Hi. I am trying to archive my family's collection of VHS home videos (mainly from the 1980's). I am committed to doing the absolute best job possible to retain/enhance their quality as they are deteriorating over time. I am set up pretty well thanks to advice found primarily on this site. I have a Dell, a JVC HR-S9911U, and a ATI 9800 All In Wonder Pro video card. I'm getting the basics of capture down, started out using the Pinnacle Studio 8 software (it came bundled with my ATI card) for capture, editing and authoring. I started having problems with Studio and learned to use my ATI MMC software to capture instead. I'm using the HuffyUV codec and getting good results. Problem is, I can't load the resulting avi file back into Studio for editing. Incompatible codec issue. So, the tech at Pinnacle told me to download and use a Pinnacle program called TREX to convert the avi file into another type of avi that Studio can load and work with. He said there would be no loss of quality, but when I used GSpot software to look at the resulting avi (after conversion with TREX), it is another codec altogether (called dvsd or DVC/DV Video), plus the file size is cut in half! So there must clearly be loss in quality, right? So my question is, does it make any sense to do this conversion and edit in Studio (which I put some money into to update to Version 9, etc. etc.), or should I be using another editing software so I don't have to mess with my capture file first? If so, what would you recommend? Money is a major issue, so low cost or free would be best, but I don't want to sacrifice quality either.

Wow. The idiocy of Pinnacle tech support never ceases to amaze me. Even somebody brand new quickly learns that "converting" a file is often detrimental to quality. Every conversion is one step away from the original. Especially when compression is introduced. I'm dumbfounded that they would say that...

The sad truth about Pinnacle products is they don't work right, and they are poorly supported. I mean seriously poorly supposed, an F- grade. They always release buggy products (with the exception of a couple mega-bucks professional tools) and never seem to fix the flaws. Customer support is also ... out there.

I hate to simply tell you to dump it, after you spent money on it, but that would probably be the best solution. The words "Pinnacle" and "problem" seem to go hand-in-hand.

.
.

You have a nice VCR. You have a nice capture card. You are using a great codec. I also use MJPEG and uncompressed AVI quite a bit too. While using one of those may alleviate this Studio 9 issue, the odds of you defeating one problem just to face another is very likely (sound sync issues, crashing software, etc).

.
.

Advising you on an editing program depends mostly on what you want to do:
- Budget is one factor.
- The next factor is do you plan to always work in 720x480 files?
- Are you exporting these directly to MPEG-2 files from the editor? For burning to DVD.

.
.

ADOBE PREMIERE

I use Adobe Premiere 6.5
The current version is Adobe Premiere Pro 1.5
They also make Adobe Premiere Elements 1.0

Premiere 6.5 is fine, and comes with an excellent MPEG Encoder. The PRO has lots of extras most people never use, and it costs a lot more. The Elements version only works with 720x480 video.

If really the full version (not pirated fakes), these are a steal:
- http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=185&i tem=3963131971
- http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=41877 &item=7140998577

.
.

Another freebie that exists is Avid Free DV. A stripped version of AVID Xpress DV. I have not worked with it much to date, so not sure how cooperative it is with exporting to MPEG encoders. It is also limited in the kind of input (mostly DV AVI, 720x480).

.
.

Another issue is do you really need an editor? Or at least an NLE of this caliber. Are you simply transferring the tapes, and maybe clipping out unwanted footage? Or are you adding effects and transitions, and doing all kinds of fancy things to the video? More than digital scissors and paste (cut, splice).

You may not even need an editor like that. We can work on getting a much different (much cheaper) solution for you.

So ... what is the full plan for these videos, what other software have you got, after Pinnacle Studio .. what do you do next (or want to do next)?


.
.

Get back to me on the many above questions...
Let me know if any of this helps, more questions, etc...

Thanks for all the info. I have been waiting for my tax refund, and I'm now ready to purchase Adobe Premiere 6.5. I think I do need an editor like Adobe because I plan on adding transitions and effects, menus, etc. So, I've been doing some online window browsing, and I'm a little confused. I found a couple of 6.5's on Amazon for about $230, but one was an educational version. There is one on ebay (item #3970065643) for a really good price, but I'm a little nervous that I might be getting cheated somehow. I have only one shot at this - I don't have the funds to buy something else if I get the wrong thing. What do you think? Sorry I don't have a link to the ebay listing. I tried to post a hyperlink in this message, but it wouldn't work for some reason.

It looks like you won that auction, and the price was good. Really good.

Random thought: It's odd how you have a positive feedback on eBay, but it still shows you as having (0) feedback. Weird.

Now, you'll want to locate a good book to go with it, though I'd not necessarily suggest the Adobe manual. Go to the local computer store or book store and find a book for Premiere, one that you like. It's usually massive, very thick. Maybe get a "for dummies" quickie companion to go with it.

Be sure to update the MPEG encoder after you install Premiere. This is a free update: http://www.mainconcept.com/adobempeg.../AdobeMPEGEnco der1.3EngBeta.exe. It's really hidden, most people don't know about it. This page has more info: http://www.mainconcept.com/adobempeg/downloads.html

You will probably also want to visit http://www.wrigleyvideo.com/videotut...premiere65.htm for advanced Premiere tutorials:

There are also some free Adobe forums located here:
http://www.adobeforums.com/cgi-bin/webx?14@@.1de544a8

Feel free to ask me any of the basics, help you get started. I know them decently, and have in fact covered them in this support forum before, see some of the past posts in the EDITING section.

I went ahead and bought the software. I think I did the right thing. The seller had a really good rep.

Thanks for the advice on updates and getting a manual. I'm sure I'll make use of the online tutorial and the old posts on this site you mentioned. I really appreciate the quality advice you've offered.

I probably won't have the software up and running for a couple of weeks since I had to use BidPay for payment and it takes some time for them to get the $$ to the seller. Anyway, thanks so much for all your help. I'm sure I'll be back in touch in a few weeks.

Oh, and I'll have to check out that ebay thing . . .
Weird.