# My iMac is not recognizing my Samsung camcorder...HELP!



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

I don't know what the problem is...APPLE says that iMac supports most tape-based camcorders, and says to just plug it in. I have done that, I have reset the camera and I have unplugged and plugged the firewire cable in a hundred times. I think the camera knows that its plugged somewhere because the screen is a little jumpy, but not too bad. The camera is only 2yrs old...and my iMac is brand new, with Tiger OS. What could be the problem?


----------



## dona83 (Jun 26, 2005)

Are you using Firewire? USB connections are generally not supported because they are often proprietary signals requiring drivers which are generally written for only PC while Firewire (or IEEE 1394) is a standard signal. Your camcorder should have come with one but if not, this is the one you need..

NCIX.com - Buy Generic Firewire Device Cable IEEE1394 A/B 5FT 6PINS/4PINS - 1394-AB-5.0-6/4PINS In Canada.

You plug the 4 pin side to your camcorder, 6 pin side to your Mac.


----------



## keebler27 (Jan 5, 2007)

dona83 said:


> Are you using Firewire? USB connections are generally not supported. Your camcorder should have come with one but if not, this is the one you need..
> 
> NCIX.com - Buy Generic Firewire Device Cable IEEE1394 A/B 5FT 6PINS/4PINS - 1394-AB-5.0-6/4PINS In Canada.
> 
> You plug the 4 pin side to your camcorder, 6 pin side to your Mac.


he is using FW.

Tdogg, did you set your camcorder for video out? there should be a setting on the camera to change where your video is output - ie. to the lcd or video out etc... it varies by camcorder. for my sony, i enter the menu and change the A/V to DV OUT.

double check that. it's common to not be set up that way.

Cheers,
Keebler


----------



## dona83 (Jun 26, 2005)

Lol sorry I missed the firewire part. I'm dum and dummer.


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

SHE is using a firewire, and yes I have set the camera to PLAY mode, as there is no PC mode. This is what the apple website suggested. I have reset the camera, again how they suggested, checked the date etc. BUT NOTHING! The only thing I can think of is that its not in the correct format...but why? The sticker on the side of the camera says " MPEG-4" Movie clip....could this be in where the problem lies? 

They also suggested that I might be able to connect to the USB and then after loading onto the computer, convert to a dvd project in iMovie, but that doesn't even work. I am able to retrieve photos from my camera (the camcorder is also a digital camera) but not the video. Is it possible that we have a faulty cable? Is that even possible? How would I know that?


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

You plug the 4 pin side to your camcorder, 6 pin side to your Mac.[/QUOTE]

I got a laugh outtta that by the way... I'm not blonde... :lmao:


----------



## keebler27 (Jan 5, 2007)

tdogg said:


> SHE is using a firewire, and yes I have set the camera to PLAY mode, as there is no PC mode. This is what the apple website suggested. I have reset the camera, again how they suggested, checked the date etc. BUT NOTHING! The only thing I can think of is that its not in the correct format...but why? The sticker on the side of the camera says " MPEG-4" Movie clip....could this be in where the problem lies?
> 
> They also suggested that I might be able to connect to the USB and then after loading onto the computer, convert to a dvd project in iMovie, but that doesn't even work. I am able to retrieve photos from my camera (the camcorder is also a digital camera) but not the video. Is it possible that we have a faulty cable? Is that even possible? How would I know that?


ha...looks like i'm the dum and dummer one  sorry Ms. TDogg.

what camera is it? make and model number? not to sound like smart aleck, but have you read the camera's instruction booklet? There should be a section detailing how to connect to a computer. i know you've got it set to Play, but i'm surprised there's no setting to change the a/v (audio/video) output settings.

let us know the camera and we'll take a peek at the manual in pdf.

Cheers
Keebler


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

Its a Samsung SC-D6550 

I have read the manual and the only thing that it says is that you need to connect the camera with a Firewire cable, and thats it. Says that it needs to have the IEEE 1394 add on to transmit the data, which, correct me if I'm wrong is the firewire port right?


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

You guys are awesome by the way! Thanks for helping poor little old me! :clap:


----------



## keebler27 (Jan 5, 2007)

tdogg said:


> Its a Samsung SC-D6550
> 
> I have read the manual and the only thing that it says is that you need to connect the camera with a Firewire cable, and thats it. Says that it needs to have the IEEE 1394 add on to transmit the data, which, correct me if I'm wrong is the firewire port right?


you're probably right about the FW.

i dloaded the manual and skipped through it. what I was referring to is on page 36. it's the OSD...on screen display. switch it so it says to TV. try that.

that's the only other thing i can think of.


