VHS-->DVD, "action scenes" and bad sources

[Jdrive]

Hi,

I've been playing with video capture for a few years, but haven't really been happy with the results so far and was hoping someone would have some suggestions. I have searched and seen a few things, but just wanted to see if anyone had specific advice for me.

I am using:
Philips VCR (bought in early 2000's, no S-VHS, but does output true NTSC, I have a mix of PAL/NTSC tapes)
Grundig standalone DVD recorder
EZ Capture USB dongle for PC
DGTec sd160pvr dvd recorder/HDD recorder (only just got this off dad, haven't tested yet but the interface is basically the same as the Grundig so I assume it will provide a similar result)

1st problem "action scenes". The majority of what I want to copy are music VHS, so lots of flashy quick cuts between scenese, or someone running around a stage etc. I have tried recording in HQ (1hr per DVD) mode on the Grundig recorder, and whenever a fast paced sequence is on it pixilates terribly. It looks like a really low quality youtube rip.
I have used the crappy USB dongle I have and that does a better job, but still not terrific, and when I use the PC option the audio is incredibly muted (could be the source in the examples I used however), I understand I can artifically enhance that though so I'll deal with audio once I get the video better lol.

So.. any suggestions for a new toy for me to play with to try and capture better video. Needs to be Pal/NTSC compatible. I have read that the USB options are crappy, I had a look at canopus/datavideo/pyro etc but they are either unavailable or way too expensive in my region (Australia, ADVC 55 is like $250, 110 is $350+, why won't amazon ship to me lol). I have spare PCI slots in my PC and would be happy with a card

[johns0]

Please use this thread as your subject,i removed the other thread so people wouldn't respond to both threads needlessly.

[lordsmurf]

ATI 600 USB card. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00138EOH8?ie=UTF8&tag=thdifa-20&linkCode=as2&camp=17...SIN=B00138EOH8
Ignore the bad photos of the device -- it has composite/s-video and audio in, too, not just coax.

Canopus boxes are overpriced, unnecessary.

Your biggest issue to date is simply one of using crappy devices to transfer your videos.

[2Bdecided]

While I'm sure you can do far better with more appropriate hardware, even on a PC using slower-than-realtime MPEG-2 encoding, it can be difficult to create artefact-free DVD encodes of the most challenging content.

"Luckily" the image from VHS is soft, which helps the encoder. You should be able to get a good enough result with something like HCenc or even TMPGEnc. If not, try an encoder that costs money (e.g. procoder 3), or forget DVDs and encoder it at a higher rate or using x264.

Cheers,
David.

[Jdrive]

or forget DVDs and encoder it at a higher rate or using x264.

Cheers,
David.

Oh yeah I should have mentioned I don't really care if it's straight to DVD format.. I'm more worried about getting the best rip for the trouble material (stuff that was recorded into "EP" mode for example *shudder* and from a jumpy tape.. I didn't do it!). I can always put it onto a dvd down the track or something.

Another Q re: non PC based capturing.. - I've notice BR recorders coming out (still a bit out of my price range but thinking forward), will they just record the same quality as a DVD recorded from analogue, but longer.. Ie. HQ on DVD = 1 hr, HQ on BR = 4hrs but same quality?


Thanks for current suggestions BTW
Does capture quality between different brands standalone players actually make a difference? (Ie. next time I visit my Dad would it be worth seeing what his 1year old Panasonic DVD recorder/HDD recorder can do with the material vs. my Grundig/DGTEC?)

[2Bdecided]

(stuff that was recorded into "EP" mode for example *shudder* and from a jumpy tape.. I didn't do it!)

Did they have EP (1/3rd speed) mode in Australia / PAL? I thought it was an NTSC-only thing. Only have SP and LP (1/2 speed) over here. PAL VHS tapes move 1.4x slower than NTSC ones already!

Does capture quality between different brands standalone players actually make a difference?

Yes, hugely - some are rather good, some are junk.

Quality of VHS playback deck matters a lot too.

Cheers,
David.

[Jdrive]

Did they have EP (1/3rd speed) mode in Australia / PAL? I thought it was an NTSC-only thing. Only have SP and LP (1/2 speed) over here. PAL VHS tapes move 1.4x slower than NTSC ones already!

It is a NTSC thing only I think, I bought some tapes from a guy in the US years ago. Looked like some he had taped directly into EP onto the tape and the rest had been dubbed from other sources onto this tape from a better source. If I had know he was going to cheap out I would have paid him extra to use more tapes lol...then again maybe thats how he got them who knows.

I was surprised my deck even played it TBH, when I put the tape in it flicked itself over to EP mode, I only have SP and LP to choose from in general, it must be part of its' NTSC playback options.

[lordsmurf]

Yes, NTSC.