Why is everybody so happy about avi_io?

[warnas]

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone else has noticed that avi_io is a fairly crappy piece of software. It is the only software I know of to capture video direct to xvid (my current version of the Matrox software doesn't even have a bloody record button for some reason) but it is riddled with errors. Worst of all, when it crashes, it takes down the entire PC with it. VERY nasty. I never hear anybody about that... Plus, it tends to forget how to read it's own config file.

I've been using it for about a year on neatly patched and maintained versions of Windows 2k and 98, but I get the same problem every time. Are there decent alternatives?

Setup: AMD 900, 256 mb, G400, Wk2.

[dZeus]

maybe the capture drivers of your capture card are the cause of the crashes rather than the program you use to capture with.

[Technoid]

Sigh....
We like AVI_IO because it works great and enables us to capture hours of video without loosing sync.

The xvid compressor is not an fine example of stable code either, and should NOT be used as an capture codec.

I can't claim that AVI_IO never crashes, but it can't on its own kill either w98 or w2k, thats probably your capture card driver as dZeus already pointed out.

The ONLY alternative to AVI_IO is VirtualDub, but that one is much more prone to crashing if you have any instabilities...

Now if you want help you can tell us what:

Motherboard;
Capture Card;
Soundcard you got.

and Maybe We can help you...

[warnas]

I've tried virtually every version of the Matrox G400 drivers (thanks to Ghost it was easy to start over again, especially since I keep a specific partition with an OS that is just there for capturing) and at the moment I'm using this:

W2k, SP4, Abit KT7 (AMD 900 mhz) with the latest VIA chipset drivers, DirectX 9.0 and using a Matrox G400 (bios 1.6.025) and driver package 5.39.019 (= display/kernel 5.12.01.1290 and powerdesk 6.28.061. Soundcard is a Soundblaster Live! 1024.

By the way, I have no problems with dropped frames and when Avi_IO DOES work, the results are ok. The program mainly crashes when it encounters any kind of error (like the Macrovision protection, which sometimes pops up when capturing from VHS when there's a blank piece of tape), when exiting the program or when ending the 2nd capture in one session. The system freezes and then resets. Xvid, Divx, WMV9, any damn codec. And uncompressed. I use Avio_IO D 03.11 by the way. Full version, although the trial versions do exactly the same thing.

Those ain't driver problems. It never used to happen when I recorded stuff with that Matrox Remote Control thingy (when it still had a record button) or when I still captured/edited my video with that Avid Cinema package that came bundled with the G400.

BTW I'm not trying to pick a fight here, just trying to figure out if I'm the only one out there who's wasted countless hours of his life on the damn program ;-)

[Technoid]

Originally posted by warnas
I've tried virtually every version of the Matrox G400 drivers (thanks to Ghost it was easy to start over again, especially since I keep a specific partition with an OS that is just there for capturing) and at the moment I'm using this:

So is it a Marvel G400 or a G400 TV??
(just the Mystique or Millennium G400 can't capture spit without a RRG)

W2k, SP4, Abit KT7 (AMD 900 mhz) with the latest VIA chipset drivers, DirectX 9.0 and using a Matrox G400 (bios 1.6.025) and driver package 5.39.019 (= display/kernel 5.12.01.1290 and powerdesk 6.28.061. Soundcard is a Soundblaster Live! 1024.

By the way, I have no problems with dropped frames and when Avi_IO DOES work, the results are ok. The program mainly crashes when it encounters any kind of error (like the Macrovision protection, which sometimes pops up when capturing from VHS when there's a blank piece of tape),

Yes, that used to happen to us all If we didn't patch the damn macro crasy crap code

when exiting the program or when ending the 2nd capture in one session. The system freezes and then resets. Xvid, Divx, WMV9, any damn codec. And uncompressed. I use Avio_IO D 03.11 by the way. Full version, although the trial versions do exactly the same thing.

