A graphics card with video capture

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Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.homebuilt,alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt (More info?)

For those of you that have already read my plight, I'll keep this short.
I mistakenly got an A7V8X-X instead of the A7N8X-X, so I'm just going to
build another computer around the Via board, sell it, and get myself the
nForce board that I wanted.

Well I'm short on graphics cards so I'm also going to sell my Asus V7100
GeForce2 with the Via board, and get myself a new AGP card.

I've been wanting to encode some VHS video to digital for a while now, and
while I twiddle my thumbs, my videos are busy decomposing as we speak :-\

I'm looking for a card with video capture, and while I'm busy upgrading, I
figured I might as well prep for a future flat panel display and get a video
card with a DVI output. I also figured since I'm going to have an AGP 8x
motherboard, I might as well get a graphics card to match.

Having read too many posts, I've learned that all sorts of folk over at
rec.video.desktop are ga ga for the $260 Canopus ADVC-100
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=ShowProduct&index=Y&kw=CAADVC100&Q=&O=&sku=244508

I'm pretty sure my analog to digital conversion days will be over once I get
the ones I have lying around converted, so I'm not super keen on investing
$260 for hardware that I'll only use once. Having read post after post
about how great this external box is, I finally found a reference to this
page http://www.digitalfaq.com/othervideo/buyerguide.htm expounding on the
wonders of the ATI all in wonder series for the same purpose. So now I have
some info on using a graphics cards to do the capture.

I also don't know if I should really care to get a card with DVI out. A
quick peak at Viewsonic's products showed that many if not most of the flat
panels have the old VGA connectors as well. Seems stupid to do a digital to
analog and back to digital conversion when I have the option to go straight
digital. So am I wise to get a video card with DVI out at this day and age?

Since I wasn't too keen on the $260 for that external box, you can imagine
I'm not interested in spending that much for a graphics card either. I'm
not a hard core gamer. I was hoping to get a recommendation for a video
card that could capture video and perhaps also have that DVI out. I guess
matching my AGP 8x capable board would be a third place priority since I'm
not a gamer. There were a ton of All-in-Wonders available, but I've got to
assume there are nVidia or Matrox cards that would also fit the bill. Just
like my A7N8X-X and the Athlon 2500+, I'm looking for a great graphics card
that will do the video capture, but is also a great price. Any suggestions?

If there are any nVidia based products that fit the bill, that might be
good. I know somebody that works there.. Discount possibilities....

Frankly, I'd rather convince my friend with a G4 Powermac, DVD-R, and
digital camera to let me use his hardware to transfer my VHS to DVD, but he
hasn't had any free time, and I think he isn't planning on making any.
Maybe that will work out, or I'll find a friend with an all-in-wonder, use
his for my little job, and then I can buy a video card without this annoying
video capture constraint.. Assuming my other schemes fail and I need to do
the video capture myself though, what graphics cards should I look at?

Thanks,
-Ethan
--
To e-mail me, replace "_nospamtoday_" with the "@" symbol when replying to
my address.

 

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"Hupjack" <hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:xJOdnaXBxL1P2PDdRVn-uA@comcast.com...
> For those of you that have already read my plight, I'll keep this short.
> I mistakenly got an A7V8X-X instead of the A7N8X-X, so I'm just going to
> build another computer around the Via board, sell it, and get myself the
> nForce board that I wanted.
snip...
> Frankly, I'd rather convince my friend with a G4 Powermac, DVD-R, and
> digital camera to let me use his hardware to transfer my VHS to DVD, but
he
> hasn't had any free time, and I think he isn't planning on making any.
> Maybe that will work out, or I'll find a friend with an all-in-wonder, use
> his for my little job, and then I can buy a video card without this
annoying
> video capture constraint.. Assuming my other schemes fail and I need to
do
> the video capture myself though, what graphics cards should I look at?
>
> Thanks,
> -Ethan
> --
> To e-mail me, replace "_nospamtoday_" with the "@" symbol when replying to
> my address.
>
I bought an Asus Radeon 9600XT for my most recent box. The video is
excellent, it has DVI, dual monitor support, and video capture. Best of all
it isn't very expensive.
--
John McGaw
[Knoxville, TN, USA]
http://johnmcgaw.com

