I purchased Videostudio 10 because I require a wide screen facility (and Which? said it was a Best Buy!). However, when I try to capture my video, the result is that all clips are "choppy" on both video and sound. To elaborate, the picture runs for about 1/2 second, misses a fraction, then continues.
My processor is an AMD Athlon XP 1.1GHz; RAM is 512MB; Display Adaptor is Sapphire Radeon 9200SE Atlantis. I am using a firwire connection from an NEC card. My camcorder is a Sony DCR-HC46. I am running Windows XP Pro and my Hard Drive has 60GB free. I have just defragged the drive.
I got a copy of VS8 bundled with my firewire purchase, so I uninstalled VS10 and installed VS8. This gave me the same chopping effect, perhaps even worse, so I went back to VS10 for more experiments, but without success. I can capture successfully with Microsoft Windows Movie Maker and also with Nero 7, so I am inclined to think that the problem is a software one. (If MWMM or Nero did wide screen, I'd be satisfied with that).
Capture Properties:
AVI DV type 1
PAL 25fps 720x576
Aspect Ratio 16:9
Frame type - Lower Field First
DV Audio - PAL, 32MHz 12 bit Stereo
Source - Sony - MSDV
Microsoft AVI files
I have set up the HD to use "DMA if possible".
I also asked for dropped frames to be shown; I get over 200 in one minute. (Is this a measure of the chopping?)
I've looked at the excellent tutorials by Steve J., but I can't find a reference to my problem.
I am a complete beginner at video editing, so any help you can give would be gratefully received.
Ron.
Chopping of captured video
Moderator: Ken Berry
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Ron P.
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Hi Ron, welcome to the forums..
I do think that since you are getting dropped frames, this is adding to your choppiness. I don't think that the Preview during capture should be jerky or choppy though.
You might want to review Steve's tutorial on Creating a Video Editing Profile. Having a profile that has all the bloat shut down, really helps when it comes to video editing. Choppiness could be attributed to a background application suddenly starting to run.
Choppiness also could be due to using the wrong field order. If you are capturing to DV (avi) the field order should be LFF (Lower Field First). And if you are using Firewire to transfer the video, then you don't have a choice but to use LFF. Most analogue video captures will use UFF (Upper Field First). So make sure that your Project Properties field order match the type of video capture/transfer.
Also if you are planning on doing much editing I strongly recommend you get at least one more HDD. 60 gig free space sounds like alot, however since you are capturing DV, 1 hour of video requires 13 gig, just to store the original video file. Now add at least 13 gig more so that VS can work with the video clip and burn a DVD, you are suddenly down to less then 40 gig. That's just for 1 video file.
I also found that by using a 2nd HDD, it really helps in speeding up things, since I have my working folders set to the 2nd drive, it reads from 1 and writes to the 2nd, thus taking the load off a single drive.
I do think that since you are getting dropped frames, this is adding to your choppiness. I don't think that the Preview during capture should be jerky or choppy though.
You might want to review Steve's tutorial on Creating a Video Editing Profile. Having a profile that has all the bloat shut down, really helps when it comes to video editing. Choppiness could be attributed to a background application suddenly starting to run.
Choppiness also could be due to using the wrong field order. If you are capturing to DV (avi) the field order should be LFF (Lower Field First). And if you are using Firewire to transfer the video, then you don't have a choice but to use LFF. Most analogue video captures will use UFF (Upper Field First). So make sure that your Project Properties field order match the type of video capture/transfer.
Also if you are planning on doing much editing I strongly recommend you get at least one more HDD. 60 gig free space sounds like alot, however since you are capturing DV, 1 hour of video requires 13 gig, just to store the original video file. Now add at least 13 gig more so that VS can work with the video clip and burn a DVD, you are suddenly down to less then 40 gig. That's just for 1 video file.
I also found that by using a 2nd HDD, it really helps in speeding up things, since I have my working folders set to the 2nd drive, it reads from 1 and writes to the 2nd, thus taking the load off a single drive.
Ron Petersen, Web Board Administrator
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Ken Berry
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I notice you say the Capture properties include Type 1 DV Encoder. But I know that for some arcane reason, VS10+ defaults to the much more difficult (for most people) Type 2. Typical effects of using Type 2 on a computer which does not have sufficient resources for it (and yours definitely falls into that category) are choppy video and/or audio.
With the camera connected and switched on, in the Capture > Capture Video page, click on the Options cogwheel icon and see what is set: Type 1 or 2. If it is set for 2, then definitely change it to 1.
With the camera connected and switched on, in the Capture > Capture Video page, click on the Options cogwheel icon and see what is set: Type 1 or 2. If it is set for 2, then definitely change it to 1.
