1394 IEEE camcorder not found in XP

[Marky]

Hi All, I'm losing my mind....For approx 1 year ago my Sony DCR-PC109 worked flawless via firewire and Premiere 1.5...since then I've had a brake of video editing...and I was since a few weeks back trying to start again..and..when I was connecting the camera nothing happened, XP did not find my camera (now XP SP3)...I started to check possible reasons and searched internet for several days and have now tried all kind of things, I have bought several 1394 cables, I even bought a new camera (Samsung) and borrowed my friends camera (Panasonic)...nothing helped...(ok, my friend has never tried the IEEE on his camera, his not interested to edit through PC...he's not interested in PC's at all ;-)..I have 3 computers at home, I completely formatted one of them and re-installed XP without any SP..and worked from SP1, SP2 and SP3....and still nothing...I tried my work computer (a HP laptop) without any luck...In the computers at home, 2 of them has built-in IEEE in motherboard (ASUS) and I have also a separate IEEE card (which I've tried in each PC). I formatted the computer that does not have an in-built IEEE, so I could only try with the IEEE PCI card..all the other computers has SP2/SP3 and in-built IEEE....maybe the IEEE PCI card is broken and the other computers with SP2/SP3 just don't work with IEEE camcorders...?

I have checked everything regarding any possibilities that any kind of firewall might have blocked the IEEE port as well. (and BIOS settings)

I just don't know what to do anymore...to buy new things seems now just like throwing the money in the drain.

Can it be so, that I'm the most un-lucky guy that have 3 different cameras that don't work and all the IEEE ports I've tried is broken?...Am I cursed?

Anyone with similar problems and with any "bullet proof" suggestion of what I shall buy to make everything work again, a new IEEE card?
Thanx!/Marky

For starters, I would only use the picture mode of the camera, not the video
end for troubleshooting the connection.

Go snap some pictures and keep the media in the camera for saving those
pictures. Verify that you can view those images from the camera. Turn off
the camera.

Turn off the PC. Connect the Firewire cable to the camera and the PC's
firewire port. Turn on the PC. Allow XP to complete full bootup plus a
couple of minutes. Be sure the camera is not in video mode, just picture
mode for viewing pictures. Turn on the camera. Give XP a little time to
access the camera and deliberate the files on the media. Open windows
explorer and attempt to find the camera media, go down the folder hierarchy
to locate folder that contains the pictures. Attempt to view a picture by
opening one of those files. Windows media player will display these
natively. Once you've been successful at this, then try camera video.
Don't switch to video until you back out with windows explorer and close its
window. Turn the camera off, switch to video. Turn the camera back on.

Only problem is that that camera does not use the firewire connection for
transferring pictures to the PC. Pictures are transferred via the USB port
only.

If the camera refuses to work with any PC's firewire interface, the OP
should consider whether his camcorder's i-Link port has failed.

One thought does occur to me. Is the OP sure that he is plugging the camera
directly into a firewire root port? It will not work if it is plugged into
a hub that feeds other full speed firewire devices or if it is connected to
a free daisy chain port on another firewire device (because the camera only
operates in 100 MB/s mode).

Its hard to say where the problem is in 1394 connection based on the post,
that's why I suggest using picture mode vs. video when connecting the
camera. Once connection is established and verified in picture mode, then
he can switch to video mode.

He said it (camera) works on other PCs, so its not the camera itself.

If he can't get the camera to work in picture mode, then the thing to do is
verify hardware operability starting with the cable he's using, then the
port. If that's all good, its XP driver problem or some conflict.

I've had two ide hard drives in firewire enclosures, one piggy-backed to the
other. Both worked fine. Both ATA 100 speed.

OP failed to indicate what type firewire chip he had. Firewire original, A,
or B.

Don't see a reply. So, I guess he's still trying stuff. Or, forgot he
dropped a post here for help. Or, doesn't know how to reply as part of the
thread.

He won't get the camera to work in picture mode because, as I said, the
camera does not support transmission of pictures via firewire.

What kind of screwed up camera is that, having a firewire connection but
can't transmit the picture data over firewire.

Picture data is transmitted by USB. The only reason the video is
transmitted by firewire is because USB won't support transmission of the
video as it has to be streamed in real time. In non tape based cameras, the
video is transmitted over USB because there is no real time requirement.

That makes sense. What doesn't make sense is not providing picture (not
video) data transmission over firewire to a PC. Usually this is the makeup
of the media that contains those pictures, and displayed in windows explorer
in folder/file format. I've had two JVC video/picture cameras. Both I've
always connected via strictly firewire, even though they have the USB
connection. Pictures displayed fine over firewire in windows explorer. No
special software needed for that end of it..

I also found it odd that 2 other cameras would not work via firewire on the
same PC either. What mode the OP was using in these cameras, camera models
of these 2, we don't know.

I have little doubt that different manufaturers' modus operandi vary on the
point but the camera the OP has definitely only uses the firewire for video.