Problems capturing video from Sony camera with Firewire conn

[guitargeorge50]

Thanks, in advance, to anyone who may be able to help me.

I am a new user and have just purchased Ulead Video Studio 11 on disc. I un-installed the trial version and installed the full version seemingly without problem. I have been using the trial version to edit some old video I had captured earlier with Windows Movie Maker (NTSC AVI files) without problem. I tried to capture video both with the trial version and with the purchased version of Ulead Video Studio 11 and each time I get the same error: Capturing Failed. The file created is corrupted and unusable. It will be automatically deleted.

Here is some of the information on the screen that I'm sure is pertinent: uvs080101-004.avi, 720 X 480 DV Type-2.NTSC, No Record Date, Sony DV Device, DV Audio, 0

The capture options selection only gives me the option with a check box to capture to library or not to capture to library. The other choices are grayed out.

Under Options, the Video properties selection gives a pop-up that indicates DV Type 2 is selected.

My camera is a Sony HC-40 connected to a IEEE-1394 Firewire card in my computer. When I start to capture video, I know that video and audio are transferring from the camera into the computer and into the Ulead software because I can see the changes in video that occur in front of my camera on the screen in the Ulead software. The countdown timer on the screen starts to increment, by the way. I know that audio is transferring from the camera mic through my computer into my audio system because it feedsback horribly and I must turn the volume on my audio system all the way down.

I read in the manual to "repair" the Ulead software by going through control panel to add/remove programs and then following the prompts. It didn't make any difference.

Here is the really odd thing, I can exit Ulead video studio, go to Windows Movie Maker and capture video in an .avi format with the same setup described above, exit Windows Movie Maker, re-start Ulead Video Studio 11, bring the captured video/audio I just captured with Windows Movie Maker into Ulead Video Studio and then edit it and do almost whatever I want with it.

I am at a loss and I hope someone can help me. Thanks, in advance for being willing to help.

Bobby Howe
alias guitargeorge50

[Ken Berry]

In the Options box you referred to, select DV Encoder Type 1 instead of Type 2. For some reason, Type 2 is installed by default, but many (and I mean many) users have difficulty capturing with Type 2 Encoder. Changing to Type 1 usually corrects this.

And I suspect if you right clicked on the DV/AVI you successfully captured with Movie Maker and imported into VS, that you would find that Movie Maker probably used the Type 1 Encoder...

Let us know how it goes...

The other thing you might want to do more generally is go to the Microsoft site and download the latest (November 2007) update patch for DirectX. It will work regardless of whether you are using Vista or XP, and is known to cure a number of problems that new users of VS11 appear to be having.

[guitargeorge50]

Hello Ken,

Thanks so much for being willing to help. I appreciate it very much.

I checked out both of the possibilities you suggested and unfortunately, neither possible solution gave results that were any different than before. I went to the Microsoft website as you suggested and checked out my version of DirectX against their latest and greatest. It seems that mine is up to date-- DirectX 9.0c. By the way, the Automatic Updates feature is enabled on my computer and seems to be working-- at least is seems that way since my version of DirectX and Microsoft's latest are the same. They do have a version of DirectX-- DirectX10 but it specified as being targeted to gamers and so I avoided that one.

As far as capturing DV type 1 versus DV type 2-- no difference. Also, I clicked on the video which I captured in Windows Movie Maker and imported into VS11-- it indicates DV type 2. If I can figure out how to do it on this forum, I will send you a couple of screen shots...

...OK, I don't mean to be dense but I don't see how to attach files (.png) of screenshots to this message.

Thanks so much Ken for being willing to put with my lack of understanding. I look forward to hearing from you again soon and perhaps you have some further suggestions.

Best wishes,

Bobby Howe

[skier-hughes]

You are capturing live video as seen by your camcorder?

I wonder if VS has the same problem with this as it does with analogue capture?

Can you pre-record something to tape and capture that ok?

[Ken Berry]

I am also pretty sure that Windows' automatic updates do not pick up the updates for DirectX. I should perhaps have made it clear that the November 2007 update will not change your version number from the existing 9.0c (which is installed with XP's Service Pack 2). But it most definitely updates it, adds some new features and fixes some 2D and 3D problems which appear to affect Video Studio... (DirectX 10, by the way, is only for Vista...)

I am also now wondering whether you are capturing live from camera (I did not really pick up on that implication in your reference to getting MIC feedback from your camera). Frankly, I have never tried that with a mini DV camera in REC mode, rather than the normal PLAY mode for capturing DV from the already recorded tape.