TV Capture Cards

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS

1. Does quality vary between USB 1.1 and USB 2.0 and if so, why?
2. Does a PCI Card offer better quality and reliability then a USB device?
3. Does anyone have an opinion on WinTV GO?

Thanks

1. Yes the quality will vary, as USB1.1 does not offer as much bandwidth as 2.0 - 12Mbps for 1.1 when compared to 480Mbps (I think; or is that 1394?) for 2.0. Less bandwidth = more compression = less quality.

2. In my experience, I've only used PCI cards. But as people have said further up in the thread, it's more down to the crap drivers and applications supllied with the TV cards that cause problems. Also, the hardware present in the card and the connection you use (co-ax/composite etc) has an effect on the results you see on screen. I prefer PCI as you can stick it in your PC and be done with it - you don't need to have extra boxes on your desk with leads sticking out of them.

3. I have never used the WinTV Go, but the WinTV card I have (it was sort of low-mid range) produces reasonable results. Your mileage may vary with the tuner - I personally think it's crap but that's probably because I use el-cheapo video leads you get in Dixons and not the quality stuff.

If you connect it up to the video/digibox using s-video then the quality is much improved -see the adverts I posted further up in the thread if you want to see a comparison of the quality.

Cheers. With my WinTV USB, I used to be able to connectup the VCR to the device and watch it successfully, but there was strobe in it (if anyone has Pinnacle Studio Plus, they'll know what I mean) meaning it's like frames and the transition from one to another its a bit slow.

I've recently tried it again, and I have lost the colour and sound, so I've given up and tried to sell the device, as I didn't want it to watch TV with.

Bollox, questions one and two have been aswered at some length earlier in the thread.

Please re-read all of the responses, perhaps writing down some of the information as you go. I often find that helps me assimilate details.

As for a specific review on the WinTV GO - it is a device that works with both USB1 and USB2; but as you have been told, the quality will be much higher with USB2. It seems like a nice piece of kit.

You would need to make sure your PC has a USB2 card installed. You can buy one of those on ebuyer for about 5 quid.

Oh sh*t. Sorry Gavin.

Isn't the WinTV Go an internal PCI card as opposed to an external USB device? Or have they released a new version?

I think I've seen WinTV GO! on the shelves for a while.

I've got a Pinnacle USB thing which encodes MPEG2. It's quite good but if you want to play anything back out it has to re-render to MPEG2 in software, which is annoying. The picture's also a little on the soft side.

I've also got a WinTV USB2 thing - like someone said earlier, I couldn't get the analogue audio in to work, even after emails to Hauppage. On the plus side, I apparently got an "uncapped" version which allows me to capture uncompressed at 720x576, and it's a good sharp image.

David

Those "things" are called capture cards.

He knows that. He is offering you the benefit of his experience.

Just cut to the chase and tell us which one you are going to buy.

Ahem...



So has this. Look at the amount of times I've mentioned WinTV GO...

Yes, you've mentioned WinTV Go - as in asking for people's opinions on it - but not said anything about buying it