Streaming with a JVC GR-D370U mini dv?

[Jason Moreland]

Hi All,

I'm interested in streaming but have never done it before. I've had the GR-D370U laying around the house the past couple years, and now i'm interested if I can use it for streaming. It came with a USB cable, but i've read elsewhere that it only works for picture uploading. Either way it doesn't even seem like the laptop recognizes the dv when I connect the USB. The camera also has a "DV" port, which i'm assuming is the same thing as a firewire port? I've also read online that another name for a firewire port is "1394", and I do see a 1394 port on my laptop.

If I buy a RV/1394/firewire and connect my dv/laptop with it, will I be able to capture video? Help!

 

[Lou Ruh]

Based on the user manual (available online at http://resources.jvc.com/Resources/00/00/90/LYT1522-001C.pdf ), it looks like you are correct ... the camera has a firewire/IEEE-1394/i.LINK/"DV IN/OUT" port (it's amazing how many different names exist for that), so, unless they've done something very bizarre, you're probably fine and should have no trouble streaming with that camera. The connection is shown on page 41 of the manual. There are different flavors of IEEE-1394 cables so you would need to make sure you get the correct one (they are available in "4-circuit" and "6-circuit" versions ... although there is also a "9-circuit" version but I doubt you will see that in what you're looking at ... and you can have a 4-circuit on one side and a 6-circuit on the other side of the cable ... whatever matches your equipment).

 

[Kris Hair]

I have the exact camcorder, and it works great on the dash!

 

[Jason Moreland]

Thanks for the excellent replies!

I have the exact camcorder, and it works great on the dash!

Kris, where'd you buy your firewire from? I've seen a couple for as little as $10 but the exact model # (JVC VC-VDV204U) they're talking about in the manual is no less than about $28. Also, i'm assuming all i'll need for the laptop to recognize the cam is adobe flash encoder, correct?

 

[Steve Miller]

Jason:
You can pick up a firewire pretty cheap at amazon.com. I've gotten to where I don't bother going to the retail stores because of the mark-up on accessories.
As for a laptop with a firewire port, make sure it has one before you buy it! There are a lot of lines, HP for one, who have dropped this port on their big box retailer units.
I also stream with a JVC, although not that particular model. They do very well in low light; I've never had a problem with it at all and it's going on two years of bouncing around on my dash.
As for streaming services once you get your hardware lined out, shout at me. I have a suggestion for you!

 

[Kris Hair]

I just bought a laptop that didn't have the firewire port on it, but you can buy a MCIA card that will convert the MCIA slot to 2 firewire and 1 usb port.

FWIW...

I've streamd with Chasertv.com exclusively, and have nothing but good things to say about them. Any problems I've had have been handled quickly, and if I'm out in the field streaming video, they've been handled IMMEDIATELY. They come HIGHLY recommended from me. If I were you, I'd look hard at those guys for any streaming that you want to do.

 

[Jason Moreland]

So I guess as long as I buy any 4 pin to 4 pin cable (which is what I need) it should work. Thanks again....I will strongly look at ChaserTV in the near future. I've watched several ChaserTV streams in the past.

 

[Scott Hammel]

Last year was my first season of streaming and trust me, if I can do it, anyone can haha...Severestudios.com has a great tutorial that got me going right away. I will certainly put my plug in for those guys and as stated in a post above I've never heard a bad word about Chasertv either. Both provide an excellent service to us chasers, so you really can't go wrong.