Video Capture Issue - MPEG format

[SD123]

I am new to all this and I have what is probably a stupid question.
I just purchased a Diamond VC 500 Video Capture device. I am trying to capture video .
One of the options is Record Format. One of the selections is DVD. This saves the video in MPEG format.
The problem is it did not record the entire show. It only recorded a little over 1GB and the video stopped a third of the way through the recording even thought the capture device kept working.

Have I done something wrong.
Thank you for any help.

[jbd5010]

What capturing software are you using?

Also, just to rule it out... you're not low on disk space, right? Occasionally my capture software defaults to drive C:\ which, for me, is my operating system solid state disk, and it only has 64GB capacity. In that case I have to point it to my 2TB drive. The default behavior for most capture programs is to simply stop recording when disk space runs out, and some don't even give you a warning as to why it happened.

If you have a similar set-up as me, make sure you're capturing to the correct drive.

[DB83]

Just a quick thought - not at all familiar with that device or its options.

Take a look at the file the device created. Does it say 'filename.mpg' or does it say 'filename.vob' ?
If it is 'vob' then are there more than one files ?
If a vob has been created then it is quite likely that it will not exceed 1 gig - that is the limit for 1 vob on one dvd.

[SD123]

What capturing software are you using?

Also, just to rule it out... you're not low on disk space, right? Occasionally my capture software defaults to drive C:\ which, for me, is my operating system solid state disk, and it only has 64GB capacity. In that case I have to point it to my 2TB drive. The default behavior for most capture programs is to simply stop recording when disk space runs out, and some don't even give you a warning as to why it happened.

If you have a similar set-up as me, make sure you're capturing to the correct drive.

I am just using the generic software that comes with the Diamond VC 500 Capture device.

I have 64 GB available on a 300GB harddrive.

I have been thinking about getting an external harddrive. Do you have any recommendations.
I was thinking 750GB but that might not be big enough. 2TB is pretty big.
Recommendations on Size or Manufacturer.
Thanks for your help.

[SD123]

Just a quick thought - not at all familiar with that device or its options.

Take a look at the file the device created. Does it say 'filename.mpg' or does it say 'filename.vob' ?
If it is 'vob' then are there more than one files ?
If a vob has been created then it is quite likely that it will not exceed 1 gig - that is the limit for 1 vob on one dvd.

It is .mpg
Yes I read about the .vob and TS_Folders and I thought that might be the problem.
I tried again last night and it got most of it (4,4GB .mpg file) but it didn't record the first 5 minutes or last 5 minutes.

I just wonder if I am using the wrong format or have settings incorrect.

[jbd5010]

I don't use external hard drives for capturing video... actually, I don't own an external (yet).

If you're going to capture to an external hard drive, I would think it needs a minimum of eSata... or USB 3.0 (but that's still a bit pricey and only now becoming more common on drives/motherboards). Maybe someone else on here can correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think USB 2.0 has the bandwidth if you want to capture your video at a decent bitrate/quality. I guess you could do firewire, too. Some cameras and devices support direct-to-hard drive transfer via firewire.

The thing about buying pre-built, affordable external drives (Fantom, Caviar, etc.) from what I've read is that they throw any old drive in their branded enclosure. Sometimes you'll get a high-end western digital caviar, sometimes you'll get a crappier model (hopefully they at least meet the listed spec of 7200rpm, or whatever).

As far as my internal drives, up to this point I've been budget-minded, buying whatever was on sale. My 1TB Western Digital Green drive is about 4+ years old, and has been used hard... still kicking, no problems.

I got a Seagate Barracuda 2TB 5900RPM about 7 months ago... that's my capture drive. 5900RPM seems sufficient for even high bitrates.

And just for reference... I checked my Newegg purchase history. From 4/13/2006 I bought a Western Digital Caviar SE 250GB 7200RPM drive. That has served as my OS drive in two machines, and now is in my current machine as a misc documents and photo backup drive... still going strong.

I had a Maxtor 250GB drive that died on me within a year... maybe it was an isolated incident, but I'm still not going to buy a Maxtor drive again since WD has been reliable. We'll see how the Seagate lasts.

My non-expert opinion: buy a solid internal drive, buy a solid external enclosure... BAM... solid external drive.

Probably more info than you wanted, and maybe someone else who actually uses externals can give better advice.

[SD123]

Probably more info than you wanted, and maybe someone else who actually uses externals can give better advice.

Not too much info!
I am so new to this i really don't have a good idea of what is going on.
I like your idea on external harddrives.
Thanks again for all your help!

[redwudz]

External eSATA drives have the advantage of operating at the same speed/performance as an internal SATA drive. If you have a spare SATA connection on your motherboard, you can just use a eSATA PCI slot adapter, then a eSATA cable to the new drive. Only takes a few minutes to install.

[DB83]

With respect, we are working on scraps at present. One minute you only had 1 gig captured and now it is 4.4 gig. I could understand both but then both, as you describe them, are illogical.

Shall we go back to basics. I know your OS and your capture device so I have two more questions.

1. Are you capturing to your main HDD ? (still no reason for the truncation)
2. What is the name/version no of the capture software ?

[SD123]

With respect, we are working on scraps at present. One minute you only had 1 gig captured and now it is 4.4 gig. I could understand both but then both, as you describe them, are illogical.

Shall we go back to basics. I know your OS and your capture device so I have two more questions.

1. Are you capturing to your main HDD ? (still no reason for the truncation)
2. What is the name/version no of the capture software ?

