topic Re: Canon Vixia HG21 in Professional Video

Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Sat, 17 Jun 2017 23:42:11 GMT

I bought that cam around 2011. I've transfered files to my computer with ImageMixer 3 SE Player Ver.3 back then with no problem. I've stopped using the cam for a few years and I decide to re-using it recently. Today I'm running Windows 7 Ultimate and when I try to transfer my recent videos to my PC using that old sofware via USB, Window detected the removable disk (I can see it in my computer) but ImageMixer tells me that there are no files on the camcorder. I've tried to upgrade everything I could but still doesn't work. Now my new videos (and old ones) are stuck on the camcorder and can't transfer them. Can somebody help me please? I'm kinda discouraged and don't know what to do anymore. Help me please. Thank you

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Mon, 19 Jun 2017 15:19:01 GMT

You say Windows recognizes the camcorder as an external drive. Have you gone into Windows Explorer to view the contents of the drive (camcorder)? If not, try it and open the various folders until you find your video files. You should be able to copy the files from the camcorder to the computer simply by doing a copy and paste.

If you are able to do this, and considering the age of the camcorder, I recommend you backup those videos as soon as possible.

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Mon, 19 Jun 2017 19:42:02 GMT

Thank you for your reply.I insert some images, hope it means something to you. This is what I see after connecting the USB cable and power up the cam. It's been detected but not completly....I don't know.... Here are the 4 pics

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Mon, 19 Jun 2017 19:59:35 GMT

Thank you for the screen shots.

I see the dilema. It looks like it is showing as 2 drives in device manger but only as one in Windows Explorer. In Windows Explorer it looks as though there is nothing on the drive (Canon E: 7.50 GB free of 7.50 GB). Drive E: is probably showing an 8 GB SD card. Do you have an SD card inserted in the camcorder?

What do you see if you go into Disk Management? If the ImageMixer 3 software is reporting on the right drive (camcorder's internal drive) then it appears as though there is nothing on the drive. I can't say for sure whether or not it is reporting on the correct drive. In Disk Management both of the camcorder's drives may appear and if so then you would able to tell more from that than anything reviewed thus far.

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Mon, 19 Jun 2017 20:51:30 GMT

Yes I do have a SD card in the cam (8GB) It seems that it detect only the SD card, not the hard drive on the cam. I have 31 GB of videos on the cam.(They are all there when I power up the cam without the USB plugged in). Here's a snapshot of the disk management

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Tue, 20 Jun 2017 02:48:49 GMT

You said you upgraded what you could. Did that include ImageMixer to version 3.1.4?

Have you visited the Canon Support page for the Canon VIXIA HG21 for software downloads? After looking more closely at the offerings I'm not sure that will help.

Have you tried any other video capture software to see if the camcorder can be detected?

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Tue, 20 Jun 2017 16:52:42 GMT

I have the version 3.2.4 of ImageMixer. I've tried Cyberlink Power Director 15 and all you see is that SD card as drive E. I'm on the palyback icon (blue Icon on the cam) and all that the PC detected is the SD card. I can play all the videos on the camcorder screen and even on my TV with a HDMI cable but for whatever the reason, the PC detects only the SD card as a drive. If I remove that card and try to connect via USB cable, it tells me to re-insert the card in the cam. Very bizarre !!! I communicate with Canon support by email and they don't understand either. They gave me the # number and I'll call them soon. I have a very modern PC and never had troubles with anything else. Why does the USB connection detect the SD card instead of the camcorder hard drive ??? 3 years ago I didn't have any problem extracting the files. Is it because of the x64 bits system?

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Wed, 21 Jun 2017 16:36:19 GMT

Even after talking to a Canon representative, nobody seems to know what's goin' on. Because the PC detects the SD card and not the HDD, I copied the files from the HDD to the SD card so I could finally extracted the videos from the card to my PC. It's a pain in the ass and takes lots of time but it worked. Thank you very much for your help

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Wed, 21 Jun 2017 17:57:42 GMT

You're welcome. It really is bizarre. Understandable if the HDD were fautty or the USB port was bad but since neither is the case that makes it all the more puzzling. Just out of curiosity, have you tried it on a different computer? If yes, same results?

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Wed, 21 Jun 2017 19:02:57 GMT

I would have loved to try it on another computer but there's nobody around here with a PC. They all have, like 90% of the population, these smart phones. I found a workaround for my problem but I didn't find an answer to my question. The Canon guy said to me, after I transfered the files from the SD card to re-format the HDD on the cam and see if it does the same thing with new videos. That's what I did and I got the same result. Like you said, very bizarre...

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Tue, 27 Jun 2017 14:03:10 GMT

I hope you do find an answer. The moving of the files from the hard drive to the SD card would get annoying quickly.

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Wed, 28 Jun 2017 02:30:31 GMT

I talked to a few people at Canon, nobody has a clue why...What do you want me to do more?

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Wed, 28 Jun 2017 13:35:56 GMT

I'm trying to come up with something useful. I don't know that this will help but you could try a trial version of Cyberlink PowerDirector. I only suggest it because years ago when I was teaching we had a JVC camcorder that recorded to a hard drive and that software was able to pick up the drive and convert the files into a usuable format. I don't know that it will have any effect at all which is why I suggest a trial version.

I am using Windows 10 and have a Canon (VIXIA HF-G20) that records to a hard drive as well as SD cards. I wil record something to the hard drive and then connect the camcorder via USB to see whether or not the drive is recognized. If it doesn't work then I will definitely be looking for a fix. Either way I will let you know the results.

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Wed, 28 Jun 2017 17:09:14 GMT

I have the full evrsion of Cyberlink PowerDirector 15 here. As I said before, Power Director shows me the SD card drive, not the HDD. Let me know about your results. Thank you

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Wed, 28 Jun 2017 17:59:22 GMT

Sorry, I overlooked that when going back through the messages. The earliest I will be able to test my G20 is tonight. Will post something as soon as I can.

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 19:21:24 GMT

Just wanted to let you know that I have not forgotten about the test. I promise to do a short test soon.

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 19:49:23 GMT

Just take your time. Thanks

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Tue, 11 Jul 2017 03:42:04 GMT

Recorded something last night to the camcorder's internal memory and I will try to retrieve it tonight. I specifically recorded it to the internal memory just for this purpose. I'll let you know the results and hopefully let you know late this evening. I know I don't have to rush but I have to do things while I'm thinking about it or else it gets filed in a cabinet that I never can seem to find again.

Update:

I connected the camcorder (HF-G20) to the computer via a USB cable.

1) I connected the cable to the camcorder

2) I connected the other end of the cable to the computer

3) I turned on the camcorder power

4) I switched to playback mode

5) I was presented with a list of options and chose Internal Memory

5) I looked in Windows Explorer and saw the internal drive listed as Canon with the drive letter K

6) I copied the files from the camcorders internal memory to a hard drive.

I did not use any type of software other than the OS to copy the files.

Do you get a menu or list of options on the LCD screen when you connect the HG21 to the computer?

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

suden111 — Tue, 11 Jul 2017 17:33:40 GMT

Yes I have something like "burn to DVD" & Computer/Printer" so I choose computer/printer

Re: Canon Vixia HG21

VideoGeek — Tue, 11 Jul 2017 18:38:04 GMT

Not quite sure what to tell you to try next. I hope you do find an answer.