Hi guys, i am back and looking for a new capture card for the following uses and required features :
1. Should record high quality and best possible SD video from my set top box.
2. Should have components or hdmi input or both if possible.
3. Should work well with windows 7 and it will be great if it can work with mac OS (I dont mind buying an additional/thrid party app for that)
4. Should be external, usb 2/3 or firewire
5. Under $175
So far i have only found hauppauge hd pvr thats available for abt $160 and has good reviews and can work on a mac as well.
I am still looking if i have some other option like avertv or some other brand , thats possibly a little cheaper and works as good or better than hauppauge hd pvr.
Planning to buy it in a weeks time and will be using it with my dekstop that runs windows 7 and possibly in the future with a macbook pro.
File size, rendering, compressing etc are not a cause of concern as i have a powerful computer and have ample of space in my hdd.
Thanks!
Try StreamFab Downloader and download from Netflix, Amazon, Youtube! Or Try DVDFab and copy Blu-rays! or rip iTunes movies!
+ Reply to Thread
Results 1 to 16 of 16
Thread
-
-
What country?
What set top box? What service?Recommends: Kiva.org - Loans that change lives.
http://www.kiva.org/about -
Originally Posted by techspark
There might be a way to map it to do realtime software encoding to mpeg 2 but I don't know. I'm sure there is probably a graphedit way to do it but I don't know and I don't know how difficult or demanding that setup is.
Edit - also you'll need to fill in the details eddv is requesting so that others can give more detailed answers for what you want.Donatello - The Shredder? Michelangelo - Maybe all that hardware is for making coleslaw? -
Given the requirements of a USB 2.0 interface plus Windows 7 and Mac compatibility, the Hauppauge HD-PVR is really your only current option for an external SD & HD capture device that is able to work with with a variety of PVR software. (The HD-PVR will work thanks to a purchased plug-in or special drivers from Hauppauge that make it appear its output comes from a digital tuner.) Avermedia doesn't have Mac drivers for their competing product, the DarkCrystal HD Capture Station/AVerTV USB HD DVR (Model C874), but it can work with Windows 7 plus third-party PVR software (with AVerMedia's plug-in installed).
The only external USB 2.0 device for Mac and PC I have seen with component and HDMI input is the recently released Elgato Game Capture HD. It has no S-Video or composite inputs on its break-out cable, but those may be provided at a later date. There is probably no third-party PVR software that can work with it at this point. In any case, component video is more useful than HDMI for recording the output from set-top boxes because their HDMI output is ordinarily protected with HDCP specifically to prevent recording.Last edited by usually_quiet; 4th Jun 2012 at 11:09.
-
Thank you guys for the inputs.
What country?
What set top box? What service?
heres a link to the stb and the tv service i will b using http://www.reliancedigitaltv.com/get_digitaltvsetup.html
The video standard is PAL B for my country
The only external USB 2.0 device for Mac and PC I have seen with component and HDMI input is the recently released Elgato Game Capture HD. It has no S-Video or composite inputs on its break-out cable, but those may be provided at a later date. There is probably no third-party PVR software that can work with it at this point. In any case, component video is more useful than HDMI for recording the output from set-top boxes because their HDMI output is ordinarily protected with HDCP specifically to prevent recording.
Also, will it be possible to have a setup like this :
Video and audio out from stb >> A/V in to hd pvr >> hd pvr connected to laptop >> laptop connected to my HD tv and video and audio played on the TV ??
Thanks! -
Originally Posted by techsparkDonatello - The Shredder? Michelangelo - Maybe all that hardware is for making coleslaw?
-
Does your tv have component input? The hdpvr has component passthrough.
-
Yes.
Don't forget though that you will see whatever is being outputted. If you have some kind of message pop up on screen that will also be displayed.
Just as an fyi my cable dvr has an annoying habit of showing "recording finished" in the center of the screen while playing. I still haven't figured out how to disable this while watching another program.
If your unit has some kind of automated pop up message like that you should note you'll record that in your captured material. Best to do your dubbing while you are not recording other events if you have a similar feature on your unit.
