Usign unexpensive camera as tape deck

V

vovka

Active member
Many times on this forum popup quetion about using unexpensive camera as tape deck, here is little warning to that.

Tape capture was done with exacly same settings, pull down from PA in Vegas, I just unplug one camera and plug other and repeat capture.

Panasonic dvx100
pan_c.jpg


JVC DVF21U
jvc_c.jpg


I also did Sony DCRHC20 and Sharp VL-Z5U
Sorry no image caspture on those, i don't have them in time i decide to make this post. But capture from Sharp was produce very visible video noise.
On capture from Sony i didn't see any visual differences.

Panasonic mini dv deck, offcurse no difference.


Quality of play back is depend on progressive/nonprogressive cam, speed/ qualty of chip that decode signal. and luck in how cam was build.
Propobly best is buy and try.
 
Re: Usign unexpensive camera as tape deck

Hey Vovka,

Two things. First, what you're seeing is the interlaced frame that happens every 5 frames in 24PA mode. There's nothing wrong with your capture. Single-frame step-by-step through your footage and you'll see that those interlace frames are in both.

Second, for firewire capture, there can't be any video noise or other attributes added to the video signal. You can use the cheapest DV camera or the most expensive deck, and the firewire capture will be identical. You may see added video noise when you use a cheap camera to play back the footage through the composite or s-video port, but the firewire signal will be unaffected.
 
Re: Usign unexpensive camera as tape deck

My first tought was, i screw up some where, but I did many tests with DVx and others cam's and result was different.
In theory signal should be excacly same, but it's not.
When I test, i was sure , that all setting on computer excacly same, and I was using firewire connection, not svhs or other.
Hardware :
PC dual Optron 848, 4 Gbt ECC DDR 2300, HD RAID SATA 500Gbt, Firewire card ADS, Video GeForce Quadro FX.
Software : Win XP Pro, Vegas 5, options "allow pulldown removalwhen opening 24p DV " - enabled on all tests.
And it did leave artifacs on capturing.
When I do look at each frame in DVX capture, no interlaced frames there.

Any other sugetions, why it's happen?
 
Re: Usign unexpensive camera as tape deck

Okay, here's a possibility: you're capturing the SAME tape, right? And you're capturing into Vegas, right?

Set up a batch capture of a clip, and capture it on the DVX. Then unplug the DVX, plug in the other camera, put the same tape in the other camera, and then re-capture that same clip.

Then import both clips into Vegas, into a 24P project with "allow pulldown removal" checked. Then get properties on both clips. Both of them should say "24P (removing 2-3 pulldown)". The DVX clip most definitely should say that. If the other clip DOESN'T, if instead it says "29.97 fps", then you have the answer there: the camera is stripping out the 24P flags, which is something that the JVC VR10 deck does (or whatever that deck's called).
 
Re: Usign unexpensive camera as tape deck

It is camera stripping out, this is what about original post was :)
Not all cheap cameras will work as deck.
Thank you Barry for helping.
 
Re: Usign unexpensive camera as tape deck

That's the thing -- if the camera is stripping out the bits, you should report that to the Sony Vegas guys. So far, as far as I know, only one DV device has been found that does that. Looks like you might be unfortunate enough to have found another.

And yes, that would mean exactly what you say: not all cheap cameras will work as a deck (for 24P material).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top