Capturing vhs tapes to pc with sony dv cam

[AMCross]

hi there

newbie when it comes to pc editing

have loads of dv tapes captured on sony PC110E and can get them onto pc using roxio/nero etc and they seem to be avi files

i have 4 vhs tapes that i want on my pc to edit i can capture these but they appear as mpeq files using a capture card pvr 150mce device

is that good enough to retain what quality there is on those tapes ?

i seem to recall using my new camcorder a few years ago and digitised the hi 8 tapes onto dv tapes

can i do this also from vhs to blank dv tape in the camera ?


when i try to use the digital conversion in the camera the software rewinds the tape on the camcorder and when i press play on the vhs deck it does not capture anything on the software preview screen

the vhs deck has a video/sound out to av link sony cable IN and then firewire from camcorder to pc


AND Vista is a pain getting these programs to work properly

Nero freezes during capture

Roxio have not updated since oct 06 and i cannot get the roxio DLA files to see my dvdrw

[MarkE19]

Originally Posted by AMCross

i have 4 vhs tapes that i want on my pc to edit i can capture these but they appear as mpeq files using a capture card pvr 150mce device

is that good enough to retain what quality there is on those tapes ?

Possibly - try and see what you think. VHS is not great to start with so a lower quality capture may not be noticeable, or may make it unwatchable if too bad.

Originally Posted by AMCross

i seem to recall using my new camcorder a few years ago and digitised the hi 8 tapes onto dv tapes

can i do this also from vhs to blank dv tape in the camera ?

Yes, it should be exactly the same as from the Hi8 camcorder but just using a VHS player instead. Or just copy direct to the PC without recording to DV tape, unless you require the digital master.

Originally Posted by AMCross

when i try to use the digital conversion in the camera the software rewinds the tape on the camcorder and when i press play on the vhs deck it does not capture anything on the software preview screen

Remove the tape from cam if capturing to PC. From the capture settings in the software on the PC you need to disable device control. Press play on VCR and record on the PC and away you (should ) go.

Good luck,
Mark.

[AMCross]

cheers mark

i'll try that right now

i want to keep a master just incase

[AMCross]

Mark

as you seem quiet knowledgeable can you answer this for me

Capturing a dv tape its best to sue AVI dv Correct ?

But the vhs is mpeg2 Can these both be edited with revelant programs ok ?


And whats the best in your opinion Roxio Sony Nero Pinnicale

thanks adrian

[MarkE19]

Originally Posted by AMCross

Mark

as you seem quiet knowledgeable can you answer this for me

Capturing a dv tape its best to sue AVI dv Correct ?

DV .AVI is the best capture format if you intend to do much editing as the format is uncompressed. Most editing software is mainly designed to work with it, but many of the newer versions of the popular programs are getting better with the compressed MPEG-2 format.

Originally Posted by AMCross

But the vhs is mpeg2 Can these both be edited with revelant programs ok ?

It is all down to the capabilities and settings in the software used. If using the camcorder as the analogue to digital converter then you can use any of the editing suites and capture to .AVI if required.
MPEG-2 being compressed is more difficault for the software to work with. But as already stated the programs are handling it better as it becomes a more popular format due to DVD & HDD cams that record in MPEG-2.

Originally Posted by AMCross

And whats the best in your opinion Roxio Sony Nero Pinnicale

thanks adrian

It's really all down to choice. Try the demos of the software to see what you like the workflow of best. Programs such as Nero tend to be 'jack of all trades' rather than dedicated editing programs and therefore often have reduced features.
Pinnacle Studio is a great full featured program, but unstable on many PC's for no obvious reason. But on some it tends to hardly ever miss a beat and works well with a good user interface.
Ulead Video Studio is not liked by many as is said to have a poor/dated user interface.
Adobe Premiere Elements seems to be very popular, as does Sony Vegus Studio.
I've never had any experience of Roxio so can't comment on it really.

There are many other programs around that I'm sure others will recommend. A bit of searching around this forum should bring up loads of comments on all the programs along with links for trial downloads and their dedicated user forum.

Mark.