Andrew McCarrick Posted November 8, 2008 Share Posted November 8, 2008 (edited) Can anyone see any difference at all with these three tapes other than the case they come in and labeling on the tape? http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/3867...eocassette.html http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/4815...inute_Mini.html http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/5828...er_Quality.html Are these not all the the same tape? One just has a regular case, one has a "hard" plastic case, and the other is labeled "HD". Makes no sense why the prices are all different. (These would be used in a Canon HV30.) Edited November 8, 2008 by Andrew McCarrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Bass Posted November 8, 2008 Share Posted November 8, 2008 (edited) I will relate to you what I was once told. Hopefully it's somewhat accurate. Firstly, I haven't even seen these particular grades before, but I'm assuming it's the same principle as the DV only (no "H") grades of panasonic tapes. So, they have DVC, PQ, and MQ (now AMQ) grades. One is the lowest, one the middle, one the highest, and their prices reflect such. What makes the grades different? Apparently the tape itself, the the black stringy stuff that records your video, is cut from some huge roll. Like a roll of toilet paper, or something vaguely similar. So, the outer edges of the roll are more exposed to the elements/contamination, whereas the center is somehow or other enclosed and protected from dirt and filth. So the lowest grade of tape comes from the outer edge, mid grade comes from between edge and center, and high grade comes from center. So, Seriously. . .this is what I heard. Is it right? I think there's a kernel of truth buried in there somewhere. What it boils down to is that, within a certain brand, the more expensive the tape, the less prone to dropouts and errors it should be. Edited November 8, 2008 by Josh Bass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew McCarrick Posted November 8, 2008 Author Share Posted November 8, 2008 (edited) All three of the tapes I linked to are AMQ though. The first and third are labeled as AMQ... the second as HD, but it is technically an AMQ tape also. So why the different prices.... Edited November 8, 2008 by Andrew McCarrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Bass Posted November 8, 2008 Share Posted November 8, 2008 Look closely. . .one of the AMQ doesn't say anything about being HDV/DV, just says miniDV. May not be intended for HDV? And one of them doesn't have AMQ in the model number at all, and also says DVC real large on the front. That would probably be the uber cheap consumer grade HD tape. The most expensive one advertises, specifically 30% fewer dropouts. Now, is all this marketing? Who knows. Try it and see. I always went with the most expensive grade (though I"m still on a XL2), and the DVC tapes, the SD ones anyway, have given me issues in the past, so I go out of my way to try and not use those. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew McCarrick Posted November 8, 2008 Author Share Posted November 8, 2008 HDV and DV tapes are the same tape, it's just HDV tends to use Higher Quality, but you can't get higher quality than AMQ... so I'm not going to spend an extra 4 bucks per tape (I'll need a couple hundred) if it's the same exact tape. I did just see the DVC label on the "HD" one... so it's the other two I'm interested in. Both are labeled AMQ except one says HDV/DV and it's has a hard plastic case instead of regular case. So am I paying 4 bucks for a case? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Bass Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 I'm about out of ideas. If you look at the specifications/features tabs on those links, the HDV tape claims "42 minutes in professional mode", nothing of the sort mentioned on the plain old miniDV tape. I have no idea what that means, but maybe you do. Also, again, the HDV tape mentions 30% fewer dropouts. Is there some deal where HDV recording spins the differently than DV, or something? Kind of like DVCAM versus miniDV modes on some sony cameras? Maybe the HDV tape is better in that regard, or something. Other than that, if it's really important to you to get the issue resolved, search the Panasonic website for info, or call them and ask. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew McCarrick Posted November 9, 2008 Author Share Posted November 9, 2008 I'm about out of ideas. If you look at the specifications/features tabs on those links, the HDV tape claims "42 minutes in professional mode", nothing of the sort mentioned on the plain old miniDV tape. I have no idea what that means, but maybe you do. Also, again, the HDV tape mentions 30% fewer dropouts. Is there some deal where HDV recording spins the differently than DV, or something? Kind of like DVCAM versus miniDV modes on some sony cameras? Maybe the HDV tape is better in that regard, or something. Other than that, if it's really important to you to get the issue resolved, search the Panasonic website for info, or call them and ask. Okay, thanks. I'm just gonna go with the $10 ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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