Thanks for taking the time to answer.
With regards to 1 vs. 4.4 GB, I did the entire recapture again and got almost all of the video captured, but there were still parts at the beginning and end not capturing. I wondered if I am trying to save under the wrong format. Or do I have some settings incorrect.
With regards to your questions:
1. Yes I am capturing to my main HDD. I have about 64 GB available.
2. I am using the caputre software that came with the Diamond VC 500 capture device. It is called One Touch Video Capture.

I am able to get better results, but it is still inconsistent. I am going to try an external HDD to see if that helps.
I am just concerned that I am doing something or trying to save to a format that is causing my problems.

[PuzZLeR]

I'm blaming the included software - it's pointless banging your head with the flaky and cheap apps usually included with capture tools.

And, from experience and reviews, apps packaged with Diamond products are no exception.

I would try AVS Video Recorder instead since it seems your fit. I don't have a VC500 to try, but I hope it works with it.

[PuzZLeR]

Double post - deleted.

[DB83]

I tend to think that, after a little googling, 'one touch' is part of the name of the capture device than the actual capture software. I could not actually find any software named 'One Touch'

There should be no basic problem capturing to your main HDD and to Mpeg2(DVD). Problems do arise since the HDD is being used by the the OS so if that took priority then you could lose frames but you should not lose so much at the start and the end. That being said, I see your OS is Vista and that has been known to have issues with some capture software.

The issue with the software, possibly something renamed and/or heavilly crippled, is that you may not have any basic control over it. Control to either alter the capture settings or even where you capture your video to.

I would echo what PuzZler says and try the unit with other software which will give you more control.

[jbd5010]

In addition to AVS video recorder, here's some capture software that's free (or at least free for 30 days with no watermark, which could help you troubleshoot without spending more money):

iuVCR - Says Win 2000/XP but I use it on Windows 7 x64... also, doesn't seem to enforce the "30 day trial"
NCH Debut Video Capture - Expires after 30 days, but works full-featured til then
VirtualVCR - Hit-or-miss, but totally free so try it if one of these others doesn't work
VirtualDUB - I think this only does AVI, not sure. It can still tell you if you're able to capture SOME form of video without losing any of it. GREAT filtering built-in and available as add-ons, side-by-side comparison of "before and after" filtering.

AVS also worksjust fine... another time-limited trial unless you buy it.

[DB83]

And if you want to try some more software before you pay for it there is also Corel Video Studio with the added bonus of basic editing and dvd authoring.

[SD123]

I tend to think that, after a little googling, 'one touch' is part of the name of the capture device than the actual capture software. I could not actually find any software named 'One Touch'

There should be no basic problem capturing to your main HDD and to Mpeg2(DVD). Problems do arise since the HDD is being used by the the OS so if that took priority then you could lose frames but you should not lose so much at the start and the end. That being said, I see your OS is Vista and that has been known to have issues with some capture software.

The issue with the software, possibly something renamed and/or heavilly crippled, is that you may not have any basic control over it. Control to either alter the capture settings or even where you capture your video to.

I would echo what PuzZler says and try the unit with other software which will give you more control.

Thanks for taking the time to help me.
I am going to try new software.

[SD123]

I'm blaming the included software - it's pointless banging your head with the flaky and cheap apps usually included with capture tools.

And, from experience and reviews, apps packaged with Diamond products are no exception.

I would try AVS Video Recorder instead since it seems your fit. I don't have a VC500 to try, but I hope it works with it.

Thanks for the advice.
I think I will give the software a try.

[PuzZLeR]

I tend to think that, after a little googling, 'one touch' is part of the name of the capture device than the actual capture software. I could not actually find any software named 'One Touch'
...
The issue with the software, possibly something renamed and/or heavilly crippled, is that you may not have any basic control over it. Control to either alter the capture settings or even where you capture your video to.

Yeah, I thought the same thing too but I saw it comes with Ulead VideoStudio One Touch - similar name to the hardware. I figure it must be a crippled version as well due to this.

That being said, I see your OS is Vista and that has been known to have issues with some capture software.

Good capture hardware/software, and a good O/S for it, died after the XP age in my opinion, such as devices that can work with VirtualDub. Too many inane consumers cried about capturing being "too hard" so now it's all simplistic consumer crap. This includes products from ATI and Hauppauge. Until I see change in the latest and greatest, I personally will only shop for XP-ware, and only use an XP machine for capturing for as long as I can till then.

[PuzZLeR]

In addition to AVS video recorder, here's some capture software that's free (or at least free for 30 days with no watermark, which could help you troubleshoot without spending more money):

iuVCR - Says Win 2000/XP but I use it on Windows 7 x64... also, doesn't seem to enforce the "30 day trial"
NCH Debut Video Capture - Expires after 30 days, but works full-featured til then
VirtualVCR - Hit-or-miss, but totally free so try it if one of these others doesn't work

Yes, hit or miss, because they're great when they work, but when they don't work - they don't work.

VirtualDUB - I think this only does AVI, not sure. It can still tell you if you're able to capture SOME form of video without losing any of it. GREAT filtering built-in and available as add-ons, side-by-side comparison of "before and after" filtering.

Yes it does only AVI, but you can do MPEG-2 in an AVI such as YMPEG (not free though). But usually it's awkward and doesn't work with many other applications.

For DV and lossless AVI (Lagarith, HuffYUV, etc) or even Xvid/DivX, VirtualDub is the King of the Hill. However, for a device to work with VDub, it would need WDM drivers. I have yet to hear of a Diamond product having such drivers.

AVS also worksjust fine... another time-limited trial unless you buy it.

I suggested this because it's easy, rather reliable, and likely to support the Diamond. It's worth trying. And if it solves the problem, a small registration fee will be worth it IMO.