CompuServe Thread

To reduce dropout problems with Hi8: 1. Don't use Sony tape. 2. Use Fuji Doublecoat (about $7) or Super Doublecoat (about $16) tapes. 3. Don't use Sony tape. 4. Keep your camcorder clean. — Seal ports where dust gets in, if shooting in a dusty environment — Run the cleaning tape, following the instructions, if you notice a noisy video signal — Have your camcorder/vtr cleaned at "reasonable" intervals; if there's a layer of dust on the outside, it's probably time to have the machine cleaned. 5. Don't use Sony tape. The best Hi8 tape on the market, according to an objective tape test in Video magazine, and according to many people's subjective opinions (including mine), and according to a quick little tape test I did, comparing color bars by eye and on a waveform monitor/vectorscope, is Fuji M221 Super Doublecoat. Dropouts are rare and picture quality holds up quite nicely. If you notice a lot of dropouts on a tape, you may find some of them vanish on repeat playings. The vanished dropouts aren't really dropouts; they're dust or other glop on the tape that fell off during playing, making the video signal underneath accessible on future playings. Some people recommend repacking tapes before recording them. Some recommend leaving tapes tails-out, so you have to rewind before playing them. I have no experience with either of these techniques. Two good sources for Fuji tapes ("good" is defined to be "excellent prices and fast delivery") are Tape World, at +1 800 328 8273 (which spells "DAT TAPE"– cute, huh?), and HAVE, at +1 800 999 4283 (which spells "HAVE"). Good luck. — David Schachter __ David Schachter 801 Middlefield Road, #8 Palo Alto, CA 94301-2916 USA Voice: +1 415 328 7425 (after 10 am) Fax: +1 415 328 7154 Internet: ds@netcom.com (preferred) CompuServe: 70714, 3017 (slower)

And another thing– -40 degree weather?! (Fahrenheit or Centigrade [snicker, snicker]) Consumer camcorders are not meant to be used at such extremes. Neither are industrial cameras, for that matter. Keep the machine warm until the last minute and use it from within a weather enclosure if possible. (Sony sells bright yellow "SportsPaks" for some camcorder models.) Keep the tape warm. Keep the batteries warm. And even so, don't be surprised if results are poorer than expected. As the tape gets colder, it is reasonable to expect it to get stiffer, perhaps failing to make as close contact with the video heads as it should, resulting in what appear to be dropouts. (They might be dropouts or just loss of contact; the result is the same.) Note: I don't know what I'm writing about; I'm just guessing. One rule of thumb: If you have to wear gloves to keep your fingers nimble enough to operate your camcorder or camera, it is too cold for the equipment to operate unprotected. Another rule of thumb: If you have opposable thumbs, you… never mind. — David Schachter __ David Schachter 801 Middlefield Road, #8 Palo Alto, CA 94301-2916 USA Voice: +1 415 328 7425 (after 10 am) Fax: +1 415 328 7154 Internet: ds@netcom.com (preferred) CompuServe: 70714, 3017 (slower)

For what it's worth, I used a Sony Hi-8 camcorder fairly extensively in Antarctica at temps down to -50 C, and never had much dropout EXCEPT when using Sony tape. Of course, that's a DRY cold. 🙂

For what it's worth, I used a Sony Hi-8 camera extensively in Antarctica at temps down to -50 C and never had any significant dropout EXCEPT when using Sony tape. Of course, that was a DRY cold. 🙂