Using a TV as a preview device

Rafa@mediatechplus wrote on 3/26/2008, 9:36 AM
Hello everyone:
I have Vegas 7.0 running it on a windows XP SP2 machine. I use regular component cables (red,white,yellow) to capture video either from a DVD or VCR to my PC. I was wondering, is it possible to use a TV (via the component cables) as a preview device when I am editing my raw footage in Vegas? If so, can you guys explain how to achieve this.

Thank you!

Comments

riredale wrote on 3/26/2008, 9:49 AM
One can easily use a regular TV as a preview device, but the most common way is to feed a Firewire signal to a camcorder or similar device and then to use the camcorder's "pass-through" function to feed the TV. Many camcorders don't have this ability, though.
Cheno wrote on 3/26/2008, 9:50 AM
What is your setup for capturing? Are you using a dv deck or converter for pass-through into your machine via firewire?

It's pretty much the same principle, you'd just hook up your composite cables (component are R,G,B) to your television, select the proper input and under preview device in Vegas, select Firewire Device as your output.

I use a Canopus ADVC-100 and after 6 years, it's still running great - s-video out to my CRT.

cheno
Rafa@mediatechplus wrote on 3/26/2008, 12:50 PM
Hey guys:
Thanks for replying! I will try with my DV Sony camera...I don't know the model...but I will let you know if it works.

Rafael.
imac wrote on 3/27/2008, 5:51 AM
when previewing on tv does it matter what hardware is used?
i could use firewire to dv cam, or firewire to a dedicated box, or the tv out on the pc graphics card.

are there any issues that influence the effectiveness of previewing on tv?

Laurence wrote on 3/27/2008, 6:08 AM
If you are working with SD video or with proxies for HD video, previewing with a 1394 to NTSC/PAL convertor box is extremely efficient, especially if you edit first and color correct later.

What happens is that any time you are passing SD video via firewire unchanged, it Vegas simply routes the DV compressed video to the convertor box unprocessed.

Let's say you are doing a cuts only edit and you have the preview resolution set to draft. What you will see between the transitions is full sized full resolution video preview on your TV with next to no CPU overhead for all the straight video parts. During transitions, color correction or any other Vegas processed sections, the preview resolution will drop down to draft (or whatever other preview resolution you have chosen) and the CPU will spike up showing that it is now involved in processing the video. Once the transition or other processing is over, the video resolution will again jump up to full resolution and the CPU use will drop again as the 1394 box takes over the decompression of the unprocessed footage.

An old P4 system is plenty strong enough to work this way.
Gary R. Brown wrote on 3/27/2008, 9:16 AM
I was using the Firewire to NTSC decoded monitor signal path for several years but wanted to 'kick it up a notch' as I went into the world of HDV, so I added a second Video Card (SLI MBoard but w/o SLI turned on) and bought a nice 21" LCD HDTV with multiple inputs; Composit, componant, HDMI, & VGA. I now send my preview to monitor #3 via VGA and LOVE it! I will save up and look at the Blackmagic HDMI card to keep it digital, but for educational setups this keeps the dollars small. The combined cost of a $60 video card and a $320 monitor is an excellent low end solution IMHO

GB-)
Laurence wrote on 3/27/2008, 9:30 AM
My new HP laptop has an HDMI output that can either mirror the regular display or act like a second monitor over HDMI. It is pretty cool but still not as cool as the firewire box was for SD. Over HDMI, Vegas still has to process the video and my relatively fast Core 2 Duo system is not fast enough for full resolution best quality video preview. The firewire solution was only SD, but it gave me full resolution preview for anything that wasn't processed by Vegas with barely a blip on the CPU meter. For SD editing this is really the way to go. I haven't seen anything like this for HD resolution with Vegas.

As things are, I can move my preview window to the HDMI TV and view the smaller window there and I can color correct on the TV instead of my computer monitor, but it's nowhere near as cool as the firewire box was with SD.
ReneH wrote on 3/27/2008, 7:44 PM
When you guys say "firewire box" what are you referring to? Are you referring to a box like a Pyro AV Link type of box? Just curious.
Chienworks wrote on 3/27/2008, 8:25 PM
Rene, yes. Canopus seems to be the most favored brand by folks in this forum though.
goodtimej wrote on 3/27/2008, 10:58 PM
Which Canopus item were you speaking of specifically?
Chienworks wrote on 3/27/2008, 11:58 PM
Pretty much any one but the model 50 internal series. The model 50 only does input into the computer, not output back out to other devices.