Problem with quality

EriCartman13 · Post by **EriCartman13** » Fri May 30, 2008 8:57 pm

I am capturing video through a mini dvd cam and through avi. It looks really good until I put it in the time line and play it. Like if I play it after I captured it it looks great but when I do continuous play on it, it gets brighter and way more fuzzy. It is really bothering me, so all help is appreciated.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Fri May 30, 2008 9:43 pm

Welcome to the forums.

I am sorry, though, since it is not exactly clear to me what you are doing... Are you talking about two separate things: capture from a mini DVD camera, and separately, from another source, in AVI format? Or are you capturing from a mini DVD camera using the AVI format?

If it is the latter, then that is the problem. In effect, you should be using the 'Insert DVD/DVD-VR' command and follow the prompts. This will present a tree structure of what is on the mini DVD. You select what video you want, you tick the little box to the left of each chapter you want to import, and press OK. That will then import the content of the mini DVD in its native mpeg-2 format.

If this is not what you are doing, we require a more detailed description of your exact steps.

It would also be very useful if you would fill in your computer specifications, operating system and version of VS you are using, in the Profile button above. Otherwise, people might begin to suspect you don't have a computer at all!!

EriCartman13 · Post by **EriCartman13** » Fri May 30, 2008 9:48 pm

I have a pinnacle capturing device. I am capturing the video in realtime. I am capturing it in AVI. When I tried to import it through the usb it was taking forever to do it, and I didn't have that kind of time. It looks great after it is imported, but once I put it into the timeline and play it from there it looks like crap. So it looks good played through windows media player and all that jazz, but when it is played in the timeline continuously it gets way brighter and more fuzzy.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Fri May 30, 2008 10:50 pm

When using the USB connection, did you use the 'Insert DVD/DVD-VR' command as I suggested? If so, that should have (normally) taken far less time than the real time capture via Pinnacle. If the Pinnacle is one which uses RCA cables (yellow, red and white or black cables), then it is meant for capturing analogue video, not digital video (which is what you camera uses). And analogue video quality is at best only going to be like a VHS tape played on a VCR. So that could explain the poor quality.

Can you right click on one of the AVI files please, and copy ALL its Properties here, please. That way we will at least be clear about what format we are talking about... I suspect you may, in addition to using the Pinnacle device, be capturing to one of the highly compressed mpeg-4 type formats like DivX or XVid which call themselves .avi. However, there are over 800 formats which also use that extension, so we need to know what we are dealing with here.

Finally, Pinnacle is a company which makes hardware devices such as yours, but usually they will only work properly with the software which came with them which is made by ... ta dah! ... Pinnacle. Did you install that software, or are you capturing direct with VS?

And thanks for filling in some of your system details.

EriCartman13 · Post by **EriCartman13** » Sat May 31, 2008 12:12 am

When I try and connect the usb with the camera and try that insert dvd/dvd-vr comman, it only lets me import a a dvd folder, and it just won't work. That is why I didn't do that. Your help is appreciated.

Also the video quality isn't poor after I capture it, just when I put it in the timeline and play it. To tell you the truth it looks great before it.

DVDDoug · Post by **DVDDoug** » Sat May 31, 2008 1:30 am

You shouldn't need the Pinnacle USB device.* (I assume this an analog capture device.) Just take the mini-DVD out of the camera, stick it in your computer's DVD-drive, and Import the files.

Depending on what you are trying to accomplish, and depending on how much editing you are doing, you may be able to complete your project without altering the digital video data at all! When you Import a DVD into Video Studio, the video-data isn't altered. It's just "repackaged" into an MPEG file. (Take a look at this post.)

* You don't actually need to "capture" at all... You need to transfer the digital data. Most people do call it "capture", but I don't like using that word for a digital-data transfer. You capture when you need to record a real-time video stream such as a (analog or digital) broadcast.

EriCartman13 · Post by **EriCartman13** » Sat May 31, 2008 4:37 pm

Yea but when I put the mini dvd into my dvd drive it says its a blank cd, when I know it isn't. Then when I try to do the dvd import on video studio it won't let me import, just import dvd folder. I see exactly what you are saying, but I couldn't do it that is why I did the capture device.

Solution- I figured out how to do it. You had to finalize the mini dvd.

Thanks for everything guys.