----------



## imactheknife (Aug 7, 2003)

you may be out of luck unless Samdung has changed thier proprietary 1394 setup. I had a Mini DV samdung and it would not work in OSX at all. Every other mini DV camera works with macs go figure? Hope you got it working.

The reason I Sold it is because it would not work with OSX and imovie. I bought a Canon instead.


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

ah crud... thats what I was afraid of...


----------



## keebler27 (Jan 5, 2007)

tdogg said:


> ah crud... thats what I was afraid of...


if it's any consolation, there are some great deals out there now on camcorders b/c of the holiday season. you could always keep your samsung, record on it and only use a new one for the transferring. this would keep both running longer as you wouldn't be using one all the time = less wear and tear. just a thought.


----------



## Cliffy (Apr 18, 2005)

I had a weird problem that my camcorder wasn't recognized until I had unplugged a firewire HD and iPod dock.


----------



## Ottawaman (Jan 16, 2005)

Firewire cables go bad occasionally, have you tried another cable?

read this too...
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1059


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

no I have not tried another cable. but thinking its worth a shot. Although, I wouldn't want to spend another $20 to find out that its the camera... The only other things that I have plugged in are my keyboard/mouse and my camera USB but the camera (just my digital photo camera-not the video camera) is not plugged into the camera.


----------



## Ottawaman (Jan 16, 2005)

> some cameras aren't recognized and to get them recognized you need to run the camera via a firewire external hard drive


 
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=5637165&#5637165


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

Since you never actually said, and nobody actually asked, I'm going to ask the "blonde" question:

Is iMovie (I presume you have 08?) open when you try this? I'm pretty sure iMovie 08 can handle MPEG-4, but earlier versions (06?) cannot.


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

I have iMovie 2007, got the computer just before the change to Leopard. 

I was wrong about the firewire cable. I put it into an older PC that we have and it works just fine. Is it possible, now please forgive me because I don't know the first thing about "how things work", is it possible that rather than the 6pin firewire cable that goes into my apple that I might need the other one? There are two different ones on the back of my monitor.


----------



## Vexel (Jan 30, 2005)

Just to make sure you're using the proper connections on your Mac.

Ports and connectors

1 - Mini-DVI video output port
2 - Ethernet Port (10/100/1000 Gigabit Base-T)
3 - Audio in / optical audio in port
4 - Headphone out / optical audio out port
5 - USB 2.0 ports (three ports)
6 - FireWire ports (two ports)


----------



## jlcinc (Dec 13, 2002)

tdogg said:


> I have iMovie 2007, got the computer just before the change to Leopard.
> 
> I was wrong about the firewire cable. I put it into an older PC that we have and it works just fine. Is it possible, now please forgive me because I don't know the first thing about "how things work", is it possible that rather than the 6pin firewire cable that goes into my apple that I might need the other one? There are two different ones on the back of my monitor.


What iMac do you have. If you have a one with Firewire 400 and 800 make sue you use the correct port with the right cable. The 400 port is smaller then the 800 port.

John


----------



## Ottawaman (Jan 16, 2005)

connect camera to power-line, not battery-only..

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=4352028&#4352028


----------



## Macified (Sep 18, 2003)

I've heard reports of Samsung not being compatible.

You mentioned that the manual says something about mp4. mp4 isn't standard dv. Sounds to me like the camera is processing the video and storing on the tape in it's own unique way. Not good.


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

I am definitly using the FIREWIRE port, but is there a difference between the two...other than the obvious fact that one is a 6pin and one is a 4pin (I believe...)


----------



## jlcinc (Dec 13, 2002)

tdogg said:


> I am definitly using the FIREWIRE port, but is there a difference between the two...other than the obvious fact that one is a 6pin and one is a 4pin (I believe...)


What iMac do you have? Some have Firewire 800 as well as Firewire 400. Did you try to shut down the iMac plug the Firewire in turn on the camera and then start the iMac?

John


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

OK I have the iMac 10.4, Tiger OS. This one definitly has the 800 as well as the 400. And yes, I have tried the shutdown theory. Is there a difference between the two ports, like should I try going out and trying to find the other one to connect or will it be a waste of my time?


----------



## davidslegend (Jan 6, 2004)

*Hi...I had a similar issue*

Hi,

When I bought my new iMac Aluminum I brought it home and one of the first things I did was test out my camcorder. I freaked out when the camcorder wasn't connecting properly or at all using firewire. 

