Can someone please explain the different firewire cables.

My computer has both a 6 pin and what I think is a 4 pin connector (but is described as a "10-1 pin IE1394_2".

What is the difference?

Which should I use to connect, say an HF100?

Thanks

[A n d r e w]

HF100 connects with USB, not Firewire. Firewire is for DV and HDV camcorders. 4-pin connectors don't draw power from the computer; 6-pin connectors do. A typical DV/HDV firewire device will have a 4-pin connector at the camera end, requiring a 6-to-4-pin Firewire cable. There is also a 9-pin Firewire port for the FW800 protocol (6-pin ports are for FW400). Couldn't be simpler.

IEEE 1394 interface - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Originally Posted by A n d r e w

A typical DV/HDV firewire device will have a 4-pin connector at the camera end, requiring a 6-to-4-pin Firewire cable.

Could you use a 4-pin to 4-pin? Or don't they exist?

Originally Posted by A n d r e w

There is also a 9-pin Firewire port for the FW800 protocol (6-pin ports are for FW400).

So... is my 10-1 a 9-pin? Or is it a 4-pin socket connected to a 9 pin header on the motherboard? Or something else?

If it is a 4-pin on a 9-pin header, could I attach a 9-pin socket to it at some point - if I wanted to?

Thanks

Is eSATA ever used in AV / Camcorder interfaces?

[senu]

Originally Posted by Gasman2

Is eSATA ever used in AV / Camcorder interfaces?

No

[MarkE19]

Originally Posted by Gasman2

Could you use a 4-pin to 4-pin? Or don't they exist?

Yes they do exist and are normally used for connecting a camcorder to a laptop.

Originally Posted by Gasman2

So... is my 10-1 a 9-pin? Or is it a 4-pin socket connected to a 9 pin header on the motherboard? Or something else?

If it is a 4-pin on a 9-pin header, could I attach a 9-pin socket to it at some point - if I wanted to?

Thanks

Without seeing it it is impossible to say. A 9 pin firewire port should be bigger than a 6 pin port, which is bigger than a 4 pin port.
Have a look at the manual for your motherboard to see if it has onboard firewire800. if it does then you should be able to just connect a different header to get the added speed (for a FW800 device only though).

Mark.

Thanks all