Realtime HW Encoding Hauppauge PVR-250 Plus Firewire = No Go

Bill_Cosby · Member Joined: 11 Mar 2004

MY QUESTION: Can i encode a DV stream in realtime hardware using my PVR-250 via the firewire input on my SB Audigy? This would mean that nothing would be plugged into the PVR, i would only be using it for real-time encoding.

MY PROBLEM: I cant get my PVR-250 to encode in hardware realtime MPEG2 using the firewire input on my SB Audigy. Here is the error:

"Failed to initialize the capture driver. Another program may be using it, or the file has been removed. Cannot find the specified interface"

Is it impossible to take a DV camera, input to my computer via firewire, while simultaneously encoding it via the PVR-250 in hardware realtime? Do i actually have to physically "plug it in" to the PVR to utilize the hardware encoding? (i.e. use analog input) If so, that defeats the ease and quality assurance of recording in a digital medium b/c i would have to output to the PVR in analog, then reconvert to digital!

awhitney · Posted: Mar 15, 2004 20:13

"Is it impossible to take a DV camera, input to my computer via firewire, while simultaneously encoding it via the PVR-250 in hardware realtime?"

That isn't possible unfortuneatly. The hauppage card itself would have to have a firewire input.

It would be nice though since the hauppage does do mpeg2 in hardware which makes EXCELLENT captures and also save the time of encoding.

IMO, software mpeg2 encoding can't beat out the hauppage wintv-pvr cards. I have one myself and haven't looked back.