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  1. Hi, I am new to DV capture, and is currently helping a friend transfer training video's to DVD.

    Before hand I did some research on the subject and found out, thanks to many posts in these forums, that the Canopus ACDV-100 was the best thing available or one of the best things.

    My main question what is the best software to use to capture from video, I've tried Unlead VideoStudio 8, which worked fine, but is there any better capture software that would give you better control over how you capture the video?

    -ali
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  2. Member dlawedor's Avatar
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    Hi,

    in my opinion it is WinDV ... the price is also OK -> 0,00$!!!!

    Here is the link: http://windv.mourek.cz/

    I work with this tool for more than 1 1/2 year ... with no bug, no lost frames and no corrupted frames ... [/b]
    In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity. Albert Einstein
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  3. Video Restorer lordsmurf's Avatar
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    Want my help? Ask here! (not via PM!)
    FAQs: Best Blank DiscsBest TBCsBest VCRs for captureRestore VHS
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  4. When you use windv to "capture" DV to HD avi, or anyhting else like dvio, is it IDENTICAL to the tape? If it is the same, is it possible to put this AVI file back to your DV tape? Thanks
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  5. Member hech54's Avatar
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    When you think of it more like a "data transfer" (concerning material from a DV camcorder)...it's a whole lot easier to understand. Connecting the firewire to your computer from the DV camcorder is a data transfer.
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  6. Same here! WinDV is the most stables and user frendly of the bunch. It does break up the stream into mutiple files if saving to a Fat32x formated drive. And it can output anaolg if your device has that abbility.

    One feature that would be nice to have is a start-length timer.

    Just finish trying it out this week and was solid after four hours of recording the olympic's closing. No drops!
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    If you are willing to pay for some software, then Scenalyzer http://www.scenalyzer.com is awesome. As it can split up the capture videos into clips for each time you pressed record. This is really useful for editing.

    Another freeware option is DVApp (Part of Microsoft's DirectX SDK)
    https://www.videohelp.com/tools?tool=394
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  8. Hi,

    I am also quite new to DV capturing.

    I am using Pinnacle Studio 8 and it's great, simple, etc. You can capture, edit, author and burn with it, too.

    I can really recomand you this tool.
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  9. Dont hesitate: I try lot of capture software around there: Scenalyzer Live is awesome! Of course, if you can pay for it.

    http://scenalyzer.com/
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  10. Member jeanl's Avatar
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    I'm voting for WinDV! Extremely reliable, very simple, light-weight.
    One feature that I depend on is the "threshold" adjustment thingy to cut your DV in chunks depending on "discontinuities" in the date/time info. This is incredibly useful. For example, I use a threshold of 3600 seconds to get one avi per "event" (if I film a birthday, the whole thing will be put in a single avi, even if I stopped filming for a little while, but another birthday shot a different day on the same DV tape will be put in a separate avi). If you select a threshold of 8h, you'll pretty much lump everything that was shot in the same day in the same avi. Being able to adjust this threshold is fantastic (I haven't seen that on other capture softs).
    Jean
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  11. Is anything wrong with the standard Windows Movie Maker? I have been using that, capturing a whole dv tape to one file, then using tmpgenc to convert the file to mpg.

    There shouldnt be any quality difference between one program to another because the output is just dv right?
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  12. I use both WinDV and sclive. WinDV takes very little CPU resource
    and it is free. But sclive has a timer which I can set when to start/stop
    capture.
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  13. Member jeanl's Avatar
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    Is anything wrong with the standard Windows Movie Maker? I have been using that, capturing a whole dv tape to one file, then using tmpgenc to convert the file to mpg.
    I've tried to use it, but doesn't it ask you in which format you wish to save the DV? (or is my memory failing me?). What do you select to get the original, unaltered DV stream?
    Also, can Windows Movie Maker splits the output according to the time-code?
    Jean
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  14. Member mikesbytes's Avatar
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    You can make Windows Movie Maker save the file as native DV.
    The software is encouraging you to encode while capturing. I don't use it because you can't tell if any frames are dropped.

    My vote is for WinDV for the transfer to the computer.

    Encoding it for a DVD is another story. Some people prefer to improve the quality of the home movie before encoding, using filters in VirtualDub or other software.

