Tapedeck three tools, one job each

Capture digitises·Mirror syncs·Proxy converts

Tapedeck

Three native macOS apps. One digitises MiniDV and HDV tapes. One keeps two folders identical. One converts, compresses and files — any material, not only what came off a tape. Files are named after the date they were shot, never after the date they were digitised.

v2.84 · in beta, release shortly
Capture
rec, in four quarters
»
Proxy
fast forward
⇅
Mirror
both directions
Tapedeck Capture
Tapedeck Capture — the shooting date is read from the frames themselves

Three tools, one job each

01

Tapedeck Capture

it digitises

Digitises MiniDV and HDV tapes over FireWire. It runs a whole box unattended: rewind, play, capture, eject, next tape. Developed and tested on a Sony HVR-M15E.

  • Reads the shooting date burnt into the frames
  • Files by shooting date — never by digitising date
  • Splits into shots: a gap over 3 minutes starts a new one
  • Keeps masters untouched — .dv / .m2t / .mov
  • Two engines, QuickTime and raw FireWire, automatic fallback
  • Built-in OCR: frame index, timecodes, on-screen text
  • Plain-language log of everything it did
Tapedeck Capture
Transport, timecode, shots found — and the tape’s own date, in amber
02 ⇅

Tapedeck Mirror

it syncs folders

Keeps two folders identical, on any disks you like. Nothing is ever destroyed: whatever disappears from A is moved into a dated “Removed on …” folder on B, and stays there.

  • One-way or two-way, continuous or on demand
  • Dated quarantine folder instead of deletion
  • Steps aside while a tape is being digitised, resumes after
  • Live throughput meter, file by file
Tapedeck Mirror
Source, copy, what is left to do — and the throughput, live
03 »

Tapedeck Proxy

it converts and files

A converter that happens to know about tapes. Give it whatever you have — it reads it, compresses it, changes its format, renames it, and does the same to the next thousand files without being asked twice. Two tabs: THE WORKSHOP for conversions, THE CATALOGUE read straight off the disk — one line per tape, green light once master, copy and record sheet are all there.

  • Reads what you throw at it, writes what you ask for
  • Batch conversion: a folder, a rule, and it runs
  • Scriptable — chain your own steps around a conversion
  • Watches a folder and converts what arrives
  • Never touches the original
  • Catalogue read from the disk, not from a database
  • Amber until the record sheet is written
Tapedeck Proxy — the catalogue
THE CATALOGUE — one line per tape, read straight off the disk
Tapedeck Proxy — the workshop
THE WORKSHOP — the queue, what is running, what is left

The three apps share the code of the windows: a green light means done, amber means in progress. On the icon itself, they tell you where the application stands without opening it.

Why

I have kept over a hundred tapes of performances since 2004. The dates they were shot are sleeping inside the images, written frame by frame by the camera — and no software I could find would file them by that date rather than by the day I happened to digitise them. So I wrote these three applications for myself, and they now run on their own while I do something else.

Technical specifications

Tapes readMiniDV · HDV · DVCAM (i.LINK / IEEE 1394)
Masters written.dv · .m2t · .mov
Files convertedProxy is not limited to tape material: it converts the files you give it, one by one or by the folder. Output is H.264 / .mp4 by default.
Capture enginesQuickTime and raw FireWire stream, with automatic fallback
Shot detectionA gap of more than 3 minutes in the recorded date starts a new shot; anything shorter is a micro-cut and gets joined back.
OCRFrame index, timecodes and on-screen text, computed locally
NamingYYYY-MM-DD — CASSETTE_001.mp4

Folder structure produced

00_Catalogue/ 01_Masters/ — .dv · .m2t · .mov 02_Videos/ — H.264 03_Fiches/ — record sheets, logs, OCR

System requirements

CaptureA Mac with a FireWire port or adapter · macOS 10.13 or later · universal binary, Intel and Apple Silicon · a DV/HDV deck or camcorder with i.LINK
Mirror · ProxymacOS 11 or later · any Mac
DistributionA single DMG containing the three applications, downloaded from this site. Not through the Mac App Store: Capture needs FireWire access and free rein over your disks, which the App Store sandbox does not allow.
PrivacyNo data collection, no network connection. The applications only ever touch your local disks.

Get Tapedeck

The three applications
  • Capture — digitises the tapes
  • Mirror — keeps two folders identical
  • Proxy — converts, compresses, files

Capture is only available in the suite — it is the reason the other two exist.

Tapedeck Mirror

Two folders kept identical, on any disks. Nothing is ever destroyed.

Tapedeck Proxy

A converter, a batch queue and a catalogue. Tapes optional.

Single-user licence, updates included. VAT handled by the payment platform.

Version2.84

FAQ

The app won’t open — macOS says it can’t be verified
That’s Gatekeeper. Right-click the application, choose Open, then confirm in the dialog. Once, the first time only.
My Mac has no FireWire port
Chain a FireWire 800 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter with a Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 adapter — both Apple parts. Check the deck responds to transport commands before starting a long batch. USB grabbers do not work: capture goes through i.LINK.
Which decks and camcorders are supported?
Anything with an i.LINK / IEEE 1394 output speaking standard DV or HDV. Development and testing were done on a Sony HVR-M15E. Consumer MiniDV camcorders generally work; decks with remote transport control let a whole box run unattended.
Do my files stay with me?
Yes. Everything is local. The applications never open a network connection, collect nothing, send nothing. OCR runs on your machine.
What if the tape has no recorded date?
It is filed under the date you enter in the record sheet, and the log states plainly that the date came from you rather than from the tape.