Canon xh-a1, very likely a blown firewire port on the camera. This camera is so susceptible to this problem its beyond a joke. Ive blown 2 over theyears. Always connect firewire 'cold'
Try the camera on another PC to test it. If the camera is working then try a dedicated firewire card.

Does your PC able to detect the the camera?
If not, then probably driver problem...

For recording HDV to PC, I'm using http://strony.aster.pl/paviko/hdvsplit.htm rather than Vegas own tools.

Thank you for your help. If I knew what you wanted to know, perhaps I could provide the information. There are no 'drivers' for these cameras.

Perhaps the fact the cameras have on-board tape recorders... Mini HDV to be precise. The early HDV 1080 video recorders built into the camera and they output either directly to firewire for studio recording or play true 1080i from the video recorder is what confuses you?

Your sparing information is gratefully received. I'd much prefer to get help from someone who has or had one of these cameras. Maybe even someone who still uses one.

Currently I transfer the tape content to a Sony camera mounted hard drive and then onto my PCs hard drive. I had expected with the move to a new PC and Windows 8, I'd be able to sidestep that conversion and pick up the output directly from the camera.

If I thought the current range of cameras that apply compression to record on SD cards could produce the same quality as these cameras do, I might buy one but this camera has produced several full length programs and documentaries with first rate quality. Even if I have to buy a HDV tape player, I'll do that before I replace it.

Thanks for your input.

Thanks setiawan3d

I can record to a Sony Hard drive mounted on the hot shoe using a cable to the firewire port for a feed. I'm aware there is a problem with Firewire ports on these cameras. This is only when you use a firewire card providing power for accessories that need their power supply from the 'puter.

I've got a HP firewire card without the power connector. Very little chance of blowing the port that way. Vegas can see and play the camera's tape player in DV only. It's when I try to get HDV it refuses to recognize the camera.

No need to use a different PC fordie, I can access DV OK it's HDV I have trouble with.

I still shoot on my XH-A1 and have not had a problem capturing HDV from Vegas 8 through 12. Strange that you can capture only DV.

Camera off, connect to computer via Firewire, camera on, then launch Vegas. Click on 'capture' button. Does a dialog box then appear asking whether you wish to capture HDV or DV? It should, and obviously you would select HDV. Sorry if you know this cold already; just trying to eliminate some things.

Have you tried an oft-suggested alternative of capturing with HDV-Split? It's a free/shareware program that many prefer to Vegas. (I have no need since Vegas doesn't give me fits on capturing.)

OK, been using XH-A1's for a few years. Here's my 2 pence worth:

In the camera menu make sure it's set to output HDV, NOT Auto. Doesn't work.

On the camera after connecting the firewire plug (cold of course) gently pull the cable to the right, then wrap it around the mic holder a couple of times - to maintain some pressure in the socket.

If using Vegas capture, make sure it's set in options to the 'internal capture'. The 'external capture' is DV only. I agree with the above comment - HDV Split is better anyway, gives clean cuts for each clip.

Good luck.

Note you are using W8 and you can capture DV from yourXH-A1 but not HDV.
Can you capture HDV using an alternative computer using say HDVSplit? This would confirm cam is OK.

It may just be a W8 problem. Should this be the case info is available to port W7 Legacy drivers to W* and get round the unsigned drivers problem.

When you find a solution please post.

Good luck G

Ah the HDV firewire gauntlet!

Here are the basic issues:

1/ New computers won't capture HDV over firewire unless you go into the firewire driver and enable the "legacy" driver option. When this is the case, you will be able to capture SD DV, but not HDV over firewire. In this case, this sounds like your problem.

2/ Some very popular Firewire chipsets won't capture HDV even with the "legacy" driver enabled. No this isn't an odd problem. It's the most popular 1394 hardware in most name brand laptops that have this issue. If you enable the legacy driver and your computer still won't capture HDV, you'll need to find a PCMCIA card 1394 adapter or something. Of course not all laptops have these card slots anymore...

