Resolution of Vhs via SVideo to Canopus and then iMovie

[Loganp]

I’m trying to get the best resolution out of Vhs tapes .. I want to connect a super Vhs player via svideo to Canopus 110 and then via dv to an only Mac via FireWire to Prores .. can I get 1080p ? The setting exists but will it be so ? Thanks

[DB83]

The transfer via DV and a Mac is 720*480 (NTSC) and 720*576 (PAL). Both of these are interlaced.

To get to your target your software would


a. Re-encode
b. De-interlace
c. Resize


And all in real time


So, in a word, I doubt if that is possible and, certainly, not reccommended


If you want to go down that route then do the steps separately from the transfer process. Not that you will get great quality from a VHS.

[Loganp]

Ok thanks so from Vhs regardless of rca or svideo over dv the resolution is 720 x576 for pal is it ? Thanks

[Richard_G]

The original VHS source has only around 200-250 horizontal lines but S-Video has greater bandwidth than composite so you will lose less of what little quality is there in the first place. I don't see the point in trying to upscale VHS to 720 or 1080, you aren't going to make it look any better because the quality isn't there in the first place. Leave it at the DV resolution.

[Loganp]

How much does that translate to in resolution when you convert it ? 🤔

[davexnet]

How much does that translate to in resolution when you convert it ? 🤔

The resolution (real detail) doesn't increase when you resize it. All it's really doing is stretching the detail that's there.
You can resize it as much as you want but regular resizing wont make it look any better; it tends to look worse

Perhaps you should capture at regular, SD, resolution then start a new thread with some samples inlcuded

[Loganp]

Thanks for the reply . I don’t want to resize it .. I just want to know what resolution digital file I will get with this setup ? Thanks

[davexnet]

SD as stated . 720x480 NTSC (29.97 fps) or 720x576 PAL (25 fps)

EDIT - the same as mentioned by my friend DB83 above

[Cornucopia]

Also, if you cap in DV then convert to Prores, the additional conversion will have losses, however minimal.
If you are merely doing basic editing (top & tails, removing cutaway sections...), you should be able to edit natively in DV and export in DV without any loss. (Aka smart-rendering)
Of course if your edits are more complicated, and include overlays, titles, compositing, correction, etc, you are changing the frames' images enough that some if not all would be re-encoded, incurring further loss than going the Prores route (because dv compression is more drastic and lossy than Prores).


Scott

[Loganp]

What about as an AVi file using windows movie maker ? Is that less lossy ? What’s the resolution then ? Thanks

I meant using dv cable to avi

[DB83]

Up front, I have no knowledge of WMM post WinXP. But then that was IIRC restricted to mpeg-2 and DV.

And what you must understand is that avi is not a format. It is a Container. DV is a codec and requires a container to function. Essentially, a DV 'Capture' via WMM will be no different from a 'capture' via imovie. The only difference with imovie, as I understand it not being a Mac user, is that the 'capture' may be RAW ie not having a header.


But if you have access to Windows programs forget about WMM and 'capture' with WinDV or SCLive


And if you wonder why I say 'capture' rather than capture. The simple fact is that you are storing the DV stream in whatever container you chose - even the Mac programs should allow for their standard .mov container. The basic structure is still the same >> 720*576 for PAL << which is determined not by the capture program but by the codec structure.

[Loganp]

Thanks mate .. that info was very helpful

[dellsam34]

What about as an AVi file using windows movie maker ? Is that less lossy ? What’s the resolution then ? Thanks

I meant using dv cable to avi

Analog video is always sampled at 720x480 60i for NTSC, and 720x576 50i for PAL/SECAM non square pixel, Every capture card is designed to sample that way (except for some recent chinese devices that are not conform to rec. 601 and use computer resolutions rather than digital video resolutions), Some capture cards from back in the day have resizing capability on the fly but the sampling is always done at the mentioned resolutions, it is not recommended to resize on the fly anyway.

So there is no need to ask what resolution a workflow captures at because it is always that resolution, unless you are doing something worng in software or using a chinese capture device that was designed for CCTV camera or game console capture not analog video.