Which hardware is most important for good capture

[briandugas]

Well, after reading the TBC or no TBC thread, I've had a lot of questions answered, but still wondering which is the preferred way of getting TBC....is it through a VCR with built in TBC or through a stand-alone TBC unit like the DataVideo TBC-1000?

I want to start backing up VHS movies for family and friends for a very small fee. I may or may not recover the costs of buying some new equipment, but it gives me a reason to go buy :P

Given a $500-$700 budget, I'm curious to see what equipment you would buy. Would it be a brand new ATI AIW 9600 Radeon? Or a super duper VCR that can make breakfast for me? Or a stand-alone TBC unit? Or all? I'm sure the more the better, but I'm curious to see which carries the most weight. My hunch is to get the best read of the source, so that would mean the super duper VCR. But let's see. Thanks.

[pippas]

IMHO - buy a Canopus DV converter, ADVC50 or 100, and you probably won't even need a TBC - but I'm sure that others may disagree!!

[snafu099]

IMHO I have the ADS Instant DVD-2 $150-us +/-

http://www.adstech.com for a look at specs and other devices in product line.

STAY AWAY FROM IDVD-1 as it captures audio seperately via sound card giving potential sync problems, same as ANY device using this technology.

[briandugas]

Did I read the specs right on that ADS product? Does it do realtime MPEG encoding, and just transfer that as one nice file to your computer? That would be great as it would save me from having to update my capture card. Think it could do AVI capture as well like a DAC 100 or the ADVC 100?

[tito13kfm]

$500-$700 budget, If you want to do realtime MPEG2 capture, or good uncompressed or HuffyUV captures. I would buy the following

JVC SVHS VCR with TBC and 3DNR

Look at the HRS9911.. Absolutely rock solid and spectacular output
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=248588&is=REG
$349.99

And either:
All in wonder Radeon card. Should be able to get a good one with S-video input for about $169.99. http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0158125
&
A good dedicated soundcard so you won't have Audio Sync problems, I like the Creative Audigy LS http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0164703 $70

Total about $590 + shipping or taxes

Or:
Canopus ADVC-100 + a copy of MainConcept video encoder about $420 ($270 for the advc and $150 for the video encoder) This method would put a little over budget.. but o-well

Total about $770 + shipping or taxes

I would go the All in wonder route and take the money saved to buy a bunch of quality media or maybe a DVD printer.

You can also get a cheaper VCR just be sure to get one with at least a 2mb TBC.. JVC and Mitsu's are both pretty good from what i've heard, I have a JVC and couldn't be happier.

[snafu099]

Did I read the specs right on that ADS product? Does it do realtime MPEG encoding, and just transfer that as one nice file to your computer? That would be great as it would save me from having to update my capture card. Think it could do AVI capture as well like a DAC 100 or the ADVC 100?

Yes you read specs correctly. One combined audio/vid piped thru usb. "locked audio" sync.

No it will not do avi. Captures in mpg-1 or mpg-2, ntsc or pal, many resolutions and bitrates.

You can over-ride "audio lock" and cab in split stream, but then you may encounter sync issures like many other devices. Same for resolutions and birtates, you can create and use custom, non compliant ones.

Downside, common to usb devices in general I think, you are limited to capture software bundled with product. Once captured, you can use whatever your budget allows if you don't like the bundled ulead

[racerxnet]

You would be nuts to go with an ATI card if you have macro encoded tapes or DVD's. I own the 8500DV and a 9600 Pro. They are great for games and Tv, but suck at recording macro encoded movies. Unless you are a software engineer you will not be able to defeat the macro protection within the drivers. Buy a used Canopus DvRex-M1 with the breakout box, or the ADVC 100 or 500.

[briandugas]

You would be nuts to go with an ATI card if you have macro encoded tapes or DVD's. ...

I already own a $30 Video Stabilizer I found online. It does a perfect job at removing Macrovision. Couldn't be happier with that. But I'm liking the suggestion of the JVC HRS-9911 S-VHS VCR, suggested in a previous post. Looks like a nice VCR with TBC. Is this a better model then the popular JVC 9800? Just curious. Everyone praises the JVC 9800. I find plenty of good things written on the JVC HRS-9911 S-VHS VCR, but I'd rather go with something that people are using. I may very well end up with the JVC HRS-9911 S-VHS VCR, but we'll see. I'm still contemplating.

