Camcorder Recorder?

[wickedstyle]

Hey if I put this on the wrong forum you can move it, Well the thing is my friend said he uploaded all of his old movies from his camcorder to his computer??? So he said he bought a Dazzle Recorder?? Is right??? I have a 3yr old Panasonic Camcorder would I be able to do this also if I buy this hardware? Plz help me I got a wedding coming up and this would really be great if I can hold my recordings into my computer so that I can have memories.
Has anybody used this hardware or any other type of hardware like this. Does it work real well on my computer?

[piccolo0u812]

I have a Dazzle DVC (digital video creator). It's external, usb 1, and hooks up to a vcr or camcorder with composite wires. I've used it to record vhs to the computer as an mpeg file. I'm not exactly pleased with the program it uses. Half the time I can't watch the video unless I'm recording (when I record, then stop it, it fixes the problem, but initially I see nothing). I've also had a hard time with it being stable. All in all, it wasn't worth what I paid for it three years ago, but you can get something a whole lot better today for half the money. My experience with Dazzle is that their support sucks. But they are the only experience I've had. It is great to rip video to the pc, but make sure your pc has the muscle to make it less of a chore (I started on a a 500 MHz with 128 MB RAM, OUCH!). Lots of hard drive is a must too. One hour of high quality mpeg can be about 1 Gig. Video cds are good to make if you can find a dvd that will play them. Video cd is just an mpeg video in a very specific format. Hope it helps.

[wickedstyle]

Thx alot piccolo0u812 anybody else have these type of problems or any successful videos and is there something better than a Dazzle??

[TwoRails]

Hi wickedstyle,

There are several ways of doing it. Your sig sez you have enough power for capture and editing.

Basically all you need is a capture card. Seems like your going with tape, so you'll need an analog capture card. Firewire is all you need for DV capture.

Next is the software. You need 3 basic categories, but they are often combined: 1) capture software, 2) editing software, 3) burning software.

Many capture boards have all three. It really depends on if they have all the features you want.

Once you have captured the video, you then edit it to remove all those shots of you feet and the like, give "transitions," and add music, etc...

Once your "movie" is what you want, then you "burn" it to either CD or DVD. Not all editing software will do this, but many will. Even if they do, they are not always as good at it as standalone burning / authoring software is.

Depending on your budget, all this could be reasonable cheap, or cost thousands of dollars.

HTH

TwoRails

[wickedstyle]

Thx for the response TwoRails,
I dont think my camcorder doesnt have a firewire on it?? From what Ive seen it has a plug which shows Yellow-for video and Red-for audio and those 2 plugs connect to a Capture hardware. I was reading over some and say about the Pinnacle, or Dazzle hardware.

[TwoRails]

Hi wickedstyle,

Yes, Pinnacle and Dazzle are just two options. You may also want to concider something like an ATI All In Wonder. That way a separate card is not required and you'll still have quality capture and decent game play.

When I got my last "capture" card, the GF 3's were hot, so I got the Asus 8200 Deluxe which is a good game card and captures analog well, too. But, it didn't come with any editing or burning software, which was OK as I already had that.

Take a look around and see which option has the features you want, and the software you want if you don't want to buy separate packages.

HTH

TwoRails

PS: Yes, you camcorder is mono analog.

[wickedstyle]

Oh ok thx so much TwoRails Im going to look around and see what harware to buy. Most likely Ill go with a Pinnacle or Dazzle by any chance do you know which would be a good one by Pinnacle or Dazzle?? If not Thx for all the help TwoRails and you have given me some good info on what I need to know thx so much.

[TwoRails]

HI wickedstyle,

Pinnacle products seem to be popular in this Forum although I've never used one. Dazzle has received OK reviews in the few articles I've read on them. Naturally, both have low end and higher end products to chose from.

Myself, I'm heavily considering the ATI All In Wonder 9700 Pro... It would be, if I went that way, my first non-nVidia card in many years.

HTH

TwoRails