Questioning is good. The AVT-8710 is indeed plastic, and it doesn't work well after being on for hours and hours on end. For best performance, turn it off every 6-8 hours, and let it cool down. It's not a pro model aimed at non-stop 24/7 daily studio use, but it works well for most everything else. The model has been discussed in-depth at
http://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/show...33&postcount=5 and includes concerns about heating, etc
Every now and then, the image will checkerboard on you -- or similar erratic behavior, causing an ugly or unstable signal. It doesn't happen during use, but rather between use -- usually on a VCR blue screen or VCR menu. The signals for these screens on VCRs can be erratic, and it seems to interfere with the signal-switching sensibility of the AVT-8710. Just unplug it, and plug it back in -- problem solved. I've never seen it, or seen it reported, that it would do this while filtering a tape.
ImgShack is sometimes slow, and they delete images after a while. For the speed and archive quality of this site, always attach images/etc to the posts. Instructions for this are at
http://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/show...ages-1529.html -- link is at the top of any forum page, one of the 3 notices on all pages. I fixed your above 2 posts.
When it comes to a UPS, be mindful of the wattage it can handle. A computer itself often has a 300-500W power supply. It spikes when the system is first turned on, but actual consumption varies on the gear inside the system (number of hard drives, optical drives, power of graphics card, etc). You can usually guess 50% of a rating (i.e., your 400W supply probably uses 200W most of the time). TV, VCR, etc -- use is written on the back. In the USA, it's there by law. Canada probably has similar laws. Guessing you're in Canada, given the
TigerDirect.ca link. Add up everything you want to plug into it, and then be sure it can pass enough juice. You don't want to overload it. And the more you load it down, the less battery time it has. I use at least 6 large units here -- between 30-60 minutes of power, depending on what's turned on. The better units kamikaze themselves, to save your attached gear -- cheap ones pass the zaps!
If you do order from
TigerDirect.ca -- or any number of places -- please support this site by using our referral links. Prices are the same for you, but the company shares a tiny sliver of the profit with us --
http://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/show...-com-1528.html -- and this link is also found at the top of any forum page, being another of the Notices.
Don't use a distribution amp, no, degrades signal.
A 2-3 foot s-video cable is best, try to not go longer. Any cable honestly works for s-video, even the cheap ones. if the signal looks degraded AT ALL, throw the wire in the trash, and get another one. Even if it just does it "sometimes", trash the bad wire. You do run across bad wires, and they do break down with age.
PAL and SECAM are video formats (for tapes) used outside the USA. If you had a British tape, for example, you'd need a PAL VCR.
I'd still put a mixer ahead of an attenuator, in terms of usefulness. As with anything else, you should do what looks/sounds best. I don't believe in dogma, I believe in quality.
First group of attached images shows soft video -- or an image of a video that was made soft by whatever tool you used to make a screen cap. I suggest using VirtualDub for the best screen caps. Using the
VirtualDub MPEG+filters version found on this site, you can load your MPEG (or most other) files, and then go to VIDEO and "copy source frame to clipboard". Paste in any graphics program, save as a good 24-bit PNG or high quality JPEG. Paint works, but I prefer Photoshop or something more advanced with Paint. But you use the tools you have, right?
I removed the the torrent link, since it's meant to stay private. We've got it, thanks. Will download torrent in a bit.
The above videos in that second post are really dark, but a proc amp and detail will help. Further work can be done in Virtual, either with levels + hue/sat, or a mix of deinterlacing (Yadif) + colormill. Maybe some Median, if needed.