 

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"Hupjack" <hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:xJOdnaXBxL1P2PDdRVn-uA@comcast.com...
> I'm pretty sure my analog to digital conversion days will be over once I
get
> the ones I have lying around converted, so I'm not super keen on investing
> $260 for hardware that I'll only use once. Having read post after post
> about how great this external box is, I finally found a reference to this
> page http://www.digitalfaq.com/othervideo/buyerguide.htm expounding on the
> wonders of the ATI all in wonder series for the same purpose. So now I
have
> some info on using a graphics cards to do the capture.
>
> I also don't know if I should really care to get a card with DVI out. A
> quick peak at Viewsonic's products showed that many if not most of the
flat
> panels have the old VGA connectors as well. Seems stupid to do a digital
to
> analog and back to digital conversion when I have the option to go
straight
> digital. So am I wise to get a video card with DVI out at this day and
age?

First, about DVI on your graphics card. Get it, it's worth it. Firstly,
there's less signal degridation because you're only going through one
digital to analog conversion. With DVI, the signal stays digital from your
video card until it gets converted to an analog signal by your monitor when
an image is placed on the screen. With a regular VGA, your video card
converts the digital image to analog when it gets sent along your monitor
cable, you monitor then converts it back to digital to do any type of
manipulation to it (contrast, brightness, the vert/horizontal stretch or
position, etc) and then it gets transferred back to analog when it is
finally sent to the display element. Secondly, the fact that the signal is
digital between your video card and your monitor allows for less signal
degredation as its going along the cable, so you can run DVI cables farther
(I've seen cables as long as 10 meters, and they make repeaters that allow
you pretty much unlimited length so long as you're willing to pay to chain
enough together).
LCDs with DVI interfaces are getting cheaper and cheaper. On average it's
about $30-60 difference depending on the band and features. If you're going
to be using your computer a lot, it's worth the price. You'll get less
ghosting and a crisper image.

As far as the card choice, well you can do one of two things.

A) Go separate video capture card and graphics card. You can get one of the
ATI tuner cards for approx. $50 USD before shipping if you look around, most
chain stores like BestBuy, CompUSA, Fry's, CircuitCity, etc. carry them in
stock if you don't want to wait for mail order. Then you can get a separate
graphics card. Stay away from the GeForce4 MX series cards they're total
garbage unless you're only doing business apps. If you do any gaming at
all, shoot for a cheap nVidia Titanium series or something in the ATI 9600
series. Since you don't do a ton of gaming, they should last you a good
couple years easy, and they're not going to break the bank.

B) Go for a combination card like the All In Wonder like you mentioned. I
have no experience with the AIWs but I've heard they're quite good. There
is no real difference in the AIW cards as opposed to the regular ATI cards
aside from the tuner being added on, so an AIW 9600 will give you the same
performance as a Raedon 9600 without the tuner. You can get an nVidia card
with tuning ability also. I have a LeadTek A280 MyVIVO and am quite happy
with it, it's served me quite well, although I can't comment on its capture
ability since I haven't tried that part of it yet.

I would suggest an integrated card unless you absolutely want say an ATI
tuner card and a nVidia graphics card or vice versa. There's less hassle
and less worry about device conflicts or driver conflicts, and usually its
cheaper. For example, on newegg, you're going to save about $30 going for
the AIW ($130) as opposed to separate cards, and an nVidia Ti4200 based
Chaintech or Ti4600 based MSI for the $130 range. Considering it's about
half the price of that little box you heard about, not a bad deal.

Anyway, hope this helped.

