Having trouble getting camcorder connected

[Eee-Tee]

When plugged in, the camcorder isn't recognised either in Studio 8 or for that matter in windows, but it says DV IN on the Camcorders screen. Any ideas what i should do?
I considered getting a new cable- do you think this would help?

[MarkE19]

Software often does not recognise the camcorder is you don't do things in the correct order. Try the following:

Power down the PC *
Connect camcorder to PC via firewire
Power on the camcorder in VCR mode
Boot PC *
Start the capture software

If you follow the above order (* optional) then as long as everything is in working order the PC should be able to capture from the camcorder with no problems.
If you try all the above and still have problems then replacing the firewire cable might well help.

Mark.

[Eee-Tee]

Mark- I've done what you advised but still no luck, so I'm gonna try my luck with a new cable. To check, when they differentiate between the various types, you go off the notches on the plugs themselves?If so I'm after a 6>4 pin cable?

[MarkE19]

6>4 is the standard cable for going from camcorder to PC.
The extra 2 pins are used for supplying power to the external device, such as a HDD/CD-ROM etc which is not needed obviously on a camcorder as it has it own battery. Some PC firewire ports may be 4 pin, but this is not generally the case and you would be able to tell by the size of the port.

Mark.

[Eee-Tee]

Cheers Mark- I've got maself a new cable from Jessops, but still no luck. Any ideas?

[Brian110507]

Have you got a friend with a camera and computer that do work Eee-tee perhaps you could try your camera on their system and perhaps as back-up they could try their camera on your PC - this should show us whether you may have a faulty camera or a faulty/incorrectly set computer.

What camera do you have ??

Are you setting the camera to VCR when switching on ??

[MarkE19]

Get a new camcorder or even a new PC or both!

Try going into 'Control Panel' (start, settings)
Select 'System'
Select the 'Hardware' tab
Click on 'Device Manager'
From the list of installed components find the Firewire/ieee1394 profile. Is there a yellow circle with an '!' in it? If so you have a problem with your firewire ports.
Right click on the port and select 'Properties' from the drop down menu. Click on the 'Troubleshoot' button and see what happens.

Mark.

[Eee-Tee]

Beejaycee- Unfortunately i don't know anyone who has a firewire port installed on their computer. I considered going to my local Jessops and seeing if they would let me test it on their in store comp, but when i phoned up they seemeda bit vague- something to do with blaming them if anything happens to it.....

Its a Canon ZR30, and it was in VCR mode


Mark, yep, i've done that and all's OK. I use the port on my soundBlaster graphics card, and the firewire port is also enabled & OK in network connections. I was thinking it maybe a driver issue, but I'm not sure about that....

[MarkE19]

Has the soundblaster firewire port ever worked? Have you updated the drivers for it?
I ask this because I have heard that the S/B F/W ports are not fully ieee1394 compatable and some people have had a lot of problems with them and in the end just put a £20 firewire card in their PC and had no further problems.

Mark.

[MarkE19]

Oh and by the way it will not IMO be firewire drivers causeing the problem as Windows (98SE or later) fully supports it without any additional drivers being required.

Mark.

[Eee-Tee]

Good advice Mark- The thing is, yes it has worked, and i've eduted a lot of stuff whilst using it. BUT, i have had this trouble before, where the cancorder isn't recognised and i can't go any further, but normally this could be rectified if i moved the cam whilst it was attached, and at some position or angle it would be recognised. I realise it shouldn't be doing this, but as long as i got it to work.....

I've downloaded the lated grivers from Creative, so i guess I'm up to date with those.
The prob i have is that i do have a firewire card, which i got bundled with studio S/w. Thinking along your lines i attempted to install it, but when i slotted it in, i dont think it went in all the way- not as much so as other cards. was i not pushing hard enough. I guess if i could get this card in it may solve ma probs....

[big@l]

Just a thought, reading your post you say it says dv in on the corder. Shouldn't this be dv out?

I'm only guessing as I'm new to this as well.

[MarkE19]

PCI cards do fit very firmly in my experiance. Try pushing a bit harder, but obviously don't overdo it.
I fitted a PCI USB2.0 card a while ago and just could not get it to fit. I ended up having to loosen the screws on the face plate as the slots and plate were out of alignment. It then pushed in without too much force.

Mark.

[Eee-Tee]

bog@l- I hadn't thought about that.
If I'm transfering footage from the cam to a PC, it should say DV out, whereas if I was transfering it back to tape, then i would expect it to say DV IN
Can anyone confirm this?
Perhaps this would explain my problem, although I'm sure its said it before and i've had no probs.....

Mark- thanks again, the fitting was a bit tight, and eventually i got it in correctly, and its recognised in network Connections like the Soundblaster one is. BUT, no improvment getting it working. What do you thinks about the DV IN idea?

[MarkE19]

I've never really looked that close at the display on the cam, but have just connected it to the PC to check. It says 'DV in' on my cam as well, so this is not the problem.

Ok so that only really leaves the camcorder. We have replaced the DV cable and the DV ports. You say that you have moved the cam around in the past and it has solved the problem so to me it sounds like there is something loose or a dry solder joint etc in the camcorder. The only real way to confirm this would be to get hold of another DV cam and connect it to your PC. If that works then we know there is nothing wrong with anything on there. Next is find a friend with a firewire port on their PC to connect your PC to. Firewire is becoming more common as a standard part of a modern MoBo, so as long as you do have friends , that have a modern PC that is then you just may be lucky.

Mark.