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  1. Member shb117's Avatar
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    Hi guys I am new to these forums so please let me know if I break any rules by posting this here.

    SETUP-
    My dad has an eye surgery machine which came with a Sony RDR AT105 DVD Recorder so we can record eye surgeries to give to patients / educational purposes . There is a cable running from the machine to the DVD Recorder. The connector on the surgery machine end looks like this - Click image for larger version

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    The connector on the DVD Recorded end looks like this [googling a little bit tells me it is a SCART connector] -
    Click image for larger version

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    It goes here -
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    Right now to record the surgery we turn on the recorder and while performing the surgery, press the record button on the software of the surgery machine ( the machine boots windows XP and runs its own software ). The recording gets saved on the HDD of the recorder. The recorder has a 'dubbing option' which allows us to burn a DVD with the videos to playback on video players.

    PROBLEM-
    The machine and recorder itself are 2 years old now. The recorder has only been used once before and it worked that time. Now whenever we try to dub to a DVD-R it just gives an error "dubbing error" after two minutes of starting the process. I have tried with 4 new DVD-Rs, tried different recordings etc and still it gives me an error. When a DVD-RW is inserted the recorder just spits it back out saying it cannot be used. I think the recorder is broken because I cannot see any error on my part ( although I may be wrong). Sony in my country ( India) will not fix it as both the surgery machine and DVD Recorder were imported from Germany. I do not wish to ask the surgery machine's company to fix it as they will charge me quite a lot. Buying a new recorder from them is also not feasible because they sell all parts for a very very high cost.

    Can you guys advise me on getting a replacement? I would really like a machine which can record the video to its HDD and then export the files to a USB flash drive, in addition to dubbing a DVD. Thanks.
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    It looks like your surgery machine is sending a composite signal, so you can use any device which accepts a composite input. It doesn't have to have a SCART connector. If you already have a computer with USB and DVD burner, just get something like the EasyCAP DC60 and a BNC-to-RCA cable (or adapter).
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    You need a BNC male to RCA female adapter to plug into the same connection on the surgery machine that you use for its custom BNC to SCART cable.

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    The adapter would allow you to use a standard RCA composite video cable to connect a DVD recorder with no SCART connection.

    Click image for larger version

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    I have no idea if there are DVD recorders sold in India that allow recording video to a USB stick as well as DVDs.
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  4. Member shb117's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post

    I have no idea if there are DVD recorders sold in India that allow recording video to a USB stick as well as DVDs.
    Doesn't have to be available in India. US/UK availability is fine too. I can get it from there.
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  5. Member shb117's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by JVRaines View Post
    It looks like your surgery machine is sending a composite signal, so you can use any device which accepts a composite input. It doesn't have to have a SCART connector. If you already have a computer with USB and DVD burner, just get something like the EasyCAP DC60 and a BNC-to-RCA cable (or adapter).
    I have an old laptop lying around. Will try your method and report back.
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    will it play a normal dvd if not then i think the laser is dead
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    Originally Posted by shb117 View Post
    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post

    I have no idea if there are DVD recorders sold in India that allow recording video to a USB stick as well as DVDs.
    Doesn't have to be available in India. US/UK availability is fine too. I can get it from there.
    There are no US model DVD recorder with the features you want. The few remaining DVD recorder models still made for sale in the USA are all manufactured by Funai and sold under the Magnavox and Toshiba labels. They do not record PAL video (we use the NTSC system) and definitely cannot record to a USB stick because there is no USB port.

    Seek help from a large local electronics retailer. However, I think you will find that many PAL DVD recorders with a USB port are able to play some kinds of files stored on a USB stick but cannot record to a USB stick.
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  8. Member shb117's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post

    There are no US model DVD recorder with the features you want. The few remaining DVD recorder models still made for sale in the USA are all manufactured by Funai and sold under the Magnavox and Toshiba labels. They do not record PAL video (we use the NTSC system) and definitely cannot record to a USB stick because there is no USB port.

    Seek help from a large local electronics retailer. However, I think you will find that many PAL DVD recorders with a USB port are able to play some kinds of files stored on a USB stick but cannot record to a USB stick.
    Uh ok then. My current recorder does have a USB but it is for copying music etc to the HDD of the recorder. I will just go with a EasyCAP DC60 device as suggested above and connect it to my old macbook!
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    Originally Posted by shb117 View Post
    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post

    There are no US model DVD recorder with the features you want. The few remaining DVD recorder models still made for sale in the USA are all manufactured by Funai and sold under the Magnavox and Toshiba labels. They do not record PAL video (we use the NTSC system) and definitely cannot record to a USB stick because there is no USB port.

