How does the JVC sr-vs30u (miniDV-SVHS) work with FCP?

[Steve Eisen]

I will speak on behalf of many on this forum and recomend the Sony DSR-11. It will last you a far lot longer than any other DV deck out there. Spend the money once and use it a long time.

Steve Eisen
Eisen Video Productions
Director-At-Large
Chicago Final Cut Pro Users Group

[Ben Oliver]

i love my JVC deck….i dont use batch capture often tho….but cause i do a lot of work shot on vhs, etc, its fantastic for that…i can also jack in anything from my betamax deck, my pal vhs deck, anything, and get it to play out firewire directly into FCP!!!

i love it. it also plays dvcam recorded to minidv tape. ive also been known to patch my dvcam deck through it, and capture dvcam cause the firewire on my dvcam deck is wonky. (the place i work at wont pay to fix it, lol) i also patch my dvd player through it too, on occasion.

i find it very versatile.

[Douglas]

Thanks. I’ve looked at the DSR-11 and I’m also considering the Panasonic DV2500. The advantage for me of the 2500 is it plays both formats. Plus I only have access to DVX cameras. But it’s hard to argue against Sony. Thanks again.

[David Mcclellan]

This deck works great. Have been using the JVC SR-VS20u (same basic thing, earlier model) for 4 years. DSR 11 is good only if you need to capture large DV CAM tapes. Otherwise save the dough.

-DM

G5 Dual 2.5Ghz
OSX3.9 FCP4.5
Lots of Ram – Lots of cables – Lots of bills…

[Douglas]

Thanks. I don’t suspect I’ll need the larger tape capability. Mostly camera tapes.

[Scott Robinson]

We have 4 of these decks in house. the only problem that we have with them is that the heads go out quickly on the Mini-DV side. 3 of these decks are being used for ONLY firewire hookup to monitor or pass through of Analog like others have said. I would suggest against this deck and go with something sturdier. I’ve worked with the DSR-11 and it was a champ, different shop. we are looking at the Panasonic DV2500 as a replacement for these decks. And these decks are the “Professional” version, in a clean shop, with somewhat regular head cleaning.

I don’t like speaking ill of anything on these forums, especially when others are working just great with this deck. I am just relaying MY experience with these decks.

Scott Robinson
Operations Manager/Post-Production Supervisor
Take 2 Productions, Inc.

Multimedia Instructor
Ohio Institute of Photography & Technology

[Douglas]

Thanks for your response – it’s just the real world feedback I was hoping for. And I completely agree one should be careful when speaking unfavorably about any products. That kind of thing can get unfair quickly.

But we all have our experiences and opinions. And if 3 of 4 decks go down in a professional setting (with good maintenance), that’s a red flag plain and simple. Especially when you consider most of the money spent on that deck is for the DV side and that’s the one going out.

Thanks again.

[Chris Maurer]

I’ll add my voice to the “buy someting else” chorus.

We have many of the decks and I’ve pledged to fight any suggestion of buying more. They were convenient during a transition from SVHS to mini-DV, but the DV side of this deck is simply not reliable for the high level of use that we demand.

Our VS30Us seem to be very picky about tapes. Some tapes will play back with glitches or display a “Use Cleaning Casette Message” on one SR-VS30U and playback without a glitch on another VS30U. The first VS30U, the one that gives the cleaning cassette message, will still work fine with many other tapes just not with the particular tape that it was complaining about. The tape stock issue may not be as much of a problem in a pro environment where you are probably using quality tapes and not putting many passes on the tapes…but we’re dealing with students here and they usually buy the cheapest tapes they can find and keep using them until they lose them.

As far as batch capturing with FCP, we do that all the time and the only major problem we run into is that occasionally the computer and VCR do seem to lose communication…but not a complete loss. In these situations you can still control the VCR and log clips in FCP but the preview window will have no video, just color bars. When you attempt to initiate a Batch Capture in this state you are greeted with an “ERROR: There is no video” message. The solution to this problem seems to be to Quit FCP, turn the VCR off, relaunch FCP (with the VCR off!) and then, at the External A/V warning, turn the VCR back on and press “Check Again”.

As someone else mentioned, the biggest problem with the decks is that they are not reliable. They just don’t hold up to the wear and tear that the students put on them. We’ve sent many back to JVC for repairs. It is a signficant cost and it seems that all they ever do is completely replace the DV side. I’m planning to replace the decks with Sony DSR-11s when the opportunity arises.

Chris

[Douglas]

I don’t expect I would put as much time on the deck as a bunch of students do, but still, reliability is the most important piece of the puzzle. And no machine (or company) is perfect – it’s complex equipment. But some companies do seem to do it a little better than others. Course, they cost more so there you go.

And I gotta say to the vs30’s credit, the fact students work on them and they still even power on has got to be worth something!

Thanks for the feedback.