Can anyone tell me what’s a suitable data storage device to attach to Canon XH-A1 and A1s cameras? I’m selling both and would like to be able to tell the buyer what tapeless units he or she can buy.

Both the Sony HVR-MRC1K and the Datavideo DN-60A are discontinued and I haven’t seen any on sale anywhere.

Cheers.

Allan - Would a previously owned or used model work?

If it helps any, in the case of the Sony, a check with the US eBay site there was one "K" model listed; however, there are a number of HVR-MRC1 units advertised. As a suggestion, one might search for the non-"K" model numbers.

A reply to an old 2010 post on DVinfo indicated the K may indicate a "Kit" model that included the cradle.

The eBay search for the Datavideo DN-60A didn't come up with anything.

Disclaimer: I have no idea what the current shipping and customs hassle would be like with buying from overseas. Certainly, with a used item, one would have to be very careful. Years ago I hitchhiked around New Zealand and it was obvious that everything from the US was "very dear".

Thanks John I appreciate your reply.

I wasn’t intending to buy a unit, just have the info. to let a buyer of the camera know what’s available and I thought you may know of a different unit. A closer look on eBay I see there’s a couple of used Sony HVR-MRC1K units for sale in Japan, and now I’m wondering whether buying one, will better the chance of selling my tape based Canon XH-A1, also for a better price of course. Check this out …

https://www.ebay.com/itm/313822939997?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D1110006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D23919 4%26meid%3D8521f7ccfdc247d5b0b7a301b24e8f80%26pid%3D101195%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D12%26sd%3D144534582217%2 6itm%3D313822939997%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2047675%26algv%3DSimplAMLv9PairwiseWebMskuAspectsV202 110NoVariantSeed%26brand%3DSony&_trksid=p2047675.c101195.m1851&amdata=cksum%3A3138229399978521f7ccfdc247d5b0b7a301b24e8f80%7Cenc%3AAQAHAAABEM62y5oF87QoT6OYoyXNw4iz fwJ%252BpKoHqvAE4CZ11ciMz0vIp%252FQWhPX3NCmG8yHrUNax8Z1dvrSJ3VxegkSWHUWCFCe0oALkLjy7KQgZ0Ha9%252BwaN EJtMwJrJrtnl0Vkpdx2qwr8T87T6xkKSJt9Red%252FKbdcGlroEJHq19IOIKI8%252FIulAnSKCAy4XqqteVRhydplL9pFeIgNz bPW06xLHnHiD7EM5zyZRIEWb20HsPwo4vumKDgjM9viUHyMD6EIYzwizrNxqbm6lHwH%252BNeVKG6rlhDKYS%252FyfavsXZVEX LJhwoCWzRi2ddiasA0vcUtTdh7VX%252FSHUAnRH9NYXYeL0E3SC73F%252FP%252BsmpwR7A5qGDnZT%7Campid%3APL_CLK%7C clp%3A2047675

The Sony and Datavideo units were discontinued, probably because sales were slowing when new models of DVtape cameras stopped.
Cheers.

Beyond finding legacy gear on the used market, which is spotty at best. An approach with new gear is sort of a kludge given that most if not all current production portable recorders are HDMI or SDI input, but it might work. Just more gear to lug about in a fanny/belt pack. At least the recorder could give a larger screen monitor as well.

Get a component to HDMI converter and battery power it, perhaps something like:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/918747-REG/startech_cpnta2hdmi_component_to_hdmi.html/BI/2855/KBID/3801 (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/918747-REG/startech_cpnta2hdmi_component_to_hdmi.html/BI/2855/KBID/3801/BI/2855/KBID/3801)
Since it uses 5 VDC power one of the USB battery power packs might work if you can find or make a connecting cable.

Note that I have not tried it so this is just speculation.

Thanks Don, interesting. As you saw when selling a Canon XH-A1, I’d like to be able to recommend a tapeless unit.

Cheers.

For kicks I tried a low cost RCA-to-HDMI converter with both a HD (Canon XA10) and HDV (Canon VIXIA HV40) camcorder live camera component output. I fed the converter's HDMI output to a BMD Intensity Pro 4K card and captured with BMD Media Express. I used a Macbeth color chart and a generic resolution chart as targets. The captures were 1080i NTSC. The Media express frame grab was converted to JPG forup loading.

Screens grab of the result from the HV40 live camera feed is attached. This was with the camcorder in AUTO mode and no attempt was made to better frame, focus, or balance the image. Results from the XA10 were similar. The targets were lit by room LED ceiling lighting. My intent was to see if the low cost device worked with a Canon HDV camcorder output and whether a typical HDMI capture card could see the output.


The device is:
"https://www.amazon.com/Component-Converter-YPBPR-Support-Player/dp/B07TYBLFYM/ref=sr_1_3?crid=JRGXET1CEDR2&keywords=component%2Bto%2Bhdmi%2Bconverter&qid=1653236465&sprefix=component%2Bto%2Bhdmi%2Bconverter%2Caps%2C55&sr=8-3&th=1"

I powered it with the furnished USB supply and with a "VERITAS" USB batter pack I have.. I don't have a Atmos or similar device so I cannot assess whether it would work in that context. Yet at around $21 it not a big investment. My take is that It is compact solution and appears to work fairly well. Cable/cord management in the field may well be the biggest issue.

There are a number of similar devices available at around the same price point.

FWIW, I have one of these (it is apparently discontinued) and used it for awhile to connect the component output of a Sony HVR-M15U HDV tape deck to a monitor that only had HDMI. It also converts the audio but I didn't use that feature.

Sewell Direct Midas Component To Hdmi With Upscaling Technology: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo

Looking on Sewell's site, it appears they no longer sell any type of component to HDMI converters. It's pretty similar to the device that Dan linked to at B&H Photo... but this was cheaper, IIRC it was about half that cost when I got it back around 2016.

