Recommended HD Capture card.

[Bob W]

What capture card or external device do you folks recommend for capturing from HDTV satellite box? Also what format do these capture devices use (mpeg or avi)?

[FulciLives]

HDTV capture cards only capture OTA (Over The Air) HDTV.

You can't capture HDTV from a cable or satelitte box ... actually I think it MAY be possible if your cable/satelitte box has an "active" FIREWIRE output but even then you can only get the local OTA channels as everything else is scrambled.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[Bob W]

Well that sucks. How about those HD hard drive recorders will they record from a box or are they just OTA? I was thinking it would be great if one could record a HD movie then use one of they HD-DVD burners to burn a disc assuming it's at all possible.

[vhelp]

I'm capturing HDTV sources from my Hisense USDTV (aka, usdigital) receiver.
At the moment, I'm capturing via the 480i s-video way, but it's still hdtv
content (analog'wise) but excellent quality (except for my issue with the
source comming out diamond shape grid when s-video)

Nothing should beat the .TS transporter method, though. But, if you're
strapped to the Analog capture way, its definately a better way than the
old Cable/Satellite way. Capture quality is more crispy looking, IMHO.

In fact, I don't think its much of a bad idea to "capture" it either.

And, fwiw.., I've been working on various techniques for capturing from
my hdtv receiver in "non-standard" ways, like from the s-video and composite
vs. the component connectors, in an effort to obtain the best or maximum quality
possible (aka, hacking) -- look at it as one who is over-clocking their cpu chip

If you're still considering "capturing" hdtv the old way, then I can upload a
small sample clip if you'd like, to see what the quality expectations would be
like, and you can go from there. ???

-vhelp 3830

[BJ_M]

i'm capturing ALL HD as well as SD upconverted to 720p by using a blackmagic decklink HD capture card from a rogers pvr, including the digital audio out ...

http://www.blackmagic-design.com/products/hd/

[FulciLives]

i'm capturing ALL HD as well as SD upconverted to 720p by using a blackmagic decklink HD capture card from a rogers pvr, including the digital audio out ...

http://www.blackmagic-design.com/products/hd/

They have various models with the cheapest being $695 and the most expensive being $1,495

So I am curious which one you have and most importantly does the $695 model still have the ability to capture ALL HD content?

Oh and by ALL HD I take it you mean even the encrypted stuff, correct?

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[BJ_M]

it is not encrypted coming out of the dvi and component outputs ...

and yes - the cheapest model works fine ...

you will need a component or dvi to sdi converter ... also

[BJ_M]

XDVI-20 http://www.doremilabs.com/products/XDVI-20.htm is a DVI to SDI converter

[Bob W]

"you will need a component or dvi to sdi converter"

Where does one find a dvi to SDI converter? Never heard of that one.

[BJ_M]

look up one post -- there are several others and blackmagic has one also (some bugs in it though)

[dooper]

I'm on rogers as well, hd8300

when you capture are you getting 1080i? what program are you using to capture and is it a .ts file?

how much does the dvi-sdi converter cost, there is no pricing on the site, and can it be bought in Canada or is it just internet order.

thanks

[BJ_M]

it costs $3500

[nebula8]

I have a DVR from my cable provider with an active firewire output (Motorola DCT6412)
Any broadcast that can be recorded on the DVR can be capped. 1080i 720p 480p/i (.ts)
So all my movie channels can be captured. The only things I cannot cap are OnDemand, PPV, and channels I don't subscribe to.

PS the documentation stated that all 3 firewire outputs were disabled, so I wouldn't talk to the cable company about using it. I would hate to see them disable it via software update.
Also, I have 2 units, and on each, only one output in the rear works. The other output on the back, and the one on the front are disabled.