3-067-425-11 (1)
Digital
Video Camera
Recorder
Operating Instructions
Before operating the unit, please read this manual thoroughly,
and retain it for future reference.
Owner’s Record
The model and serial numbers are located on the bottom. Record the
serial number in the space provided below. Refer to these numbers
whenever you call upon your Sony dealer regarding this product.
Model No. DCR-TRV
Serial No.
Model No. AC-
Serial No.
DCR-TRV17
DCR-TRV15/TRV17
©2001 Sony Corporation
Welcome!
Congratulations on your purchase of this Sony Digital Handycam camcorder. With your Digital
Handycam, you can capture life’s precious moments with superior picture and sound quality. Your Digital
Handycam is loaded with advanced features, but at the same time it is very easy to use. You will soon be
producing home video that you can enjoy for years to come.
WARNING
To prevent fire or shock hazard, do
not expose the unit to rain or
moisture.
For the Customers in the U.S.A.
If you have any questions about this product, you
may call :
Sony Customer Information Center 1-800-222-SONY
(7669)
The number below is for the FCC related matters
only.
Regulatory Information
Declaration of Conformity
Trade Name:
Model No.:
Responsible Party:Sony Electronics Inc.
Address:
SONY
DCR-TRV15, DCR-TRV17
680 Kinderkamack Road,
Oradell, NJ07649 U.S.A.
201-930-6972
Telephone No.:
This device complies with Part 15 of the
FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions.: (1) This device
may not cause harmful interference, and
(2)this device must accept any interference
received, including interference that may
cause undesired operation.
“Memory Stick”
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules.
Operation is subject to the following two conditions:
(1) This device may not cause harmful interference,
and (2) this device must accept any interference
received, including interference that may cause
undesired operation.
CAUTION
You are cautioned that any changes or
modifications not expressly approved in this
manual could void your authority to operate
this equipment.
This symbol is intended to alert
the user to the presence of
uninsulated “dangerous voltage”
within the product’s enclosure
that may be of sufficient
magnitude to constitute a risk of
electric shock to persons.
This symbol is intended to alert
the user to the presence of
important operating and
maintenance (servicing)
instructions in the literature
accompanying the appliance.
Never expose the battery pack to temperatures
above 60°C (140°F) such as in a car parked in
the sun or under direct sunlight.
For customers in the U.S.A. and
CANADA
DISPOSAL OF LITHIUM ION BATTERY.
LITHIUM ION BATTERY.
DISPOSE OF PROPERLY.
You can return your unwanted lithium ion batteries
to your nearest Sony Service Center or Factory
Service Center.
Note:
In some areas the disposal of lithium ion
batteries in household or business trash may
be prohibited.
For the Sony Service Center nearest you call
1-800-222-SONY (United States only).
For the Sony Factory Service Center nearest you call
416-499-SONY (Canada only).
Caution: Do not handle damaged or leaking lithium
ion battery.
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Note:
This equipment has been tested and found to
comply with the limits for a Class B digital
device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules.
These limits are designed to provide
reasonable protection against harmful
interference in a residential installation. This
equipment generates, uses, and can radiate
radio frequency energy and, if not installed
and used in accordance with the instructions,
may cause harmful interference to radio
communications. However, there is no
guarantee that interference will not occur in a
particular installation. If this equipment does
cause harmful interference to radio or
television reception, which can be determined
by turning the equipment off and on, the user
is encouraged to try to correct the interference
by one or more of the following measures:
— Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
— Increase the separation between the
equipment and receiver.
— Connect the equipment into an outlet on a
circuit different from that to which the
receiver is connected.
— Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/
TV technician for help.
For customers in CANADA
CAUTION
TO PREVENT ELECTRIC SHOCK, MATCH WIDE
BLADE OF PLUG TO WIDE SLOT, FULLY INSERT.
“Memory Stick”
This Class B digital apparatus complies with
Canadian ICES-003.
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Main Features
Taking moving or still images, and playing them back
•Recording a picture (p. 21)
•Recording a still image on a tape (p. 38)
•Playing back a tape (p. 31)
•Recording still images on “Memory Stick”s (p. 112) (DCR-TRV17 only)
•Recording moving pictures on “Memory Stick”s (p. 120) (DCR-TRV17 only)
•Viewing a still image recorded on “Memory Stick” (p. 129) (DCR-TRV17 only)
•Viewing a moving picture recorded on “Memory Stick” (p. 132) (DCR-TRV17 only)
Capturing images on your computer
•Using with analog video unit and your computer (p. 79)
•Viewing images recorded on “Memory Stick” using USB cable (p. 134) (DCR-TRV17
only)
Other uses
Functions to adjust exposure in the recording mode
• Back light (p. 26)
• NightShot/Super NightShot (p. 27)
• PROGRAM AE (p. 49)
• Adjusting the exposure manually (p. 52)
Functions to give images more impact
• Digital zoom (p. 24) The default setting is set to OFF. (To zoom greater than 10×, select
the digital zoom power in D ZOOM in the menu settings.)
• Fader (p. 43)
• Picture effect (p. 45)
• Digital effect (p. 46)
• Digital program editing (p. 68)
• Title (p. 89, 92)
• MEMORY MIX (p. 124) (DCR-TRV17 only)
Functions to give a natural appearance to your recordings
• Landscape mode (p. 49)
• Sports lesson mode (p. 49)
• Manual focus (p. 53)
Functions to use after recording
• END SEARCH/EDITSEARCH/Rec review (p. 30)
• DATA CODE (p. 32)
• SUPER LASER LINK (p. 36)
• Tape PB ZOOM (p. 59)/Memory PB ZOOM (p. 140) (DCR-TRV17 only)
• Zero set memory (p. 60, 83)
• Title search (p. 61)
• HiFi SOUND (p. 98)
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Checking supplied accessories
Make sure that the following accessories are supplied with your camcorder.
