Firewire adapter options for notebook
 

i've found a few firewire to USB cable/adapters on the net, and they range from $10 to $100. it seems that the $100 one is designed to work only with imagemixer, and i am not really sure what is the purpose of the cheaper ones since from my research it seems that you cannot bridge firewire to USB just by using a simple cable. is this correct?

if not, i would rather get a cable, but it needs to work with premiere pro 2.0 on vista. otherwise, i will get a standard firewire adapter for my laptop. adaptec tells me none of their PCMCIA adapters work on vista.

any recommendation on what i should get?

thanks

TC

I don't know about Vista, but PCMCIA cards are the way to go. A firewire to USB cable, even if it can capture the video (not sure about that), will not have device control, and that's vital for capturing.

thanks ervin... i know adaptec is a good brand, since the days of SCSI adapters. can you recommend another brand since adaptec tells me NONE of their cards are vista compatible (as weird as that seems that's what their customer support told me...)

There's modern laptops that don't come with firewire connections?

I have an Adaptec 3-port FireWire PCMCIA card that works just fine with Vista....

(Yes, even some current laptops don't have integral FireWire and only one PCMCIA slot.)

I also have a couple of ADS Pyro 1394 DV PCMCIA cards. I really like these for one reason: they are flat and have a dongle that you attach which means you can insert two at the same time. Others you can't. (I have need to do this!)

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc..._Firewire.html

thanks john, i am going to keep checking fot alternatives. i dont want to risk getting an adaptec when they dont assure compatibility... who knows vista SP1 comes out and the driver doesnt work anymore...

BTW i do have a laptop bought in the last six months that cost more than $1500. it doesnt have firewire because lenovo/IBM does not consider firewire a feature that should be included in a business machine....

I can't recommend any since I have no need for one... my almost 4 years old Sony Vaio came with built-in firewire port.

Just my two cents: go with any recognized brand, I bet they all support Vista even if some sleepy head tech support guy doesn't feel like. What manufacturer can afford in 2007 not to support the current opsys?

i noticed that the only reputable mfg current offering firewire cardbus adapters are Belkin and Adaptec. NONE of them list Vista compatible. I do find Vista compatible claims for less known brands... my take is that since MOST laptops come with it these days only the lesser known brands are still offering this type of product. thats my guess...

Are ADS not considered reputable? I've never had a problem with mine.

I'll try one with a Vista laptop and let you know how I get on.

Even if Vista compatibility is not listed, I strongly believe that all manufacturers have already come up with an updated driver for Vista. Just take your laptop to a reputable store, they will more than likely help you test the card before buying.

actually i did find a vista compatibility matrix on belkin's site and it lists that F5U513xx and F5U514xx are vista compatible (no update required). i'm going to purchase the F5U513xx and i will update the thread with the results.

thanks to all!