[MrMungus]

Downside, common to usb devices in general I think, you are limited to capture software bundled with product. Once captured, you can use whatever your budget allows if you don't like the bundled ulead

The capture software that comes with the ADS Instant DVD device is actully very good and, by the way, was just updated to version 3.1. If anyone's had freezing problems in the past, this version fixed it.

[Zetti]

I'd go :

1) Regular VCR, or if you wanna go deep get the worldwide SV-5000W by Samsung;

2) A TBC, absolutely necessary to capture VHS sources;

3) Canopus ADVC-100, locked audio-video sync.

To get TV broadcast, run it through the VCR Tuner.
F-O-R-G-E-T ATI cards if you ain't a gamer......get a device that gets both audio and video.

Zetti

[briandugas]

Look at the HRS9911.. Absolutely rock solid and spectacular output
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=248588&is=REG
$349.99

Do you own this unit? Have you tried it before? Anyone with first hand experience?

[MrMungus]

Look at the HRS9911.. Absolutely rock solid and spectacular output
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=248588&is=REG
$349.99

Do you own this unit? Have you tried it before? Anyone with first hand experience?

Do a search. I think LordSmurf has commented on it.

[lordsmurf]

Absolutely #1 MOST IMPORTANT thing is a good VCR.

You can have have a $10 million video card, but the old saying of "garbage in = garbage out" is 100% true.

I would suggest a JVC with TBC built in (you will need this whether you capture homemade imperfect source or copy protected perfect commercial source). That VCR/TBC will serve most purposes. Only if you start to deal with a large volume of bad tapes do you need more (or just use a service like mine for those few stubborn tapes you'll come across).

A crap VCR with a good card is bad idea.

A good VCR with crap card can at least be managed. Look at all the AVerMedia users out there that plod along alright.

Next is a decent capture card. You can find an ATI AIW 7000/8000 card for as cheap as $50 on eBay. Or you can dump $1000 or more into a Canopus or Matrox ... but you'd probably never use all those features anyway (even I don't need them, and I'm not the average user).

Then spend real money on good cables.

Last thing to buy for video is dedicated TBC.

After that, can also look at power/electricla purification and wiring filtering, but that's getting REALLY picky.

And don't forget the PC hard drives. Tend to fill up fast.

=======================

To this situation, as far as capture cards go, the ATI AIW 128 PRO is fine, and can be hacked to run ATI MMC 8.7 just fine. You've already got that.

The JVC HRS7000/9000/SRV10U units can be found for $200-400 or so..

A good Creative soundcard need not run more than $25 at Walmart.

Good wires from Radioshack may cost $50-100 depending on length and type (s-video, comp, coax RG6).

You already got a Macro-buster you said.

A dedicated TBC if needed, but that'd jump over budget for about $200-300 more.

[briandugas]

I'm taking the advice of a few so far that say buy the good VCR first. I'm just at a toss up between all the different JVC models. Lordsmurf has been suggesting to SR-V10U, 7900, and 9900 to me, as well as to others in posts. I'm not ready to toss out this HRS9911 just yet, but I can't get any personal feedback on it. I like the 9800, but gosh, they're so darn expensive. I know I shouldn't base my decision purely on what other people say (I know I sould do my own research). But I'm about to go cross-eyed from all the reading I'm doing, and I can't find any real differences between the SR-V10, 7900, and 9900 as far as quality. They all have a TBC, they all output Svideo, they all have the 19 micron heads. The only differences seem to be the minor issues like jog/shuttle, which I would probably never use anyway. So at this point, do I just pick the cheapest of those 3? Or will one of them have a better TBC than the other?

[lordsmurf]

It would takes hours to go into the fine intracacies that separate these units.

The TBC's on the newer units (9900, SRV10U) work differently than then older ones in the 7900/7800/9800/9600 ones. The buffer are different, can get frame drops. Some of the new ones can cause more than they fix. Little things. 2MB vs 4MB. 4MB new vs 4MB old. The DNR is different in some.

All of these are minute things. But get one bad tape, and a few minute things can add up to a big nasty, then it defeated the purpose of spending money for all the equipment.

I like the 9800, a close friend of mine had both 7900 and 9800. He decided the 9800 was too much for him, didn't need it all, kept the 7900 and I sold his 9800 for him some months back. He worked with mostly SP VHS tapes of original recording (often made on 7900).

Some filters are also different in their approach.

[briandugas]

Well, I think I'll be going with the 9800, since my special valentine *lordsmurf* helped me find a refurbished unit online for $329.00. I know there are many opinions out there on all these VCR's, but those people aren't doing video captures like the people on this site. That's why I respect everyone's opinion here. Thanks guys.