 

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> I bought an Asus Radeon 9600XT for my most recent box. The video is
> excellent, it has DVI, dual monitor support, and video capture. Best of
all
> it isn't very expensive.

looks like a great suggestion.. it certainly does look like a kick ass
card for a decent price.
I suppose $170.00 for that bad boy isn't super expensive. I guess only the
XT has video capture... I like the lesser price of this Rosewill 9600SE
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=14-164-006&depa=0
but no video capture.
For that matter, I also like the amazing $30 price tag at Frys right now for
this PNY GeForce4 MX440
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=14-133-086&depa=0

I mean $30!!! I can almost get six of them for the same price as that ATI
card. Of course I'd have 6 cards, none of which would have video capture

Funny.... Kris warned me to stay away from the GeForce4 MX, as if he had a
premonition that I was going to be drawn to that frys price. Are they
really that bad? I mean they can't be worse than my Asus V7100 GeForce2 Pro
and I'm feeling quite zippy with that card. I wouldn't even be ditching it
if I didn't feel the need to switch the motherboard to the A7N8X that I
meant to get.

Now I've got more options to consider.. in today's frys add I spotted this
Dazzle multimedia external usb option
http://www.pinnaclesys.com/menusupport_n.asp?product_id=1427 on sale for
$40, a similar avermedia USB 2.0 dealy bopper
http://www.aver.com/products/dvm_AVerDVD_ezMaker_usb.shtml for $50, and an
avermedia analog capture card for $40
http://www.aver.com/products/dvm_AVerDVD_ezMaker.shtml.

so I guess there is more out there than just the badass $260 Canopus
ADVC-100 and the AIW cards.
I gotta admit, I'm really tempted by the $30 PNY GeForce4 MX440. I could
also get one of these external USB deals, and I'd still be at less than half
the price of a Radeon 9600XT.

This Radeon 8500DV is pretty attractive too
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-102-195R&depa=0
but the refurb might be a bit of trouble. I wouldn't get any of the cables?
It says no DVI to VGA Adaptor, but there are a lot of other important cables
too.. No input output adapter with the refurb? Does ATI hook you up if you
call them up and say you got a refurb and need the cables?

 

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good lord... here's that 8500DV again...
http://tinyurl.com/2qkf2 - fricken $99, but without the remote.. Coming
with an RF remote is groovy.. This white box has more than the newegg
refurb but still no remote.. This fricken card is a monster.. it has two
firewire ports too? It's got everything but the kitchen sink!!

Kris is this what you had in mind when you said entry level Ti card?
http://usa.asus.com/prog/spec.asp?m=V9280%20TD&langs=09

it says "Multi-Video in/TV out adaptor DVI out adapter"
Does this thing do video capture or what?

this one certainly says more clearly that it does
http://usa.asus.com/products/vga/v9480tvd/overview.htm#
"Diversified display connectivity (Dual VGA, DVI-I, TV-out, Video-in)"

That's what I like to see.. "video in"

 

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Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.homebuilt,alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt (More info?)

good lord.. this is really a pain in the ass sifting through the billion
different nvidia cards for the ones with video in. Like.. the Asus model
using the Ti4200-8X that has video in is the V9280 VS.. But there are two
other Asus Ti4200-8X cards that don't have it.. Searching for an nvidia
with video in, I feel like I have a 1/3 shot of finding one..

Any smart way to somehow restrict my browsing to cards with video in?

