Hi Rob - Excellent reply . . and fast too!

So, a good purchase all around - yeah?

1 Yeah, I'd really like to know . ..

2 Yeah, you could be correct .. .


3 What I'm after is to removmy miniDV from my cammie; stick the miniDV into the DSR11; work on it in VEgas; print stuff back to either miniDV BUT in at the very least create a fulsize DV tape master - yeah? So the Big tape "ingest" is scary - huh?

4 Okay - I can't therefore see this as a concern for me and my proposed workflow . . ..

Rob, please tell me, where does your DSR11 actually "plug-in" in the real scheme of things? Between the monitor and the NLE pc? I've got a Canopus ACEDVio on my pc . . where would the DSR11 be put, inrelation to this card?

Yes, I understand the need to have some form of monitor to do the necessary "viewing" of settings ( what settings would these be? )

I'm sure I'm making more out of this than is needed . .but I'm wanting to get as much bolted "down" before I do the same with my money - hah!

Thanks again,

Grazie

We have two DSR-11s.
1) Not a clue
2) Autorepeat means it'll rewind the tape and play it again. Might seem useless but it saved a clients hide. Probably not much use these days when it'd be better to use a DVD if you wanted that functionality.
3) Yep, takes both sized tapes
4) See Rob Macks reply, never used one that way.
5) Sure does and I've found it very useful when showing movies in the cinemas. It's pretty dark in the projection box plus I had to run around a lot turning lights down and riding gain on the PA. In the dark the buttons on the DSR-11 are hard to see so the remote was a godsend.

Other features you didn't mention:
It records / plays back PAL and NTSC, wortth the money just for that.

Problems:
Door hinge breaks VERY easily, we almost have a standing order for replacements, doesn't really do anything anyway, maybe if it's not going outside your suite take it off, guess it's supposed to keep the pepperoni out of the heads eh?

The audio has one of those odd Sony consumer like limiters and no metering. If you only plan to use f/wire not a real issue.

Overall in terms of bang for your buck you cannot go wrong and the next level up is a long way up and you don't really get anything more. If I was after something better it'd be the DSR-2000 and that is seriously expensive, only reason for that is way better head servos, the 2000 will play stuff the 11 will not even come close to but if you don't have a head alignment problem in your cammy then you don't need that. All the other fancy widgets like RS422 control are useless to a Vegie.

Bob.

farss . . great stuff . .thanks ..

But you do raise an important issue for me and my Canon XM2 .. hmmm .. . tgoes something like this . ..

Back end of last year 2 weeks before the warranty on the XM2 ran out, I noticed pixles on play back while preoiveiewing in the cammie and out to vegas .. played the same "dogy" tape on a chim's Panasonic 1000 smethingor other BIG playe . .no problem .. Grazie now thinks he needs to get a "bespoke" player and let the cammie just do the filming - correct? Okay. Cammie goes to Canon Garage, get fixed, am using now and will be fming an event this afernoon .. okay. BUT your " ... but if you don't have a head alignment problem in your cammy then you don't need that .. . " has got me a wee bit concerned that I wont be getting a device that would/could deal with a margin of head correction, that I'm beginning to think is inherently a problem with miniDV in general . .. So, what sorta head adjsutment option are there within the DSR11 - if any?!?? I know my chum's Panasonice deck just ripped through my miniDV with no problem at all . . .

Hmmm .. . do I or don't I buy? I know, I know it's my call .. . . it always was . . . most of what you guys have told me is great . .this last comment of yours, farss, has somewhat thrown me . Trouble is that there IS a deal here in the UK which is providing an 0% interest on a 20 month financial scheme .. good eh?

Thanks again,

Grazie

I have a DSR-11 and agree with everything said :) My door hasn't broken, but my friend's has. Yeah the big tapes sometimes don't suck in on the first try, but I seem to have a knack for it now! I know two other people with DSR-11's and they have both praised them.

I've used it with tapes from probably a dozen sources and it never choked. I use a Canon GL-1 and Canon Optura 300's. Good luck!

Oh yeah, the remote is nice. I use it pretty much exclusively just for convenience.

For my uses, which has only been to capture footage from large shell DVCam tapes, the deck has worked just fine-except that when I stick a large cassette in it it doesn't usually load up properly. Small shells, however, have been flawless. Too bad I almost never see them.

At work I have not been provided with, nor do I need, a monitor. Everything I do is heading for the web. However, you have to have a monitor to do things like setting the deck time of day.

You can put this deck between your monitor and computer. Much like you would use your camera or an ADVC100 to do the D-A out to a monitor.

We have an odd situation at work. The deck in house is a DVCam deck with absolutlely no 1394 connectors. SDI only. The camera is a DSR 5nn something or other and while it has 1394 out, there's no way I'm using it for captures. So the DSR11 has been a major tool for me. It's my own little kingdom of one.

Rob Mack

Knack for it is about right. Makes me nervous every time I put a company tape in it.

Rob Mack

Grazie,
so long as your camera is in spec you will not have a problem with the DSR11. No DV VCR that I know of has any 'manual' tracking control.
However where I work a few days per week we've had a few people come in who use XL1s and they've run into major problem being unable to play out their tapes. One chap had a major nightmare, 3 weddings shot before he realised there was a problem and in the interim his camera went back for another 'service' and this time they got the head alignemnt right.
So now even the original camera will not play the tapes. Our DSR 11s did a bit better than the camera, a DSR-45 almost made the grade but in the end what saved the day was a DSR 2000 (not ours, bit too expensive for us!).

