DVR recorded movie will only capture at 15fps instead of 30fps

[SM26]

I'm trying to capture a few movies I've recorded on my DVR. When I watch one of DVR'd movies it obviously plays back fine on my TV at its normal frame rate. But when I try to capture any of those movies, it will only capture at 15 frames per second.

If I change the channel to from DVR to live TV, the card will allow capture at 30 FPS. Anytime I switch playback back to a DVR recorded movie, the RECCentral software will only allow 15fps under frame rate. Does anyone know any work arounds to this scenario in which I could record those movies at 30fps?

Is there another setup I could use to capture from the TV playing the movie at the correct frame rate instead of the 15fps signal coming from the DVR? Sorry if this has been asked before - I'm still in the process of looking through the forum for any similar issues like this. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.


Hardware: Avermedia Extremecap U3
Software: RECCentral v 1.2.8
Setup: Samsung HDTV + Time Warner Cable DVR + HDMI Splitter + Macbook Pro

(I have an HDMI cable from the cable box/dvr running into the HDMI splitter, and then a separate hdmi cable running from the splitter into my Extremecap U3, and then finally from the U3 to my MBP)

[Cornucopia]

Have you tried this direct (without the splitter)?

Scott

[SM26]

I'll give it another try but I'm pretty sure the last time I tried it directly I received a message in the RECentral software that the cable signal was HDCP protected and wouldn't allow capture at all.

[Cornucopia]

Bingo! And what I had guessed. Your splitter is bypassing HDCP by ?pulling across every other frame? or something. You shouldn't (legally) be able to do this anyway.

I suggest you use the component/Svideo/composite outs (which will give you SD video).

Scott

[SM26]

Thanks for your reply.

The weird thing is, I can capture at 30FPS at any TV channel. I was getting the same HDCP protection message on those live TV channels as well, but the splitter bypasses that and allows for 30fps on all of those channels, with no problem.

Heck I could theoretically capture the same movie I DVR'd at 30fps as long as it was playing live on the original channel. But for some reason if the source signal is during DVR playback it locks in at 15.

Thanks for the suggestion but I was hoping to cap it in HD. The reason I DVR'd this movie was because it hasn't been offered in HD anywhere else. (I own the SD version currently.)

[usually_quiet]

Something else you need to consider. The Avermedia Extremecap U3 doesn't capture interlaced video. It supports the following input and capture resolutions:

Input:
640 x 480 (60p) / 720 x 480 (60p/60i) / 720 x 576 (50p/50i) / 800 x 600 (60p)
1024 x 768 (60p) / 1280 x 720 (60p/50P)
1280 x 768 (60p) / 1280 x 800 (60p) / 1280 x 1024 (60p)
1360 x 768 (60p) / 1440 x 900 (60p) / 1680 x 1050 (60p)
1920 x 1080 (60p/50p/30p/25p/24p/60i/50i)

Capture:
640 x 480 (60p) / 720 x 480 (60p/30p) / 720 x 576 (50p/25p) / 800 x 600 (60p)
1024 x 768 (60p/30p) / 1280 x 720p (60p/50p/30p/25p)
1280 x 768 (60p/30p) / 1280 x 800 (60p/30p) / 1280 x 1024 (60p/30p)
1360 x 768 (60p/30p) / 1440 x 900 (60p/30p) / 1680 x 1050 (60p/30p)
1920 x 1080 (60p/50p/30p/25p/24p)

The standard resolutions used for TV in the USA are 1080i, 720p, and 480i. If you are capturing HD video at 30 frames per second, that is not good. 1080i at 29.97 frames per second becomes 1080p at 59.94 frames per second when correctly de-interlaced. Are you seeing a lot of combing in your captures? Is fast motion a bit jerky? Setting up your DVR to output 720p and capturing it at 59.94 frames per second (or 60 frames per second) might be the best choice for compatibility with media players as well as picture quality.