Oh and there might be a slight lag when you watch it on your laptop. So while you are using a remote to access your programs your clicking may be delayed on the laptop a fraction of a second or a little longer. It won't interfere with your recording but you won't have the same instantaneous reaction on the laptop screen.Donatello - The Shredder? Michelangelo - Maybe all that hardware is for making coleslaw? -
^^
Thanks a lot for that info. Just one last question, my laptop has hdmi out and tv has hdmi in , can i get an hdmi cable and connect the tv and laptop this way. Will i see noticeable difference compared to the component pass thru ??
If your unit has some kind of automated pop up message like that you should note you'll record that in your captured material. -
Originally Posted by techspark
Fyi that is how I have my hdpvr setup. I have the cable box going to my hdpvr which is connected to my desktop pc which is itself connected to the tv via hdmi. I do experience the lag I mention but as long as I don't click to fast I can easily select the recording I want to play during my dubbing.
Originally Posted by techspark
I know it may not be feasible but have you consider alternative services? Or is this a monopoly? Can you get satellite or go with cable or find another provider in the same class of service?
If you are stuck with that I am sorry. I wish you could do better.
Good luck.
Edit - oh by the way if you did the passthrough you would see the original output from your box not the recording screen from your laptop. Just so you knowDonatello - The Shredder? Michelangelo - Maybe all that hardware is for making coleslaw? -
It will make a great deal of difference what comes out the HDMI port. Freeview generally will lack HDCP copy protection (but not always or on all programs). DBS services will almost always be HDCP protected. YPbPr output resolution may also be controlled by various copy protection schemes.
Recommends: Kiva.org - Loans that change lives.
http://www.kiva.org/about -
You'll only be seeing the lag difference that the capture unit will induce. That is ok but just be aware of it. THat is the time it takes for the signal to go the capture device and be processed on the laptop (whether or not you are recording). There is nothing wrong with doing that of course but you should know that going in.
Fyi that is how I have my hdpvr setup. I have the cable box going to my hdpvr which is connected to my desktop pc which is itself connected to the tv via hdmi. I do experience the lag I mention but as long as I don't click to fast I can easily select the recording I want to play during my dubbing.
I know it may not be feasible but have you consider alternative services? Or is this a monopoly? Can you get satellite or go with cable or find another provider in the same class of service?
If you are stuck with that I am sorry. I wish you could do better.
oh by the way if you did the passthrough you would see the original output from your box not the recording screen from your laptop. Just so you know
Also just wondering, how is the hd pvr's quality, does the recorded video look like the same quality of what you see on the tv ? Or is the compression noticeable ?
It will make a great deal of difference what comes out the HDMI port. Freeview generally will lack HDCP copy protection (but not always or on all programs). DBS services will almost always be HDCP protected. YPbPr output resolution may also be controlled by various copy protection schemes -
The Elgato Game Capture HD is brand new. It is hard to say how it compares to the HD-PVR. Reviewers are generally happy with the quality of the Elgato Game Capture HD's h.264 hardware encoding, however because it is so new there are likely to still be some bugs in its drivers. I haven't been able to find out anything about the Elgato Game Capture HD's ability to record audio. It seems to work well with some Mac programs, and Elgato has promised an update to its EyeTV software for the Elgato Game Capture HD. http://www.tuaw.com/2012/06/04/elgato-game-capture-hd-delivers-easy-hdmi-recording-to-os-x/
However, I haven't read about any Windows PVR software that can use the Elgato Game Capture HD. For Windows, you may be stuck with the capture program that comes with it, which probably does not allow making timed recordings. Other Windows PVR software requires devices to either have a tuner of some kind or to have drivers that make it appear that they have a digital tuner. There is no Windows-compatible fake tuner plug-in/driver for the Elgato Game Capture HD as exists for the Hauppage HD-PVR and AVerMedia HD-DVR USB.