Those ain't driver problems. It never used to happen when I recorded stuff with that Matrox Remote Control thingy (when it still had a record button) or when I still captured/edited my video with that Avid Cinema package that came bundled with the G400.

when the "Matrox Remote Control thingy" still had a record button you vere using erlier drivers, try the new drivers by adis

BTW I'm not trying to pick a fight here,

hehe, you sure fooled me into believeing that

just trying to figure out if I'm the only one out there who's wasted countless hours of his life on the damn program ;-)

No, your definitly not the only person in the world who are wasting countless of hours trying to make Matrox capture cards work on VIA chipsets in conjunction with SBlive soundcards and In windows 2000

do a search in Desktopvideo forum and you will find lots and lots of info that concerns this

Off Topic:

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Can some nice Moderator PLEASE boot this thread into Desktop Video forum?
Thanks

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[Sasq]

Sasq gets his nice size 12 boot out

[Sciascia]

I am not going to try to be rude or anything but you aren't exactly set up for success with your gear.

1. SBLive/Audigy cards are not the best for video capture. I won't even get into my 5 page rant about why I hate Creative.

2. Win2K and the Marvel don't get along.

3. Trying to capture to a high compression codec is very CPU intensive and can cause problems, especially an MPEG4 derivative, which is basically all the formats that you listed. MJPEG SW like PicVideo is a much better capture codec.

4. VIA is not known to be a video editors first choice, though I have had several systems over the years with VIA chipsets that worked.

The Marvel is old, I hated parting with mine, but the lack of support led me to ATI. This is my 2nd AIW type card in the last 2 years and it is great. I can capture to MJPEG and MPEG1 or 2 realtime and it works with the MMC SW or AVI_IO great. AVI_IO's main purpose in life was to create an easy to use capture tool that had low overhead, did multisegmenting for long captures and kept A/V sync. Back in the day when all of this was really necessary (FAT32/WIn98), Ultra ATA33, VFW capture devices, etc... it worked great. Nowadays unless you are using what is basically legacy equipment you can't expect it to work with HW that is basically unsupported with an OS that the HW isn't intended to work with, capturing to a video format that is for distribution, not capture/editing.

Install Win98 and capture using HW compression, HUFFy, SW MJPEG or even a good hacked MPEG4 codec and it will work, I can almost guarantee it. Too many strikes in favor of it not working right the way that you want.

[Adis]

http://adis.szm.com

[Elie]

I never had any reasons to use AV/IO because of the RT.X100

Cheers,
Elie

[Flying dutchman]

Not using the Marvel anymore, but my Marvel G200 and Win2k got along very well once I disabled busmastering in Powerdesk. It was even more stable than under Win98SE.

[paulw]

I used it all the time when I used my analog Matrox RRS. No problems at all. However since going DV I haven't used it.

[Brian Ellis]

I agree with most of the above. When using Matrox Marvel G200, I used AVI_IO to ensure seamless capture on W98 machine WITH SB Live! and ZERO problems. However, I delegated Marvel to forgotten memories 18 months or so ago after a couple of years or so of good service.

However, all my analogue work is now done through an ADVC-100 to DV. The best buy I ever made (at least for video hardware)! This allowed me to advance to W2k and NTFS, so AVI_IO was no longer necessary and I haven't used it since.

I think the original post is probably somewhat unfair for a good and useful piece of software, which worked fine with both the hardware codec in the Marvel and PicVideo, The writer's problems are probably more related to his configuration than to the software, IMHO.

[Technoid]

Originally posted by Sasq
Sasq gets his nice size 12 boot out

Thanks

[wkulecz]

I still use AVI_IO for its timed recording (VCR-like feature) to record TV/Movies to DV thru my ADVC-100. Edit out the comercials, encode and burn to DVD.

--wally.

[Ray Austin]

Originally posted by Elie
I never had any reasons to use AV/IO because of the RT.X100

Cheers,
Elie

Same here...