Hi all. Luckily via eBAY recently I managed to buy a ‘mint condition’ Sony HVR-MRC1K from a shop in Japan at an excellent price. And it has the latest Firmware V3. It looks like the K refers to the HVRA-CR1 cradle which came with it.

I also bought batteries with a charger from Amazon Aust., ‘Neewer’ a brand I’ve never heard of before. Amazingly they home delivered them last Saturday night.

I’m now planning to save ‘the best of the best’ from a large library of HARS DV tapes shot with a Canon XH-A1 and a XH-A1s over a number of years. This will save historical video for HARS and clear a great number of DV tapes for sale with the cameras.

I’m not concerned with mounting the Sony on the camera (yet) they’ll just sit side by side. The next thing is to cable them together. Both the Sony and the XH-A1s have FireWire 400 but the XH-A1 doesn’t, so I bought a FW to FW cable to be able to use the A1s for the transfers. Buying large suitable CF cards in Sydney has become difficult, so Amazon Aust. to the rescue again and I’m waiting for a 64GB SanDisc CF type B card, which has to be imported by them.
Cheers.

The SanDisc arrived but it’s the wrong type, fortunately a friend will take it. But what does everyone else successfully use?
Cheers.

When I still had my two DN-60 units, I was only able to use the supply of CF cards I bought when I first bought the two units new. The standards for CF cards changed and new cards would NOT work with the DN-60s. I tried to find more cards, but was unsuccessful. Even B&H. Maybe this the link to this document will help you.

https://datavideo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058609753-DN-60-CF-Card-Compatibility-List

Sorry, I somehow thought you'd gotten a Datavideo device instead of the Sony. I wonder if the change in CF standards caused a similar problem with all the CF recorders made back then? For indoor shoots, if you could find an old laptop with Firewire you could tether to it.

I really liked my Canon XH-A1 and A1S, but am so glad I switched to newer cameras that used easy to find SD cards.

Hi Roger, thanks for your reply and your info from sunny Florida, it’s pouring rain here. For 5 years I was the vid producer for the Historical Aircraft Restoration Society here and now I’d like to save the historical footage for their archives and erase the DV tapes for sale with the Canon XH-A1 and A1s cameras.

Looking at the release dates of my HVR-MRC1, it’s Firmware V3 and the revisions of the Compact Flash cards, it looks like my MRC1 might be outdated, unless I can find older cards, which I haven’t to date.

But there is a 2022 MRC1 update available, it doesn’t suit me and the site is rated by Norton as unsafe … Firmware hvr mrc1 Full guides for Download and update firmware on you ... updated 02 Jul 2022 (http://gofirmware.com/content/firmware-hvr-mrc1)

So it looks like Sony is still actively supporting their HVR-MRC1. I guess what we’d like to see is a new Firmware V4, to cope with new version CF cards.
Cheers.

Hi Roger, I might be making more out of this than is necessary. I looked up B&H which still has the HVR-MRC1 listed even though it’s discontinued. The current Compact Flash Card is still listed as an accessory for sale …

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/580065-REG/Sony_HVR_MRC1K_HVR_MRC1_Memory_Recording_Unit.html/specs/BI/2855/KBID/3801 (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/580065-REG/Sony_HVR_MRC1K_HVR_MRC1_Memory_Recording_Unit.html/specs/BI/2855/KBID/3801/BI/2855/KBID/3801/BI/2855/KBID/3801/BI/2855/KBID/3801)

I think I know where to get one locally, the reviews at B&H are interesting too.
Cheers.

I wonder if one of the SD-to-CF adapters would work? Reviews are mixed.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search/BI/2855/KBID/3801 (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search/BI/2855/KBID/3801/BI/2855/KBID/3801/BI/2855/KBID/3801)

Is the 64GB SanDisc CF type B card a CFExpress card? The CFExpress came out in around 2016 and has a different interface from the original CF cards so it likely is not compatible with older gear.

Years ago on this forum I read some good advice where, if you want to find older obscure gear, try in a big retail camera shop that has a good ‘bits and pieces’ bin.

And that’s what’s just happened, I tried a big shop here when it was quieter and the eldest shop assistant knew exactly what I wanted. So now I’ve got 3 pre-owned SanDisk Extreme 32GB cards which all formatted in the Sony.

The difference between these and a brand new SanDisk CF card which doesn’t format is, mine has UDMA listed on them, and the new card has UDMA7. I guess that’s the clue Don.
Cheers.

You take a bit of a chance I suppose but via eBay, I now have another 4 new SanDisk 32GB flash cards all marked UDMA, and they all format in the Sony HVR-MRC1.

Mini DV dry cleaning tapes are not available in Australia anymore. So if that means they’re not being produced now, I also bought 5 Panasonic AY-DVMCLWW tapes from Amazon.com to eventually sell with my Canon XH-A1 and A1s cameras.
Cheers.

I just got my hands on an Atmos Ninja V and my repaired XH A1.

Tested to see if it was possible to use it to record the XH A1 direct to removable digital media. In this case a Samsung EVO SSD installed in the Ninja V.

I've determined that the Ninja V can record the AH A1 component output when set to 1080i (HDV mode) and passed through a component to hdmi converter such as I mentioned earlier in post #6 in this thread. I tested it recording in ProRes LT, 4:2:2 and HQ modes in 1080i mode The files are all 1920x1080 and horizontal image resolution exceeds 800 lines, the practical limit of the resolution chart I have

Color and gray scale looked good in comparison to a Macbeth color chart and 2014 DGK Color Tools chart.

The main downside is the stock component output cable for is XH A1 is long and bulky. The Ninja V is heavy, but the 5" monitor it provides is nice.