Elecard Releases World’s First AVCHD to HDV Converter

David Kennett · June 13th, 2007, 02:50 PM

I downloaded the trial, and got choppy playback in a small window of downloaded M2TS files from Pany and Sony. When I press the Convert button, the program crashes.

Not good!

Joseph Nardone · June 18th, 2007, 02:24 PM

I just got the Panasonic HDC-SD1 and dowloaded the elecard converter demo to convert some clips for play on my Avel Linkplayer or in Windows Media Player (so I won't have to play from the camera to my TV). They crashed all but one time and the one successful pass created a 4:3 picture with stereo instead of the 16:9 with 5.1 channels that I started with.

If anyone knows the correct settings or program to do what I want I would sure appreciate some guidance.

Thanks,
Joseph

Larry Pollis · June 19th, 2007, 03:06 AM

I also had the same problem. It didn't crash but I couldn't get a true 16:9. I asked for help but no one answered and it looks like there is very little activity in their forums.
I did try downloading the full ConverterStudio demo and I found that if I set the aspect ratio on the video page to 16:9 I could consistently get a full 16:9 output but the playback was jerky. I had tried to import the video into the Liquid timeline and the result was not nearly as good as what I got from Pinnacle Studio 11!
So, my conclusion is that they're not serious contenders and their support seems to be non-existent. There have been quite a few others reporting the same from around the boards as well. No good news equals a product and company that it out of its league!
Lp

Jamie Allan · June 19th, 2007, 04:04 AM

I've been testing Pana's pro model (Called the HSC1U here) and am just getting into testing all the conversion stuff. Using the Elecard I'm getting quite jittery footage as described by others here - but nothing's crashed yet. Got the mpg into Vegas and exported to a SD DV Avi which looks nice but still jitters on certain movements....Something everyone needs to remember is that AVCHD is pretty new as far as the HD world goes. It's got alot of advantages that just need to be realised by the software developers in order for it to be worth implementing in a serious workflow.

Joseph Nardone · June 19th, 2007, 07:06 AM

I must be missing something - why would I ever want to keep this camera (HDC-SD1) if I can't hear the videos on my home theater, I can't play them in HD on my computer, I can't play them in HD on my media player, and I can't even think about being able to edit them.

Right now, all I can do is play the HD picture to my HD Monitor and listen to the sound coming from the camera.

I need to get out of this mess as cheaply/efficiently as possible. Should I:
buy Nero 7 Ultra to convert the files to mpeg2 HD?
buy a new A/V receiver with HDMI so I can play from the camera?
buy a PS3 to play the raw files from a DVD?

Derek Weiss · June 19th, 2007, 08:05 AM

Don't mess with any software other than Pinnacle Studio Plus to convert your footage. I have used every the others (Nero-Elecard), and Pinnacle works without glitches or errors. It's also cheap, at $99.

Here's my workflow.

Convert AVCHD to MPEG 1900x1080
Then use MPEG file in Vegas to get Cineform AVI.

Until Vegas supports AVCHD from Pany cameras, I will have to continue to edit this way. It works ok, but it's a bit slow. Fortunately, I don't use my SD1 all that much anyway.

Jamie Allan · June 19th, 2007, 08:34 AM

I'll get an eval copy of Pinnacle after broadcast live is done with, you'd think that the Elecard business would be spot on considering it was released specifically aimed at AVCHD users finding it difficult to get their footage in a native format? It's definetly a shame that AVC is having so many problems early on as its gonna be a great step into HD for consumers, just hope theres a universal solution that isnt bugged to high heaven asap!

Derek Weiss · June 19th, 2007, 09:47 AM

I don't think Pinnacle has an eval option, I may be wrong.

Joseph Nardone · June 19th, 2007, 11:37 AM

Hi:
You are correct, there is no pinnacle studio 11 demo available. I am going to go buy a copy now - I assume they sell it at Circuit City - that way I can return the camera and sofware in one trip if the software doesn't work.