Look for the money you cannot go past the DSR 11, a DSR 2000 is like 5 times the rpice and you'd be paying for features you don't need. I just mention the DSR 200o so that people know it's there, if your really in a bind beg, borrow or hire one, if it will not play your tapes out the OK you're screwed. I think the reason they're so good is becuase they'll also play DVCPRO 25 tapes so they've got huge tracking range.

For sure the latitude on MiniDV isn't very wide, recording in DVCAM gives you a bit more to play with, the best of all the DV formats is (don't laugh OK) Digital 8!

I've always felt Cannon made cameras that took great pictures, they just weren't as rugged as the Sony. If I was shooting something that couldn't be shot again I'd sure as hell go with the PD150, if it could be reshot then I'd go with the XL1.

I think you would find that the Panasonic VCRs give you better tracking, if its a deck that'll also play out DVCPRO 25, but I'm not so certain about the Panasonic decks reliability and also I think some of the will play DV25 but not record it, you gotta read the FINE print!.

The other thing to factor in, and this is a local consideration, is the quality of service. From my experience Sony win hands down, at least in this twon. If there's any doubt about a bit, they replace, no maybe they coudl have tweaked it back into life but at least you know 90% of the time if it goes in for something to be fixed, it gets fixed!

With all the other service guys here it can take a couple of goes. We've got a JVC camera, I don't know how many times it's been back because the damn thing will not eject a tape. They get the tape out for you and say 'it SHOULD be alright now'. Well it is for while. Now OK they don't charge a bundle but it'd be nice to actually get them to replace whatever need to be replaced and have our confidence restored in the thing.

My 2 cents: DSR 45 is good value with component I/O in case you need to go to or come from Beta. That's about the only major difference between it and the 25. We have a DSR 2000 at work and as others have said, it is a great machine for salvaging footage with tracking errors. I have our Canon XL1 up for sale on consignment because it just doesn't measure up to the PD170 I'm replacing it with. Have had several instances of tracking problems with the XL1 and am fed up with sending it to the depot. HAven't recorded a thing with it since Oct. 2001, at which time it was relegated to just "camera" going into a switcher. XL1/XL1S is not as tough or reliable as Sony's DSR series.

Peter

Ho! You Guys are THE best . .really . . thank you!

Some feedback .. . ahem . .

pb - "XL1/XL1S is not as tough or reliable as Sony's DSR series.
" . . . I really didn't like the "feel" of the XL1 series .. AND they were too expensive for my needs at the time of purchase decision . .. and the feel of the XM2 just seemed correct for me. Would I have gone with the Sony 2k then? Might have .. but the price was like another £800GBp - yeah? This is used to spend on Senni kit and a wide angle and etc etc etc .. I now have a piece of kit that gets me out of most corners .. sloppy camerawork notwithstanding - hah!

farss - You are THE man! .. . You spent some time in getting that response together .. AND it all makes perfect sense to me too! . . . . I had forgotten that if, and a hoped for BIG if, I should ever ever get my issue with alignment "back", I bet there is a company in London that would provide a "service" for unmangling that precious work - yeah? Much cheaper than forking out the big bucks on a DSR2000. So in the meantime the Sony DSR11 would seem a good bet. AND that there is this 0% over 20 month finance deal on it . . better than my plastic - hah!

Both of you make sensible points regarding the ruggedness of Sony kit over Canon . . . . . . Having the XM2 has provided me with an entry level Prosumer option that I could never ever have contemplated some 12 months previous. I wanted to get a 3-chipper, I wanted the "biggest" optical zoom [ 20x on the XM2 . .nice!] ; I like the Canon lens glass very much; I wanted Senni kit AND I wanted 2 manually controllable audio channels .. . this I got in the XM2 . . . . What I would really love, would be a Black and White E/P for my focussing .. . seems like all the hard stuff has been done - Zebra Bras etc etc etc - why no B/W eyepiece too? Anyways I digress .. I just wanted to make my case for the XM2 purchase over and above that of the Sony range . . . . but yes, all your points are noted . . . I suppose its where a person IS on the videoing carrer path .. this is where I'm at the moment. Am I considering Sony kit for the future? - You Betcha! It is more rugged and the service I understand is excellent. Can I presently afford it .. no .. .

Once again thank .. you've reassured on an number of points that have been worrying me . ..

Grazie

Having given the Sony stuff a good rap for reliability I should add that I'll soon be buying a DVX 100AE, that is one awesome camera.

I really wish I could find something negative about it, well OK its low light performance isn't stellar but that is largely a by product of shooting progressive. Everything else, audio, optics, degree of control etc is right up there with the pro cameras. And the price is very competitive even if it was only as good as the PD170 and it's way, way better. I guess I wouldn't recommend it if you're one of the gun and run kind of guys but I like the idea of actually taking time over a shot.

Grazie,

You said,
"1 - I've seen various mentions of a DSR11P and here now a DSR11SW. What do the various suffixes mean? Yes I've searched, I can't find a mention of the "difference". Please assist?"

This is only a guess, but maybe the DSR11P stands for " PAL [only]" and the DSR11SW stands for "[NTSC/PAL] Switchable?" If this feature is important to you (it sure would be for me), you might want to ask Sony about it, or at least read the user manual very, very carefully before buying.

Also, while we're on the topic, has anyone tried the new Panasonic AG-DV2500? It seems to have most of the same features as the DSR-11, plus audio metering.

I notice that of the DSR-11, the Panny AG-DV2500, or the JVC units, none of them have timecode display. Can anyone confirm?

Certainly no TC display on DSR11, you can get it in the monitor window though.