PC-VCR: 2Gig limit, video quality

[AdrianSchubert]

Howdy again,

I just got my very first video recording running into the RR-G using PC-VCR 1.52.
Now I'm elsewhere while it's recording, and I've suddenly got this feeling that I'm going to come home to a 9 minute AVI file...!

Does PC-VCR either
- automatically span AVI files to bypass the 2G limit (it told me my max was over 2hrs, so I didn't give it a second thought), or
- have that option somewhere so I won't goof up the next time?

One last general question: does anyone care to share their experience concerning the recording quality? I've fooled with the brightness/contract/hue/sat sliders until I got something that looked OK during preview; then I set the Record Quality slider to max, but for space reasons set the MPEG compression quality to LOW. The AVI test clip still looked OK.

I guess my main question is, why are the color/brightness settings different when the AVI is played back as opposed to during preview mode? What techniques do you people use for a good recording? Any hints?

Sorry for the long-winded post!
Adrian

[This message has been edited by AdrianSchubert (edited 19 April 2000).]

[DrMordrid]

PC-VCR will begin to capture serial clips when the first clip reaches 2 gigs, however it drops frames between segments. It also doesn't lock its frame rate down very well, which can cause playback problems. Video destined for playing on a TV has to be exactly 29.970 frames/second and PC-VCR rarely nails it.

Because of this limitation of PC-VCR most of us use AVI_IO (my choice) or VirtualDUB for doing our captures.

AVI_IO captures serial 2g or 4g clips (2g clips are more compatable with most existing software) without dropping frames between, with perfect audio synch and at exactly the set frame rate.

VirtualDUB is also very good, especially for transcoding clips to different compressions.

AVI_IO offers a free trial version, but the full version costs $25 USD, which would be money wisely spent. VirtualDUB is free. It's probably smart to get 'em both. They can be had at:

AVI_IO: http://www.nct.ch/multimedia/avi_io/index.html

VirtualDUB: http://www.geocities.com/virtualdub/index.html

To get the best quality clips for sending to tape you need to record at the highest resolution and lowest compression, it's that simple. Anything else is a comprimise.

If space is a problem for doing this then it's time to get one of those big, fat new drives like the Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 40. They come as large as 40 gigs, are fast as lightning and work great.

IF you're asking why the playback in PC-VCR's window looks different than what's on the TV, the difference is the device is being displayed on. Monitors and TV's are fundamentally different. Don't worry what it looks like on the monitor, worry about what goes to the TV-Out. That is what gets laid down on tape.

By the way: the Marvel captures in MJPeg (for Motion JPEG), not MPEG. Big difference.

Dr. Mordrid



[This message has been edited by DrMordrid (edited 19 April 2000).]

[AdrianSchubert]

Thanks!

Two quick ones:
- I downloaded VirtualDub (it's free!); does it also do seamless capture with no dropped frames?

- About the quality issue: what I did was to set the colors etc. in the preview window, record to video, then play the video segment back while watching in the preview window again. The final result was brighter than the original playback. So somehow the settings during preview get modified before recording is done, OR my VCR is modifying the image before it gets back to the preview window...ah, I guess I just have to fool around and write down what gives the best end-result, huh? For the moment I haven't output to TV yet, since the SCART cable I have isn't long enough(!) It's pretty complicated trying to set up a PC, VCR, TV, and stereo so that all the cables are in order AND it's still have them arranged in a way such as to accomodate the various wall outlets and the layout of the room's furniture! Crikes, wouldn't it be nice to have a dedicated studio.

To boot, I've got a DV Raptor card and a couple of synths connected to the PC as well. It's a mess I tell ya. And BTW it'd sure be nice to have a breakout box for the RR-G card.

[Pytkin]

If I capture in MJPEG im everytime getting dropped frames .. in all settings .. If I capture in RGB or YUY2 , then no drop frames ..