I have been lurking and reading the posts and guides here for almost 6 months now and I have got to say that this is the most well thought out place I have ever come across on the web. So many ideas and so much information. Well I have decided to build a new pc and I wanted to share my plans with everyone else so they could give me some advice on what I might need to remove or add.

AMD 1Ghz
512MB SDRAM
64Mb VGA card with TV OUT
Video Capture card from AKIDA Computers(Here is the link)
http://store.yahoo.com/akidacomputer/uncon3.html
1 Maxtor 60GB Hard Drive
1 Maxtor 80GB Hard Drive 7200 for capture
TMPEG 12a for encoding
Virtual Dub for capture

This is the whole thing in a nutshell. I was considering buying a hardware MPEG encoder but after all the posts about the different problems I decided that I would rather spend the time needed to encode a high quality AVI to MPEG rather than fiddle with some device that may or may not capture as well as I want. Besides, there are quite a few programs that edit AVIs quite well so I can use them to add some fine touches to them before I encode to the final product. I am not trying to make VCDs because of the headache of trying to get them just right and using the right media for the job. I am trying to encode high quality MPEG 2 files so I can transfer them to DVDs when DVD recorders become a little less expensive. I have also heard that the Canopus DV device produces very good DV AVIs so I am considering adding it to the mix once I can afford it. For now, a capture card that can create very high quality AVIs will work just fine for me. From what I understand, DV AVIs are great quality and produce the best MPEGs when encoded with TMPEG. I decided to go with the AVI conversion also because it seems to me that TMPEG encodes AVI files faster than any other media. I currently encode asf streams so I can play them through my Hollywood+ decoder and record them on video tapes for my friends. I used to encode the asf and a wave file that I created from it. I have an old AMD K6-2 going at about 333mhz. It would take about 23-30 minutes for one 4 minute video. I now use ASF Tools 2.0 to convert the ASF file to an AVI and when I use the wave file and the AVI it now takes about 10-12minutes instead. I also downloaded an AVI file of the Star Trek Generations Trailer and when I encoded it to an MPEG it only took about 1minute 30 seconds. Needles to say I am sticking with AVI captures for the most part. I don't mind a good time investment for a great quality MPEG. I'm still a newbie though so if anyone wants to make some suggestions I am always open to them. Thank you.