VS10: Capturing 16:9 video via USB: Setting help needed

[JonathanEx]

Howdy. The topic explains most of it, but to expand...

I'm using VS10, and I'm trying to capture video off my Sony Handicam. It's connected via USB, and I'm capturing on the PC when the camera is playing the stuff back on the screen. My problem is that I'm having trouble finding the appropriate capture settings so that I can properly capture the video in 16:9. Also, this is PAL stuff. Can anyone help?


Cheers.

[Ken Berry]

First, you don't tell us exactly what sort of Handicam it is -- is it Digital 8, mini DV, mini DVD or hard disc? Sony call all their models handicams, as far as I am aware.

The question is important because of the method you are using to capture. You are using USB, which will work if your camera is a hard disk one, and sometimes even a mini DVD one. But it won't give you anything more than low quality web streaming format if it is a mini DV or Digital 8. In that case, you need to capture via firewire cable from the firewire port on the camera (called i-Link by Sony) to a firewire card in your computer. And if you don't have one of those, then they are cheap and easy to install in a spare AGP slot on your motherboard.

As for the 16:9 setting, you may have disabled the initial splash screen of VS10. There is a check box on that for 16:9. You can re-enable that screen in File > Preferences > General > Show start-up screen.

[JonathanEx]

My apologies. It's a Mini DV one, and I have got it set to 16:9 on the spash screen. For complete reference, it's a DCR-TRV19E PAL, I've set USB Stream to work in the camera's settings, and I've installed some USB streaming patch from Sony on PC. I previously had no problems capturing via USB through VS11, but uh, now I'm on 10.

My problem is at the point of actual capture, which settings I have to use.

Thanks though.

[Ron P.]

I've never tried to capture DV using USB. Generally that is used for images, and more recently for some HDV, which is in the MPEG-2 format.

I'm not certain you can capture DV through a USB. If you want to maintain the highest quality, capturing DV is the format needed.

In the Capture step, with your camcorder hooked up, turn it on to playback. Does VS acknowledge the camera? If so look for the Options Gear icon, click it and select the Video Properties. It should present you with Type-1, or Type-2. Choose Type-1. The audio and video are mixed into a single stream. With Type-2, the audio is a separate stream.

If capturing DV, there are no other settings. If not, you might be capturing MPEG, which should be DVD Compatible. MPEG-2 and DVD MPEG2 are different.

Settings for DVD MPEG-2

Code: Select all

MPEG files
24 bits, 720 x 576, 25 fps
Lower Field First
(DVD-PAL),  16:9
Video data rate: Variable (Max.  8000 kbps) 
Audio data rate: 256 kbps
Dolby Digital Audio, 48 KHz, 2/0(L,R)

However in checking the Capture properties in the capture step, it provides the basic DVD (PAL in your case) templates to capture to....

Select for Format--MPEG, select Options>Video and Audio Capture Properties Settings.. In the dialog window that opens choose one of the DVD PAL templates, or you can create your own.

[Ken Berry]

I have looked at the specifications of your camera, and the USB connection is USB 1.0, not 2.0. As such, it is meant to be used for the capture of still images or low quality streaming video as I have already suggested. The USB 1.0 connection is simply not fast enough to capture high quality video, whether it be DV (which you should be capturing and initially editing in) or DVD quality mpeg-2 (which is more demanding on your computer to capture).

I repeat that the only way to capture high quality DV (or mpeg-2) video and in 16:9 format is via Firewire.

You also haven't given your computer specifications in the System button below. But you need to be aware that the native format on your camera is DV/AVI and capturing in that format is easy -- really only a direct transfer via firewire in real time. Capturing from a mini-DV to mpeg-2 means that the signal has to be converted on the fly during the capture process. As I said above, some computers with less resources find this too much and can't handle a direct Dv-to-mpeg-2 capture. Instead they drop frames like crazy or simply keel over. Mpeg-2 is also more difficult to edit, so again, it is much easier and better to capture first to DV format via firewire, edit it in DV format, and as a last stage before opening the burning module, convert the DV project to DVD-compatible mpeg-2. You'll be much happier that way, believe me!

[JonathanEx]

Thanks guys, very much.