Called Apple support & they told me to bring it for logic board repairs. That ended up being a scary proposition 'cause the Mac repair place hadn't even touch an Aluminum mac yet...I was too scared to leave it in their hands....
I ended up taking the first mac I purchased at FS and got a new one within the first few days. Then I discovered the same issue with my new 2nd iMac I was disillusioned. So I went and bought some new firewire cables on sale at Sears (cheaper then FS) and some clearance one's around town. Turned out that nothing was wrong with both iMac's except that the firewire cords I used in my iMac 700mhz would not work with my new iMac. So I ended up finding out the hard way that for some reason old firewire cords just aren't gonna work out.

Go out and get a new virgin firewire cord and see if this will work for you as well. I hope this is the solution 'cause it was a cheap and easy fix!

Regards,

davidslegend


----------



## davidslegend (Jan 6, 2004)

just to further it was a Sony camcorder but, I really hope that this is the solution too!

Cheers!


----------



## jlcinc (Dec 13, 2002)

tdogg said:


> OK I have the iMac 10.4, Tiger OS. This one definitly has the 800 as well as the 400. And yes, I have tried the shutdown theory. Is there a difference between the two ports, like should I try going out and trying to find the other one to connect or will it be a waste of my time?


Well as davidslegend says try a new firewire cable and see what happens. Try the 400 6 pin (connected to the Mac) to 4 pin (Connected to the Camera) the camera is Firewire 400.

John


----------



## tdogg (Nov 21, 2007)

davidslegend said:


> Hi,
> 
> Go out and get a new virgin firewire cord and see if this will work for you as well. I hope this is the solution 'cause it was a cheap and easy fix!


The cord that I was using was brand new. Is that what you mean by VIRGIN?


----------



## davidslegend (Jan 6, 2004)

*?*



tdogg said:


> The cord that I was using was brand new. Is that what you mean by VIRGIN?


Dang... threw the "virgin" word in just to emphasize to use a new cord..Did you use that cord on an older Mac just before...??? Guess it doesn't sound like it...

I picked up a couple of cords ... one at FS that was clearance and another one somewhere else... all the new cords I got worked... 

Well, I was really hoping that this was a fix for you... do you have another device to try the cord out on to see if it performs well-say an external F/W drive? 

Best of luck!

Davidslegend


----------



## davidslegend (Jan 6, 2004)

...if you have an older mac you can also chain them together using firewire --??what's that called when you migrate between two mac's ?

Cheers!


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

I think this question has already been pretty well answered: if you are using a firewire 400 cord and trying to feed video to iMovie 08 and it's not working, then I think we can safely say that Samsung SUCKS and is not compatible.

As cheap as camcorders are these days, selling that POS and getting a new more compatible one is probably your best solution.


----------



## sir phit (Feb 23, 2012)

well thats lame. not one of you people realsised theres NO DRIVERS FOR MAC from samsung in most video camera models they make. i too am having this same issue the only difference was i was hoping someone would of realised this and made their own homemade driver or kext file to make it work. DAMN STUPID PROPRIETORY BS!!!! pardon my language but this has been bothering me for a couple years now and i'm sick of having massive colour bleed issues cuz i have to pipe ti through to many connections and one helluva a crapy program to transfer my videos from my cam to my comp.


----------



## jlcinc (Dec 13, 2002)

5 year old thread first post?????


----------



## broad (Jun 2, 2009)

sir phit said:


> well thats lame. not one of you people realsised theres NO DRIVERS FOR MAC from samsung in most video camera models they make. i too am having this same issue the only difference was i was hoping someone would of realised this and made their own homemade driver or kext file to make it work. DAMN STUPID PROPRIETORY BS!!!! pardon my language but this has been bothering me for a couple years now and i'm sick of having massive colour bleed issues cuz i have to pipe ti through to many connections and one helluva a crapy program to transfer my videos from my cam to my comp.


:lmao:


----------



## sir phit (Feb 23, 2012)

jlcinc said:


> 5 year old thread first post?????


only reason i joined was this thread.


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

So you're aware then that the problem was resolved years ago and doesn't apply to your situation at all??


----------



## fjnmusic (Oct 29, 2006)

That's "would've" (from "would have"), not "would of." Common error with kids these days. Just trying to help where I can, rather than making a silly comment about something I know nothing about.


----------



## sir phit (Feb 23, 2012)

chas_m said:


> So you're aware then that the problem was resolved years ago and doesn't apply to your situation at all??


only solution i've found at all is using connectors and a cheap program which gives me mad colour bleed.
i am yet to find drivers and didnt notice a solution to the lack of drivers in here. did i miss a post while reading through all this info?

*edit* or buying a new camera. mines not as old as this thread but same issue none the less. no drivers made for mac for the darn thing. was hoping someone had made a new driver or kext or something along those lines in order to help with it...?


----------

