Frame corruption after capture

[schleppo]

I'm capturing video from a Sony Hi8 camcorder using a Canopus ADVC-100 analog/digital converter into Firewire. The capture video has some flutter/corruption at the bottom of the frame (go here for a short sample video: http://www.sethjones.net/video/test.mpg). I've tried using multiple cameras and multiple capture software (Pinnacle Studio 9, VirtualDub) with no change.

I think the problem is in the Canopus device. My thought is to strip off the bottom part of the frame in editing. My question is can I so this in editing software and if so, what editing software would you recommend? Thanks for any help you might provide.

Seth

[redwudz]

I doubt the problem is with the ADVC-100. I've used the unit for more than 2 years, and I have never had that problem, using all sorts of inputs.

That said, one of the better DV editors is VirtualDub. I use VirtualDub Mod normally. You can easily crop the bottom part of the video. In your sample, though, that would not be shown on a normal TV as it appears to be in the 'overscan' area. But you can crop it if your end video is being made to show on a computer only.

[schleppo]

Was not aware of an overscan area. I just did a test burn to a DVD and played it on TV and you're right, the flutter area at the bottom is not visible. Thanks for the guidance.

[redwudz]

Good deal. Not everyone is aware of 'overscan'. Sometimes, depending on the TV, around 5% or a little more of the edges are lost. This usually comes up with VCR captures, as VCR video has a fair amount of edge noise, some it from the VCR 'head switching noise'.

A computer shows the whole frame. It's always a good idea to check it on a TV before making any final decisions about your video. Video also generally shows darker on a computer screen than a TV screen and interlace doesn't display properly on a computer monitor unless you use a program that handles interlace video properly. Just a few things to remember when transferring a computer video to a TV format.