Need answer quickly...

[goofy4tink]

Okay, I have a high8 Sony video camera. Yesterday I went out and got some new tape for my trip tonight. When I put it in and gave it a try, there seemed to be a lot of 'noise' on the recording. Just a constant noise almost like the sound was turned waaay up...a scratchy type thing. Sorry, I'm not very technical. Now, the tape did say it was for Digital8, high8, but perhaps it's not the right thing for my camera? I have to tape my ds's wedding on Sunday and I don't want to have a constant background noise. Any thoughts?

[tinksdad]

I'd change tapes. You might have a bad one if that hasn't happened before!

Sorry, best I can do......

[IwasatWDWforamonth]

at least you can get a tape in:) my eject button is broke, its the second sony ive had in 4 years , they are both broken,

but id try a different tape too

[seashoreCM]

Does an older tape still work for both record and play? (proving that the camcorder itself is still working oK)

Tapes and camcorders are designed for each other, although, fortunately there are only three or four different kinds of tape. Here I am referring to the tape inside, not just the shape of the cassette. The technical term is "the tape has certain bias requirements." Some cameras have manual settings for different kinds of tapes. If the ratings such as high-8-digital do not include one that matches your camcorder, the results can be unpredictable. Correction: If the tape only says it has "a different formulation" and does not go into specifics, that should not cause any problem.

Check to be sure the microphone boom is not bent slightly to rub against the camcorder body; it could then pick up the mechanical noises of the camcorder along with unnatural resonances.

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

[MarkBarbieri]

Try a different tape.

Try an old tape to see if it is a playback problem or a recording problem.

Try a head cleaning tape to see if that helps.

Check to see if there is a mic gain setting that is turned all the way up.

Try recording something with more ambient sound, like talking, going on. Most camcorders automatically adjust the mic gain to fit what they hear. If the only sound is the quiet moving of camcorder parts, some will crank up the gain so much that those sounds become very audible.

Borrow someone else's camcorder.

[goofy4tink]

Ah, perhaps it's the lack of any ambient sound. It was pretty quiet, so I spoke a bit but that didn't help much. And, yes, an older tape works just fine. I'll see what happens at WDW tomorrow...that should be plenty of ambient sound there!!! If it's still an issue, I'll just buy a new tape. Thanks everyone.