MiniDV device compatible with Macbook pro

Hi, DaveJ99, Yes, there is something you need to download so you can transfer miniDV tapes— iMovie.. I’ve transferred at least 100 miniDV tapes before, converted ‘em, burned ‘em to DVD, etc/along with scanning tons of photos, negatives, slides , cleaning ‘em up and burning ‘em to dvd’s… so, been there done that— you’ll need iMovie, plus maybe a 4 to 8/ 9 pin FireWire Cable, plus the camcorder and miniDV tapes ( the last 2 you have for sure) … here’s how… on the Sony camcorder it’s called iLink, but it’s just 4 pin FireWire. It’s not turned on by default, so if you want to use it, and connect it, you have to turn it on ( on the camcorder- video output/output) … if you have a Thunderbolt connector/port on your MacBook but not FireWire, then you’ll have to get a Thunderbolt to FireWire adapter ( which Apple will be glad to sell you) … so… here’s how it goes… assuming you have bought and have iMovie on your MacBook Pro… make sure camcorder is plugged into power supply, turn on the iLink connection/output on the camcorder, set your camcorder to playback/VTR mode, plug in the 4 pin end of the FireWire cable to your camcorder, plug the 8/8 pin end into either your MacBook Pro, or into the FireWire to Thunderbolt adapter and from adapter; turn off MacBook Pro, make connection into your MacBook Pro via Thunderbolt… turn on MacBook Pro… get iMovie going, put miniDV tape into camcorder, press play on camcorder, I think you have to press “record” on iMovie, but it’s been a long time… anyways, iMovie will take over and start capturing/recording your video and audio footage from your miniDV tape.. that’s about it… a 1hr miniDV tape will take 1 hour to record/capture, rinse + repeat as needed…. As for another way, eg ( analog) -s-video/composite+ audio, well you just need the appropriate usb dongle, which you may have, plus video capture software/application, which you need… elgato, I used that successfully, not the world’s best video capture software, but it worked OK for me… same basic deal: 1 hour tape= 1hour time needed to record/capture…

hope this helps you

John B

I'm trying to get video off my Sony Handicam and not having any luck. If I use the memory stick on the camera, it shows up as a device on my MacBook. If I try to see/record the mini tapes, the device does not show up. I'm using the cord that came with the camera that connects from the camera into USB. Any ideas? You mentioned needing different cords in your answer but I want to check in before I get them. Seems like the cords that came with it should be enough. Thanks.

Yes…TikiLove.. maybe… what exact model is your Sony Handicam? Apart from the FireWire method I mentioned earlier… your handicam should have analog video+ audio output, in which case you’d need analog video to usb dongle plus video capturing software… I don’t know if there are a lot of free ones… maybe take a look at this one : https://download.cnet.com/lifeflix-minidv-importer-free/3000-13633_4-76428938.html… dunno if it works with Catalina or better though… back in the day I used an Elgato video capture kit for $130 for use with vhs-c and standard VHS tapes… I don’t know what version of the Mac OS you have on your MacBook… OBS studio may work, too, but I have zero experience with it.

John b

I’ll try again… I tried to reply and help you, but links to helpful websites get flagged as “inappropriate” and my post gets deleted… anyways, obs studio should be Sonoma compatible, so go with that. Your camcorder does have 4 pin FireWire ( iLink ) so you could do it that way, or it outputs composite video + maybe s-video ? via a 4 pole socket, and using the included 4 pole to rca plugs for that, and/or s-video cable plus rca& svideo to usb adapter cable/dongle could work… that’s for analog video, for FireWire, you’d need the following: 4 pin to 8-9 pin FireWire cable, FireWire to Thunderbolt adapter, maybe Thunderbolt to Thunderbolt 3 adapter, I have no idea how old/new your MacBook is, and don’t know what ports/inputs/outputs it has… you’d also need to buy a copy of iMovie and install that, as it can import/capture video via FireWire, in real time of course, eg 60 min tape would take 60 mins to import/capture in iMovie… you’d also have to turn on/enable iLink on the Sony camcorder , plug it into a power source, plug in the 4 to 8-9 pin FireWire cable, then FireWire to Thunderbolt adapter , then Thunderbolt to Thunderbolt 3 adapter. Only connect it to your MacBook Pro when it’s turned off; so turn it off, make that final connection, then turn it on and get iMovie going, put DV tape into camcorder which should be set to VCR mode/playback mode. Choose import video/capture video in iMovie, then press play on camcorder, iMovie will take over and import the video… get to know iMovie, learn how to use it ( it’s not that hard) clean up the audio and the video of what you captured, then choose “ save/share” and bob’s your uncle. You should also be able to pick the project/movie’s quality, eg 720p/480/1080 … the highest quality= bigger file size… that’s about it… I’ve converted 65 DV tapes, 33 vhs-c tapes , some standard vhs tapes and a boatload of photos and slides before ( for the vhs/vhs-c tapes, my mom got me a kit from Elgato- analog video—-> usb dongle+ software/application and SCART adapter in a box… worked fine

well, I’m done

john b

The ideal way to import video from a MiniDV camcorder would be using FireWire (also known as IEEE 1394 – and as iLink on some Sony camcorders). That lets you import the digital video from the tape without having to go through a digital to analog to digital conversion (which will probably lose some quality).

Unfortunately it is almost impossible to attach FireWire peripherals to a modern Mac. Apple ditched built-in Firewire ports more than 10 years ago, never built a Thunderbolt 3 to FireWire adapter – and a few months ago, discontinued their Thunderbolt 1 to FireWire adapter. For their part, while dock vendors built FireWIre into several TB 1 & 2 docks, I don't think there are any TB 3 & 4 docks with FireWIre interfaces.

Many MiniDV camcorders have USB ports, but those USB ports are only for transferring still photos and low-quality videos, NOT for transferring full-quality, full-length videos.

So what people end up doing is getting an video digitizer and feeding the RCA or S-Video analog video output from their camcorder into the digitizer.

An example of a video digitizer would be this:

https://www.elgato.com/us/en/p/video-capture

Could not edit my post for some reason. Apologies for the annoying double message. But - what is the cord that came with the camera for if not to transfer videos?

Hey - I appreciate your response. Running Sonoma 14.5 and have Handycam DCR-TRV38, which is probably 15 years old? Thank you for the suggestions and link.