FX7 digital extender
 

Hi all,

I use my FX7 primarily in DV mode because i don't have a HDV deck or enough PC grunt to edit HD.
I was wondering, when using the digital extender in DV mode, is there still a loss of resolution?
For best results is it wise to shoot in HDV when i want to use the extender and down-convert from the camera? I'd like to avoid having to use the camera as a capture deck too much so would prefer to shoot in DV mode for now.

Thanks,
John

Surprising most pcs will edit hdv, i always shoot hdv, dvds can be burnt from it or down convert to mini dv,in my opinion it is better to archive hdv as in the future if its mini dv it cant be upgraded.The D Extender is bound to have some quality loss but on my 50" pioneer i can not see it with the naked eye.

Thanks Martin.
I figure if there is barely any noticible loss when shooting in HDV, it will not make any difference once i downconvert it to SD.
I do want to be shooting and archiving all my footage in HD even though i still edit in SD, but my biggest fear is that I will wear out the heads on my FX7 during capture.
At the moment i am shooting DV on the FX7 then capturing off my cheapo canon DV camera but i am currently on the lookout for a cheap second hand HDV cam to use as a deck.

John how much are going to be shooting these heads have a lot of life in them ,if i was you i would record everything in hdv[keep the tapes]if you want mini dv down convert via the firewire and capture mini dv to your pc. Martyn

If you edit in HDV, you can use the "zoom" feature in the editing software to select the area withinthe frame that you wish to appear in your video. When exported from the MLE as SD video, there is surprisingly little loss of quality.

An alternative is to use the zoom built in to the camera playback, though I find this gives poorer results. It is also more fiddly to do.

Have a look at Sonys GV-HD700 (E)
a small, relativ cheap HDV-Deck, also for DV and DVCAM-Tapes
for capturing (Firewire to PC) and "Dump to tape" and to view the tapes (HDMI-out) to TV

It is so small and light you can carry it like a book and still has a 7" monitor

volki