Transfering Betacam to mini dv? at DVinfo.net

Dean Loaney · June 11th, 2006, 06:55 AM

Hey there!

I will be doing a shoot with Betacams and mini dv's, and need everything transfered to mini dv.

The camera im using is a DSR-709! Unfortunetly it only has video out, no firewire.

Would I just plug the video out into a monitor, and plug a minidv camera in and capture it using video in?

How much quality would I lose doing it this way!

Thanks guys!

Bob Grant · June 11th, 2006, 07:24 AM

One would loose a HUGE amount of quality doing it that way, one would wonder why you'd shoot Betacam and then do that. Even DV would suffer being transfered that way.

The simplest way is to play the tape out of say a Sony J30 deck down firewire into a DV deck and record. To my eyes you can get a slightly better transfer taking the SDI output from the deck into the SD Connect from Convergent Design, let it do the down convert to firewire and then record that.

Regardless though I have to question the wisdom of spending the money to shoot on the 709 only to then downconvert to DV. There's plenty of very good DV cameras such as the 570 that are native DVCAM.

I've done many betacam to DV conversions however I'm working in PAL and the output was DVD so the loss in the color sampling during the downconvert was barely noticeable in the final product. Working in NTSC might be a different matter.

Graeme Nattress · June 11th, 2006, 07:28 AM

Don't do it from the camera - preview out only, really. Get a decent SP deck and connect it via component cables to a high end DVCAM deck that accepts component input. Make sure that the video levels are correct - you may need a proc amp for this, and dub. I'd just pay a facilities house to do it for you.

Above advice about J30 is also a very good route.

But really, you'd have been better off shooting direct to DV and avoiding SP altogether.

Graeme

Dean Loaney · June 11th, 2006, 08:02 AM

Thanks for the replies!

The reason im spending all this money, is because my old man owns the camera, so im not spending anything!!!

The tapedeck is the best option but the cost .... ahhh the cost!!!

Douglas Call · June 11th, 2006, 10:59 AM

I use a local service here in Miami (Accord) everytime I want to convert from one format to another. They have very high quality betacam and every other kind of deck and it usually cost me about $2.00/minute. Since I usually only get 30 or 40 minutes worth of beta sp its a lot cheaper than renting the beta sp deck for a day.

Peter Ferling · June 12th, 2006, 09:12 AM

Yeah, 200/day for sony beta deck, or $35-50 per hour in a local shop. But never camera to camera. Yuck.

June 11th, 2006, 06:55 AM	#1
Dean Loaney New Boot Join Date: May 2006 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 11	Transfering Betacam to mini dv? Hey there! I will be doing a shoot with Betacams and mini dv's, and need everything transfered to mini dv. The camera im using is a DSR-709! Unfortunetly it only has video out, no firewire. Would I just plug the video out into a monitor, and plug a minidv camera in and capture it using video in? How much quality would I lose doing it this way! Thanks guys!

June 11th, 2006, 07:28 AM	#3
Graeme Nattress RED Problem Solver Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Ottawa, Canada Posts: 1,365	Don't do it from the camera - preview out only, really. Get a decent SP deck and connect it via component cables to a high end DVCAM deck that accepts component input. Make sure that the video levels are correct - you may need a proc amp for this, and dub. I'd just pay a facilities house to do it for you. Above advice about J30 is also a very good route. But really, you'd have been better off shooting direct to DV and avoiding SP altogether. Graeme __________________ www.nattress.com - filters for FCP

June 11th, 2006, 10:59 AM	#5
Douglas Call Major Player Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Hollywood, FL Posts: 302	Just use a local service to convert betacam to DV I use a local service here in Miami (Accord) everytime I want to convert from one format to another. They have very high quality betacam and every other kind of deck and it usually cost me about $2.00/minute. Since I usually only get 30 or 40 minutes worth of beta sp its a lot cheaper than renting the beta sp deck for a day.

June 12th, 2006, 09:12 AM	#6
Peter Ferling Trustee Join Date: May 2005 Location: Wyomissing, PA Posts: 1,141 Images: 57	Yeah, 200/day for sony beta deck, or $35-50 per hour in a local shop. But never camera to camera. Yuck. __________________ Pete Ferling http://ferling.net It's never a mistake if you learn something new from it. -------------------------------------------

June 11th, 2006, 07:24 AM	#2
Bob Grant Trustee Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 1,570	One would loose a HUGE amount of quality doing it that way, one would wonder why you'd shoot Betacam and then do that. Even DV would suffer being transfered that way. The simplest way is to play the tape out of say a Sony J30 deck down firewire into a DV deck and record. To my eyes you can get a slightly better transfer taking the SDI output from the deck into the SD Connect from Convergent Design, let it do the down convert to firewire and then record that. Regardless though I have to question the wisdom of spending the money to shoot on the 709 only to then downconvert to DV. There's plenty of very good DV cameras such as the 570 that are native DVCAM. I've done many betacam to DV conversions however I'm working in PAL and the output was DVD so the loss in the color sampling during the downconvert was barely noticeable in the final product. Working in NTSC might be a different matter.

June 11th, 2006, 08:02 AM	#4
Dean Loaney New Boot Join Date: May 2006 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 11	Thanks for the replies! The reason im spending all this money, is because my old man owns the camera, so im not spending anything!!! The tapedeck is the best option but the cost .... ahhh the cost!!!