capture card decision

[ciotime]

Hi..Im planning on getting a capture card primarily to transfer vhs tapes to dvd. Which is better? Pinnacle PCTV of PIXELVIEW PV-CX881P?

[FulciLives]

Hi..Im planning on getting a capture card primarily to transfer vhs tapes to dvd. Which is better? Pinnacle PCTV of PIXELVIEW PV-CX881P?

I got the AverTV Stereo PCI capture card for $49.99 at CompUSA and it works pretty darn good for me. I do sometimes have audio sync problems but most of the time it works fine and I am very happy with it.

Some people really like the ATI AIW capture cards. You might want to take a look over at the LORDSMURF website. Lot's of good info there.

I do know that many here on this forum have complained about the Pinnacle PCTV but I must admit I know very little about the PIXELVIEW PV-CX881P ... in fact I've never heard of it!

Might want to look it up on the CAPTURE CARD section on the LEFT HAND BAR navigation thing-a-ma-jigg

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

P.S.
No capture device is perfect but many swear that the Canopus ADVC-100 works the best. It is a bit high priced with a MSRP of around $300 USD but it is probably the only capture device that will give you little to no problems.

[arrowhead]

Just bought AverMedia PCI capture card today from Fry's($49.99-$20rebate). Tried a little bit and looks fine. Good price. Rebate ends 10/31.

[ciotime]

Thanks for the help. someone suggested to me to try LEADTEK TV2000 XP DELUXE or EXPERT...are these good ?

[autotran]

ciotime, here is a review on the Expert card, http://www.digit-life.com/articles2/leadtek-2000-expert/index.html (Note: 17 page review with many graphics which means a long time to load if you don't have DSL or Cable) Dave

[John]

just got rid of AverTV capture card ok for beginers, got the pinnacle pctv, now this is the dogs bollocks, real time mpg2 dvd capture, no pressure on cpu no shitty capture. and no install problems, I laughed when i read the reviews on this card, thier problem was with thier usb settings not the pinnacle

[lordsmurf]

AVer cards are really beginner. I've got two of them I don't use, and one that I do use for PAL only.

I'm adding yet another ATI AIW card soon (3rd one), surprised so many people overlook them.

[racerxnet]

Its great to see people stand behind the ATI line of cards, but the issue that never seems to be mentioned for capturing to DVD from the VHS format, is the macrovision protection. With the recommendation of the card comes the responsibility to let the people know that it will not record a macro protected tape without driver modification or Box inbetween the Vhs and PC. We know this all to well and I hate to see someone come back with the fact that the card did not work as expected. I have seen them come back to this forum regarding this problem, and it burns my butt to give advice without a clear understanding of the limitations to someone without this knowledge. I am not trying to downgrade any advice on the forum, just the fact that there are limitations to some cards. I feel these issues need to be addresses to the person asking the questions.

[trevlac]

AVer cards are really beginner.

Hah !

Or maybe only for experts! If you can get them to work correctly, they sing ....

Is FulciLives or Housepig a beginner? Both use BT878a cards.

I think it's the software you love...... :P

[vhelp]

hay guys.. TGIW

I'm adding yet another ATI AIW card soon (3rd one), surprised so many people overlook them.

Yeah, I don't think that people are over looking them, they probably have
tried them, but got issues w/ their system setup - you know what I mean
But, most probably give up and go w/ another card (which is ok) but strike
it w/ luck on that other card. Coinsidence perhaps.

For me, I never had any major problems w/ my pic version of my all time
ATI-TV Wonder (ATW) card. Weather I cap at 352 or 720 all is pretty good quality.
Only the noise is what stops me from using it (on my main pc) like I have
many cap cards in my PC's. Anyways..

.
.
yeah, MV is a mother when it comes to ATI card. They got this undisclosed
(or hidden) deal w/ those that be, and rig the card(s) w/ this MV nonsense.
Thats why I have other cards (for whatever that's worth)
.
.
But, if you have the ATW and install the VFW (old version) you might be one
of the lucky ones that won't suffer MV (or any major MV) I have it working
almost super clean, and as good (or better) then my ADVC-100's DV capture
quality. And, both are very similar in quality.
.
.
I may just post a side-by-side (SBS) of these two ..or not

But, the newer the cards, the better are your chances that it will be MV enabled.

Let me see if I can post a SBS tonight.

From the Video Workstatoin of,
-vhelp 2102

[lordsmurf]

No, I ignore the Macrovision argument because you should really be using a good VCR and a TBC anyway... that's what separates the dedicated video enthusiasts and professionals from the beginners, newbies and casual video users.

If you want to be in the beginner/newbie/casual category, then buy a cheap card that overlooks the Macrovision. Feel free to complain about ATI and MV "problems". Instead, a cheap card will give you a whole different array of issues, ranging from sync to dropped frames to poor quality. Or get an excellent single-purpose card (like a Canopus or Matrox) that costs a lot and has limited abilities.

If you're REALLY after a true conversion and improvement of your video source, then you MUST invest in good playback equipment. The card (and software) is only half the battle. There is NO WAY to avoid this.

I suggest the ATI AIW cards as a because they are. And I've written a handful of guides to get anybody started. I don't necessarily feel sorry for people that attempt to "backup" MV-protected tapes, nor should I be responsible to assume that's the reason for getting the card. Only on a rare occasion do I even touch a MV-enabled tape. Most of my source is homemade, even MORE of a reason to have a good TBC.

Either go good ALL the way (good card, TBC, good VCR), or don't do it at all.

My hatred of AVer cards stems from a lack of software and drivers that work. Audio sync is a huge issue on that card, as is the imperfect internal pixel resize. You can't expect much from a $10-50 card.

[indolikaa]

I'm sold on ATI. No question it is capable of excellent conversions from any source. Sync has not been an issue, and it runs beautifully from either WinME or Win2000.

[proxyx99]

... as well as more and more USB2 and firewire external boxes on the market really worth looking at. Frankly I prefer those as you can move them from PC to PC or laptop. Cheap and flexible.
Here's an example:
http://store.yahoo.com/ambery/