losing frames

[footsteps38]

What I am doing is copying the Real Video file to VHS and then capturing it.
Once I do that I have to convert it to MPEG. I am dropping some frames
though so I am trying to fix that. Its my soundcard that is messing it up.

So the real problem is the soundcard I think. I can capture fine when only
using video, but when I get sound too I drop some frames. Any suggestions
on that?

[hitechjunkie]

if you're really ambitious, capture each separately then edit the audio/soundtrack to adjust for any lagging/leading.

[footsteps38]

what if ur not so ambtious....any ideas...

[hitechjunkie]

ok, let's dig a little further then. when u say, "I am dropping some frames", exactly how many frames are we talking about? i've got a relatively slow machine, so i am limited to capturing at 352x480, 29.97fps with audio. when i do, i notice about 6-8 frames dropped every half-hour, which can be expected for various reasons. virtualdub, for example, will drop frames to keep the audio/video in synch. i ignore these dropped frames and have NEVER had a problem with the playback of the final XVCD. it is also my understanding, that some brooktree based drivers (for bt8x8 tv tuner cards) provide better timing in their capturing algorithms than others resulting in less frames dropped overall. i could go on and on, but suffice it to say, there are many factors to consider that can ultimately affect your capture from VHS tape:

- the VCR magnetic heads used for reading the tape
- the quality of the tape
- the quality of the recording on the tape
- tape path in the VCR (dirty capstan, etc.)
- connection between VCR and capture card (terminals, cables)

all of the above can increase the already noisy characteristics of VHS playback. then you've got your capture device (i'm assuming a PC)

- capture software
- capture driver
- capture card
- conflicting devices
- conflicting drivers
- background tasks
- fragmented hard drive
- mobo/cpu

and on and on and on, all of which have to be eliminated one by one by one until you are satisfied with your capture.

[FloppyRod]

When I do it, I am using a Matrox G-400 TV. I can capture the video from the VHS using the Matrox program, but after the 2GB limit the videos don't match exactly when merged. I then tried to capture using AVI_IO and it drops the frames like nothing...It goes up faster then the seconds. When in AVI_IO I am using the Picvideo codec set to the best of everything. I only drop frames when capturing audio.

I have a TBS Montego soundcard. Any ideas?