[Edit]I made a wrong assumption based on a review. I took a look at a video on Elgato's website it appears that the Elgato Game Capture HD doesn't currently include a break-out cable suitable for connecting to a set-top box's RCA component video and RCA analog stereo outputs. All it has is a special cable to connect the device directly to the PS/3's A/V port. It really isn't much good for recording from a set-top box, since the box's HDMI output will be HDCP protected.Last edited by usually_quiet; 6th Jun 2012 at 23:23.
-
Originally Posted by techspark
For me I am satisfied using 4.5mb/s for capturing 720p material off the dvr. For most stuff that is. If I want to really preserve it I'll go higher but I don't have a bluray burner so I have to keep that in mind. I can do avchd of course (I have a ps3 that plays it) but that requires lower bitrate. But the bitrate is more or less adequate for me.
I do have a wdtv media player so I can really crank up the bitrate if I need to for a particular program. Then I just copy the recorded file to a harddrive and play it that way.
FYI It is really nice to have the proper 16:9 aspect ratio for recordings that are in high def. There is no problem with the playback presentation. And the 5.1 is preserved over fiber optic - keep in mind no DTS encoding but that would only apply to things like dubbing video games or bluray/dvd dubbing (but you'd be better off ripping with dvd fab decrypter or anydvdhd anyway).
Originally Posted by techspark
Originally Posted by techspark
Is there an internet petition you could sign to push them to change their behavior? Maybe start one of your own? Who knows something could come of it.
As I mentioned too I have no knowledge of the Elgato unit but if it has component input and h264 hardware encoding it will be similar in most respects to the hdpvr - at least as far as I can tell - I haven't read any documentation yet but it should be similar.
Good luck.Donatello - The Shredder? Michelangelo - Maybe all that hardware is for making coleslaw? -
Sorry guys for the late response.
I made a wrong assumption based on a review. I took a look at a video on Elgato's website it appears that the Elgato Game Capture HD doesn't currently include a break-out cable suitable for connecting to a set-top box's RCA component video and RCA analog stereo outputs. All it has is a special cable to connect the device directly to the PS/3's A/V port. It really isn't much good for recording from a set-top box, since the box's HDMI output will be HDCP protected.
Thanks for clarifying that. So looks like Hauppauge hd pvr is my only option
As with anything digital it varies depending on the bitrate and the source used.
For me I am satisfied using 4.5mb/s for capturing 720p material off the dvr. For most stuff that is. If I want to really preserve it I'll go higher but I don't have a bluray burner so I have to keep that in mind. I can do avchd of course (I have a ps3 that plays it) but that requires lower bitrate. But the bitrate is more or less adequate for me.
There is no problem with the playback presentation. And the 5.1 is preserved over fiber optic - keep in mind no DTS encoding but that would only apply to things like dubbing video games or bluray/dvd dubbing (but you'd be better off ripping with dvd fab decrypter or anydvdhd anyway).
Is there an internet petition you could sign to push them to change their behavior? Maybe start one of your own? Who knows something could come of it.
Thank you for all the replies. I am sold out on the hauppauge hd pvr 1212 model (not need the extra cable) and i will be getting it a week.
Cheers! -
Originally Posted by techspark
Originally Posted by techspark
Good luck.Donatello - The Shredder? Michelangelo - Maybe all that hardware is for making coleslaw?
Similar Threads
-
Recording High Quality Sound on PC
By evil nemesis in forum EditingReplies: 11Last Post: 25th Feb 2012, 14:36 -
Help Finding A High Quality Capture Card
By NMeade in forum CapturingReplies: 4Last Post: 24th Apr 2010, 20:00 -
Recording with high quality and good conversion methods (snagit & codec q.)
By mukunku in forum Newbie / General discussionsReplies: 7Last Post: 13th Apr 2010, 23:43 -
recording cable HD channels on pc tuner/capture card
By Zipbiscuit in forum DVB / IPTVReplies: 2Last Post: 26th Dec 2009, 09:52 -
ATI 650 capture card: analog channels black&white
By lhughes in forum CapturingReplies: 2Last Post: 3rd Nov 2009, 06:34