Ken Berry
A couple of furhter points. You audio is 12 bit and this can be problematic. Check your camera and set it to 16 bit this will always give better results.
You are dropping 200 frames per minute that is 3.3 frames per second or more than 10% so yes this will lead to choppy video being the result. This is really the area to look at. I am pretty sure if you could stop dropping frames you will get much more like the results you are looking for. Since you are capturing via firewire then field order and so on should not be an issue.
Take a look here for some great advice on getting your PC ready for capture
http://www.videoguys.com/TweaksWINXPVE.html#tweaks
Good luck
Nick
You are dropping 200 frames per minute that is 3.3 frames per second or more than 10% so yes this will lead to choppy video being the result. This is really the area to look at. I am pretty sure if you could stop dropping frames you will get much more like the results you are looking for. Since you are capturing via firewire then field order and so on should not be an issue.
Take a look here for some great advice on getting your PC ready for capture
http://www.videoguys.com/TweaksWINXPVE.html#tweaks
Good luck
Nick
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heinz-oz
The first thing you need to check out and get a grip on is this "dropping frame" issue. When I started out, my PC was a P3 500MHz and I was capturing with no dropping frames.
How old is your PC? Have you had it open once? What is the HDD speed in rpm? Ultra DMA is only working with you HDD if you use the right cable. Can you describe the cable connecting yours to the mother board? How many wires (ripples) does it have?
Which OS do you use? Win XP?
How old is your PC? Have you had it open once? What is the HDD speed in rpm? Ultra DMA is only working with you HDD if you use the right cable. Can you describe the cable connecting yours to the mother board? How many wires (ripples) does it have?
Which OS do you use? Win XP?
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Extronordinary
Thanks!
Thanks guys for the ideas. I'll be trying them all shortly.
In answer to your questions, Heinz: the PC is a couple of years old. I've had it open many times. The HDD is a Seagate Barrauda running at 7200rpm with a 7-wire SATA connection. I'm running Win XP Pro (5.01.2600 SP2) .
I'll report back after I've had a chance to read the references and have another go.
Cheers.
Ron
In answer to your questions, Heinz: the PC is a couple of years old. I've had it open many times. The HDD is a Seagate Barrauda running at 7200rpm with a 7-wire SATA connection. I'm running Win XP Pro (5.01.2600 SP2) .
I'll report back after I've had a chance to read the references and have another go.
Cheers.
Ron
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heinz-oz
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Extronordinary
Success - eventually
Hi, I'm back after having gone through all the ideas offered.
First Ken: Yes I had set the Options to type 1; it was from that choice that I discovered about Types 1 and 2.
Nick: I had tried other possibilities on the number of bits; I only went down to 12 because I thought the smaller number would mean less data to transfer so perhaps fewer problems. Back to 16 now. I spent some considerable time on the Tweaks you pointed me to. I'm very happy to get rid of a lot of the Windows dross. It made no difference to my problem, though.
Ron P: I had already set Capture to Lower Field First on Project Properties. Now to Create a Video Editing Profile. I had great hopes of this. I spent some hours spead over several days and eventually ended up with a very clean Video Profile. Then the magic moment - try running VS10 from there. Result - no change; choppiness just as before.
I pulled out more hair and thought about what Heinz said. Was the problem related to my SATA drive? On reflection, though I had set all my IDE drives to DMA If Possible, how about the SATA drive? Searching the net led me to conclude that it is not an option to set a SATA drive to DMA. Now one of my IDE drives is an old HDD from my previous PC which holds only 30 Gigs and half of that is in use, but it allowed an experiment. Ron P. had suggested that a second drive for the data would be a good idea, so I tried putting my video data there. Yikes IT wORKED! No choppiness, no dropped frames!
Does the problem lie in use of the SATA drive, or is the answer simply to use two drives? One more experiment. Uninstall Videostudio and reinstall it on the IDE drive. Run it from there and put the video data on the SATA drive. Back to choppiness. Conclusion - don't use a SATA drive for data (unless there is some way of setting things up differently).
If anyone has anything to add to that, I am all ears, especially as to how to improve my SATA set-up. I have tried looking at the BIOS, but there does not seem to be any option there affecting the SATA connection. Finally thank you again to all those who responded to my call for help. I've learnt a lot, especially about how Windows operates. I'm now off to look at prices for a new HDD with lots of space and using an IDE connection.
First Ken: Yes I had set the Options to type 1; it was from that choice that I discovered about Types 1 and 2.
Nick: I had tried other possibilities on the number of bits; I only went down to 12 because I thought the smaller number would mean less data to transfer so perhaps fewer problems. Back to 16 now. I spent some considerable time on the Tweaks you pointed me to. I'm very happy to get rid of a lot of the Windows dross. It made no difference to my problem, though.
