
	DV	DVCAM	DVCPRO	Digital8
suppliers	consortium of 60 manufact-urers including Sony, Panasonic, JVC, Canon, Sharp.	Sony	Panasonic; also Philips, Ikegami, Hitachi.	Sony
intended market segment(s)	consumer (although JVC makes a dockable DV VTR for the pro/industrial market)	professional / industrial	professional / industrial / ENG / EFP / broadcast	consumer (Video8 & Hi8 replace-ment)
who's actually buying the stuff	consumer / professional / industrial / ENG / EFP	professional / industrial / ENG / EFP	professional / industrial / ENG / EFP / broadcast	consumers
tape type	ME (Metal Evaporate)	ME (Metal Evaporate)	MP (Metal Particle)	ME, MP (uses Video8, Hi8 tapes)
	DV	DVCAM	DVCPRO	Digital8
track pitch	10 microns (SP) 6.7 microns (LP)	15 microns	18 microns	???
track width	10 microns (SP) 6.7 microns (LP)	15 microns (10 microns on some early gear)	18 microns	???
tape speed	18.81 mm/sec	28.215 mm/sec	33.82 mm /sec	28.6 mm/sec (estimated)
cassettes & max. loads	miniDV: 80/120 min (SP/LP) std: 3.0/4.6 hrs (SP/LP) (4.6/6.9 hrs possible using DVCAM 184 min tape)	miniDV: 40 min. std: 184 min.	small: 63 min. (note: small is larger than miniDV cassette) std: 123 min./184 min.**	Video8, Hi8 standard 120 minute tape: 60 min.
max. camera load	80/120 min. (SP/LP)	184 minutes	63 minutes (AJ-D700/810); 123 min. (AJ-D200/210); 184 min. (AJ-D215)**	60 min.
compression	5:1 DVC-format DCT, intra-frame; 25 Mbps video data rate	5:1 DVC-format DCT, intra-frame; 25 Mbps video data rate	5:1 DVC-format DCT, intra-frame; 25 Mbps video data rate	5:1 DVC-format DCT, intra-frame; 25 Mbps video data rate
	DV	DVCAM	DVCPRO	Digital8
resolution & sampling	720x480, 4:1:1 (NTSC) 720x576, 4:2:0 (PAL)	720x480, 4:1:1 (NTSC) 720x576, 4:2:0 (PAL)	720x480, 4:1:1 (NTSC) 720x576, 4:1:1 (PAL)	720x480, 4:1:1 (NTSC) 720x576, 4:2:0 (PAL)
audio recording (see "locked vs unlocked")	2 ch @ 48 kHz, 16 bits; 4 ch @ 32 kHz, 12 bits; will accept 2 ch @ 44.1 kHz, 16 bits via 1394 I/O; unlocked (but can record locked audio via 1394)	2 ch @ 48 kHz, 16 bits; 4 ch @ 32 kHz, 12 bits; will accept 2 ch @ 44.1 kHz, 16 bits via 1394 I/O; locked (but some VTRs can be made to record unlocked via 1394)	2 ch @ 48 kHz, 16 bits; locked, plus one analog audio cue track; plays back 32 kHz, 12 bits and presumably 44.1 kHz, 16 bits.	2 ch @ 48 kHz, 16 bits; 4 ch @ 32 kHz, 12 bits; will accept 2 ch @ 44.1 kHz, 16 bits via 1394 I/O; unlocked (but can record locked audio via 1394)
These tapes can play back in...	DV, DVCAM, & DVCPRO VTRs	DV, DVCAM, & DVCPRO VTRs	DVCPRO VTRs; DSR-2000 DVCAM VTR	Digital8 camcorders
These VTRs can play back...	DV & DVCAM* tapes	DV & DVCAM tapes (DVCPRO in the DSR-2000; Oct '99)	DV, DVCAM*, & DVCPRO tapes	Video8, Hi8, Digital8 tapes
IEEE-1394 I/O (a.k.a. "FireWire" or "i.link")	Sony & Canon camcorders and VTRs; newer JVC camcorders (output only)	DSR-V10, DSR-20, DSR-30, DSR-40, DSR-200/200a, DSR-500, DSR-2000, DRV-1000	AJ-D210/ 215 camcorders and AJ-D230 VTRs with optional adapter.	yes
	DV	DVCAM	DVCPRO	Digital8
SMPTE 259M SDI (serial digital interface)	no	DSR-60/80 /85/2000 VTRs with adapter	AJ-D750/650 /640 VTRs with adapter	no
4X digital I/O	no	DSR-85 VTR	AG-D780 VTR; NewsByte NLE with onboard VTR	no
Analog component I/O	no	DSR-40/60 /80/85/ 2000 VTRs only	AJ-D750/650 /640 VTRs	no
Y/C & composite I/O	yes (DRV-100 & many camcorders: output only)	yes (DRV-1000: output only)	yes (no Y/C on AJ-D750)	yes
Edit control	LANC & IEEE-1394 (Sony, Canon); Panasonic 5-pin (Panasonic); J-LIP (JVC)	LANC & IEEE-1394 (DSR-V10, DSR-20/30, DSR-200/200a); RS-232 (DSR-20); RS-422 (DSR-40/ 60/80 /85/2000)	RS-232 (AJ-D230/ 640/650 /750); RS-422 (AJ-D640/650 /750)	LANC & IEEE-1394

