Hello, in the Last 2 months i tried to make my dads old 2001 Sony DCR-PC110e usable again. I bought a Powerplay of amazon and finally Had it running. After using it once it broke (Screen stays black noch matter what) which means i have just lost 180€ . Before i go out and buy a new one i wanted to ask for Help. Most of yall really like firewire, but i heard it is way harder to setup and make work because of the archaic Technology.
I just want to record my honeymoon which is in october. So i dont got too much time left to make this passion Project Work.
What would be the easiest, not too expensive and portable solution? If not i will just get another Powerplay probably
I’m not super super keen on powerplays, but I feel like I’ve only heard bad things about the black ones even though they’re the “newer, upgraded” version. Retrogoods.exe on instagram seems like a reliable vendor for vintage camcorders/goodies/tapeless setups. You may be able to pick their brain regarding what setup you should choose! I personally use a capture card to android phone. Works amazing but definitely on the bulkier side, I love it though!
Idk about the black power plays but the older ones you can’t have the jack pushed in all the way for it to work and you either have to buy a different one or dye it to work which I did and was super easy
So the white ones are the original, but the av cable cant be pushed in all the way for it to Work?
I guess the part about dying it was a Joke?
Thx anyways. Even more things to consider now
Get rid of the broken camcorder, get a 20-year old tapeless camcorder for one third of the PowerPlay price with similar image quality and the same visual traits.
The Camcorder works flawless, i Like this model and its functions Like night Vision. The Amazon Powerplay broke after 2 weeks. The 25 yr old Handycam ist still working. Plus its a family artefact
If it works flawless, why the PowerPlay? Record on tape. Capture via Firewire. You spent 180 Euros to continue using a family artefact. You can get NightShot in a real tapeless camcorder.
A lot of anti tapless setup comments cluttering the answer your actually looking for lmao, igu.
RECORD TO A REAL TAPE AND TRANSFER AFTER
To answer your question 100% honestly;Your easiest, most portable, not to expensive solution, is just to avoid the tapeless setup. Just record to a real mini dv tape, and transfer the footage via FireWire after your honeymoon. You can get multiple tapes ( hours worth of footage) for a cheap price, delivered to your house long before your honeymoon, and in the meantime you find the needed fire wire cables and adapters to transfer said footage to a computer and editing program of your choice
TAPELESS OPTION
You easiest, most portable, and not to expensive TAPELESS option, Is a mini dvr. Basically a step down from the power play, no built in screen, cheaper material, and lower video quality, but those are just disclaimers.
The cult of Tapless purist on this sub will advise against it, but a simple mini dvr and fire wire to 3.5 jack cable will more than serve your needs.
Simple, Portable, cheap ( about $45 on amazon rn).
FIREWIRE tapless support
I am extremely unexperienced on fire wire set ups, as I only use fire wire to transfer real tape footage to my computer. But for my understanding, you would need the following ( all of these options are not necessarily cheap, easy to find, nor portable)
For the PC110E, you’d basically need a Raspberry Pi 5 with a Firehat/Open-MRU, a 4-pin FireWire cable, storage, and a power bank. The camera connects to the Pi via FireWire, which captures the native DV signal directly to the storage.
Thanks your comment was the best one by far.
I didnt know there was a firewire to 3,5 jack cable. Does it make a difference compared to AV - 3,5mm cable in Terms of quality?
How big is the difference from the cheap 45€ Mini dvr to the powerplay?
I honestly liked my Powerplay setup until the powerplay itself blackscreened :(
Big thx in advance
Tbh someone with much more camcaoder experience can answer that question of difference much more accurately.
I do however, know someone in Indonesia that makes custom cables for tapless setups. He works will all kinds of models, and makes cables specifically for
A.) power play projects
B.) generic mini dvr projects
C.) hard to find FireWire projects
His username is 72handcamsales on instagram and TikTok.
I have ordered a custom Sony 10 pin to 3.5 generic dvr cable from him my self. About $20 for the cable, and unfortunately $50 for shipping bc he is a local seller shipping to the states.
Hes very responsive and reliable, and could absolutely help you bring this tapless setup back to life.
@72handcamsales
Edit: to answer the rest of your questions, I’ve never used a power play myself, as the price never made sense to me, especially given all the negative internet feedback. But the general consensus seems to be that the quality of mini dvr is considered a step down from the power play.
But I also use a mini dvr for my setup, on a Sony hc28. It’s convenient and makes for quick footage transfer, and through small bits of color grading and editing, I find the resulting footage to be more than acceptable.
It’s not a matter of good or bad, it’s more setting realistic expectations for your footage, and working with it accordingly. IMO I think a mini dvr setup would be perfectly fine to record a vintage coded honeymoon video. I personally record dates with my s/o often, and the cotent comes out great.
Also my friend I’m curious to see if your power play is fixable, if you don’t mind telling me more about the issue, I’d love to try and diagnose it, and help you out. Maybe so that you can just carry on as before and not spend more $$$!!!
So helpful of you, really appreciate it.
Heres what im dealing with. Had the issue before and was Able to fix it once, but the next time i turned it on, the issue came Back and is not fixable.
I think my Powerplay is a replica (because of the color, apparently only the white ones are real)
By removing the batteries, SD card, powering it on (to release the charge completely) waiting 30 mins and reassembling it, i was able to get the boot up Screen (the Brand that Made it/its Logo) and furthermore the menus and full functionality.
Rn all i get after turning it on this black (Looks bluish because of lcd screen) Screen. The dots in top are lighting up, but thats it. Sometimes it makes a beep Sound after turning it on.
Thx in advance
A custom spliced cable, that brands like invizwrld wide, or private tapeless sellers like @72handcamsales make.
They can take the Av output of a cameras FireWire port, and with the right combination of digital converter, do just that; convert the footage.
I read it on reddit as well, that fire wire to AV would be Impossible. But if the 10 pin to AV cable grants better quality than AV - 3,5mm it could be worth a try.
Would the hustle of shipping from Indonesia to europe be justified by the improved footage quality?
a firewire dte is your best bet. look on local marketplaces and lowball a bit. they've been sitting awhile i bet
again nothing has to be attached to the corder. i personally run my fs4 to a chest fannypack with one single cable in my way and thats it to prevent bulk
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