I have read on some of the threads that most people highly recommend buying a dedicated DV player (if that's your format) for capturing to your computer. Well, I know that makes alot of since because it will save a lot of wear and tear on your camera. However when I have tried to find a cheap DV player, the cheapest that I could find was the sony DSR-11. It was like at least $1500. I had a thought, why not buy a much cheaper mini DV cam and use it as my player for capture? I can get a new miniDV cam for less than 500. It has FW in and out, and s-video which is what I use to connect to my external monitor. Is this a stupid idea? Will the cam wear out much faster than a normal mini DV player? Please help me out here.

Josh,

Getting a cheap mini DV camera is not a bad idea at all. A lot of people are doing this for the purpose of capturing material to a NLE. Another added benefit is that now you'll have a second camera if you ever need one.

The only caveat to using a camera for capture is that the tape handling mechanisms are not as robust as you would find in a dedicated deck. If you are capturing for 8 hours a day 5 days a week, you would probably be better served by a dedicated deck.

Bill

i am lucky, i have a sony-gv-d900 mini-dv deck with a small lcd screen, but if i didn't have that i would just get a low end mini-dv camera and get the extended warranty!

if you wear it out then just get it repaired under warranty.

matthew

Just to note, some tape transports are warranted for only 90 days. Check your manufacturer.