*Interformat interchange:

DV plays back in all three format VTRs; DVCPRO VTRs require a cassette adapter to play back miniDV tapes.
DVCAM plays back in most DV VTRs excepting the DCR-VX700 and DCR-VX1000 camcorders which were designed prior to the introduction of DVCAM.
Early model DVCPRO VTRs (made before June 1997) require an EPROM upgrade to allow the servos to track DVCAM. Check the serial number: it's of the form MYxxxxxxx, where M is a month letter, A-L, and Y is the last digit in the year. F7xxxxxxx means the machine was built in June 1997, and it's OK. H6xxxxxxx would mean the machine was born in August of 1996 and the EPROM upgrade would be required.
To play back DV or DVCAM in a DVCPRO machine, use the setup menus to specify DV or DVCAM before you insert the tape! The playback mode "locks in" when the tape is inserted, so if you set DV or DVCAM mode after loading the tape, playback will still be attempted as if the tape were a DVCPRO tape.
PAL 4:2:0 DV and DVCAM played back on a DVCPRO are digitally resampled to generate a PAL 4:1:1 DVCPRO signal.
DV in LP mode will not play back in DVCAM or DVCPRO VTRs.
miniDV tapes cannot be played back in the NewsByte VTR even with the cassette adaptor.
DV in SP mode appears to be the universal tape format: it will play back in any of the VTRs.
DVCPRO appears to be the universal playback VTR: it'll play back any of the DV-based formats, as will the new (NAB '99) DVCAM DSR-2000.
See also: How DVCPRO (D-7) plays back DV tape -- and why it doesn't record DV (which also probably explains why your DVCAM deck won't record DV either). Courtesy Panasonic Broadcast and Digital Systems.
The 4X high-speed transfer decks will not perform 4X play with a DV cassette!

**DVCPRO std. cassette run times:

The "standard" standard cassette holds 123 minutes of tape, but there is a newer, 184 minute tape load available using the same sized cassette. All DVCPRO equipment accepting the std. size cassette should be able to record or play for 184 minutes, but only the newer equipment (such as the AJ-D215 and later model AJ-D230s; the 400-series VTRs should also fit this description) has been programmed to "understand" the larger load. If you put a 184 min. cassette into an older bit of equipment, it'll think that such a cassette can only hold 123 minutes, and as a result operations like fast-forward or rewind may only work as expected for 2/3 of the tape, after which the machine will slow the tape down, expecting it to end. The operation will proceed at this reduced speed while the machine is waiting for the tape to end (any minute now!); this can take quite a while... Before using the longer tape in older gear (600-series and 700-series VTRs, AJ-D200 and 210 cameras, and pre-NAB-1999 AJ-D230 VTRs), you might want to check with your Panasonic rep, or at least do a dry run to see how the older gear will behave with the longer tape.

Adam J. Wilt is in the middle of an illustrious career involving a multitude of disciplines. His experience includes serving as Project Lead Senior Software Engineer for the Abekas A72 video character generator and a video software designer for ABC-TV and Pinnacle Systems, among many others. His fields of expertise include film & video production/post-production, stop-motion animation, still photography; computer graphics, interface design, object-oriented design and programming, graphical user interfaces, and real-time hardware control. See his Web site at adamwilt.com.