The Gigantic Mini DV Deck / Camcorder as Deck Thread

[Tague Hurley]

Well I am finally ready to invest in a Mini DV deck. For awhile I was leaning towards just buying a low-end camera, but have pretty much ruled that out for fear that the camera might not be able to withstand the wear and tear. Since it is a cheaper machine it makes sense that it wouldnt be as quick and responsive as a deck that was designed for capturing video.

Unfortunately I cant spend the $1700 for the Sony DSR-11. So after reading this post and others it seems like my choices are narrowed down to...

JVC HR-DVS3U

or the
Sony GV-D1000

However I thought I would first ask if anybody knows of any newer technology or OTHER options as far as DV decks today.

my problem with the JVC is I have no use for the VHS side of the deck, and I've read a few reviews that the JVC's just are not that reliable.

my problem with the GV-D1000 is I dont really need the LCD even though I could see it being handy on a few occasions.

So any other suggestions as of Today July 02, 2005?

Thanks

[Dan Mumford]

Tague,

I have to throw my two cents worth in here. I too, have the GV-D1000. It is an excellent choice with many features above being a capture drive. It is small and portable enough to go with you while taping, giving a larger screen for composition, and a tape back-up to boot.

While too big to mount on the camera, you can get a case from Porta Brace that allows you to hang it around your neck to use as a monitor. And, as mentioned before, it is great to use to show your client/potential client, footage of your shoot.

Dan

[J. Stephen McDonald]

Originally Posted by Tague Hurley

Well I am finally ready to invest in a Mini DV deck. For awhile I was leaning towards just buying a low-end camera, but have pretty much ruled that out for fear that the camera might not be able to withstand the wear and tear. Since it is a cheaper machine it makes sense that it wouldnt be as quick and responsive as a deck that was designed for capturing video.

Unfortunately I cant spend the $1700 for the Sony DSR-11. So after reading this post and others it seems like my choices are narrowed down to...

JVC HR-DVS3U

or the
Sony GV-D1000

However I thought I would first ask if anybody knows of any newer technology or OTHER options as far as DV decks today.

my problem with the JVC is I have no use for the VHS side of the deck, and I've read a few reviews that the JVC's just are not that reliable.

my problem with the GV-D1000 is I dont really need the LCD even though I could see it being handy on a few occasions.

So any other suggestions as of Today July 02, 2005?

Thanks

I have both the JVC HR-DVS3U and the Sony GV-D1000 and I like them both.
I use the JVC most often, simply because I bought it mainly to save wear on the Sony. However, I've found that it functions without flaw and so I don't hesitate to use it as my primary playback VCR, even for the most important projects. The DVS3U doesn't show the frame numbers on either the front-panel timecode display or on its analog output. However, it does record frame numbers and passes them along on the FireWire signal. The frame numbers show when it's captured on a computer. It doesn't re-record or pass on Sony datacode.

The Sony GV-D1000 shows complete timecode and datacode on its viewscreen, as well as on its analog output. The timecode display on its LCD screen does come in handy when I'm copying to another digital or analog VCR and it's great for use as a portable, self-contained video theatre in a pocket.

The DVS3U doesn't play back pre-recorded DVCam, while the GV-D1000 does play it back, but doesn't record it. The slightly more expensive pro-division version of the DVS3U does play back DVCam. The JVC is about $300. less expensive than the Sony and has the added advantage of containing an S-VHS deck and an analog tuner. I often make S-VHS distribution copies and this VCR comes in handy for internal DV to S-VHS copying. You can buy both these VCRs for the cost of one Sony DSR-11. I'm glad I got them both, as they give me everything (except audio dubbing) I could want in DV VCR functions.

[Anthony Marotti]

Hello,

I have a new DSR-11 and am extremely happy with it!

[Konstantin Vilenchitz]

Originally Posted by Henry Harrison

I'm a bit of a newbie here but I've been reading this thread (and others) looking into a cheap way to save the heads on my XL1s. since price (i don't have $1400) is a large factor for me, I'm leaning towards an inexpensive dvcam corder for a deck. All i'm really concerned about is getting the footage into FCP. I noticed the comments regarding the canon ZR series in earlier posts and I'm wondering if anyone knows if they are compatible with the device control functionality in FCP. Or would other cameras be better for this. I'd hate to spend 300+ for the ability to import footage and then have to do it all manually.
Any thoughts and advice would be appreciated.

Before I upgraded from my ZR40 to my PDX10, I used it with Final Cut and had no problems with it. The only thing I noticed that it was a little sluggish in responding to the remote command from FCP when batch capturing.

Where my PDX10 blazes to a precise spot, I can hear the ZR near the spot, then rewind, then forward, then rewind, until it nails the exact timecode. It always got the job done, but was a little slower in doing it.

[Mike Rinkunas]

Hey all...

i'm thinking of upgrading to uncompressed editing, and i'm looking into a blackmagic SD extreme card and a new DV deck. (on a side note, premiere pro will support this correct?)

I would like to find a deck that supports DVCPro 25/50 while still accepting mini-DV tapes - even if it uses an adapter, that has component outputs at minimum- would love to have SDI.

any recommendations?

thanks
~Mike

[Wesley Wong]

Gotta a deck in da company now that seems kinda wonky; had to clean it a few times in 1 week, to get the tape with TC running. Sometimes there's black bars and squares scattered over the video b4 cleaning.

The Drum rotation says : 0201 X 10 H

and the Threading : 0932 X 10 H

It is time to service / change the head ?

Anyone's been keeping tabs on their deck life ?


Cheers.

[Wesley Wong]

Noone here uses decks on a heavy duty basis ??

[Jacques Mersereau]

Personally, I have a DSR45 that has been working for YEARS now.
Thousands of hours and no trouble. It is due to die any day and I can't
complain if it did.

At the University, we have six DSR11s and they've all had to be
sent to the shop for repairs. Some more than two times.
Many of those repairs cost over $800 each.

As always, WMMV.

[Joseph Ivey]

I am looking for a modestly priced (I have heard one runs for $1,500) dv deck to hook up to my computer for capturing video into FCP. What are some places to look and some quality decks that you guys own or have used? I figure if I can buy a deck then there is no sense in putting more wear on my camera than need be.

[Marius Luessi]

Best bang for buck: Sony DSR-11, does PAL or NTSC, DV-cam or DV and takes Mini-DV or full sized DV tapes.

B&H sells it for $1650:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/sitem/sku=212935&is=REG&m=Y

[Glenn Chan]

The Panasonic decks might be a little better value.

Headphone jack.
Supposedly does 7.5IRE setup. It either adds fake setup (by manipulating digital black level to be higher than standard), or it does real setup (puts digital black level at 7.5IRE instead of 0).
Don't record DVCAM.

[Joseph Ivey]

Are both the Sony and Panasonic deck controllable with FCP 4.5 or 5.0? Because I would want to be connecting them to my G5 desktop so I won't have to use my camera to capture anymore.

[Justin Kohli]

Is this akin to using an audio interface to capture audio directly to hard-drive, instead of to a sampler?

[C. Byrne]

I use the DSR-11 with FCP 4.5 and it works great. The only thing is it doesn't have an audio monitor jack so I just use an RCA to Stereo adapter and monitor that way.