 

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On Fri, 2 Apr 2004 23:09:09 -0800, "Hupjack"
<hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote:

>> I bought an Asus Radeon 9600XT for my most recent box. The video is
>> excellent, it has DVI, dual monitor support, and video capture. Best of
>all
>> it isn't very expensive.
>
>looks like a great suggestion.. it certainly does look like a kick ass
>card for a decent price.
>I suppose $170.00 for that bad boy isn't super expensive. I guess only the
>XT has video capture... I like the lesser price of this Rosewill 9600SE
>http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=14-164-006&depa=0
>but no video capture.
>For that matter, I also like the amazing $30 price tag at Frys right now for
>this PNY GeForce4 MX440
>http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=14-133-086&depa=0
>
>I mean $30!!! I can almost get six of them for the same price as that ATI
>card. Of course I'd have 6 cards, none of which would have video capture
>
>Funny.... Kris warned me to stay away from the GeForce4 MX, as if he had a
>premonition that I was going to be drawn to that frys price. Are they
>really that bad? I mean they can't be worse than my Asus V7100 GeForce2 Pro
>and I'm feeling quite zippy with that card. I wouldn't even be ditching it
>if I didn't feel the need to switch the motherboard to the A7N8X that I
>meant to get.
>
I use the Geforce MX/MX 400 in my systems and they do good work.
(I don't game though just video editing and some still graphic work)
>Now I've got more options to consider.. in today's frys add I spotted this
>Dazzle multimedia external usb option
>http://www.pinnaclesys.com/menusupport_n.asp?product_id=1427 on sale for
>$40, a similar avermedia USB 2.0 dealy bopper
>http://www.aver.com/products/dvm_AVerDVD_ezMaker_usb.shtml for $50, and an
>avermedia analog capture card for $40
>http://www.aver.com/products/dvm_AVerDVD_ezMaker.shtml.
>
>so I guess there is more out there than just the badass $260 Canopus
>ADVC-100 and the AIW cards.
>I gotta admit, I'm really tempted by the $30 PNY GeForce4 MX440. I could
>also get one of these external USB deals, and I'd still be at less than half
>the price of a Radeon 9600XT.
>
>This Radeon 8500DV is pretty attractive too
>http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-102-195R&depa=0
>but the refurb might be a bit of trouble. I wouldn't get any of the cables?
>It says no DVI to VGA Adaptor, but there are a lot of other important cables
>too.. No input output adapter with the refurb? Does ATI hook you up if you
>call them up and say you got a refurb and need the cables?
>

 

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"Hupjack" <hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:BICdnU2tiYQk8PPdRVn-tw@comcast.com...
> good lord... here's that 8500DV again...
> http://tinyurl.com/2qkf2 - fricken $99, but without the remote.. Coming
> with an RF remote is groovy.. This white box has more than the newegg
> refurb but still no remote.. This fricken card is a monster.. it has two
> firewire ports too? It's got everything but the kitchen sink!!
>
> Kris is this what you had in mind when you said entry level Ti card?
> http://usa.asus.com/prog/spec.asp?m=V9280%20TD&langs=09
>
> it says "Multi-Video in/TV out adaptor DVI out adapter"
> Does this thing do video capture or what?
>
> this one certainly says more clearly that it does
> http://usa.asus.com/products/vga/v9480tvd/overview.htm#
> "Diversified display connectivity (Dual VGA, DVI-I, TV-out, Video-in)"
>
> That's what I like to see.. "video in"

The reason I said to stay away from the GeForce4 MX series is that they are
basically crippled cards. They're only DirectX 7 compliant as they don't
support DirectX 8 pixel and vertex shaders. Not the end of the world mind
you, but if you're looking at only upgrading one every couple years, the
extra bucks now may wind up saving you a lot of hassle later you know?

As far as what I meant by an entry level Ti card, that's a great example.
My Leadtek is pretty much the same card, although ASUS usually gives better
goodies with their cards As far as third party cards, those made by
manufacturer using a chipset from a different company, they are all pretty
much within 5% of each other performancewise unless the manufacturer does a
lot of tweaking, and not many do. Basically, they will follow what is
called a "reference design" and then add on their own goodies. Anyway, if
you're looking for a card that can do TV capture, look for things like
"VIVO," "video in," "CATV in," things like that. Check out newegg.com, and
zipzoomfly.com that should make things pretty quick. If you like the remote
though, the only cards I know that have them are the ATI All-In-Wonders.
They're damn good cards, and you can find them at a decent price.

