Capture Cards : best bang for the buck?

[Darth Mandarb]

Alright ... I'm calling on anybody in AGS land who has knowledge about video capture cards to please lend me you expertise!

The Story ...
I found a treasure trove of videos in my parent's attic (top of the house, below the roof).Ã,  They're some of our family vacations, christmases, holidays, family gatherings, etc.Ã,  The problem is, they're all on VHS and they are showing signs of ageing ...Ã,  I asked around to see about getting them transferred to DVD at a few local video shops and they ALL charge an arm and a leg.Ã,  I want (NEED) to save these priceless memories!!

Well this got me thinking ... I've, for years, been wanting to get back into DVD production (did some a few years ago).Ã,  So ... I'm going to build a little video editing studio for myself.Ã,  I'm (sort of) on a limited budget so I want to get stuff that will function on my current PC rather than get a new machine.

The Questions...
1) Do any of you know what capture card is the best bang for the buck?
I want a good one, but don't want to overspend.Ã,  I know very little about this subject.Ã,  So I don't even really know what to look for.

Some (of the many) I checked out:
DVR Supply - These seemed like maybe a little more than I would need?
Dazzle Fusion - sounds pretty good to me?Ã,  But how is it so much cheaper?
Pinicle Liquid Edition Pro 5.5 - I have no clue?!?

I just get confused because there seems to be an unending number of these things.

Any recommendations?Ã,  I'd like to get the best card available at the lowest cost.Ã,  I don't need anything really fancy.

I'm inclined to think that Dazzle Fusion might be the way to go?

2) What's the best DVD authoring software?
Again, best bang for the buck.Ã,  Ã, I want these features; video menues, sound in menues, Over effects on menu selections, chapter markers, basically I want the works!

Here're a few I checked out:
ULead DVD Moviemaker - seems like a cheapy to me?
ULead DVD Workshop - is it that much better?
SonicMyDVD - seems like a good one to me?

Anybody know any other good ones?Ã,  This again ... there are so many options I just get lost in not knowing which to get.

Thanks for any and all help guys & gals.

~ d

[LGM]

Anything by Pinnacle is usually top quality. Dazzles are cheaper ($69-$100,) but the lower price shows in the quality of the video you import from an analog source.

I'd say go with Pinnacle for the capture card.

As far as DVD authoring, I wouldn't know. But I hear good things about Ulead. Their Video editor is pretty nice. Very consumer focused, so it should be easy to use. Anything more expensive than $150 probably isn't worth it.

I suggest looking around at www.videomaker.com and look around for reviews of devices and software, or even ask around in the forums (if you want.) Or check out consumer guides, and use good ol' Google always.

Good luck!

[DGMacphee]

Aye, go with Pinnacle. I consider them top-o-the-line.

As for software, I've got both MyDVD and DVD Workshop, and I found MyDVD to be very buggy. The Ulead range seems the way to go for that kind of thing (basic DVD compilations). However, if you're really serious about video editing and DVD authoring, I once again recommend the Pinnacle range. I found Pinnacle Studio way better for customising menus and so forth than either MyDVD or DVD Workshop. Prices for the different packages range from $99 (basic Studio) to $199 (Deluxe).

Also, a word of caution: no matter what software you use, be ready to have your PC out of action for a while, because all software needs to convert your video format into DVD format and thus suck up a lot of system resources. It takes a while when you're converting a 1-2 hr home movie

[Darth Mandarb]

Thanks for the advice guys!

I checked out Pinnacle Systems and came across this:
- Studio MovieBox Deluxe v9.0
The price is reasonable AND it seems to do everything I need all in one package, which I like.Ã,  DG, was this what you meant?Ã,  It really seems like a good deal.

And man do I remember how long converting video takes!Ã,  I was considering hooking up one of my older computers (just needs new ram) and making it a 'render' box (not sure if that's the term for video editing).

Thanks again.

[LGM]

Yes.. All-in-one packages are pretty good for the work you want to do. Pinnacle is great, so you shouldn't have any troubles.

Best of luck to ya!

[DG from Uni]

Yeap, that's the software I was talking about. From the looks of the packe age, it comes with hardware too.

[shbaz]

I know nothing, but DVD menu progs were discussed at an old elYsiun thread, click here.

Noble effort too, I should probably do that with all of my parents old beta films.

[Darth Mandarb]

Shbaz - The last post in that topic was from almost a year ago ... but thanks for finding it and passing it on, I appreciate the effort.Ã,  I actually learned a thing or two from reading it!Ã,  I just wanted some fresher opinions

I have found two versions of this package.Ã,  Theres, Pinnacle Moviebox Studio v9 and the Deluxe version.Ã,  The Deluxe version is $50.00 more, has a different moviebox (the hardware for capturing video), and also comes with a 1394 (Firewire) connection.

I'll probably just go with the Deluxe ... the moviebox technical specs say it can capture MPEG-2 ... does this mean I wouldn't have to do the conversions?Ã,  Now that would be cool!Ã,  It also comes with a bonus DVD with extra sound effects and transitions.

I used to work with this guy a few years ago, and we still keep in touch, and he does video editing, DVD authoring and the like.Ã,  He actually gave a thumbs up to Pinnacle.Ã,  He doesn't use it (he's got multi-thousands of dollars worth of equipment now) but he said it's very functional for the price.

Thanks for all the help guys!Ã,  I'm going to phone Pinnacle tomorrow and pick their brains about a few things, but I think that's the one for me!

[DG from Uni]

[edmundito]

If you have a digital video camera with a firewire output, then you should just get a cheap $30 Belkiin firewire from wal-mart or something like that.

If you don't, then I'd say you get the Dazzle dongle thing.

[Darth Mandarb]

DGM - That's funny!Ã,  Forgive my ignorance, but is that a Simpson's thing?Ã,  (the drawing looks simpson-esque).Ã,  I'm afraid I don't watch them much. :-/

Netmonkey - I don't have a DV camera at present.Ã,  I think I'm going to go with the Deluxe Pinnacle system because I need everything it has and it'll cost me less (in the long run) then buying all different pieces seperately.

Once I have made some videos/movies/etc.Ã,  I'm going to, of course, ask many of you in the AGS community to watch them ...

You've been warned

[DGMacphee]

Yup, it's a Simpson thing. It's Radioactive Man. It was from an episode where Bart, Milhouse, and Martin bought issue #1 of Radioactive Man, and it ended up destroying their friendship. The comic was then struck by lightning and they became friends again. That torn piece was the last thing you saw in the episode.