Importing video from a camcorder

[netdudeuk]

Hi

I've just bought a 2017 MacBook Pro and would like to transfer the video from tapes recorded in a Canon MV600i DV camcorder onto the computer so I can edit it in iMovie.

I would need to plug a cable into the DV connector on the camcorder and then into the computer.

What are the cheapest cable options (from Apple or Amazon UK) to do this reliably ?

Would iMovie import using such a connection method ?

I seem to remember that I was controlling the camcorder from the PC when I previously tried this. Is this how it would work in iMovie ?

Thanks

 

[Fishrrman]

iMovie should work.

What kind of output do you have on the camcorder?
Firewire or USB?

Insofar as how to proceed, there are probably quite a few YouTube videos that take you through the process, step-by-step.

There is a "digital video" sub-forum here at macrumors.
Perhaps you ought to look around there.

 

[netdudeuk]

iMovie should work.

What kind of output do you have on the camcorder?
Firewire or USB?

Insofar as how to proceed, there are probably quite a few YouTube videos that take you through the process, step-by-step.

There is a "digital video" sub-forum here at macrumors.
Perhaps you ought to look around there.

Thanks for the reply.

It has a FireWire interface.

I've also done some more research which suggests that iMovie may not support my camcorder (Canon MV600i). Is Apple's list hard and fast or could it still work ?

 

[DeltaMac]

The unusual 4-pin Firewire connector that your mini-cam uses may be challenging to find.
Plus, your new MBPro would need an adapter (Firewire to thunderbolt), which might not even work to transfer video.
The "support" from iMovie usually means that you might be able to control the mini-cam from iMovie, which is highly unlikely on a mini-cam released in 2003. You may be only able to copy movies, by playing the movie real-time on your mini-cam, and recording the vid into iMovie. It would be worth trying, assuming that you already have the correct FW cable.

 

[netdudeuk]

The unusual 4-pin Firewire connector that your mini-cam uses may be challenging to find.
Plus, your new MBPro would need an adapter (Firewire to thunderbolt), which might not even work to transfer video.
The "support" from iMovie usually means that you might be able to control the mini-cam from iMovie, which is highly unlikely on a mini-cam released in 2003. You may be only able to copy movies, by playing the movie real-time on your mini-cam, and recording the vid into iMovie. It would be worth trying, assuming that you already have the correct FW cable.

I have a cable like this one

I have just tested it with my previous PC and could import video through the PCI FireWire card. I'd rather just use some sort of cable / adapter to connect it to the MBPro though.
[doublepost=1514401189][/doublepost]I'll just add that I have two of these cables so if I needed to cut off the large connectors and splice them together to make a cable with two of the small ones, that's totally doable.

 

[DeltaMac]

Doable - but what would you accomplish with a firewire cable with 4-pin connectors on both ends. I have never seen any device or adapter that used the small 4-pin firewire, except for a camcorder. That plug won't plug in to your MBPRo, for example, without an adapter of some kind, which you probably can't find now.
Also, notice that Apple's Firewire to Thunderbolt adapter has a FW800, 9-pin connector. So, if you use your existing cable, (with a 6-pin firewire) you would also need an adapter to change your 6-pin connector, to a 9-pin to plug in to the firewire-to-thunderbolt adapter. Too many adapters, in my opinion.

 

[Fishrrman]

Hmmmm....
You have a 2017 MBPro (which has thunderbolt3).
The cable you currently have (4-pin to 6-pin firewire) is useless to you.

You NEED the following:

1. Tbolt3 to Tbolt2 adapter cable.

2. Tbolt2 to firewire adapter cable.
(IMPORTANT: this has a 9-pin firewire800 connector)

3. 4-pin to 9-pin firewire cable.

ALL THREE OF THEM daisy-chained together.
Hopefully, that will work.
The only way you'll find out... is to try it and see.

Only you can make the decision as to whether it's worth the money and trouble to find out...

 

[Doug Hope]

If you have a cable with RCA outs why not use an Elgato video capture https://www.elgato.com/en/video-capture

 

[maj88]

I have the same issue to solve.

Did it work finally with all the dongles?