 

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Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.homebuilt,alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt (More info?)

On Fri, 2 Apr 2004 23:09:09 -0800, "Hupjack"
<hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote:

<snip>

For gaming, the GF4MX cards are relatively slow, but if you were happy
with the GF2Pro you'll have a minor performance increase with the GF4MX.
$30 for it is a relatively good deal, it wouldn't make sense to spend 5X
as much if you're not into semi-modern 3D gaming.

Don't sweat the video capture... if you don't need a tuner then simply buy
a PCI capture card, they're about $20-30. There is no need to buy
high-end or hardware compression gear, nor an AIW, that price-premium,
simply to capture a few videos.

 

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On Sat, 3 Apr 2004 00:41:36 -0800, "Hupjack"
<hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote:

>good lord.. this is really a pain in the ass sifting through the billion
>different nvidia cards for the ones with video in. Like.. the Asus model
>using the Ti4200-8X that has video in is the V9280 VS.. But there are two
>other Asus Ti4200-8X cards that don't have it.. Searching for an nvidia
>with video in, I feel like I have a 1/3 shot of finding one..
>
>Any smart way to somehow restrict my browsing to cards with video in?
>

You could go to Newegg.com and input the search KEYWORD "VIVO"...
http://www.newegg.com/app/manufactory.asp?catalog=48&DEPA=0

 

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"Hupjack" <hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:j7OdnTzjqqCO_vPd4p2dnA@comcast.com...
>
> so I guess there is more out there than just the badass $260 Canopus
> ADVC-100 and the AIW cards.
> I gotta admit, I'm really tempted by the $30 PNY GeForce4 MX440. I could
> also get one of these external USB deals, and I'd still be at less than
half
> the price of a Radeon 9600XT.

If you want to capture your own VHS tapes about any capture card should
work. If you want to capture prerecorded VHS tapes it would be a good idea
to research Macrovision copy protection.

 

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On Fri, 2 Apr 2004 23:09:09 -0800, "Hupjack" <hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com>
wrote:


>For that matter, I also like the amazing $30 price tag at Frys right now for
>this PNY GeForce4 MX440
>http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=14-133-086&depa=0

Check out the GeForce4 FX5200 and 5200 Ultra. Much better than the MX, not a
lot more expensive, and support DX9.

I too am looking for a cheap, 1-time solution for converting my VHS library
to digital. If you find one, please post here!

Bob

Remove "kins" from address to reply.

 

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Hupjack wrote:
>
> good lord... here's that 8500DV again...
> http://tinyurl.com/2qkf2 - fricken $99, but without the remote.. Coming
> with an RF remote is groovy.. This white box has more than the newegg
> refurb but still no remote.. This fricken card is a monster.. it has two
> firewire ports too? It's got everything but the kitchen sink!!

Careful: people have complained the firewire doesn't work on that one.

 

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"Hupjack" <hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote in message news:<xJOdnaXBxL1P2PDdRVn-uA@comcast.com>...
> For those of you that have already read my plight, I'll keep this short.
> I mistakenly got an A7V8X-X instead of the A7N8X-X, so I'm just going to
> build another computer around the Via board, sell it, and get myself the
> nForce board that I wanted.
>
> Well I'm short on graphics cards so I'm also going to sell my Asus V7100
> GeForce2 with the Via board, and get myself a new AGP card.
>
> I've been wanting to encode some VHS video to digital for a while now, and
> while I twiddle my thumbs, my videos are busy decomposing as we speak :-\
>
> I'm looking for a card with video capture, and while I'm busy upgrading, I
> figured I might as well prep for a future flat panel display and get a video
> card with a DVI output. I also figured since I'm going to have an AGP 8x
> motherboard, I might as well get a graphics card to match.
>
> Having read too many posts, I've learned that all sorts of folk over at
> rec.video.desktop are ga ga for the $260 Canopus ADVC-100
> http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=ShowProduct&index=Y&kw=CAADVC100&Q=&O=&sku=244508
>
> I'm pretty sure my analog to digital conversion days will be over once I get
> the ones I have lying around converted, so I'm not super keen on investing
> $260 for hardware that I'll only use once. Having read post after post
> about how great this external box is, I finally found a reference to this
> page http://www.digitalfaq.com/othervideo/buyerguide.htm expounding on the
> wonders of the ATI all in wonder series for the same purpose. So now I have
> some info on using a graphics cards to do the capture.

