HELP! Configure firewire input on DVX100a

D

David W. Richardson

Chapelgrove Films
I need to connect my DVX100a to my PC via the firewire cable and output from Premiere 6.0 (WinXP) to the camera. I used to use a consumer-level Panasonic camcorder for this, but it recently died and I need the interface in a hurry to finish a project.

I thought I could just connect the camera and be up and running, but it's not working -- I'm getting no output to the camera at all. In fact, I'd expected when I connected the camera that WinXP would recognize it, like it did with the other cam -- but that doesn't happen either. When I turn on the DVX100a, Windows doesn't seem to be aware of it at all.

I've tried the DVOut configured both ways -- ON and OFF. I've tried the DVX100a in both CAMERA and VCR mode. Nothing seems to work.

Can anybody tell me what I'm doing wrong? I mean, the DVX100a's firewire port DOES act as an input, doesn't it??? I really need to get this project finished in a hurry. Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks!
 
Have you ever uploaded anything to your pc w/ the DVX before? Because I have seen people buy DVX's on eBay that have broken firewire ports...
Borrow a friends consumer DV cam for a bit?
 
I've never uploaded anything with the DVX before. But I bought mine new from B&H Photo/Video. Still could have a bad firewire port, I suppose. Guess I'll have to try and find another cam and try a firewire connection between the two.
 
More info...

I just connected the DVX100a to a different PC via a Pinnacle DV500+ board, using that board's firewire port. The Pinnacle System Control DID see the camera, so that rules out a bad firewire port on the camera, I would think.

For what it's worth, I connected the DVX100a to that same PC via a separate firewire port (one that's NOT on the Pinnacle board), and the system didn't seem to 'see' the camera. That PC runs Windows ME.

Not sure what all that means, but it's more info for consideration.
 
better off buy a one chip and use it to capture! it will save wear and tear and clogging on those dvx heads. new firewire cards are 40 dollars.
 
Are you editing w/ Pinnacle software? I was editing w/ Pinnacle Studio 9 a year ago and it had a bunch of glitches where it wouldn't recognize my one chip camera through firewire. I resolved the problem by doing one of those computer system reset things where it goes back to the settings of 2 weeks ago.
Try re-installing Pinnacle if you have it, or doing the system reset to a certain time in the past. (or call the Pinnacle help line)
 
No, I'm not editing with Pinnacle software. I edit with Premiere. Don't even have Pinnacle anything on my editing PC -- only on my other PC, which I use for everything else except editing.
 
The system restore was a brilliant idea......but it didn't work either. :-(

Any other ideas before I go remove all instances of 'panasonic' from the registry?
 
Have you tried just opening up the capture window of premiere then turning the cam on. Just a thought.
 
Update...

I tried not only removing the IEEE 1394 port from Device Manager, but also disabling/re-enabling it in the BIOS. That didn't work.

And I realized there's a 2nd IEEE port on the front of the machine. Tried that, but also no luck.

So I don't know what to think. Someone suggested maybe Windows thinks the old camcorder is still connected to the port and turned on -- since it was connected and turned on when the power failed and when it came back on, which is when the camera got hosed. And because of that, XP won't recognize any other device connected until it somehow thinks the old camcorder was disconnected. Sounds logical, but I would think that disabling the port in BIOS would 'release' it somehow. I would also think XP wouldn't let me delete the port in Device Manager if it thought it was still in use.

I've also thought maybe the IEEE 1394 port on my PC got fried when the power and camcorder came back on, though I don't know why that would keep the other firewire port from working. And again, if the port was dead, would Windows detect it and reinstall it after I removed it from Device Manager?

I don't know. I guess I'm going to have to break down and buy a PCI firewire card, and see if that works. OR......I could reinstall Windows XP. That might fix another problem I'm having with my DVD burner -- that's an old problem that started long before this other.

Anyway, are there any other ideas out there?
 
This probably isn't in any way relevant, but it's a quick and easy thing to try.....

Hook up your Firewire connection. Power everything off (camera and computer).
Turn on the power on the camera...... then boot the computer......

Maybe... just maybe... this will work. If it does, I will share where the idea came from.
If it doesn't work..... just ignore the ramblings of another analog guy, trying to get by in a digital world....

-TC
 
I'm an analog-type too. So I'd tried that very trick some time ago, but it didn't work. Wish I had another firewire device I could test with this PC. I hate to have to reload XP, and even that might not work. But thanks for trying. I appreciate it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top