mixing live video to pc
 

We are currently using an Edirol V8 mixer (which is analog) to mix video from 3 x hdv cameras (Sony FX1's + V1) for Sunday church meetings. We run an analog to digital converter between the mixer and a pc for live capture.
However, with all this conversion going on (camera ditigal to mixer analog to pc digital),the final video quality is not very good.
Because of this we are having to capture and edit from the original dv tapes for broadcasting purposes. The mixer is suppose to save us time in this regard but because of the quality issue I am looking for a digital solution. There are digital mixers available from DataVideo but I was wondering if there are any other solutions out there?

Is it possible to connect 3 to 4 digital camcorders via firewire to the same pc and do live mixing without a physical mixer in the chain.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

I am also looking for a beter solution as my old panasonic WJAVE5 just died
Some software solutions are out there but i dont know if any are really good at full screen output and some require a Firewire card per camcorder. Let me know if you find something that can produce professional or 'prosumer' results

I remember seeing a switcher at NAB a few years ago that had FW inputs, I thought it was from Focus Enhancements, but I don't see it on their site now.

I quick google search dug up this one:
Datavideo | SE-800 Digital Video Mixer | SE-800DV - NTSC | B&H

Are you trying to record HDV, or just DV?

I saw some cool software at WFX that will allow you to begin editing in FCP while you are still recording the service. I think they have an HDV version of the software. I can't remember the name, but I have their paperwork at the office.

~Jay