I am trying to rip home videos (not copyrighted) to my pc to burn to DVD. I have tv tuner (usb Hauppauge model 40001), and the quality is terrible, and it is at about 200mb/minute (I have been running it from the vcr to the tuner, into the computer. I read on another post that it is possible to use a mini dv camcorder to aid this. I have a Hi8 sony (dcr-trv340). I noticed that both my camera and the tuner have s-video ports. My camera does not have a/v inputs on it, so I cannot hook it directly to the VCR. Is this how it has to be done? Thanks
It's not going to make it any faster, if that's what you're asking. It's also questionable whether you can improve the quality by using an intermediate device. What I've found is that the quality of VHS to PC transfers is directly related to the quality of the master image and the quality of the input device (TV card). The 40001 is a USB device. Are you sure that you are connected to a USB 2.0 port? I have never had any luck or faith in USB capture devices. My motto is: "Bus is best" i.e. (PCI tuner/capture card)
It has worked better for me. Of course, YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary). For PCI bus cards I have used the ATI TV wonder and currently using the K-World. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815260017 Have not done a lot of analog trnasfers with the K-world yet.
The method you use (and hardware and software) largely depends on the goals of the project, and the exact source videos in use. Look at this conversation, for an example of how this process of discovery works: http://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/showthread.php/amassing-stuff-now-1540.html -- There are a number of posts in that forum which address similar problems to yours. (I don't want to retype the same information all over again, reason I'm linking to those forums.) More often than not, quality is more about the source, playback device and settings, than the digital capture device itself. In general I agree that AGP or PCI bus can be better than external devices (mostly due to the number of crap external devices available), but Firewire and USB2 devices can be excellent too. It's hard to put a stereotype on the connection/transfer method.
Just thought I'd chime in on this one, although late. I have a usb connection capture device by KWorld. Works very well for me. Never had a quality issue before. I do however have it connected to a 6 port 2.0 USB card I added years ago just to have the extra ports. That may be the issue...2.0 or not. I use Nero as my capturing software. Once captured, I can continue on to creating a menu, I can choose to compress or decompress the video to better fit a single layer DVD, create chapters and so on and finally burn to DVD. The only problem I've ever had is in trying to back up my VHS collection with macrovision encryption or whatever they used. Maybe Slysoft has some ideas on how to help with that or someone in the forums.
I found that the KWorld USB device (and other USB devices I tried) dropped too many frames. However, that being said, it could have been my USB setup. Using a PCI/AGP bus based solution eliminates bus contention and bandwidth sharing issues of USB.
macrovision is a pain.. 4 different types which despite claims to the contrary no individual device will strip.. at least 2 little boxes are needed to get rid of all types. I use the video in on my ati card and it works a treat most of the time.. depending on the source quality. Some shaky off air recordings can get the jitters tho.