The Canopus boxes have high resale value, so you'd get back most of
your cost when you sell it. Also, you can get by with the ADVC-50 for
$134, but no D to A, only A to D.

 

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"Hupjack" <hupjack_nospamtoday_yahoo.com> wrote in message news:<EpWdnb6k0bYj5fPd4p2dnA@comcast.com>...
> good lord.. this is really a pain in the ass sifting through the billion
> different nvidia cards for the ones with video in. Like.. the Asus model
> using the Ti4200-8X that has video in is the V9280 VS.. But there are two
> other Asus Ti4200-8X cards that don't have it.. Searching for an nvidia
> with video in, I feel like I have a 1/3 shot of finding one..
>
> Any smart way to somehow restrict my browsing to cards with video in?

Include "VIVO" in your search terms, (video in, video out)

I almost bought the V9280 VS. The problem with all these video-in
cards is that the audio is brought in separately through the line-in
of the sound card (or on-board sound). There is a problem in copying
analog video tapes to your hard drive (and then onto CDs) where the
audio and video are not in sync. This is the appeal of the Canopus
devices such as the ADVC-50 and ADVC-100. Again, you don't really need
the ADVC-100 for what you're doing, the ADVC-50 will be fine and it's
only $134. You could certainly sell it for $75-100 when you're done
with it.

 

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Archived from groups: alt.comp.hardware.homebuilt (More info?)

Just picked up a XFX GeForce FX 5200 Personal Cinema. It has Coax input as well
as S-video and RCA style video and audio connectors. Havent got to use it yet
but there seems a bunch of different ways to bring in video and audio together
so they don't get out of sync. $150 card.

> good lord.. this is really a pain in the ass sifting through the billion
>> different nvidia cards for the ones with video in. Like.. the Asus model
>> using the Ti4200-8X that has video in is the V9280 VS.. But there are two
>> other Asus Ti4200-8X cards that don't have it.. Searching for an nvidia
>> with video in, I feel like I have a 1/3 shot of finding one..
>>
>> Any smart way to somehow restrict my browsing to cards with video in?
>
>Include "VIVO" in your search terms, (video in, video out)
>
>I almost bought the V9280 VS. The problem with all these video-in
>cards is that the audio is brought in separately through the line-in
>of the sound card (or on-board sound). There is a problem in copying
>analog video tapes to your hard drive (and then onto CDs) where the
>audio and video are not in sync. This is the appeal of the Canopus
>devices such as the ADVC-50 and ADVC-100. Again, you don't really need
>the ADVC-100 for what you're doing, the ADVC-50 will be fine and it's
>only $134. You could certainly sell it for $75-100 when you're done
>with it.
>
>
>
>
>
>


remove my-wife to reply

 

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> The Canopus boxes have high resale value, so you'd get back most of
> your cost when you sell it. Also, you can get by with the ADVC-50 for
> $134, but no D to A, only A to D.

I don't know why I didn't think of that.. Not a bad idea. I could just
resell the canopus when I was done with it. Ahhh the great benefits of eBay
and craiglist. They've really opened up the used market. So great to see
more used goods getting more use instead of collecting dust in garages or
worse, being dumped in landfills when other people want to use them.
Certainly a far more honest way to go than buying some converter from an
electronics store, and then returning it a couple days later after the job
is done. With eBay and craislist, I can get most of my money back and not
be an a-hole

an all too obvious, but Great suggestion!
thanks!