[James Nicholls]

I too will be very interested in your experiences with firewire decks. I have three I am looking at right now. A DSR 11, HVRM25P (HDV) and DSR 40P. The 40P has a restricted RS422 capability but the others dont. The IO HD’s purported conflict with these VCR’s firewire control is a showstopper for me at this stage and I believe effectively restricts this unit to higher end facilities.

[James Nicholls]

Thanks Bob,

I have come to the same conclusion after help from this site. I reckon the IoHD is better for people who want to use the ProRes codec with HD SDI decks. I was surprised to find that the ProRes codec has a minimum data rate some 10X greater than DV (and HDV). I am not at the ProRes level but still want to be “future proofed” so I reckon the DVCPro HD codec will do for me in the near future (when I need an intraframe codec) at 1/2 ProRes rates and have now decided to go for a BMD Multibridge Pro as it has more I/O’s than the Kona card and can operate in both Windows and OSX on a Mac Pro (I’ve still got lots of Windows software). Further the Multibridge Pro runs from the PCIe bus so there will be no conflicts with any firewire gear (I hope!) And I don’t need “portable” gear (which incidentally also requires a “portable” raid array via the expansion bus if you want ProRes on your laptop!)

Jim

[James Nicholls]

Thanks for that info Gary, disappointing but at least now we know.

Jim

[James Nicholls]

Thanks Gary,

According to the Io HD manual on page 31 “if you want to use other firewire devices in addition to Io HD such as cameras and VTRs, for proper operation, you must only use one device at a time” further “If you finish using the (firewire) camera and want to use the Io HD, power down the system, power down and/or disconnect the camera, connect and/or power up the Io HD, then start the computer.”

This is hardly a convenient work flow, so I would like to find out if it is possible to use a firewire deck at the same time with an accessory firwire card.

Jim