Going Digital - a wish list

[kidspot]

I sent my S-VHS camera in for repair the middle of December, still no word on it's completion. Since I have a filming day set up for Feb. 12 I have begun thinking "what if's"

Like "what if I need to get a new camera because the other's not back from the shop yet?" (A new camera is not going to happen any time soon, but one can always dream - right?)

So I start looking at the cameras (sub $5000) and the comparison charts I see of the Canon XL1 and GL1 are surprisingly similar, the only differences I see listed are the interchangeable lenses on the XL1 and LCD screen on the GL1 (plus greater optical zoom) anyone. So anyone know the advantage of spending an extra $1500 on the XL1 (if changing lenses is not an issue?) Any quality difference?

Like I said, it's not going to happen any time soon - but it's fun dreamin' . . . Of course then I would have to add the RT2000 instead of my Marvel G400 to make the most of digital . . . Hmmm . . .

[kidspot]

Currently using Media Studio Pro 5.2. I don't know if my camera is single or triple CCD (the manual does not say) It's a Panasonic AG-455P.

[Elie]

The XL1 offers more manual adjustments and cotrols asside from the interchangable lens than the GL1 like audio adjustments etc. but you can always get around that by using the beachtek XLR addon which includes level controls.

The GL1's lense is awesome being flourite, the same lense for the XL1 is someting like $2K.

The XL1 just looks better and is more flexible and durable great if your in the business, you don't want to show up at a wedding carrying the GL1 around, people will just think your part of the audience

The XL1's balance is it's biggest fault, it's front heavy so you always tend to shoot downwards after a while, but you can get around that by purchasing the MA100 and adding a couple of battery packs at the end but the camera starts weighing even more oh well
They are both great camera's, For the hobbiest I suggest the GL1 big time.

Regards.
Elie

[jeff b]

Yeah! So, if you've got MSP 5.2, you'll be able to upgrade as soon as MSP 6.0 comes out. That, and an IEEE-1394 port will be all you'll need to work with mini-DV. I think Elie knows the score on the Canons XL1 and GL1, either of which would be a real nice step up for you.

[jeff b]

If your S-VHS unit is a single CCD camcorder, going to a single chip mini-DV camcorder for under $1000 would probably make you happy. If it's a 3 CCD unit, then the GL-1 or the Sony TRV-900 for around $2000 would make you VERY happy.

Capturing and editing mini-DV will be a lot cheaper than the $1200 needed for the RT2000. Cheap IEEE-1394 cards and the very soon to be released Ulead MediaStudio Pro version 6.0 will get you there for about half. So, also, would the Canopus DVRaptor.

What are you using now for editing?

[kidspot]

Thanks Jeff B. & Elie . . . so assuming I go the digital route - Is there an IEEE 1394 card you would recomend that can be purchased without software (seeing how I am very happy with MSP 5.2?) And should I expect any conflicts between it and my G400 Marvel?

This is getting fun - maybe I can "scrounge" up the finances soon . . .

The Doc was right in one of his earlier posts to me . . . I've been bitten by the video bug.

[jeff b]

The three that I know of are SIIG, PYRO, and ADAPTEC, when it comes to 1394 cards that are being talked about in this forum, and in rec.video.desktop newsgroup. These come up most often because they're targetted to being used with NLE software of various kinds, for mini-DV. The fact is, any Texas Instruments based IEEE-1394 add-on card will be fine, and these are getting pretty inexpensive at this point.

One hitch is that Windows 98 Second Edition seems to be the more reliable platform with IEEE-1394, generally, and mini-DV work in particular. The other hitch is how the mini-DV stream gets handled in NLE software...

There's two 'types' of mini-DV formats for files on the computer. Type 1 is a data stream that has both the video and the audio data mixed together, and this is how it comes out of the camcorder. Type 2 is a data stream that has the video and audio handled separately. Both types get saved on a Windows based computer as a '.AVI' file.

The Type 1 files that you get out of 1394 won't be recognized by MediaStudio Pro 5.2 at all. It'll handle Type 2 files just fine, though. The upgrade to MSP 6.0, apparently, is bridging this gap, one way or another.

Interestingly enough, Canopus bridged this gap many months ago with the release of the DVRaptor.

These are software based solutions to the Type 1 vs Type 2 problem.

The hardware based solutions are more expensive: DV500 and RT2000.

If you were starting from scratch, the software based solutions would be either a generic based 1394 card and MSP 6.0, or Canopus DVRaptor, both in the $500 range. What's really nice about already having MSP 5.2, is that this whole thing will be a whole lot cheaper to upgrade into using DV. I'm guessing under $200 for the upgrade from Ulead.

As far as having conflicts with a 1394 card and your G400 Marvel, I really couldn't say that you would or wouldn't. All I can say that is that I bought a SIIG IEEE-1394 DV CAM KIT, bundled with Ulead VideoStudio, installed everything, and had no problems with my Mystique220/Rainbow Runner Studio. This has all been running fine for a couple of months. Of course, I still have the limitations of the Type 1 vs Type 2 problem, and that's why I'm chomping at the bit for Ulead to release MSP version 6.0...

[kidspot]

One more question - (uh oh, looks like I'm getting serious about going digital now - maybe it will happen sooner than expected) Anyone tried the DV500 with GL-1 or a Matrox G400? Since Pinnacle does not list either of those on their compatability chart.

Thanks again -

P.S. After reading through the posts at several other forums tonight - I'm really glad for the MURCer's here.

The Next Day . . . Elie, Thanks for recommending the GL-1, I just ordered it and am looking forward to filming with it. A plain IEEE 1394 card for now and waiting for MSP 6.0 - thanks for the idea Jeff B.

[This message has been edited by kidspot (edited 02 February 2000).]