720p Component Capture Cards? (for videogames)

[duderdude2]

Hey guys, it's been a few years since I've worked with video, but I'm looking to get back in. What I'm looking for is a capture card that can capture in 720p through component cables (or HDMI too, I suppose)? Also, it would need for it to output the video signal going in to a second display without any delay. I'll be capturing video game footages, so it's crucial there's no delay on the output so I can actually play the game while recording.

Does a card like this exist?

Thanks in advance!

[edDV]

Hauppauge HD-PVR
It is an external box that converts analog component to h.264 fed over USB2.

[duderdude2]

That looks great! Have you used it yourself? I just want to make sure there's no lag in the video output to the TV.

Also, do you know if Sony Vegas can capture from this natively? Or would I have to capture using a different program then import.

Thanks for the help!

[fritzi93]

I have that unit. It has component pass-through, so start the capture, then switch to the pass-through signal. It comes bundled with TME, which has a capture module. It does fine, I've never tried to capture with anything else.

[duderdude2]

I have that unit. It has component pass-through, so start the capture, then switch to the pass-through signal. It comes bundled with TME, which has a capture module. It does fine, I've never tried to capture with anything else.

I'm a layman here, so please forgive me for not fully understanding this. So to be clear, it can capture the component stream, while outputting the captured image to a TV as well, right? Is there any delay at all on the 'pass-through' signal?

Also, what resolutions can it capture it? Can it capture something both 480p and 720p? And do you know how big the file size tends to be for the latter, say for an hour's worth of footage?

Oh, and have you had any issues with it crashing?

Thanks!

[edDV]

That looks great! Have you used it yourself? I just want to make sure there's no lag in the video output to the TV.

Also, do you know if Sony Vegas can capture from this natively? Or would I have to capture using a different program then import.

Thanks for the help!

I've used it but don't have one currently. You can't capture with Vegas, but you can import the file. You may want to decode the h.264 externally before import to speed up editing.

[duderdude2]

I've used it but don't have one currently. You can't capture with Vegas, but you can import the file. You may want to decode the h.264 externally before import to speed up editing.

Okay, I'm an idiot. When you say "decode," do you mean render as a smaller file? Would I use the included software or something like Vegas for that?

Thanks for the help!

[fritzi93]

So to be clear, it can capture the component stream, while outputting the captured image to a TV as well, right? Is there any delay at all on the 'pass-through' signal?

1) Yes. Or you can use two monitors/TVs, one displaying the pass-through, the other (from computer) displaying the capture module with capture window and all controls.
2) No delay on pass-through.
3) It records at the input resolution. It can't do 1080p, though.
4) File size is all bitrate and run-time. Get a bitrate calculator. Like this:

https://www.videohelp.com/calc

More info on the Hauppauge HD-PVR here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116030&cm_re=hd_pvr-_-15-116-030-_-Product

And here:

http://www.hauppauge.com/site/products/data_hdpvr.html

[duderdude2]

Thanks so much fritzi93. So would you say this is the best device that you know of for my needs? It looks to hit every checkmark--I'm just curious if there's anything else (be able to capture direct into Vegas would be sweet--but I suppose not a big deal).

[fritzi93]

AFAIK, it's the only (consumer) device of its kind. I'm completely satisfied with mine.

It's a hardware capture device that captures via USB to H.264 in one of three containers: TS (transport stream), M2TS (MPEG transport stream), or MP4. I use TS. Be advised that H.264 is hard to edit, it's highly compressed. There are no frame-accurate freeware H.264 editors. I use tsSniper, which is close enough to accurate for removing adverts. TSPE (payware) is supposedly frame-accurate.

I *think* edDV was saying decompress to some intermediate lossless codec before opening in Vegas.

Good luck.

[EDIT] The bundled Arcsoft Total Media Extreme is very good. It has the capture module, Blu-Ray/AVCHD editing and authoring, format conversion, and Digital Theater, which is the best damn software Blu-Ray player I know of. IMO, the player alone turns a good deal into a great deal. I don't use the editing/authoring or conversion modules, there are better choices, but hey, they do work.

[duderdude2]

[EDIT] The bundled Arcsoft Total Media Extreme is very good. It has the capture module, Blu-Ray/AVCHD editing and authoring, format conversion, and Digital Theater, which is the best damn software Blu-Ray player I know of. IMO, the player alone turns a good deal into a great deal. I don't use the editing/authoring or conversion modules, there are better choices, but hey, they do work.

So I would be able to use Arcsoft to convert the video into a format Vegas would use? I'm curious how long an average conversion may take...do you have any idea at all (for say an hour clip of moderate quality?) I'll be doing a lot of capturing, so the less amount of delays I have, the better

Thanks again for all your help!

[fritzi93]

No, the conversion module is for portable formats. Use something else.

[edDV]

Vegas Pro will edit h.264 in an M2TS wrapper but if your computer profile is correct, it will bog down. I'd suggest converting to uncompressed or a digital intermediate before using Vegas but if your CPU is a 1.6GHz, that won't work either. You need at least a Core2Duo.

[duderdude2]

Vegas Pro will edit h.264 in an M2TS wrapper but if your computer profile is correct, it will bog down. I'd suggest converting to uncompressed or a digital intermediate before using Vegas but if your CPU is a 1.6GHz, that won't work either. You need at least a Core2Duo.

Hey man--yeah, I actually plan to get a new computer, partially because of the video editing. If I could a decent rig, would it be able to handle editing the h.264 natively, you think?

Thanks for the response.

[edDV]

Vegas Pro will edit h.264 in an M2TS wrapper but if your computer profile is correct, it will bog down. I'd suggest converting to uncompressed or a digital intermediate before using Vegas but if your CPU is a 1.6GHz, that won't work either. You need at least a Core2Duo.

Hey man--yeah, I actually plan to get a new computer, partially because of the video editing. If I could a decent rig, would it be able to handle editing the h.264 natively, you think?

Thanks for the response.

Think quad core or better. Dual core if you convert.

[duderdude2]

Think quad core or better. Dual core if you convert.

Quad-core--gotcha. Actually, while I have you guys here, what kind of machine would you recommend if I'll be doing heavy video editing with HD video?

I'd love to get a powerful laptop to work on for both ease of use and portability--would I be able to find one that would work well with the Hauppauge HD-PVR and Vegas? Or would I be better off getting a desktop?

Thanks!