pixalating when viewing, 720/480 dvd format

[brucefl]

I am converting some analog to digital, I assumed it would be better to go 480/720, dvd? or some others.
When I am looking while converting it is fine, but when viewing in edit or recordign to dvd, it pixalats, (looks like little digital squares snowing)
I can do avi, but the the file size is immense at 21 gigs for 1.45 mins of tape.
I can do 320, but won't it significantly degrade? What is the problem when I convert, setting it for dvd, or one of the other formats? Other than just avi?
Do some old home movies and want the best quality. Using a canopus advc110, which seems to work fine. As I say I see it coming through alright.

[Ken Berry]

Something sounds a little strange here. The Canopus advc110 which you are using is an excellent device, custom made to convert analogue video to digital on the fly using hardware contained in it. And as I understand it, the signal is sent as full frame D1 720x480 format if you are (as you are) in an NTSC country. The conversion is done outside the computer and the converted signal sent as the recommended high quality DV format which is used in mini-DV digital video cameras. As such, it should be around 13 GB per *hour* of video. 21 GB for 1.45 minutes is way beyond the limits of even uncompressed AVI video which runs at around 65 GB per hour.

So I guess the first thing we have to establish is what settings you are using with the Canopus. And how do you have it set up? What exactly are you connecting -- an analogue camera or a VCR? And what is the quality of the original tape like?

[brucefl]

Hi,
I set the canopus up to a vcr plugged into the firewire, click the capture, then I tried using the dvd format, says 720x480 dvd variable, bit rate. Both mpeg and dvd formats do this. As I am viewing they look fine, I go to edit, play then it does the pixalating or how ever you might call it, kind of looks like digitized snow.
The canopus setup there is nothing to do, hooks up, comp. recognizes it. plug the vcr into it, then plug the firewire into the computer, then ulead recognizes it.
Thought I might get the 1.45 mins on one dvd, but not quite in that format.
Bruce

[Ken Berry]

Can we first clarify what you mean by '1.45 minutes'. I initially took it literally to mean one and three quarter minutes i.e. 105 seconds. But now I am wondering if you really mean 1 hour 45 minutes... If it is indeed the latter, then that would be consistent with capturing in DV format (which is roughly 13 GB per hour...)

Now as far as I know, the Canopus is mainly meant to capture from an analogue source using the DV format. DV is not/not the same as DVD. DVD is just a version of mpeg-2 with specific properties that are compliant with the DVD standard. DV on the other hand is a very high quality format exactly equivalent to the quality you would get if you were capturing from a digital mini-DV video camera. The higher the quality of the original capture, the higher the quality your end product can be.

In other words, you should be capturing in DV format, despite the large file size, and doing all your editing in that format. This will guarantee the best possible quality. You have to make sure, too, that Video Studio is set to capture using the DV format.

Then, after all your editing is complete, you go to Share > Create Video File > and then select NTSC DVD (not/not mpeg-2). This will then convert your DV edited footage into DVD-compliant mpeg-2. Once that is done, close your project, and make sure the timeline is empty. Then select Share > Create Disc > NTSC DVD, insert your newly created DVD-compliant mpeg-2 file(s), create your menu and burn.

[brucefl]

Hello,
Sorry about that, 1 hr, and 45 minutes. I had known avi was a considerable size, didn't realize how much. Canopus will record it in any of the formats allowable in VS10, DV, AVI, MPEG, DVD and a few others, (not sure if that was the order. I have the full drop down list. I was assuming by using dvd in the 720x480 which seems would be a smaller size, I would still get the quality without having the size? Then should it still do the digital snow (which I call it, kind of pixalating) Is it possible to post a small file somehow in the usergroup to show? Because when I am viewing, it looks fine in VS10, till I look in preveiw.
If I do as you suggest, then should the entire 1 hr 45 mins fit on one, 4.7 gig? When I tried to burn it in the share as it was with some titles and things it was too big?

[Ken Berry]

As I say, capturing and editing -- even analogue-sourced material -- will offer a better chance of high quality output than other formats.

That being said, fitting 1 hour 45 minutes of video onto a single layer DVD will take you into a zone where some loss in quality is possible -- though any detectable loss will be mitigated by the original capture in high quality DV format. This is because of the bitrate you would have to use to fit that length of video onto a single layer disc. This would have to be around 5000 kbps. However, using a highly compressed audio format such as Dolby or mpeg layer 2 audio will free up a bit more space which could be used by the video. Using only the simplest (or no) menus will make a little more available too.

