are ExpressCard firewire adapters that will work with a camera. USB 2.0 to firewire adapters are useless for transferring video from a camera.

    [Edit] I just re-read your initial post and it looks like you don't have an ExpressCard slot.

    I just looked at the Amazon listing and noticed it mentioned the camera can use a "Memory Stick PRO Duo media card". Surely there is a USB card reader that can be used to read files stored on the memory card.
    Last edited by usually_quiet; 22nd Nov 2013 at 21:39.
    Quote Quote  
  5. aBigMeanie aedipuss's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    666th portal
    Search Comp PM
    the memory card was for still pics.
    --
    "a lot of people are better dead" - prisoner KSC2-303
    Quote Quote  
  6. Member seven1970's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Australia
    Search Comp PM
    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post
    Unless the laptop has an ExpressCard slot (and few do now) you are out of luck. There are ExpressCard firewire adapters that will work with a camera. USB 2.0 to firewire adapters are useless for transferring video from a camera.

    [Edit] I just re-read your initial post and it looks like you don't have an ExpressCard slot.

    I just looked at the Amazon listing and noticed it mentioned the camera can use a "Memory Stick PRO Duo media card". Surely there is a USB card reader that can be used to read files stored on the memory card.
    Yep, memory card is only for pics.


    Basically I am screwed.


    Thanks.
    Quote Quote  
  7. Member
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    Near the Beach
    Search Comp PM
    can't you look for an old PC for a few bucks? Not more than 50 Dollars for an old Core Duo, or even a P4 with Firewire Card. Only for capturing the material.
    Then send the file through your LAN to your Laptop.
    Just an idea, to keep it cheap.
    Quote Quote  
  8. Member
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Virginia
    Search Comp PM
    How about a USB to Firewire cable like this:
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812705049
    Quote Quote  
  9. Originally Posted by pjcrown View Post
    How about a USB to Firewire cable like this:
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812705049
    For connecting an external drive, maybe. Useless for a camera.
    Quote Quote  
  10. Member Skiller's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Germany
    Search PM
    Actually I have been transferring (and still do) my MiniDV footage via USB for years using a Pinnacle USB 500 (which is actually a USB capture card, but it also has a Firewire input). I did this even though I do have a proper Firewire port on my PC, but it's at the back of the PC so for the convenience I use the front USB port via the USB 500 and it does work perfectly. There's no difference at all, it works the same way and you get the same data onto your HDD.

    Heck, you can even capture fully lossless 4:2:2 SD via USB2.0 – DV's 3.7 MiB/s is no problem at all.


    That being said, I'm not sure if this USB to Firewire cable thingy will work with a camera because I suppose there has to be some electronics involved, right?
    Quote Quote  
  11. Originally Posted by Skiller View Post
    Actually I have been transferring (and still do) my MiniDV footage via USB for years using a Pinnacle USB 500 (which is actually a USB capture card, but it also has a Firewire input).
    personally i cant see how it can possibly transfer video from a mini dv tape to your hdd, but i would love to see your videos after they were transferred to your hdd with this device if you claim you can do it, because nobody i know who tried it could get it to work.
    Quote Quote  
  12. Originally Posted by glenpinn View Post
    Originally Posted by Skiller View Post
    Actually I have been transferring (and still do) my MiniDV footage via USB for years using a Pinnacle USB 500 (which is actually a USB capture card, but it also has a Firewire input).
    personally i cant see how it can possibly transfer video from a mini dv tape to your hdd, but i would love to see your videos after they were transferred to your hdd with this device if you claim you can do it, because nobody i know who tried it could get it to work.
    A while ago I had problems with the firewire card I had installed in my PC and needed to transfer some miniDV tapes for a job and borrowed my brotherīs Pinnacle Moviebox witch is also a firewire/analog to USB device, connected my camcorder and tranferred everything without a problem in Premiere (it recognized the camcorder perfectly) After that I replaced the firewire card with a new one and returned the MovieBox but I can say these devices actually do work. Only problem is that I think they donīt sell it anymore (new at least)
    Quote Quote  
  13. Member turk690's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Location
    ON, Canada
    Search Comp PM
    Originally Posted by glenpinn View Post
    Originally Posted by Skiller View Post
    Actually I have been transferring (and still do) my MiniDV footage via USB for years using a Pinnacle USB 500 (which is actually a USB capture card, but it also has a Firewire input).
    personally i cant see how it can possibly transfer video from a mini dv tape to your hdd, but i would love to see your videos after they were transferred to your hdd with this device if you claim you can do it, because nobody i know who tried it could get it to work.
    The pinnacle 500 USB device is a sophisticated unit that includes a h/w FireWire2USB bridge that preserves OHCI controls with its drivers. As far as the camcorder knows, it's connected to a legit OHCI FireWire card, and as far as the PC knows, it sees a legit connected FireWire device. The purposely-written drivers restrict the USB polling feature typical of USB ports to prevent interrupting capture streams and more. The pinnacle 500 is deliberately made for this, does it adequately, but was not an inexpensive device in its day.
    It shouldn't be compared with run-of-the-mill cheap FireWire2USB adapters that are not even OHCI (open host control interface, required by DV camcorders) but UHCI (universal, only good for HDDs, scanners, etc) that even come with very badly written drivers. These devices are the ones which will never work with DV camcorders.
    For the nth time, with the possible exception of certain Intel processors, I don't have/ever owned anything whose name starts with "i".
    Quote Quote  
  14. thanks a lot for that info guys, i honestly had no idea this device was even available, and when reading stuff about it, i still didnt understand how it could still transfer DV-Avi footage from tape to the pc in real time, because tape can only be done in real time.

    i googled that device and in many of the resulting links i found, many were saying that device was a dud and did not even work the way they said it would.

    anyway, interesting to know it works.
    Quote Quote  



Similar Threads

Visit our sponsor! Try DVDFab and backup Blu-rays!