Posted by google on 12/05/07 23:45

Hi, I hope this is an appropriate post. This seems like the most
likely group to provide an answer. I'm converting a lot of digital 8mm
tapes (around 100) to DVD for a client/friend. Of the first 6 I've
tried, 4 have been flawless, and 2 have displayed pixelation, and
"stuck" square areas of color on the screen. I've been converting with
a consumer deck, a Sony RDR-VX521, which accpets a firewire cord
straight from the camcorder, which is also a sony, model TRV-103.
Conventional web wisdom seems to suggest that using the original
camcorder is best when possible, and that's what I'm doing.

Here' s my thinking so far: this seems to be a case of dirty heads,
but - since it's not consistent - probably heads that were dirty at
the time the recordings were made? Or maybe a combination. Obviously
this person used the camera - enough to accrue a stockpile of 100
tapes - and I'm betting she's never had it cleaned.

I tried an 8mm cleaning tape, but no improvement.

Here's an odd detail - when I tried hooking up an s-video cable to
monitor the camera as it was dumping into the DVD burner, I noticed
that, while the problems are definitely there, they're not as bad. In
particular, the "stuck moments" clear up faster. The DVD will
sometimes freeze on a scene of stuck squares for a minute or more,
while the s-video shows that the tape recovers in a few seconds.

My question is this: is there anything to be done about this? These
are family memories for this client, and I don't think she'd want
expense spared if they could be preserved in better quality. I know if
I dropped off the tape at a drugstore conversion place, they'd say
"sorry, your tape's @#$%'d up". I'd rather let her know if there are
other options.

What are the odds that having the camcorder cleaned would improve/fix
the situation?

Are there professional digital 8mm decks that would have better error
correction? If so, where to find them? or can you recommend one? (I'm
totally willing to just refer the client to someone with better
equipment.)

Any other suggestions?

Thanks much in advance.

Nathan

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