I need your opinion on hardware/software

[kc4ylx]

I would like to do the following:

Record VHS tape to be played on my Apex 1100 W DVD player.

Play a CD with still pictures on the DVD player in slideshow fashion.

I would also like to be able to edit video captured from VHS (or S video input) and produce a "movie"

I have a CDRW drive (no DVD) in the computer and a Dazzle DVD Creation Station 200 I bought last night. I am looking for hardware and softare suggestions as I can take back the Dazzle and get something else.

So far, I have been able to record MPEG-2 and burn a CDR with NERO and it would not play in the DVD player. I could recorde MPEG-1 and burn and it worked.

Movie Star 5 that came with the Dazzle is what I have been using.

Any help?


Thank you so much.

[fyreboltx2]

well, the mpeg 2 has to be encoed to be svcd compatable and you should make sure your dvd player supports svcds. as for capturing, id recommend powervcr II, it works wonderfully for me. im not sure if itll work with dazzle dvd creation station.

[kc4ylx]

Thank you!

I'll look for the software you suggested.

What hardware do you use and how do you like it? I thought buying the Dazzle DVD Creation Station 200 was the right thing to do since it does mpeg encoding in hardware on the fly. Maybe I was wrong!!

again, thanks for the advise!

Anyone else got some for me?

[fyreboltx2]

well i use ati tv wonder ve (50 bucks at best buy) i love the card. it works wonders for only 50 bucks! the software included with the card (mmc 7.1) isnt great so i just use powervcr II (try out the demo and see if you like it, u can get it cheap on ebay). the ati tv sonder ve card does mpeg 1 and 2 on the fly i think, but im not to sure

i can capture at very good quality (mpeg2, 720X480 at 4300bps).

[macleod]

the powervcrII is a decent software app, especially for the novice. an ATI tv wonder card for 450 at best buy is a good capture card. Here are my concerns. You have a p500. You are barely going to get out of the gate with your capture choices because most/all of the cards/software packages use the horsepower (or lack thereof) to do captures.

I, personally have powervcrII, at tv wonder card to play on my apex 1100w (with firmware upgrade). I have pushed the envelope about as far as it can go with powervcrII (the envelope doesnt open very far) and have moved my attention to avi captures with conversions to mpeg. I get a crisper picture and MUCH less stutter (ghosting like image) going avi conversion.

For just starting out, get the ati tv wonder card, and powervcr (you can get it for $15 on ebay) and a bucket load of cd's. After you've done this for awhile and go through the "this weeks its great, next week its crap", the dvd recorders for tv will be cheap enough to buy. dont get me wrong, I get some great captures, but they arent perfect. You will get to the perfectionist stage and by then the burners will be at a price will you will be able to record directly to dvd (or make copies of what you hve done here and burn them to dvd.