Member Avatar for LaL

hi readers.
there's something called > IEEE1394 < in my device manager.
and on the back of my sound card (creative sound blaster audigy) there is a port with > SB1394 < next to it. this is obviously what IEEE1394 is rite?...
anyway, i just wanted to know what it is and how i can use it.
because i was told that i could use this for my DV camcorder. is this true? DVL9200 <<<model. JVC Camcorder.
i would like to connect this up to my computer so i can record from it on windows movie maker.
i also have a > Nvidia GeForce Ti 4200(AGP8x) < graphics card (128MB) with ports on it to connect devices like VCR-In, TV-Out, Camcorder-In. does anyone know how i can use any of this to connect my camera to my pc?
thanks for taking time to read all this.

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As discovered and as and started to show, that SB1394 connector on an Audigy is the route to pull mini‑DV tape into a PC — but a few practical points make the difference between “it should work” and actually getting clean captures.

Buy the right cable and check modes: most mini‑DV camcorders use a 4‑pin IEEE‑1394 (mini) plug while desktop FireWire ports are usually 6‑pin, so a 6→4 FireWire cable is the usual purchase. If the Audigy exposes only an internal header you’ll need the corresponding bracket/cable that routes it to an external jack (check the card manual). For connector types and cable notes see general IEEE‑1394 references. (en.wikipedia.org)

Simple capture workflow (what to do, in order): 1) put the camcorder in VCR/Playback (not still‑photo) mode, 2) connect the 6→4 FireWire cable, 3) open your capture app (Windows Movie Maker’s DV capture wizard is the classic choice) and select DV‑AVI / digital device format to preserve the tape’s quality, 4) choose automatic whole‑tape capture or manual start/stop as required. Plan disk space: DV is large (roughly 12–13 GB per hour) and you should capture to an NTFS volume (FAT32 limits files to ~4 GB). See the Movie Maker capture docs and DV storage guidance for details. (documentation.help)

If Movie Maker won’t see the camcorder or you get a black preview, check Device Manager for the IEEE 1394 host controller and that an OHCI‑compliant driver is installed; modern Windows versions sometimes need Microsoft’s legacy 1394 package or an alternate 1394 stack to work reliably (KB article explains the fix). If driver/toolchain issues persist, try a dedicated capture utility (WinDV, VirtualDub and others are commonly used to capture DV over 1394). Also note that your GeForce analog TV‑in/VCR inputs are an analog path (separate workflow) and won’t match native DV (digital) capture quality. (support.microsoft.com)

Links cited above:

Practical caution: avoid cheap or very long FireWire cables (signal/power quirks can cause dropped frames), capture short test clips first, and verify tape playback on the camcorder before long transfers.

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Member Avatar for Coconut Monkey

That "IEEE1394" is a firewire port, which you can use to connect your DV camcorder to stream off digital video.

The inputs and outputs on your video card allow you to output (TV-out) a signal to your TV (or some other display device), as well as accept (in!) signals from a VCR etc, although I think this would be limited to an analogue format (not as good as digital).

Were you supplied with any cables and appropriate software?

Member Avatar for Rueful Rogue

There is an article located at: which will give you some background on the IEEE 1394 firewire technology and you will also find a pictoral of the cable and connector. Firewire technology is high speed data transfer and the technology has advanced since this article was written. IEEE 1394a came first followed by IEEE 1394b, each with a higher data transfer speed (bandwidth). Just do a google search on IEEE 1394b for specifics. (I doubt that the actual IEEE 1394 interface connector is located on your soundblaster card.)

Member Avatar for LaL

(I doubt that the actual IEEE 1394 interface connector is located on your soundblaster card.)

it is located on the card. in the manual there is a picture of what i can connect to it, and the pictures show, digital cd player, external hard drive, digi cam, DV camcorder, and a hard disk.
i can't seem to find a picture or exact model of the sound card to show u guys, but it was bundled with my 5.1 creative speakers.
there was only picture capturing software included with the camera, and pc cable for comport 1/2 connection. no cables with sound no.

Member Avatar for Rueful Rogue

LaL, I stand corrected. I should have done my homework. Here's what I found on the Creative Website. You do have a Firewire connector. I just had never heard of one being on a sound card before. (Go figure!!) Enough of the excuses, here's some data on it along with a "typical" photo (actual depends on the model of the card you have). Pin outs are the same for all cards.

Firewire (Found on Sound Blaster Audigy & Sound Blaster Audigy 2 series of soundcards)

External Connector: [img]http://dmzweb3.europe.creative.com/wwenglish/audio_int/images/soundcard13.gif[/img]
Mating Face of 6 pin male SB1394 1 Power
2 GND
3 TPB-
4 TPB+
5 TPA-
6 TPA+

SB 1394 Internal Connector [img]http://dmzweb3.europe.creative.com/wwenglish/audio_int/images/soundcard16.jpg[/img]

Pin Signal 1 TPA+

2 TPA- 3 GND 4 GND 5 TPB+ 6 TPB- 7 *Power (+12VDC)8 *Power (+12VDC)9 KEY (Not Used)10 PHY_GND*Depopulated on some models

[img]http://dmzweb3.europe.creative.com/wwimages/audio_int/audigy/audigy_connectors12.gif[/img]

Your manual should tell you how to use this feature, but failing that, you can get instructions from the Creative web site at http://us.creative.com//welcome.asp. Just be sure to have the exact model number of the Audigy card you have.

Member Avatar for LaL

hey Rueful Rogue,
thanks for the help

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