    If you are going to dump it 'as is' to the DVD, then use the maximum bitrate settings, which will give you around 60min of video on a single layer disk.
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  15. Nightwing said
    One feature that would be nice to have is a start-length timer.
    You can do this using the command line option.
    The format is:

    WinDV capture [-exit] [[HH:]MM:]SS[.ss] filename

    The –exit tells WinDV to shut down after completing the capture process. The time setting specifies the duration. The filename can include path information but should not include the .avi extension. WinDV automatically appends the date, time, index, and extension to the filename you specify (per the preset configuration parameters).
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  16. Member jeanl's Avatar
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    Woa! I didn't know about this command-line argument! Pretty cool!
    Jean
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  17. Member
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    I bought Scenalyzer due to its timing capability, as I capture type ii DV from a Canopous ADVC 100 - which is 12.7Gb per hour. Unfortunately, the Scenalyzer stutters and starts, and crazy video aberrations arise. The video of fast action is slow slow quick quick slow! Only Windows Movie Maker will function like a video-capture package should on my system. Pinnacle and Ulead also give unstable, uneven results. My system is 2.4GHz P4, 1Gb mem, and 149Gb HDD, Win XP.
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    I have d/loaded and attempted to use WinDV and DVApp - they both seem great tools. Yet - when my system idle process kicks in - as it does too often - these applications cannot handle it and the video stutters! What can I do to the system idle process to tame it at all? )
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  19. Going to sound strange but what do you have running in the background? Also have you run any of the Pest detect software? Just wondering.

    When you mean studder is it the video looks like it freezes or jumps?
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  20. Member daamon's Avatar
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    Just to chuck 'em into the mix - there's DVIO and AVI_IO... I've not used them myself, but have regularly seen them recommended along with WinDV and Scenalyzer Live, both already mentioned.

    I edit with Premiere 6.0, so use that to "capture".
    There is some corner of a foreign field that is forever England: Telstra Stadium, Sydney, 22/11/2003.

    Carpe diem.

    If you're not living on the edge, you're taking up too much room.
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  21. Member
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    Stutter - like theres a small silence in rapid succession - gives the video/audio poor quality - like snoring/stuttering! I have examined processes using CPU - its only the System Idle that suddenly zooms in claiming 65% of CPU!!!
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  22. WinDV all the way.
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  23. Member MpegEncoder's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by Stonechatz
    I have d/loaded and attempted to use WinDV and DVApp - they both seem great tools. Yet - when my system idle process kicks in - as it does too often - these applications cannot handle it and the video stutters! What can I do to the system idle process to tame it at all? )
    The "system idle process" doesn't "kick in". It's what happens when NOTHING else is going on. You must have something else that's causing the problem.
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  24. Member MpegEncoder's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by Stonechatz
    Stutter - like theres a small silence in rapid succession - gives the video/audio poor quality - like snoring/stuttering! I have examined processes using CPU - its only the System Idle that suddenly zooms in claiming 65% of CPU!!!
    The "system idle task" doesn't "claim" CPU time. It's what is left over that none of the other tasks are using.
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  25. Member
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    I am at a complete loss to know what it is?!?!?!?!? Pullin' my hair out!!!
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  26. Member rdwalt's Avatar
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    Stonechatz,
    Do an internet search on 'system idle process'. You may find an answer there. Also try setting the priority higher for the WinDV application http://www.pureperformance.com/js/showtip.asp?id=123 Try these and see what you come up with but whatever you do... don't pull your hair out!
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  27. Member JimJohnD's Avatar
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    It may depend on your camera. I have a Sony DSR-PDX10 and when I use WinDV to transfer 44.1K 16bit audio it will come across as a mono signal. Bummer, I didn't notice this when I was using the shotgun mic but when I hooked up my Rode NT4 I noticed it in a hurry. Scenalyzer on the other hand works great. Sony knows about this and using Scenalyzer is their quickie solution. Other than that WinDV would do the job.
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  28. Member
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    Task Manager - set to High or RealTime for ScenalyzerLive or Ulead or Pinnacle or WinDV or DVApp; EndItAll2 used - shut down 17 processes - none of which were competing for CPU time; Raptest.exe deems my USB 2.0 149Gb HDD as good enough; yet still, frames drop - any more kind suggestions as to where to turn next?
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  29. Did you defrag the HD? Are you using a non-system drive to transfer to?
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  30. WinDV is great.
    But if I use my dv passthrough for captures over 45 minutes, my audio starts to noticable go out of sync.
    Remember reading threads that this has to do with it interacting with my Sony Camcorder.
    But, nice small program.
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