I quite regularly make DVDs from my old analogue tapes. I don't have a Canopus, but use a Sony Digital 8 camera which performs the same function. It plays my analogue 8mm tapes back via Firewire and I capture and edit them in DV format. Given that the source is analogue, there is probably no point in going for the very highest quality bitrate which is 8000 kbps. This would allow me to burn about 1 hour to a single layer disc (and a bit more if I use Dolby audio, as I do). So I tend to use a maximum bit rate of 6000 kbps. I am usually able to squeeze up to about 1 hour 40 minutes on to a disc with a menu and Dolby audio. So to fit your 1 hour 45 minutes safely on a single disc, you would probably only need to drop the bitrate to a maximum of around 5500 and still have room for a decent menu.

I should add that I find my DVDs produced this way provide excellent quality -- only marginally (if at all) less acceptable than digital video captured from a digital video camera.

I am unable to comment on your 'snowing' problem except to wonder whether there may have been some degradation of your original VHS tape which only becomes accentuated when processed into a digital signal. Or else it is a product of capturing direct to mpeg-2/DVD format. Let us know if you still have this digital snow if you capture and edit in DV format as I have suggested.

[brucefl]

Hi, thanks for the comments. I will try a few things. First of all Canopus believes it is a timing problem between the mother board and firewire, not so sure where other modes seem to work fine. Gateway says the believe where the communication is fine, then it is the device and contact them. I am thinking where it comes into the system fine, then probably something in the program (between 3 tech supports, hopefully find the problem)
The tape only had 3 or 4 mins of sound. My question even, though it is recording video, I am kind of assuming it is recording sound, though I hear nothing? In thinking this, is it possible record these 3 or 5 mins and then close it from recording any sound? Does sound make the file a lot bigger? Or does it matter?
Thanks Bruce

[Ken Berry]

Hopefully the three tech supports will come up with something. The placement of your Firewire card can sometimes affect the playback quality for DV capture, though not the capture quality itself. I have only recently had to add a firewire card to my main computer since the one I previously used was on a TV capture card which I have replaced and the new one did not have firewire. Ever since starting video editing, I have had perfect DV captures, including the view on the preview monitor while capturing goes on. Now with this new card, I get awful, jerky and sometimes pixelated previews, though when I play back the captured video, the videos are fine. So it is not the same as your problem. In my case, it seems to be a question of the firewire card being in a slot too far away from the motherboard, but I have yet to experiment with changing its position.

As for audio, it sounds strange that you only seem to get a few minutes. How is the VCR connected to the Canopus? Via just the three yellow-white-red RCA cables, or are you also using an S-video connection?

But as to your question, if you are indeed capturing to DV format, then the audio format will be the standard PCM one. This gives very high quality. But as you surmise, the file sizes are large. And you will be creating an audio component in your captures whether or not any sound is actually captured on it. It isn't a major factor, though, since you can always convert to a much smaller, though still high quality audio format (Dolby or mpeg layer 2) during the editing process. But first, of course, you have to get some video which is worth editing!!!

[brucefl]

I should think and read before I post, sometimes I think I said all I need too, lol.

The reason for only 3-4 minutes of audio is, I transferred 8mm, super 8mm films to video tape. Forgot to mute it, so some of my family are talking which actually highlights the video. Then I remembered and muted the sound. After that there is no sound.
So I wonder, should I record the first 3 or 4 mins, then is it possible to shut the sound off, and record the video? This way there would be no audio componet, and possibly reduce the size? In recording DV, is this possible?
I only get the pixalating in the DVD/MPEG format, so I am assuming that it may be in the program, since other formats work fine?
Waiting to hear from ulead, Gateway as I said, since it recognizes everything everything should be ok. I wrote again Canopus to check a few things.
Bruce

[Ron P.]

Bruce,
If I recall correctly, when capturing to DV-avi, you can not disable the audio, and capture video only. Plus I'm not sure if your's (I know mine doesn't) will allow you to disable or shutoff the audio and output only video while transfering via firewire. Using firewire you just transfer data, and there's no actual capturing taking place.

As far as the capture/transfer setting, I too recommend using DV-avi. If you have the space then it would pay off in the end. When you render your video file, you can then choose a bitrate that would allow you more disc space. Since your source is analogue, you shouldn't suffer any quality loss with a bitrate of 4500+. I think 4000 or 4500 is about what a VCR tape yeilds, and you can't make it better just by having a high bitrate on the finished side.