    Seek help from a large local electronics retailer. However, I think you will find that many PAL DVD recorders with a USB port are able to play some kinds of files stored on a USB stick but cannot record to a USB stick.
    Uh ok then. My current recorder does have a USB but it is for copying music etc to the HDD of the recorder. I will just go with a EasyCAP DC60 device as suggested above and connect it to my old macbook!
    1. Too bad you want to use a Mac. Most EasyCap devices do not have drivers for OSX.

    2. Recording video using a computer requires far more effort than using a DVD recorder, especially if you need to author DVDs. It would be faster and easier to copy the video from a DVD to your Mac, convert it from VOBs to a MPEG 2 program stream with MPEG Streamclip, and copy the .mpg file to a USB stick.
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  10. Member shb117's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post

    1. Too bad you want to use a Mac. Most EasyCap devices do not have drivers for OSX.

    2. Recording video using a computer requires far more effort than using a DVD recorder, especially if you need to author DVDs. It would be faster and easier to copy the video from a DVD to your Mac, convert it from VOBs to a MPEG 2 program stream with MPEG Streamclip, and copy the .mpg file to a USB stick.
    I saw videos on youtube showing how to install the DC60 on OSX. If those methods do not work I will install windows on the macbook.
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    Originally Posted by shb117 View Post
    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post

    1. Too bad you want to use a Mac. Most EasyCap devices do not have drivers for OSX.

    2. Recording video using a computer requires far more effort than using a DVD recorder, especially if you need to author DVDs. It would be faster and easier to copy the video from a DVD to your Mac, convert it from VOBs to a MPEG 2 program stream with MPEG Streamclip, and copy the .mpg file to a USB stick.
    I saw videos on youtube showing how to install the DC60 on OSX. If those methods do not work I will install windows on the macbook.
    Good luck then. I guess the many hours of your time spent learning how to record video using what is one of the worst capture devices on the planet and authoring DVDs is not worth the cost of a DVD recorder.
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  12. Member shb117's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post

    Good luck then. I guess the many hours of your time spent learning how to record video using what is one of the worst capture devices on the planet and authoring DVDs is not worth the cost of a DVD recorder.
    OK then can you please tell me what would be, in your opinion, the best way to get video from the surgery machine to a computer ( windows/ osx doesn't matter) as a mpeg-4 file which I can then put on a usb drive. If that can be done easily then I don't need to create DVDs. I can just hand the video out on a flash drive ( flash memory is cheap these days).
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    Originally Posted by shb117 View Post
    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post

    Good luck then. I guess the many hours of your time spent learning how to record video using what is one of the worst capture devices on the planet and authoring DVDs is not worth the cost of a DVD recorder.
    OK then can you please tell me what would be, in your opinion, the best way to get video from the surgery machine to a computer ( windows/ osx doesn't matter) as a mpeg-4 file which I can then put on a usb drive. If that can be done easily then I don't need to create DVDs. I can just hand the video out on a flash drive ( flash memory is cheap these days).
    So you are certain that most of your father's patients have something that can play MPEG-4 files on USB flash drive? Elderly people here in the US, which is the segment of the population that is most likely to require eye surgery, are far more likely to have an inexpensive DVD-only player than a device that plays video from a USB flash drive.

    I had no idea that flash drives and DVDs cost about the same in India. The price difference here in the US is substantial. DVD-R discs cost 30 to 50 cents cents per disc in the US if bought in a 50 disc package. The cheapest USB flash drives cost between $2 and $3 each if bought in a 10-pack.

    I'm at a disadvantage because the selection of capture products available in each country varies. If you can get one, the Elgato Video Capture Device 10020840 is made for use with a Mac and comes with easy-to-use software for recording MPEG-4 files. It costs between $80 and $100 in the US depending on where it is purchased. Hauppauge's 610 USB-Live 2 is a good Windows capture device available in many countries. It comes with Hauppauge's WinTV v7 application, but can be used with other software, some free and some paid. It costs between $40 and $50 in the US depending on where it is purchased.
    Last edited by usually_quiet; 31st Aug 2014 at 11:55.
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  14. Member shb117's Avatar
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    The machine is actually for LASIK surgery so people who are having the surgery are young adults so they usually have a computer at home. Very few people actually ask for a video to be taken and even amongst them for the ones who don't have a computer maybe we can burn a DVD every once in a while.

    The cost of a USB flash drive is a little bit more than a DVD-R but compared to how much they are already paying for the surgery the additional cost is minimal.

    Thanks for the suggestions. I will buy one and report back.
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