DuB-EnG: Sony Video 8 Pro Handycam Hi Digital Camera Camcorder - A potted history and old footage

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Found a Sony Video 8 Pro in the attic - here is some nostalgia on said camera, Hi8, historic video cameras, old footage, SUBSCRIBE and Thumbs Up for more! A bit TechMoan
Thanks to the internet for all the historic facts... more specifically, Wikipedia!

In January 1984, Eastman Kodak announced the new technology. In 1985, Sony of Japan introduced the Handycam, one of the first Video8 cameras with commercial success. Much smaller than the competition's VHSand Betamax video cameras, Video8 became very popular in the consumer camcorder market. Their user base consisted mainly of amateur camcorder users, although they also saw some use in the professional television production field.

The 8mm video format is used by three videocassette formats. These are the original entirely Analogue Video8 format, its improved successor Hi8 analog but with provision for digital audio, and a more recent digital recordingformat known as Digital8. These three formats are physically very similar, featuring both the same magnetic tape width and near-identical cassette shells. This gives a measure of backward compatibility in some cases. One difference between them is in the quality of the tape itself, but the main differences lie in the encoding of the video when it is recorded onto the tape.

In all three cases, a length of 8mm-wide magnetic tape is wound between two spools and contained within a hard plastic-shell cassette. These cassettes share similar sizes and appearance, and standard recording time is up to 180 minutes for PAL and 120 minutes for NTSC. The cassette holds the same length tape; tape consumption is different between PAL and NTSC recorders.

Like most other videocassette systems, Video8 uses a helical-scaning drum/barrel type head to read from and write to the magnetic tape. The drum rotates at high speed, one or two rotations per picture frame while the tape is pulled along the drum's path. Because the tape and drum are oriented at a slight angular offset, the recording tracks are laid down as parallel diagonal stripes on the tape.

In terms of video quality, Video8 and Beta-II offer similar performance in their standard-play modes. In terms of audio, Video8 generally outperforms its older rivals. Standard VHS and Beta audio is recorded along a narrow linear track at the edge of the tape, where it is vulnerable to damage. Coupled with the slow horizontal tape speed, the sound was comparable with that of a low-quality audio cassette.

The audio quality of Video8 also out-performed most systems of its day. Video8 machines used audio frequency modulation (AFM) to record sound along the same helical tape path as that of the video signal. This meant that Video8's standard audio was of a far higher quality than that of its rivals Video8 later included true stereo. In general, Video8 comfortably outperforms non-HiFi VHS/Beta.

Video8 has one major advantage over the full-size competition. Thanks to their compact size, Video8 camcorders are small enough to hold in the palm of the user's hand. Such a feat was impossible with Betamax and full-sized VHS camcorders, which operate best on sturdy tripods or strong shoulders.

Efforts were made to expand Video8 from only the camcorder market into mainstream home video. But as a replacement for full-size VCRs, Video8 failed. It lacks the long (5+ hours) recording times of both VHS and Betamax, offers no clear audio/video improvement to the general user, and cost more! Even with all of the advanced features offered in high-end Video8 machines, there was no compelling reason to switch to Video8 for the home application. Initially, many movies were prerecorded in 8mm format for home and rental use, but the rental market for Video8 never materialized. Sony maintained a line of Video8 home VCRs well into the 1990s, but unlike VHS, 8mm VCRs with timers were very expensive.

Sony also produced a line of Video8 Walkman-branded players and recorders, with and without a flip-up screen meant for video playback and limited recording. These have been adapted for Digital8 as well as MiniDV formats, even as portable DVD players have become popular in this application. Such players saw use in professional applications, particularly with airlines, who, during the 1980s, adopted 8mm as the format for in-flight movies. As of 2008, they remain in use on many airliners.
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Hii i was wondering so today I Ordered the Sony CCD-V9 Pro but I was wondering do you know what kind of battery it needs to make it work?

SimplyArctic
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it would be fun to go back to the same spots and record yourself doing the same things.

armouros
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I've still got my Sony Hi8 camcorder that we bought in the late 90's, haven't used it for years though, I should really power it up and run it sometime, and yes somewhere I do have some holiday footage of the Clifton suspension bridge as well! 👍

NOWThatsRichy
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We have something in common Howard. No, I don't have a Hi8 video camera but I also had hair in 1999 :)

dangelus_the_watcher
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3:57 It should be said that the actual quality of the recording was almost certainly far higher than you saw from that nasty USB capture device. A professional video capture to large files could give surprisingly good results.

videocouk
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Thank you for sharing your early documentaries, don't give up the day job, enjoyed the info though.

Normanskie
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Oh what 19 years does to a person ! (myself included). Watching this reminded me I've got some hi-8 tapes from around 1993 of me and friends dicking about. I should check ebay to see if there's a cheap player/camcorder available.

frigbychilwether
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Have some of the same one and it uses the same battery do you know where to get it?

leonandersen
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I just received this camera from my grandfather. Can you advise me with the aparature that can put my recordings on digital? So to my pc or record straight to a SD-card? Thx in advance!

wardverstuyft
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Hello, I just got my hands on one! However, it seems that the release system of the casette is ‘stuck’, It doesnt pop out, like yours. Any way to fix you think?

rutgerfilms
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Heh, quite the time capsule you've got there. And all these years later, you're still doing dubious things in front of a camera. :P

LeftoverBeefcake
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I have the same. Did they come out with stickers to write my name on? Mine also has the same stickers as yours.

przemassLU
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By the way, I've been racking my brain for what seems like forever trying to figure out the best way to go about converting 8mm video to digital and having a difficult time coming to a solid conclusion. At this point, I believe I will get the best results if I buy a new camera to play back the tapes and connect the camera using an S-Cable to an external DVD recorder, which aren't really easy to find. Any knowledge on this topic?

kevinr
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My grandfather is having the same but without briefcase

marotox
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hi nice videos-i have an old sony ccd v100 pro and want to watch my old v8 videos-have clinch cable(white red yellow) to hdmi cabel and want to watch by tv or laptop-but can not maybe can you help thank you

MrDavidyaz
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Hey, do you still have that Video 8 Pro camera etc ?? I want to buy it !!

flashy
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Hi, can this camera play some Hi8 tapes i have in my archieve?

mosesirungu
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Does anyone know if it's still possible to get batteries for this video 8 camera? Or anyone to still use one in general? I also found my dad's old video camera. Same model, but I'm not quite sure what to do with it. Or if it even works, since I have no power for it

purplevectorgaming
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To still have this is a true blast, especially with that footage. Not your typical home movies... sorry the alien took hair follicle samples but they have no hair whatsoever & they were just too curious.

karenyou
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How much when you sell it have one too

jamesruivivar