Camcorders forum: Old SONY broke and new SONY won't play old Hi8 tapes

Sony DCR-TRV230 is a digital8 camcorder. Were these 15 tapes recorded with this camera, or are they older Hi-8 tapes recorded on a different camera? If so, what camera was used to record the tapes?

Also, what exactly does it say on the tapes (brand name, model, etc.) and were they recorded in SP or LP mode?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0007M3PJY/ref=dp_olp_3/002-1580589-4317657

That model looks discontinued but from other than NY.

Bob

wagsthedog said "Do you have any ideas about transferring my tapes to DVD without buying a whole new camera?"

I went through the same thing a year ago, and probably have no ideas you haven't already thought of.

1. Borrow a digital8 camera and do it yourself. (I didn't like this option because I just knew the borrowed camera would choose to die while in my possession.)

2. Pay a student from the local high school A/V club or department to do it, if they have access to a camera that will work.

3. Run a classified ad. There maybe someone right around the corner from you who does these on the side for a little extra income, that would be cheaper than a professional service.

4. Send to a professional service. Google turns up lots of them, startng at about $7.50 a tape.

(I didn't like 2, 3, and 4 because even though they were just tapes of my family, I felt funny about a stranger seeing them.)

5. Buy a used camera on Ebay and do it yourself. Sell the TRV-138 on Ebay to offset the cost. (I chose #5. I bought a TRV-320 for a little over $100.)

There are lots of Sony camcorders that will play digital8. Here is a link to a spreadsheet that lists features of lots of Sony models.

http://www.camcorderinfo.com/bbs/t48170.html

When choosing your camera, keep in mind what features you need for what you want to do. Ex: If you want to hook it up to a stand-alone DVD recorder, make sure you get one with outputs that match your DVD recorder's available inputs, eg- A/V, S-video, or firewire.

If you want to download the video to your computer to burn to DVD, make sure you get one with firewire. This is the best option, IMHO, to get the best quality DVD's from your tapes.