DV 720x480 to Standard TV resolution?

Simmer wrote on 6/11/2002, 12:33 PM

Hi all

I'm still kinda new to the DV thing and am wondering if someone would be able to answer this question that I've been wondering about for some time now.

I've captured a video (via a standard analog Camcorder, Dazzle Hollywood Bridge and 1394 PCI and VideoFactory 2.0c).
Edited the video to the point where I think it is ready to produce and then, using Make Movie, produce the movie to a file on my HD using the default template of DV-NTSC at 720x480.

I then use the Capture capability of VideoFactory to output the movie to a standard VCR via the Dazzle Hollywood bridge.

My questions:
1) Since TV's support far less then 720x480 resolution, how does this affect the picture when viewed on the TV (since the movie was 720x480 from the file on the HD)?
2) Since my capture was originally from an analog camcorder (or VCR), will I loose quality in the capture, Edit, back-out-to-VCR process (I'm wondering if things will look 'second-generation'.

The reason for my question is that I'm doing this and I'm noticing that, although the final product on the VCR looks OK, it dosn't seem to be as good a quality as the original from the Camcorder.

Thanks all

-Mike

Comments

Former user wrote on 6/11/2002, 12:47 PM

Anytime there is a conversion, either between analog and digital or digital formats (avi to mpeg, etc) there is some loss of quality. How much depends on the quality of the hardware and amount of conversions. Thus is the nature of television.

Not only are you losing some quality by converting from analog to digital and then from digital to analog, you are also recording on an analog VCR (probably VHS) which is by nature, low quality video.

The only way to retain the original quality is to keep everything in a digital domain, from source to final viewing.

Dave T2

JimClark wrote on 6/11/2002, 10:31 PM

I am going to be do ing much the same thing capturing from an analog camera. Would the quality be better if the movie was output to a VCD or SVCD than a video tape?

Also would the quality of the capture improve if the orig 8mm tape were played on a digital video camera rather than an analog one?
Thanks
Jim clark

kcarroll wrote on 6/12/2002, 6:49 AM

In my application, the majority of my source video comes off of 8mm analog tapes. I then produce to either VCD or regular VHS tape for distribution. It has been my experience that it is a rare piece of 8mm tape that merits using the SVCD format. Most simply do not have the native resolution to justify it.

I have noted that while the conversion hardware cannot make the digital stream "better than the original", it can certainly make it worse. Most of the digital camcorders that have the capability to play 8mm analog tapes are "better grade" cameras, and as a consequence, their conversions to digital are pretty good. I use a Canopus ADVC-100 stand-alone converter, and I consider it to be one of my better investments; but if you already have a camcorder with analog read and pass-through conversion capability, something like the ADVC-100 would probably be redundant spending.

Just a side note on the ADVC-100: I started my NLE learning curve with a Dell system that came factory equipped with capture hardware by Dazzle. (Oh, if I could only go back in time and stop myself from doing stupid things! I would have neither that Dell or my ex-wife.) The quality of the output from the ADVC-100 simply blows the Dazzle unit away: Crisp, clear images, good color accuracy, and no pixilation or "conversion artifacts".

kcarroll