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-   -   Capturing 8mm tapes (Video8, Hi8) (https://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/video-capture/5825-capturing-8mm-tapes.html)

TheDrifter363 04-13-2014 05:18 PM

Thanks for the reply. So I just tested out the usb live2 hauppauge that I had earlier that I was planning to return and no dropped frames! Also better yet, there was no noise when the tbc-1000 was hooked up. Everything was pure black with no snow pattern. Something about the easycap is defective, whether its not shielded properly or the soldering is not done properly, I don't know but the hauppauge is better. I can't tell if it's because of the cx23xxx based chipset in the hauppauge or what or it could have a better build quality or both. Either way that easycap is going to be returned, hmm this makes my purchase of av toolbox negligible, I'll probably return that. Any difference between the avt-8710 and the tbc-1000? Also with the hauppauge should I leave the brightness, color, contrast at their default settings? What about sharpness, I've heard its best to put it to 0, right now its at 50 out of 100.

By the way, this makes me want to try out the ati products now, I've heard of the 600 usb but what about the 650 or 750 usb. Are they better in any way, why do you recommend the 600 usb over the others?

volksjager 04-13-2014 06:00 PM

ive never heard anything good about easycaps - they are just plain cheapo crap

the 600usb is known to be very good - some users have had trouble with the 650 and 750's automatic gain control

TheDrifter363 04-14-2014 01:33 AM

3 Attachment(s)
So here's some clips that I wouldn't mind people taking a look at. They're 3 seconds each and I was wondering if it's ok to capture like this. This is my workflow:

Sony CCD-TRV93 >>>S-video>>> TBC-1000 >>>S-Video>>> Hauppauge usb live 2 >>>USB>>> Computer

Sony CCD-TRV93 >>>Stereo Audio>>> Hauppauge usb live 2 >>>USB>>> Computer

The s video cables are the default tbc-1000 ones and the stereo audio cables are ones that I bought, though I can use the tbc-1000 ones if preferred. Here are the settings for the hauppauge.

TheDrifter363 04-15-2014 12:14 AM

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So I began some capturing again and I notice that on occasion I get one inserted frame. I have no idea why this happens and it doesn't happen all the time. Sometimes I get no inserted frames, other times I get at least 1. This is with the tbc-1000. It's upsetting to know the entire 2 hours I spent wasted on one frame. Not only that but I have no idea why. Is it the video cassette or the camcorder or both?

Also on another note, I noticed this strange wavy pattern throughout the cassette. Anyone have any idea what it is? It's pretty distracting and I have no idea if its correctable.

You know I thought this would be relatively simple like capturing video game footage. Ugh it's a lot worse, so much time consuming. A part of me wants to return everything and have someone convert it professionally. This way I don't have to deal with the headache. Anyone have any experiences with the owner of this forum? Maybe this is the wrong place to ask since people here may be biased. Lol. No offense intended; however, it does seem as if people here have years of experience especially lord smurf and kpmedia and that admin person. Maybe they're the ones who offer the service. Who knows.

Anyway appreciate any assistance as always. Thanks again.

DeeSeven 04-15-2014 09:49 AM

honestly it isn't that hard to transfer. The frustrating part comes in when you get the right equipment. You already have a cam plus a TBC it would be foolish to return everything. You have a decent set up you just need to fine tune it. Tapes take time to process as you are playing them back in real time. I can't count the amount of times I've transferrred something only to find out that My audio cable was loose and I have no audio or My video cable was loose and the picture goes in and out in 3 spots on a 80 min tape. Its part of the "fun" ;)... As for your 1 mystery frame, I'm no pro ;) and I could be wrong but I think (key word) it could be the following....

1. The tape is in bad condition/not good shape and it plays back roughly in that spot..could be wrong as you say it happens every now and then

2. Disable/shut down EVERYTHING when capturing...no browser, no antivirus, no nothing. You want your pc to use all its power to transfer that tape

3. This isn't an AD or sponsor but if you sign up for an amazon credit card (no fees no monthly garbage) you get a $30 gift card automatically added to your card. You can EASILY buy a 600usb for free along with some svideo cables or other things you need and never use the amazon card again. Thats how I got my capture card.

