8500DV or Dazzle DVCII or ??

[olorin]

Hi,

I've been reading the posts here (whenever the forum becomes available ) trying to find which card I should try to get for my next computer.

My requirements -

A budget of around $200, tho' I can go upto 500 at a stretch.
Primarily to record from TV (tho' vidcapping from VCR, Cam etc would be nice)
(I have cable and satellite)
Primarily to store as SVCD by burning mpeg-2 using nero
Hardware MPEG-2 card to do "good or v. good" mpeg-2 captures in realtime

The two cards that seem to qualify seem to be the ATI 8500DV or the Dazzle DVCII. The 8500DV seems to have tons of PVR features but doesn't have hardware mpeg-2 realtime features. I will be getting a highend cpu (1.8 MHz Intel or AMD). But I would still prefer hardware. On the Dazzle site, when it talks about capturing from video sources it specifically doesn't list TV. I don't think the DVCII has any kind of PVR features - can I use PVR software to give the DVCII these features or will it need a TV tuner card or output from the tv (instead of directly from the cable)?

Is there any other card that I should be considering?

Any help would be appreciated. Other website addresses welcome.

So far, I know of Dazzle forum at http://stop.at/dazzle2

[HobbieMan]

I am researching for the same information.

I know that the Dazzle II does not have a TV tuner. So, if you wanted
to capture TV from it, it would require a tuner (vcr, satellite rcvr, TV-tuner card) which can then send the signal to the dazzle card in the form of
s-video or composite video. I think that this would ruin "programability"
at first, until an app is written to control the tuner when a scheduled recording
needs to take place.

[SiCN]

If you are thinking about an all in one solution then maybe the Gainward GeForce III Ti 550 XP Golden Sample is something for you. It has a GeForce III Ti 500 chip and also video capabilities.

[olorin]

I know that the Dazzle II does not have a TV tuner. So, if you wanted
to capture TV from it, it would require a tuner (vcr, satellite rcvr, TV-tuner card) which can then send the signal to the dazzle card in the form of
s-video or composite video. I think that this would ruin "programability"
at first, until an app is written to control the tuner when a scheduled recording
needs to take place.

Thanks for responding.

I wonder whether it is possible to do any amount of programmability with
such a solution. The point would be how would you turn capturing on for the Dazzle player (assuming I am recording something being shown from 2am to 3am without having to stay awake).

SiCN, thanks for mentioning this card - I hadn't heard about this before. I found a review for this card at http://gotapex.com/reviews.php?rev=gainward/index.html. The site s at
http://www.gainward.com/us/products/vgacard.htm

I am not sure tho' whether it would be able to compete with the 8500DV which would become ideal (for my requirements) if only it had hardware mpeg-2 realtime encoding.

[kon]

As a DVC2 owner I can tell you:

1. No TV tuner. However allmost all modern cable/sat recieveres have video sockets that can plug into the dazzle with composite/svideo cables.

2. PVR - no, but... there is a programme called TWNH which was written by a user and allows timed recodring, eg, set the timer for 2 hours recording starting@3am and go to sleep. the only problem is that it does not control the actuall reciever, so you cant swith channels via the computer.

3. I am very pleased with the results I get from this card.

[HobbieMan]

I have read many good reviews of the Dazzle II (including the one on this
website). Its video capture quality is supposed to be the best at the price
range ( ~< $300).

As far as the programmability aspect goes, I am looking to build a PVR.
I am still deciding on which capture card to use. However, if I go with a
card which does not have a TV tuner, I WILL write a small program to
control an external tuner (ie. my VCR and my Satellite receiver). The
control of the VCR will have to be done through IR codes, the receiver
can be done either through IR or through a serial connection.

I have already built and tested a device which learns the remote control
signals of remote controls and plays them back (ie. simulates a remote).
So, all I have to do is play them back at specific scheduled times dictated
by the pc.

Anyway, I will let you know what I choose to go with.

HobbieMan