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Posted by Gene on 02/16/07 22:21
"PTravel" <ptravel@travelersvideo.com> wrote in message
news:53mkkjF1susrbU1@mid.individual.net...
>
> "Gene" <genes@wildblue.net> wrote in message
> news:DFnBh.33$gP6.19476@news.sisna.com...
>
>> 2. I was very disappointed with the speed that it took to get from
>> AVI to the 19.6GB MPEG2/VOB file. I had hoped for an improvement,
>> but I suspect that there is only so much low level coding that can
>> be done ... just a lot of arithmetic to do.
>>
>> Here's the times:
>>
>> a. Copy 1.5hr from camcorder to disk ~ 1.5hr :-)
>> (Tape was 1:37:32 long, it correctly saw EOT & stopped the
>> capture automatically.)
>>
>> b. Convert AVI to VOBs = 5 hours, 38 minutes, and 17 seconds,
>> which is probably not that bad, given my old 2GHz P4.
>> If there was a way to SKIP this step, my life would be much better:-)
>
> Of course, there is not. This is the transcode step and, as you note, it
> is very processor-intensive. Unfortunately, you can't have it both ways.
> If you want good quality video, the transcode will take time. If you want
> a speedy transcode, the video quality will not be good. For what it's
> worth, a 2-hour transcode at the highest quality settings takes 12-24
> hours on my 3.2 Ghz P4 running tmpgenc.
>
"If you do not need to edit", and all you want to do is burn the best DVD-R
from a MiniDV camcorder tape, then there in "NO" better , or faster, way
than
using good quality HARDWARE. A well inplemented DSP, talking to another DSP
is
by far the better (and faster) solution, IMHO. Am I wrong about this? I
assumed that
the PC capture programs do nothing more than transfer the bits from the
tape to the PC disk. Do the capture programs actually enhance the quality
of the resulting A/V file in the PC? If you just want to caputure the tape
to a best quality single DVD-R - then why would you want to spend an
extra five and a half hours on a PC? Looks like plugging a camcorder into a
DVR is a MUCH faster, and from what I have seen, gives as good as, if not
better
quality than DVD-Rs generated from a PC program. I'm sure I do not
undersdtand, so what am I missing? As I stated above, I have zero interest
in
editing, or using a PC to in any way to enhance the quality of my tape. All
I want is
a good conversion to video DVD in the form of a fully stuffed DVD-R x 2.
1.5hr to copy, and 10 minutes to burn seems like a MUCH better solution
than hours on a PC - especially when the final DVD-R is comparible.
>
>> As for the filming that I am currently doing, I think I will just keep
>> shooting
>> MiniDV & D8, rewind the tapes & use them over & over again,
>
> That's not a good idea. Repeated reuse increases the likelihood that the
> magnetic coating will flake off the substrate, causing drop-outs and
> increased camera wear. Tape is cheap. Use them once, capture them once
> and then store them.
>
No big deal, when the tape starts going bad you will start seeing artifacts,
typically at the very beginning of the tape. That tape is tossed into the
trash can. MiniDV tape is not cheap, DVD-Rs are cheap:-) I have been doing
this for over 20 years, and have never lost an important tape. I began by
shooting
expensive 8mm and copying over to cheap VHS. You lose a little quality, but
was no big deal to me.
>
>> and simply
>> copy the 1.5hr LP digital tapes onto two DVD-Rs with a set-top DVR at
>> ~ 95%+ full. If there is a VERY special tape, then I will burn the two
>> DVD-Rs & put said tape in coolers.
>
> D8 and miniDV tapes will last far, far, far longer than a DVD-R. They are
> the cheapest and most reliable archive solution. Additionally, if you
> ever want to edit your videos, you'll want to preserve them in the highest
> quality. Mpeg2 transcodes are lossy -- you will lose detail and quality.
> Mpeg2 is also difficult to edit and not well supported by the better
> editing packages.
>
LOL - how do you "know" that tapes will last longer than DVDs - we have
not had time to tell? My gut feeling is that they will both be around in 20
years.
We never plan on editing our data, except for cutting out a section and
pasting
for an occasional video DVD, so we could care less about editing. The
bottom
line is "we are happy with the video DVD quality of the DVD-Rs".
They look just fine on our 1080i TV.
>>
>> I initially thought that all the freeze-ups that I was having was related
>> to the
>> DSP/firmware implementation inside my three Sony D8 & MiniDV camcorders.
>> However, after replacing the VIA chip with the TI chip, all three
>> camcorders
>> are about as bullet-proof as they can be. That is, I can copy from
>> camcorder
>> to PC hard drive with ANY cheap firewire cable & have never had a freeze.
>> With
>> the VIA chip, it was unlikely you could copy a tape without freezing. ALL
>> of
>> the capture programs worked without incident, as this application is
>> mostly
>> hardware talking to each other.
>
> I've edited on PCs with VIA chips and never had trouble capturing.
> Capture stability varies depending on the capture software that you use (I
> use Scenealyzer Live, which is rock-solid), and what you have running in
> the background.
>
In my specific case, the VIA chip was the problem, 100% for sure.
I can recreate the problem by simply replacing the VIA board & the Sonys
crash.
My Canon ZR65 did not have a problem with the VIA, as I remember - just
the Sonys.
>>
>> So my challenge will be to find a DVR with DV in & a hard drive that has
>> a
>> very well implemented firewire specification.
>
> All that is needed is OHCI-complaint 1394. Virtually everything is these
> days.
>
Aparently my VIA PCI card, or the Sony camcorders were not compliant - else
why does
this combination crash, and the TI chip board run hours on end without a
problem?
The ONLY change that I made was swapping the PCI cards. Your statement that
all are
virtually compliant is simply wrong. You give the erronous impression that
every PCI
firewire card from China will function without a problem. That conventional
wisdom cost me
a week in time, I assumed the VIA card was implemented properly for the
Sonys. I can
swithch cards and crash at will - 100% of the time. That's a pretty good
indication that
this specific VIA card did not have what it takes to capture from all 3 of
my Sonys, and the
Belkin with the TI chip did. My VIA card could just be defective, and all
other VIA cards
from China are OK, but I really doubt it. I once part-owned a hardware
company that made
state-of-the-art cards for the PC, I know how easy it is to have a logic
error, especially in DSPs
implemented in custom chips:-)
>
>
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