New (2021) RetroTINK5x use as a VHS Capture framebuffer discussion

[jwillis84]

This is more an FYI posting for people concerned with lack of TBC choices.


Update: A follow up comment suggested this was not useful and the time code seems to now be incorrect. If I could remove this post I would. I've removed most of the former posting by me so its less annoying to anyone. I will leave the YT link in case anyone at all is intersted.


There is a YouTube Live video archived here "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzbTwAu7E0E"

The Interview is about 2 hours long, but they are answering chat viewers questions when they take a side trip off into discussing using the RetroTINK5x for VHS video capture and offer some opinions and tips. The discussion begins at about 1 hour and 20 minutes into the discussion.

[lordsmurf]

Triple Buffer to overcome long term signal dropouts when a game console switches from one video mode to another.
This should be very helpful for VHS capture of poor quality tapes with long periods of missing or corrupt signals or signal dropouts.. in fact it could be better than anything that has ever been made before because current year parts lower cost compared to ten years ago allowed such a large and long buffer space.

I'm not seeing that. The "switchover" you refer to isn't going to be much different than what genlock is for. And genlock does nothing for VHS.

The latest 3rd or 4th generation project to come out from one of those projects blew through the barriers that had held back real quality improvements..

Do you realize that there are less chips available now, than there were in years past, for processing SD signals? HD processing chips generally do nothing for SD -- or worse, make it look bad. Too many chips have "also does SD" (but badly), and then gave minimal instructions for usage. So this is one of those things that I'd have to see, with my own eyes, to believe.

The Interview is about 2 hours long, but they are answering chat viewers questions when they take a side trip off into discussing using the RetroTINK5x for VHS video capture and offer some opinions and tips. The discussion begins at about 1 hour and 20 minutes into the discussion.

The linked video is only 1 hour 15 minutes long. So .... huh?

[jwillis84]

I'm not seeing that. The "switchover" you refer to isn't going to be much different than what genlock is for. And genlock does nothing for VHS.

I can't address GENLOCK, I am addressing frame drops. You win.

Do you realize that there are less chips available now, than there were in years past, for processing SD signals? HD processing chips generally do nothing for SD -- or worse, make it look bad. Too many chips have "also does SD" (but badly), and then gave minimal instructions for usage. So this is one of those things that I'd have to see, with my own eyes, to believe.

I can't say anything regarding your statement. Okay ??

The linked video is only 1 hour 15 minutes long. So .... huh?

I triple checked before I posted the time where the discussion turned to VHS. I just looked again and the video does appear to be shorter, I didn't think a video could be changed on YouTube after its posted. You taught me I was wrong. I won't do it again.

[dellsam34]

Retro games are like LaserDisc, they require less effort to capture due to a stable video. HBI (lines) and VBI (frames) signals for VHS are not as stable as of a LD and game consoles, Even with a good VCR that is equipped with a rock solid LTBC and a clean SP tape with minimum frame problems and you could still have problems using game capture hardware. Capture cards for VHS are no longer made, it's a fact. All capture cards made now need assistance with additional hardware, whether it be a DVD recorder, a frame TBC, a component/HDMI DVR/DVD or whatever means that can get that signal stabilized.

[lordsmurf]

I'm not seeing that. The "switchover" you refer to isn't going to be much different than what genlock is for. And genlock does nothing for VHS.

I can't address GENLOCK, I am addressing frame drops. You win.

I win? Okay.
Switching between sources is entirely different from the type of dropped frames normally referred to in relation to analog videotape transfer. Yes, switching source can drop frames, hence genlock, a type of buffer -- something mostly used in the analog broadcast era. But it doesn't address dropped frames for other reasons. And VHS drops frames, almost always. In fact, Video8 and Hi8 usually drop more frames than VHS,

I didn't think a video could be changed on YouTube after its posted.

Nor I. Strange!
Too bad, I would have liked to watch/hear it. Oh well.