In article <5f23nc$8f7@dfw-ixnews5.ix.netcom.com>, vidiot1@ix.netcom.com says...

> I have been producing industrial/corporate video for the last 5
>years, a majority of time I have used Hi-8 and S-VHS as my acquistion
>source with an occasional BetaCam shot for hight profile stuff.
> I am now looking to purchase a Sony DV camera, I would like to hear
>from others out there using the Sony models, particularly if anyone is
>using the DCR-PC7 camera.
> What kind of picture quality improvement can I expect??

In my brief contact with a PC-7, I would say that image sharpness,
compared with an ES-5000 Canon or UCS-3 Canon Hi-8, was slightly
inferior with the stabilizer on, slightly superior with the
stabilizer off (though the Fire-Wire offers a distinct potential
advantage, due to the resultant lower generation losses during
editing/copying). The stabilizer appears to be a digital-type,
contrary to what Sony's terrible web page would have one believe,
and a real opportunity was missed for having a really high-quality
image when Sony apparently chose to not use the whole 680000-pixel
chip when the stabilizer was off. Panasonic chose not to make that
mistake (risking criticism for the poor stabilizer-on performance),
and therefore has superior image quality when the stabilizer is off.
The PC-7 image generally looks good (stabilizer off), especially
toward the long end of the zoom range, though there is more
red/orange noise than in my Canon Hi-8's at similar room light
levels. The sound quality was better than I expected (though an
external mic would be desireable to avoid all camera noise. The
camera is a nice object, well-made, and fun to handle (really neat!).

> I am also going to consider the VX-1000 and maybe the VX-700.

Due to the Fire-Wire connector (and the single-frame feature
and probably higher image quality), I am looking for a VX-1000
(and I would think that this would also be more suitable for your
use) - it has been VERY hard around here to actually find one to
check out..., darn! (And I have been able to find very little
useful information on these groups about relative image quality
among the top mini-DV camcorders, alas...) BTW, if you anticipate
having another device with Fire-Wire for tape playback, you might
consider the Panasonic - very good image (though the one I checked
out tended toward cyan on auto-white [correctable with manual white,
using slightly colored paper for setting white balance], and the
built-in mic picked up the camera "whine" noise rather clearly...),
and the lens is a great match for the .5X Raynox Pro converter (very
sharp to the corners with it [though, oddly, not without it, at the
widest zoom setting]).
Hope This Helps