3/ If you have a six pin firewire connector on your laptop and a four pin firewire connector on your camera, and you have the four pin end plugged into your camera and are fumbling behind your computer and accidentally try to plug in the six pin end upside down... well congratulations! You have most likely blown the whole firewire circuit in your camera! This is because those extra two pins on the six pin connector are power connections that will momentarily make a connection to the logic pin connectors as you are trying to plug it in upside down and will immediately fry circuits that aren't designed to handle this voltage! Yes, I've done this. Not to a camera, but to a Canopus firewire to DV converter box (fortunately they fixed it but told me that they would only do this once!) Anyway, the safe way to plug in a firewire connector is to do it while both the camera and the computer are powered off. If you must do it when the computer is on, plug in the six pin side first and only plug in the four pin side when you are certain the side with power is in correctly.

In my case, I have no new computer that will capture firewire properly, so I have to dig an old P4 computer out of storage on the odd occasion where I have to capture HDV video. This brings me to the last hurdle:

4/ If you are capturing HDV video with an older computer (in my case, the only one that you will have that will actually capture this video), make sure you disable the virus protection. Yes video will capture with the virus protection enabled, and for the most part it will be fine, but every so often you'll get a little glitch in the captured video that will drive you absolutely mad. These will occur at whatever part of the video is most important to you (wedding vows, perfect kid's smile, etc). This is somehow related to your aging CPU deciding to see if by chance there is a virus somehow being transferred off the tape instead of just capturing the silly video! Turn it off and the chances are your capture will be fine.

For the record, I have sucessfully captured HDV into Vegas 12 and Windows 8. No legacy drivers, just plugged in and captured like normal. Actually, on the HDV, since it was a rental required that I change the settings to output hdv over firewire. Camera was a Sony Z7U.

I forgot if there are any settings in XHA1 which downconverting to DV while firewire output. check this one and turn it off.

After I 'upgrade' my HDV camcorders with HVR-MRC1K CF card, I have left the tape...

I'm overwhelmed by the helpful responses. It will take me a while to work through them all. So far when choosing the capture video button I get to choose a variety of devises. When I choose the firewire I also get the option to select the camera and then get "Device not available".

I'm guessing I've missed something else here so I'll try HDV Split and then carefully go over all the replies. If this doesn't work, I'll report back with all the steps taken.

Thanks to everyone.

Silly question here -- are you sure your xha-1 footage was shot as HDV, and not DV?

If the latter, you should select the other capture utility in Vegas.

Not silly at all. But yes... It was shot as HDV. And yes, the camera does get recognized but only as an input devise.

I'm trying to edit existing footage. Help he here if I'm wrong but I'm playing the previously recorded tape which I can watch in the camera's screen but not see or recover using Vegas.

If I'd shot the footage recording it on the (Sony) hard drive, I can plug that into the firewire port and edit the files with no problem. Its only when I try to bring the footage in from the tape I have problems with.

Silly now I think of it but I decided to record on tape this time instead of the hard drive because it still had the clips from a documentary on it or I wouldn't be having this problem. It's starting to look like buying a tape deck to edit footage recorded on tape or buy a card recorder I can pull data from the flash cards.

Maybe even time to replace the camera! Heaven forbid.

Hey setiawan3d...
Are you using hdvsplit with Windows 8?
From what I read about it I need XP to install it.

Second silly question -- did you try turning Device Control off?

Working from old-guy memory now, I had no problems capturing 12+ hours of footage from two xha-1's a few years ago, but can't pull back all the details.

Hi Alienjones: No, I'm still in Win7. HDVSplit no problem running here.

Now I'm curious with IEEE1394 support of Win8, and search a bit:
http://www.motunation.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=49424
Hope this helps.

(Note : I'm just googling "Windows 8 firewire" - so of course, I can't guarantee anything, but hopefully the info from MOTU can help)