DLT or LTO tapes for HVX archive?

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underseafan

Member
I have had too many problems with my LaCie hard drives as many of you have reported but looking through the forums, it seems every brand has failed so I have decided LTO or DLT or some other tape drive is the safest option as the third backup for my HD (and old SD) footage.

Can anyone tell me the pros and cons of DLT over LTO and recommend a cost effective option. I have around 2TB to back up.

Thanks
 
Eh - actually after reading over the site quickly, it doesn't seem like a really viable option (at least to me)

From the site"

1. LP mode highest capacity:16.4GB (17.7GB). Achieved using no error protection.
2. LP mode lowest capacity: 8.2GB (8.8GB). Achieved using full duplication ("1:1").
3. SP mode highest capacity: 11GB (11.8GB). Achieved using no error protection.
4. SP mode lowest capacity: 5.5GB (5.9GB). Achieved using full duplication ("1:1").

Option 4 is the only one I would consider if I were actually backing things up for archiving... and at that point it seems I may as well burn DVDs (5.5 vs. 4.7GB?)- which are more universal, compatible, and probably more robust than DV tape.
 
well - The banking and financial systems for the entire world is on LTO so you can pretty much count on LTO never going away and always being accessible in some way.
 
underseafan said:
I have had too many problems with my LaCie hard drives as many of you have reported but looking through the forums, it seems every brand has failed so I have decided LTO or DLT or some other tape drive is the safest option as the third backup for my HD (and old SD) footage.

Can anyone tell me the pros and cons of DLT over LTO and recommend a cost effective option. I have around 2TB to back up.

Thanks
Click to expand...

I have no way of telling if you are using a MAC or PC so that leaves me out regarding workflow.

Regarding your DLT v. LTO question: DLT is probably going to be the least expensive but LTO is certainly more robust. If you are in it for the long haul (which I would think anyone owning this camera would be), then cheapest is probably not going to be the best, no?

I've had 100% reliability with LTO-2 (and now LTO-3) over the past 18 months.
 
The best option for archiving mxf data these days is the Gig-E based Quantum DLT600a. It is mxf-aware and FAST. Not cheap though, but it will be the next piece of gear I get.

Hard drives are NOT archiving solutions. DLT tapes last 30+ years.

Link
 
mcgeedigital said:
The best option for archiving mxf data these days is the Gig-E based Quantum DLT600a. It is mxf-aware and FAST. Not cheap though, but it will be the next piece of gear I get.

Hard drives are NOT archiving solutions. DLT tapes last 30+ years.

Link
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damn -$10k

you'd almost be better off getting a dvcprohd deck and laying back to tape
 
forgive my ignorance but I'm going to have to ask . . . what exactly does "MXF aware" mean in regard to tape?

Isn't it all pretty much just 1's and zeros?

Thanks in advance.

(and one thing I do know is that LTO-3 blows the doors off any DLT situation . . . got mine on eBay for $1000).
 
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Nathan Beaman said:
you'd almost be better off getting a dvcprohd deck and laying back to tape
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Not by a hundred miles. DVCPRO-HD tape is a lousy way to archive, as compared to data tape.

Compare and contrast:
DVCPRO-HD tape is realtime, LTO3 can be six times faster than realtime

DVCPRO-HD tape discards all metadata and individual files, instead turning your footage into one big long continuous stream. LTO3 preserves all the metadata and all the individual files and proper file structure.

DVCPRO-HD tape doesn't let you archive all your non-video stuff, such as your projects, your titles, your graphics, etc. You're still going to have to archive all that stuff somewhere! LTO3 can archive all of that and more.

DVCPRO-HD tape is much more expensive; about a dollar per gigabyte. LTO3 tapes are maybe 25 cents per gigabyte.

DVCPRO-HD tape will take up a lot more space. A DVCPRO-HD tape is about the equiv. of a 45-minute tape; an LTO3 tape (at 400GB) stores as much footage as nine DVCPRO-HD tapes.

The deck is also 10x more expensive; the cheapest DVCPRO-HD deck is $25,000 whereas you can get an LTO3 deck for around $2500.

P2 data is data, not video footage. It makes much more sense to archive your data using a data archive system. DVCPRO-HD tape makes sense only for those who have to deliver a videotape master, but as an archive system it pales in comparison to using data tape.
 
Barry_Green said:
Not by a hundred miles. DVCPRO-HD tape is a lousy way to archive, as compared to data tape.

Compare and contrast:
DVCPRO-HD tape is realtime, LTO3 can be six times faster than realtime

DVCPRO-HD tape discards all metadata and individual files, instead turning your footage into one big long continuous stream. LTO3 preserves all the metadata and all the individual files and proper file structure.

DVCPRO-HD tape doesn't let you archive all your non-video stuff, such as your projects, your titles, your graphics, etc. You're still going to have to archive all that stuff somewhere! LTO3 can archive all of that and more.

DVCPRO-HD tape is much more expensive; about a dollar per gigabyte. LTO3 tapes are maybe 25 cents per gigabyte.

DVCPRO-HD tape will take up a lot more space. A DVCPRO-HD tape is about the equiv. of a 45-minute tape; an LTO3 tape (at 400GB) stores as much footage as nine DVCPRO-HD tapes.

The deck is also 10x more expensive; the cheapest DVCPRO-HD deck is $25,000 whereas you can get an LTO3 deck for around $2500.

P2 data is data, not video footage. It makes much more sense to archive your data using a data archive system. DVCPRO-HD tape makes sense only for those who have to deliver a videotape master, but as an archive system it pales in comparison to using data tape.
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plus you would probably suffer a bunch of time code issues from dumping to tape.

It was a more of a wtf 10k for a the quantum. Im already lto all the way!
 
plus you would probably suffer a bunch of time code issues from dumping to tape.
Click to expand...
Yep -- with data tape, you'd just restore your project and all your files would just "be there" and everything would just "work". With video tape, you'd have to batch capture all your footage and who knows what time code hassles would occur... I just can't fathom why anyone would think that's a superior workflow! :)

Another point -- with the LTO3 deck, you can archive any other footage too. DV, HDV, XDCAM, whatever. With the videotape deck, you can only store that one particular format.

I agree, $6,000 for a DLT deck does seem a bit much. But the deck was designed specifically to work with video footage files and MXF files in particular, so that should be worth something. As I understand it Quantum is supposed to be making an LTO3 version of that deck. Don't know what it would cost, but if it's only a modest premium over a regular LTO3 deck, I'd have to think that'd be the archive solution of choice for a P2 user.
 
Well, I may have to take back that snap... :evil:
Only price i can find is about $9,000. I like the idea of that Quantum unit but...

(and I apologize for my brief foray into the land of urban dictionary; I musta seen some old episode of a Jackee' series or something recently. :) )
 
i cant believe that in this day and time were still going to linear tape for archive...?
im not arguing the reality - just seems kind of backward from an evolutionary standpoint
 
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