TheDrifter363 04-15-2014 05:41 PM

Thanks for the support. I didn't think this would be such a time consuming endeavor. My mentality was to get in and get out, I didn't want to stick around for editing or restoration as I'm not too interested in that. In fact the only editing I've done in my videos is a simple fade out. This is for my youtube videos mind you. It seems as if capturing is half the battle with restoration is the other half and I have no experience with the latter. I wish I knew what were those squiggly lines that I saw during the recording. I posted a picture of it, setting-2.jpg. I don't know if it's from the tape or the camcorder. Some people say it could be faulty heads or something in the camcorder/vhs player but I would like some confirmation from more experienced individuals as I am not certain. If it's the tape then it's something I'll have to live with, but if it's the camcorder then that sucks even more. I'll contact the owner see what I can do.

By the way good luck with your endeavors deeseven.

dpalomaki 04-15-2014 07:21 PM

Capturing is 90% of the battle, and doing what ever sweetening/cleanup of the video and audio you want is the 90% percent <G>. It takes time.

That is, you can spend a lot of time in either phase, or both. Doing it with old second hand gear is a bit of a crap shoot - some is good, some is not, and some is just old and tired. (Panasonic did not have an exclusive on failing caps and aging components).

If this capture is a personal thing for your personal consumption - do what makes you satisfied (which may not he the same as happy).

The squiggle in setting-2. Is that a static squiggle, or does it drift up/down? It looks a bit like it could be a 1000 Hz beat with the sync pulses causing regular pattern of timebase drift.

Is it only in capture video? or can you isolate the point where it is introduced? One way is to view the output of each stage on a analog video monitor (or good TV).

Is the output of the playback unit OK?
Is the output of the playback passed through through the TBC OK?
What do you get if you try capture a live analog analog output from a camcorder (which should be a clean signal w/o artifacts introduced by the tape media & player)?

TheDrifter363 04-15-2014 08:24 PM

1 Attachment(s)
Thanks for the support dpalomaki. I'm uploading a clip to show the wavy lines, ugh they look so annoying. I don't know if it's the tape or the camcorder. The camcorder is old and I don't have much knowledge about its prior use. I thought a TBC was supposed to correct issues like this, then again I have no idea what "this" is.

edit -- Well I just did some testing with that tape. Sure enough the wavy lines are present without the camcorder hooked up to anything. I was watching on the lcd of the ccd-trv93 and the wavy lines were there. I then decided to try on a ccd-trv138, a much more recent model made in 2005 and the wavy lines were still present. This rules out the camcorders as the culprit, must be the tape itself. I guess I'll just have to live with it. What I want to know is why in the hell are those wavy lines there in the first place. They only present themselves in that part of the tape. What was it a bad brand or was it a bad day? It's a maxell hi8 xr metal tape. Looks high quality. Not only that but it was kept in a case for most of its life. The video is from 2000 by the way. Maybe it was a bad capture.

volksjager 04-15-2014 09:19 PM

maxell tapes suck in general, and it may have been made on a poor camcorder

NJRoadfan 04-15-2014 09:52 PM

The wavy video, if it happening every once in awhile, is from the tape sticking while recording. I had it happen with Maxell Hi-8 XR tapes and my Handycam CCD-TRV65. If its constant, its likely a playback problem.

Is it possible for you to encode your samples in HuffYUV? Not everyone here has UT Video installed.

TheDrifter363 04-15-2014 09:55 PM

Thanks for the information njroadfan. I had it occur again in another tape though this time it was only for a second. Though I was skimming through the video. This one was a fujifilm hi8 mp. Both of these videos were recorded with a ccd-trv36 which I believe was manufactured in 1998. So it was bought around that time.

Can you define what you mean by playback problem? I've seen this on two different camcorders and the latter was made in 2005. Not only that but I don't believe it was used as much. Is there any way to correct this anomaly or is this something I have to live with?

Edit: I'll make sure to encode samples in huffyuv. Would you prefer huffyuv or ffvhuff? I can use ffmpeg to convert to either. Whichever's more comfortable. My apologies.


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