1
4
8
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5
9
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1 Wireless Remote Commander (1)
(p. 178)
2 AC-L10A/L10B/L10C AC power adaptor
(1), Power cord (1) (p. 13)
3 Size AA (R6) battery for Remote
Commander (2) (p. 178)
4 NP-FM30 battery pack (1) (p. 12, 13)
5 A/V connecting cable (1) (p. 35, 66)
6 Shoulder strap (1) (p. 173)
7 Lens cap (1) (p. 21)
8 “Memory Stick” (1) (p. 103)
DCR-TRV17 only
9 USB cable (1) (p. 135)
DCR-TRV17 only
0 CD-ROM (SPVD-004, USB Driver) (1)
(p. 135) DCR-TRV17 only
Contents of the recording cannot be compensated if recording or playback is not made due to a
malfunction of the camcorder, storage media, etc.
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Table of contents
Main Features .......................................... 4
Checking supplied accessories .............. 5
Quick Start Guide ............................. 8
Getting started
Using this manual ................................. 10
Step 1 Preparing the power supply ... 12
Installing the battery pack............. 12
Charging the battery pack............. 13
Connecting to the wall outlet ....... 17
Step 2 Setting the date and time ......... 18
Step 3 Inserting a cassette ................... 20
Recording – Basics
Recording a picture ............................... 21
Shooting backlit subjects
– BACK LIGHT ........................ 26
Shooting in the dark
– Night Shot/Super NightShot
.................................................... 27
Self-timer recording ....................... 28
Checking the recording – END SEARCH
/ EDITSEARCH / Rec Review .... 30
Playback – Basics
Playing back a tape ............................... 31
Viewing the recording on TV .............. 35
Advanced Recording
Operations
Recording a still image on a tape
– Tape Photo recording ................. 38
Adjusting the white balance manually
........................................................... 41
Using the wide mode ........................... 42
Using the fader function ...................... 43
Using special effects – Picture effect .. 45
Using special effects – Digital effect ... 46
Using the PROGRAM AE function .... 49
Adjusting the exposure manually ...... 52
Focusing manually ................................ 53
Interval recording ................................. 54
Frame by frame recording
– Cut recording ............................... 56
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Advanced Playback
Operations
Playing back a tape with picture effects
........................................................... 57
Playing back a tape with digital effects
........................................................... 58
Enlarging images recorded on tapes
– Tape PB ZOOM ........................... 59
Quickly locating a scene using the zero
set memory function ...................... 60
Searching the boundaries of recorded
tape by title – Title search ............. 61
Searching a recording by date
– Date search ................................... 62
Searching for a photo
– Photo search/Photo scan ........... 64
Editing
Dubbing a tape ...................................... 66
Dubbing only desired scenes
– Digital program editing .............. 68
Using with analog video unit and
personal computer
– Signal convert function ............... 79
Recording video or TV programs ....... 80
Inserting a scene from a VCR
– Insert editing ................................ 83
Audio dubbing ...................................... 85
Superimposing a title ........................... 89
Making your own titles ........................ 92
Labeling a cassette ................................ 94
Customizing Your Camcorder
Changing the menu settings ................ 96
“Memory Stick” Operations
(DCR-TRV17 only)
Using a “Memory Stick”
– introduction ................................ 103
Recording still images on “Memory
Stick”s
– Memory photo recording ......... 112
Recording an image from a tape as a
still image ...................................... 117
Recording moving pictures on “Memory
Stick”s
– MPEG movie recording ............ 120
Recording a picture from a tape as a
moving picture ............................. 121
Table of contents
Superimposing a still picture in a
“Memory Stick” on a moving
picture – MEMORY MIX ............. 124
Copying still images from a tape
– Photo save .................................. 127
Viewing a still picture
– Memory photo playback .......... 129
Viewing a moving picture
– MPEG movie playback ............. 132
Viewing images using computer ...... 134
Copying the image recorded on
“Memory Stick”s to tapes ........... 138
Enlarging still images recorded on
“Memory Stick”s
– Memory PB ZOOM ................... 140
Playing back images in a continuous
loop
– SLIDE SHOW ............................. 142
Preventing accidental erasure
– Image protection ........................ 143
Deleting images ................................... 144
Writing a print mark
– PRINT MARK ............................ 146
Using the printer (optional) ............... 148
Troubleshooting
Types of trouble and their solutions
......................................................... 149
Self-diagnosis display......................... 155
Warning indicators and messages .... 156
Additional Information
Usable cassettes ................................... 158
About “InfoLITHIUM” battery pack
......................................................... 160
About i.LINK ....................................... 162
Using your camcorder abroad .......... 164
Maintenance information and
precautions .................................... 165
Specifications ....................................... 169
Quick Reference
Identifying the parts and controls .... 171
Index ........................................ Back cover
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Quick Start Guide
This chapter introduces you to the basic features of your
camcorder. See the page in parentheses “(
)” for more
information.
Connecting the power cord (p. 17)
Use the battery pack when using your camcorder outdoors (p. 12).
Open the DC IN
jack cover.
AC power adaptor (supplied)
Inserting a cassette (p. 20)
1 Slide OPEN/
2 Push the middle
EJECT in the
direction of the arrow
and open the lid.
EJECT
portion of the back of
the cassette to insert.
Insert the cassette in a
straight line deeply
into the cassette
compartment with the
window facing out.
Connect the plug with its v
mark facing up.
3 Close the cassette
compartment by
pressing the
mark on the cassette
compartment.
After the cassette
compartment going
down completely,
close the lid until it
clicks.
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