Video Capture at DVinfo.net

John Danowski · April 5th, 2007, 11:45 AM

Here's my situation:

I've got a bunch of old 8mm tapes that contain video I want to digitize. I've also got an old analog camcorder that, by chance, somebody was throwing away. Now, the camcorder is a Canon ES20V, and it works perfectly fine. The reason it was getting thrown away was because the A/V feed wasn't working. I figured out the reason to this and fixed it: The ribbon cable that went from the red, white, and yellow slots (RCA) was detached from the other chip it was supposed to go in to.

So, I know that it works perfectly now because I am able to jack it into a TV and watch the clips on that, even record them to VHS. But of course, that's not what I want! I want to digitize it!

This is where it gets complicated: My PC is a Velocity Micro PROMAGIX E1200. It runs on Windows Vista Ultimate Edition (32 bit), has an Intel Core 2 Duo Processor , and 2030 MB of RAM. To hook my analog camcorder to my PC, I removed a ViXS PureTV card from one of my other PC's, then installed it in this one. So far, so good. The card works perfectly. When I hook the camcorder in, I can easily get either a live feed or I can view the content on my PC screen as it plays on the camcorder. This all happens within Sony Vegas 7.0a. Any other programs don't seem able to detect the video feed.

Now, the problem occurs. Whenever I try to record the video, wether a live feed or playback, the display goes blank until I hit "Stop," then I get a message saying that "No video was recorded."
What, exactly, is going on, and HOW CAN I FIX IT?!!!

PS. Sorry for the long post. Just wanted to give an accurate description.

Edward Troxel · April 5th, 2007, 12:10 PM

First of all, the camera should be connected via firewire. Then you should make sure to turn off "Device Control" in the preferences.

John Danowski · April 5th, 2007, 12:24 PM

It's an older camera, and doesn't use firewire. Only RCA (Red, yellow, and white jacks).

John Danowski · April 5th, 2007, 12:35 PM

Also, where is "Device Control" located? I can't find it.

Stuart Campbell · April 5th, 2007, 01:03 PM

Are you able to get your hands on an A/D box to convert your analogue signal to firewire? I'm sure this would be a much better option for you if not to just help you locate the error.

Edward Troxel · April 5th, 2007, 01:35 PM

After you open VidCap, go to Options - Preferences.

You're really going to be better off getting a convertor that will go from analog to firewire.

April 5th, 2007, 11:45 AM	#1
John Danowski Tourist Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Washington DC Posts: 4	Video Capture Here's my situation: I've got a bunch of old 8mm tapes that contain video I want to digitize. I've also got an old analog camcorder that, by chance, somebody was throwing away. Now, the camcorder is a Canon ES20V, and it works perfectly fine. The reason it was getting thrown away was because the A/V feed wasn't working. I figured out the reason to this and fixed it: The ribbon cable that went from the red, white, and yellow slots (RCA) was detached from the other chip it was supposed to go in to. So, I know that it works perfectly now because I am able to jack it into a TV and watch the clips on that, even record them to VHS. But of course, that's not what I want! I want to digitize it! This is where it gets complicated: My PC is a Velocity Micro PROMAGIX E1200. It runs on Windows Vista Ultimate Edition (32 bit), has an Intel Core 2 Duo Processor , and 2030 MB of RAM. To hook my analog camcorder to my PC, I removed a ViXS PureTV card from one of my other PC's, then installed it in this one. So far, so good. The card works perfectly. When I hook the camcorder in, I can easily get either a live feed or I can view the content on my PC screen as it plays on the camcorder. This all happens within Sony Vegas 7.0a. Any other programs don't seem able to detect the video feed. Now, the problem occurs. Whenever I try to record the video, wether a live feed or playback, the display goes blank until I hit "Stop," then I get a message saying that "No video was recorded." What, exactly, is going on, and HOW CAN I FIX IT?!!! PS. Sorry for the long post. Just wanted to give an accurate description.

April 5th, 2007, 12:10 PM	#2
Edward Troxel Sponsor: JET DV Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Southern Illinois Posts: 7,953	First of all, the camera should be connected via firewire. Then you should make sure to turn off "Device Control" in the preferences. __________________ Edward Troxel [SCVU] JETDV Scripts/Scripting Tutorials/Excalibur/Montage Magic/Newsletters

April 5th, 2007, 01:35 PM	#6
Edward Troxel Sponsor: JET DV Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Southern Illinois Posts: 7,953	After you open VidCap, go to Options - Preferences. You're really going to be better off getting a convertor that will go from analog to firewire. __________________ Edward Troxel [SCVU] JETDV Scripts/Scripting Tutorials/Excalibur/Montage Magic/Newsletters

April 5th, 2007, 12:24 PM	#3
John Danowski Tourist Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Washington DC Posts: 4	It's an older camera, and doesn't use firewire. Only RCA (Red, yellow, and white jacks).

April 5th, 2007, 12:35 PM	#4
John Danowski Tourist Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Washington DC Posts: 4	Also, where is "Device Control" located? I can't find it.

April 5th, 2007, 01:03 PM	#5
Stuart Campbell Major Player Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Hannover, Germany Posts: 400	Are you able to get your hands on an A/D box to convert your analogue signal to firewire? I'm sure this would be a much better option for you if not to just help you locate the error.