I find the H1 op manual somewhat inadequate on use of the camcorder as a playback deck during editing. I'm running FCP 5 on a 17" powerbook 1.67;
OSX 10.4.6; 1Gig Ram; external f/w drives.

Issues: 1. Does the camcorder have to be in rec-pause to pass an HDV signal thru to a YPbPr monitor? other cams don't.
2. Are there any articles, threads, "for dummies" books which specify the setup (camcorder and FCP) for monitoring HDV?
3. Am I in the wrong forum?
Any help would be appreciated. -- oliver

It's not possible to view your FCP timeline via the camera on a external monitor like you're use to do with DV. It's a HDV limitation (has something to do with the huge comp-processor demand). You've to buy a HD-video card like a blackmagic or Aja if you want a preview on an external monitor.

Many thanks Vincent for taking the time to educate an HD newby. It seems I,m now in the market for a completely new G5 system -- or wait for an intel based tower if I want to stay with FCP. $$$ >!

You may also want to consider checking out the new Matrox MXO box. It uses a DVI connection to output video from FCP and claims to accelerate HDV and such. The site says that you can use the box with the PowerBook via DVI of course. The box doesn't capture video, but it looks like a good option for monitoring and output especially when using a PowerBook.

http://www.matrox.com/video/products/mxo/home.cfm

Thanks loads Cale, Pending price quote I am seriously looking at the MXO box. -- Best regards, oliver