June 13th, 2007, 02:50 PM	#16
David Kennett Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: North Ridgeville, Ohio Posts: 407	I downloaded the trial, and got choppy playback in a small window of downloaded M2TS files from Pany and Sony. When I press the Convert button, the program crashes. Not good! __________________ Dave

June 18th, 2007, 02:24 PM	#17
Joseph Nardone New Boot Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 12	same here I just got the Panasonic HDC-SD1 and dowloaded the elecard converter demo to convert some clips for play on my Avel Linkplayer or in Windows Media Player (so I won't have to play from the camera to my TV). They crashed all but one time and the one successful pass created a 4:3 picture with stereo instead of the 16:9 with 5.1 channels that I started with. If anyone knows the correct settings or program to do what I want I would sure appreciate some guidance. Thanks, Joseph

June 19th, 2007, 07:06 AM	#20
Joseph Nardone New Boot Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 12	Why would anyone buy this camera then? I must be missing something - why would I ever want to keep this camera (HDC-SD1) if I can't hear the videos on my home theater, I can't play them in HD on my computer, I can't play them in HD on my media player, and I can't even think about being able to edit them. Right now, all I can do is play the HD picture to my HD Monitor and listen to the sound coming from the camera. I need to get out of this mess as cheaply/efficiently as possible. Should I: buy Nero 7 Ultra to convert the files to mpeg2 HD? buy a new A/V receiver with HDMI so I can play from the camera? buy a PS3 to play the raw files from a DVD?

June 19th, 2007, 11:37 AM	#24
Joseph Nardone New Boot Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 12	no studio 11 evaluation copy available Hi: You are correct, there is no pinnacle studio 11 demo available. I am going to go buy a copy now - I assume they sell it at Circuit City - that way I can return the camera and sofware in one trip if the software doesn't work.

June 19th, 2007, 03:06 AM	#18
Larry Pollis New Boot Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Plano, Texas Posts: 9	I also had the same problem. It didn't crash but I couldn't get a true 16:9. I asked for help but no one answered and it looks like there is very little activity in their forums. I did try downloading the full ConverterStudio demo and I found that if I set the aspect ratio on the video page to 16:9 I could consistently get a full 16:9 output but the playback was jerky. I had tried to import the video into the Liquid timeline and the result was not nearly as good as what I got from Pinnacle Studio 11! So, my conclusion is that they're not serious contenders and their support seems to be non-existent. There have been quite a few others reporting the same from around the boards as well. No good news equals a product and company that it out of its league! Lp

June 19th, 2007, 04:04 AM	#19
Jamie Allan Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Notts, UK Posts: 101	I've been testing Pana's pro model (Called the HSC1U here) and am just getting into testing all the conversion stuff. Using the Elecard I'm getting quite jittery footage as described by others here - but nothing's crashed yet. Got the mpg into Vegas and exported to a SD DV Avi which looks nice but still jitters on certain movements....Something everyone needs to remember is that AVCHD is pretty new as far as the HD world goes. It's got alot of advantages that just need to be realised by the software developers in order for it to be worth implementing in a serious workflow.

June 19th, 2007, 08:05 AM	#21
Derek Weiss Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 214	Don't mess with any software other than Pinnacle Studio Plus to convert your footage. I have used every the others (Nero-Elecard), and Pinnacle works without glitches or errors. It's also cheap, at $99. Here's my workflow. Convert AVCHD to MPEG 1900x1080 Then use MPEG file in Vegas to get Cineform AVI. Until Vegas supports AVCHD from Pany cameras, I will have to continue to edit this way. It works ok, but it's a bit slow. Fortunately, I don't use my SD1 all that much anyway.

June 19th, 2007, 08:34 AM	#22
Jamie Allan Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Notts, UK Posts: 101	I'll get an eval copy of Pinnacle after broadcast live is done with, you'd think that the Elecard business would be spot on considering it was released specifically aimed at AVCHD users finding it difficult to get their footage in a native format? It's definetly a shame that AVC is having so many problems early on as its gonna be a great step into HD for consumers, just hope theres a universal solution that isnt bugged to high heaven asap!

June 19th, 2007, 09:47 AM	#23
Derek Weiss Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 214	I don't think Pinnacle has an eval option, I may be wrong.