I've got one and it was fine when i got it,except i couldn't get sound, but when the computer got tidied u,the picture went. When we moved the computer downstairs,we put a lead in the video so i could capture off video.
But i'm not really sure whether i should get something else or not.
Yes, this is the one I have now, and the quality is crap. Oh, thanks for the info, noggin.
What I really want one for, is for it to connect easily, have good picture and audio quality, and to use it to record VHS footage onto my PC.
Does that help, anyone?
I would recommend that you only connect STBs/video recorders via the composite/s-video connection only, and not by the co-ax cables.
Here's some adverts I've captured to illustrate my point -
Advert #1. I recorded this via the co-ax connection on my card using a bog standard video lead from the output of the digibox. The quality is pretty crap, it has to be said and it varied from really bad to atrocious depending on the time of day.
Advert #2 (Country Life Spreadable) and Advert #3 (short C4 trail for V Festival). It's not terribly apparent on the Channel 4 one but when you compare the video quality between the adverts recorded using the co-ax input above with the ones recorded via the s-video input, you'll notice that the quality is very much improved. It's essential if you want to do any sort of capturing from an external source (i.e. digibox or video) that you should avoid co-ax where possible if you want decent picture quality.
I have an internal WinTV card - I know you would like USB, but I would very much recommend an internal PCI card over anything USB. Not only does it eliminate the clutter on your desk (and yet another box with tons of cables sticking out of it), the quality can be much better than that offered by the WinTV USB.
Yes, this is the one I have now, and the quality is crap. Oh, thanks for the info, noggin.
What I really want one for, is for it to connect easily, have good picture and audio quality, and to use it to record VHS footage onto my PC.
Does that help, anyone?
I would recommend that you only connect STBs/video recorders via the composite/s-video connection only, and not by the co-ax cables.
Here's some adverts I've captured to illustrate my point -
Advert #1. I recorded this via the co-ax connection on my card using a bog standard video lead from the output of the digibox. The quality is pretty crap, it has to be said and it varied from really bad to atrocious depending on the time of day.
Advert #2 (Country Life Spreadable) and Advert #3 (short C4 trail for V Festival). It's not terribly apparent on the Channel 4 one but when you compare the video quality between the adverts recorded using the co-ax input above with the ones recorded via the s-video input, you'll notice that the quality is very much improved. It's essential if you want to do any sort of capturing from an external source (i.e. digibox or video) that you should avoid co-ax where possible if you want decent picture quality.
I have an internal WinTV card - I know you would like USB, but I would very much recommend an internal PCI card over anything USB. Not only does it eliminate the clutter on your desk (and yet another box with tons of cables sticking out of it), the quality can be much better than that offered by the WinTV USB.
Yes - composite/s-video is the way to go if you want to capture from VHS or S-VHS. RGB would be good for capture from Sky/Cable - though it is a bit specialised and expensive. If you can't have a PCI card - then I'd go for a Win TV PVR-USB2 - as this will deliver full 720x576 at full frame rate, via USB2, and is pretty high quality. It isn't the cheapest around - but not that expensive if you shop around on the online stores (dabs, ebuyer, savastore etc.)
For PVR use Freeview will deliver the best picture quality as it is digital component (i.e. RGB quality) - and thus not reduced in quality by an s-video/composite interconnect.
Yes - composite/s-video is the way to go if you want to capture from VHS or S-VHS. RGB would be good for capture from Sky/Cable - though it is a bit specialised and expensive. If you can't have a PCI card - then I'd go for a Win TV PVR-USB2 - as this will deliver full 720x576 at full frame rate, via USB2, and is pretty high quality. It isn't the cheapest around - but not that expensive if you shop around on the online stores (dabs, ebuyer, savastore etc.)
For PVR use Freeview will deliver the best picture quality as it is digital component (i.e. RGB quality) - and thus not reduced in quality by an s-video/composite interconnect.
Sorry, noggin, but I don't know about all of the S-Video Composites and all that stuff.
I was just wondering if someone can recommend a good capture card for recording VHS footage.
Yes - composite/s-video is the way to go if you want to capture from VHS or S-VHS. RGB would be good for capture from Sky/Cable - though it is a bit specialised and expensive. If you can't have a PCI card - then I'd go for a Win TV PVR-USB2 - as this will deliver full 720x576 at full frame rate, via USB2, and is pretty high quality. It isn't the cheapest around - but not that expensive if you shop around on the online stores (dabs, ebuyer, savastore etc.)
For PVR use Freeview will deliver the best picture quality as it is digital component (i.e. RGB quality) - and thus not reduced in quality by an s-video/composite interconnect.
Sorry, noggin, but I don't know about all of the S-Video Composites and all that stuff.
I was just wondering if someone can recommend a good capture card for recording VHS footage.
S-video, Composite and RF/Aerial are the different ways of connecting a video to a monitor or a capture card - basically what leads and plugs and sockets you use.
S-video is the best quality - though you won't usually find it on a standard VHS machine.
Composite is the next best - it is carried on SCART usually (though yellow phonos are also used, with red and white phonos carrying the audio)
Aerial/RF is the poorest quality way of connecting bits of video kit together and it uses the aerial connectors on your VCR and Capture/Card.
If you want to capture in stereo then you can't use the Aerial/RF connector - as VCRs only output mono via this connection. (Amazing the number of people with stereo TVs and stereo VHS machines who connect them via the aerial connector and so get mono audio on all their VHS playback...)
I use a Scart plug in my VCR, and use wires from Maplin to connect the audio to the Audio In and a wire from the video to the adapter thing that you plug into the S-Video port.
At the moment I have WINTV, using a PCI slot, and reception isn't too good, anyone able to tell me how I could improve the reception?
Better Aerial? Signal Booster? Sky? Cable/MMDS? If not a new TV Card?
I've got the Hauppauge Win TV USB Card, it's okay, but not great if you constantly want to mess around and capture stuff with, though it's good for watching TV on, but again like others I've had trouble with the software, as it does tend to crash a fair bit. Though I don't use it that often, so it doesn't bother me.
At the moment I have WINTV, using a PCI slot, and reception isn't too good, anyone able to tell me how I could improve the reception?
Better Aerial? Signal Booster? Sky? Cable/MMDS? If not a new TV Card?
well the signal via the aerial in other rooms is perfect, erm Signal Booster, there is one at the main TV, I have Sky, and as for a new TV Card, well the computer was moved from downstairs to here, downstairs it was pretty good reception, but now it's kinda rubbish