Ron P: I had already set Capture to Lower Field First on Project Properties. Now to Create a Video Editing Profile. I had great hopes of this. I spent some hours spead over several days and eventually ended up with a very clean Video Profile. Then the magic moment - try running VS10 from there. Result - no change; choppiness just as before.
I pulled out more hair and thought about what Heinz said. Was the problem related to my SATA drive? On reflection, though I had set all my IDE drives to DMA If Possible, how about the SATA drive? Searching the net led me to conclude that it is not an option to set a SATA drive to DMA. Now one of my IDE drives is an old HDD from my previous PC which holds only 30 Gigs and half of that is in use, but it allowed an experiment. Ron P. had suggested that a second drive for the data would be a good idea, so I tried putting my video data there. Yikes IT wORKED! No choppiness, no dropped frames!
Does the problem lie in use of the SATA drive, or is the answer simply to use two drives? One more experiment. Uninstall Videostudio and reinstall it on the IDE drive. Run it from there and put the video data on the SATA drive. Back to choppiness. Conclusion - don't use a SATA drive for data (unless there is some way of setting things up differently).
If anyone has anything to add to that, I am all ears, especially as to how to improve my SATA set-up. I have tried looking at the BIOS, but there does not seem to be any option there affecting the SATA connection. Finally thank you again to all those who responded to my call for help. I've learnt a lot, especially about how Windows operates. I'm now off to look at prices for a new HDD with lots of space and using an IDE connection.
What type of sustained throughput are you getting on your SATA drive (perhaps it is configured incorrectly). Do you have any utlities to measure your drive speed?
The interesting note is that you mentioned you can capture with WMM and Nero -- so something is strange to prevent you from capturing with VS loaded.
btw, DV Type-2 can't be all that resource hungry -- I used to capture DV Type-2 on a P-III 400 machine (years ago). It's just one of those things that might be enough to make the difference between a good/bad capture (because the underlying machine is not optimized for video capture -- perhaps too many other programs loaded or running in the background).
Regards,
George
The interesting note is that you mentioned you can capture with WMM and Nero -- so something is strange to prevent you from capturing with VS loaded.
btw, DV Type-2 can't be all that resource hungry -- I used to capture DV Type-2 on a P-III 400 machine (years ago). It's just one of those things that might be enough to make the difference between a good/bad capture (because the underlying machine is not optimized for video capture -- perhaps too many other programs loaded or running in the background).
Regards,
George
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Extronordinary
Thanks for the interest, George. I have run the check available on-line from Pitstop. This informs me that the transfer rate from my SATA drive is only 4MBps. This compares with 17MBps on my old IDE drive and figures in the 20s and 30s for other peoples' systems. I am currently trawling the net to see where to go from here.
No doubt if I can overcome this one my whole system will be improved. Any further ideas gratefully received.
Ron
No doubt if I can overcome this one my whole system will be improved. Any further ideas gratefully received.
Ron
Ron
I did a quick search and you might find this of some interest http://forums.nvidia.com/lofiversion/in ... 17927.html
Brian
I did a quick search and you might find this of some interest http://forums.nvidia.com/lofiversion/in ... 17927.html
Brian
Video Studio X-3
LG BH10LS30
LG GH22NS50
LG BH10LS30
LG GH22NS50
4MB/s is not enough for sustained DV capture/transfer. There must be a problem with your SATA/Drive configuration because that really is quite low...Extronordinary wrote:Thanks for the interest, George. I have run the check available on-line from Pitstop. This informs me that the transfer rate from my SATA drive is only 4MBps. This compares with 17MBps on my old IDE drive and figures in the 20s and 30s for other peoples' systems. I am currently trawling the net to see where to go from here.
No doubt if I can overcome this one my whole system will be improved. Any further ideas gratefully received.
Ron
Regards,
George
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Extronordinary
George: Yes, the SATA transfer rate does seem to be my problem. There must be something wrong with the set-up somewhere. Could be the BIOS, Windows, the mother board or the drive hardware/software.
Brian: Thanks for the link. This does show that I am not the only one to have had this problem. I hadn't found that one, though I have been to the Seagate website and have downloaded an updated Flash BIOS. That didn't change anything, though. Their site has a test which offered me several other downloads relevant to my system; I'm going back to have another look there.
Thank you both for your help.
Ron.
Brian: Thanks for the link. This does show that I am not the only one to have had this problem. I hadn't found that one, though I have been to the Seagate website and have downloaded an updated Flash BIOS. That didn't change anything, though. Their site has a test which offered me several other downloads relevant to my system; I'm going back to have another look there.
Thank you both for your help.
Ron.