Sony dcr-hc37e to new unibody mbp - what lead?

[opencube]

Apparently USB from this camcorder doesnt work with the mac, so im on the look out for the correct cable.

I am aware apple changed the firewire format from 400 to 800, but what lead do i need to buy now?

Could someone point me in the direction of an example lead so i know which one i need to buy?

I am in the uk too.

Thanks

 

[spinnerlys]

FW800 is backwards compatible, and if the camera has a IEEE 1394/i.Link/DV-Out/FW-port, you should use a 4-pin to 9-pin cable for connecting both, or via an external hard drive, as capturing to the system HDD is not recommended.

 

[opencube]

via an external hard drive, as capturing to the system HDD is not recommended.

really? does it have to be a firewire hd or usb ok? I have a western digital passport drive.

 

[angelikelou]

why not capture to system hdd?

as capturing to the system HDD is not recommended.

Can you tell me why that is??


Thanks!

 

[spinnerlys]

Can you tell me why that is??

Thanks!

Completely missed the "why" in that question and mistook it for a "what".

Thanks Keith for answering so thoroughly.

 

[KeithPratt]

Can you tell me why that is??

Ideally you don't want to be trying to run the operating system and editing software from the same disk you're streaming constant data from. Imagine your iMac was on the shoulder of a busy freeway and your keyboard and mouse were on the median, and you had to run across and back any time you wanted to navigate to a new page on MacRumors. It'd make sense to find a separate site for your office, and leave the freeway for getting to and from it.

You know what, that's actually a pretty bad analogy, and if you're only doing a bit of light editing here and there I wouldn't worry about it too much unless you start to notice performance or stability issues.