Very loud and annoying humming/buzz noise when capturing!???

[darkhunter]

Ok, here is my set up.

Dazzle USB, AMD 1GHZ, 512MB ram, 7200rpm hard drive.

Now when I try capturing from my digital cable box using regular audio/video cables I get a terrible buzzing noise in the background of anything I record!!

Now I was told that cheap cables of distortion through electricity can cause this. However I bought all expensive gold plated cables, and I have a expensive UPS power regulator that the cable box is plugged into.

Still same results. I even tried recording to my VCR first and then sending it to the dazzle, same results.

However get this, when I try to record from a DVD in my DVD player, clean sound!! Picture and sound are great!!

So what gives, anyone know? Is it something with my digital cable??
I don't get the hum on the TV.

Would I be better served with direct tv???

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

[Tommyknocker]

You can try lowering your recording volume.

[fellaw]

that sounds like a ground loop.

This sometimes happens when two grounded devices are connected trough a cable, which then closes the loop, so a current is induced. The sound is the typical 50/60 Hz hum, which you can also hear when you raise the volume of your stereo with no music playing.
Use a transducer or a fan-jet filter.

Perhaps you don't know what these are, because
a) I'm a german and don't know the correct english words for those 3 words(ground loop, transducer and fan-jet filter).
In german they're:
Masseschleife
Uebertrager
Mantelstromfilter
Maybe someone reads this in here and translates them, I used the google language tools.

b)You aren't in electronics, ask an electronican.

[House de Kris]

Sounds like classic cable ground loop issues. You said you recorded to your VCR then to your computer via Dazzle. When you were going from VCR to Dazzle, did you still have the cable box hooked up to your VCR? If so, disconnect the cable box and try the VCR to Dazzle once again. If no problem, then this is a ground loop issue.

When you recorded from your DVD player to the Dazzle, was the cable box hooked to any equipment in that scenario? Or, did you completely remove the DVD player from your other gear to hook it up to your computer stuff?

[fellaw]

@House de Kris
I wrote that one post before, didn't I?

[darkhunter]

House de Kris, yeah when recording from the DVD player, the DVD player was separate from everything else, no cable or anything going into it.

The VCR on the other hand, yes the cable was going through that.
I have not tried unhooking the cable, but will do that, thanks!

So basically it is the cable messing things up?
Can anyone really easily explain why that is? Is it just digital cable?
Again I have it plugged into a power regulator.

Is there anything additional I can do to "fix" the cable so I can record directly from the cable box to the PC/Dazzle?

[House de Kris]

-fellaw,
Yes you did say the same as I did, and four minutes earlier to boot! At the time I started composing my response, your post wasn't visible to me. I confess I was interrupted by a co-worker before hitting the submit button and your post beat mine. Darn those work issues. Please don't beat me up.

-darkhunter,
The ground (shield) of the coax from your cable company is connected to earth potential miles away from where you are using it in your home. Your home is committed to earth mere feet from your circuit breaker box. This physical difference in ground references is what causes the ground loop hum you can't get away from. Luckily, there is a solution. Monster makes an isolator that you can buy at most consumer electronic stores to put in line between the cable feed and your cable box. Alternatively, you can buy two 75/300 ohm balums from Radio Shack and put them back-to back on the 300 ohm side. If this doesn't make sense, just buy the Monster unit. At any rate, it is not insurmountable. There are other ways around this, but due to safety reasons are not recommended.

This ground loop phenomena is common to both analog and digital cable.

[darkhunter]

thanks for your help!
Will give one of those options a try

[darkhunter]

You would'nt happen to have any links or any specific stores that carry the monster unit, and about an approximate price of how much I should have to pay?