Capture from Sony TRV-280 Digital 8

[zoomie35]

I unstalled VS9 and connected my camera to my USB port on my computer. The VS9 capture program doesn't "see" my camcorder. Do I need a video capture card or can I use my standard USB port?

[rwindeyer]

You should have a firewire card and cable - that is by far the best way to capture.

[Ken Berry]

Your camera certainly has a Firewire port and, as Ron has said, you should use this. But, in case you are not aware, that particular model will not read analogue Video8 tapes. Of the current Sony models, I think you need the DCR TRV 480 which can read old Video8 analogue tapes and send them to your computer over the Firewire link.

[zoomie35]

it works fine with the sony software. it captures as an .avi file. Do i need a special capture card? When i launch VS9 the are no devices listed for capture.

[Ken Berry]

Can you right click on a captured file and write down all the properties and post them here. I suspect you could be capturing streaming web video (fairly low quality) via the USB. High quality digital video capture has to be done via Firewire normally...

[ggrussell]

I have the Sony TRV740 8mm digital camcorder. The USB cable included is for transferring still images and connecting the camcorder as a 'webcam' - streaming as Ken stated. When used with the USB cable, there is usually NO AUDIO because most webcams use the mic input of the sound card.

Firewire cables are not usually included with a camcorder purchase. DO NOT purchase a really cheap cable. I've seen them create more problems. Even Walmart sells a decent Belkin cable.