Please help - Is there ANY OTHER way to print to tape?

Hammer45 wrote on 4/10/2002, 11:19 PM
I am trying to print the video I created for my daughter's graduation to VHS. The only format that "Print to Tape" will accept is an .avi file using NTSC. The problem is, this does not create a very clean video. I have created .avi files using DivX 5.0, DivX MPEG4-Low, and DVSoft. Both the DivX videos were FAR superior to the NTSC (the DVSoft one looked worse), but the Print to Tape function refuses to use them! I keep getting a "file format not correct for the current device" error. BTW, I am using a Canopus ADVC-100 unit for the conversion (yes, after 4 different hardware tries, I finally got this one).


Is there any way around this? Please help - my daughter's party is in 2 days and I really need to come up with a clean tape!

Comments

Chienworks wrote on 4/10/2002, 11:32 PM
The only way to print to tape through firewire is from a DV format .avi file. Now, the problem isn't that you can't send the other formats through the print to tape function. The problem is that your DV .avi renders are coming out worse than the other formats. DV .avi renders should be just about the best possible quality you can get. We need to find out why they're not for you. When you render to DV .avi, do you customize the settings at all? Or do you use the default template without even touching the [Custom] button? You should be using the default.

If you absolutely need to print one of the other formats, you can do so if your video card has an analog video output. You should be able to play the .wmv or DivX file full screen in the appropriate player, send this through the analog output, and record to VHS from there.
Hammer45 wrote on 4/10/2002, 11:55 PM
When I render the .avi file, I just select the NTSC-DV selection from the initial drop-down list. That's all. The only time I have used the Custom option is when I have been playing around with the DivX codecs.

I have tried to cut just a snippet of the video in order to upload it, but even the first 20 seconds results in a 40+ meg file. On that subject, does the file size seem normal? The full video is 3 minutes and 44 seconds, and the NTSC/AVI file is 815 megs. The same video in .wmv = 42 megs, MPEG2 = 119 megs, and DivX/AVI = 65 megs.

I may be able to do a video-out using the analog port, but how would I capture the sound? Not sure how that would work.

Thanks again.

Chienworks wrote on 4/11/2002, 7:06 AM
DV .avi files run about 3.75MB per second or 225MB per minute.

When using the analog out of the video card, the sound will come out through the line out of the sound card, or the speaker out if there is only one output. Connect this to the audio in on the VCR.
Psiman wrote on 4/11/2002, 11:28 AM
Hammer45 said "...does the file size seem normal? The full video is 3 minutes and 44 seconds, and the NTSC/AVI file is 815 megs..."

I just got 838mb (roughly) for a 3'46" movie so sounds like our numbers match (which is hopefully normal)

Cheers,
Psiman

Sarasdad wrote on 4/14/2002, 8:42 AM
IF you are viewing on computor the picture is not good but once output to camera my picture is great.