HDD vs. HDV capturing. What produces better quality

I currently shoot for content in SD on mini DV tapes. I want to upgrade to a camera with either a 3 ccd or ? I have read alot about what is available but i am very confussed as to what format or camera I should purchase. I want to stay in the affordable range ($900 to $1,500) but want to know if capture to a HDD or should I continue to capture on Mini DV? Any help would be appreciated.

HDD stores the data on a Hard Drive instead of tape BUT it does not record in the DV format.
Instead it uses a version of MPEG which is not quite as good quality as it is compressed many times more.
However, the main problem is that FCE/FCP can't use MPEG natively so you have to find some other expensive or time consuming way of converting your footage before you can edit it.
Ian.

Similar Messages

What gets better quality for watching video.. airplay mirroring or HDMI cable

I have the new Retnia. I have a apple tv and high quality HDMI cable. If I want watch a 900P movie from my laptop to my up to 1080p tv which would be more reliable/better quality? BTW the movie is predownloaded so it WOULD NOT be streamming.
Thanks!

My guess is the HDMI cable will yield better quality than AirPlay. Since you already have an HDMI cable and a Mac that supports AirPlay, why not try both for yourself then report back here with your results?

Does the older external iSight Web Cam produce better quality video than the built-in iSight in current computers or is it about the same?

I am starting to do video blogging more and have built in iSight on my MacBook and MacBook Pro. I also have the old iSight external web cam that was made prior to them being built into the computers. I never used the external camera because when I bought it, web cam's weren't popular and I couldn't get anyone else to learn to use one to skype with me, plus back then... I had no idea nor no use for video blogging. Before I pull it out and try to learn how to use it, I was just wondering if anyone else has used it and whether the quality from the external camera is significantly better than the built in cameras - enough to warrant using it rather than the built in.
Thanks for any suggestions!

Notebooks
http://www.apple.com/support/isight
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISight
http://reviews.cnet.com/webcams/apple-isight/4505-6502_7-31297839.html

Best quality for output Shooting HDV and DV What is better

I am shooting commercials for local cable. I have a sony fx1 HDV. it shoots 16x9.
The cable Co only accepts dvc pro tapes or mini DV tapes.
I have been shooting in DV mode and importing as firewire basic. (is that correct?)
when I output to tape it plays on any 4x3 tv like everyone is tall.... If I go in and adjust distortion to -33.3 it looks fine. Looks widescreen on 4x3 and widescreen on a widescreen flat panel.
Isn't there a preset so I do not have to adjust all of this?
Also would I have better quality if I shot in HDV and imported that way then just drug the edited product to a firewire basic dv sequence for output?
any input appreciated

Also would I have better quality if I shot in HDV and imported that way then just drug the edited >product to a firewire basic dv sequence for output?
If you have the option to shoot in HDV, do it every time unless there is an overriding need.
Firewire Basic is wrong for 16:9 stuff. Use a DV Anamorphic Easy Setup. Which one depends on the video standard or the camera and the cameras audio setting.
Can you provide these?
You may want to read this thread, emphasis on field order:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1974650&tstart=0
Al

Capture window, Viewer window, better quality then Canvas, why?

Hi there!
Both my capture window and viewer window show the recorded footage in a better quality then in my Canvas once I play it up in the timeline, was wondering why this is, is it simply because it's at 100% of it's size?
I checked the Sequence Settings, they seemed right at DV PAL (I recorded in HDV here in Europe) with quality set to 100%.
Also, by better quality I mean that the footage is brighter, with better sharpness and normal color, on my canvas the lighting is redder, everything is darker and the footage is fuzzier
thanks!

Double click on a suspect clip, it will appear in the viewer...
(a) filters tab - are there any video filters?
(b) motion tab - is scale set to 100% and zeroes everywhere else?
Or simpler: does your clip when on the timeline have a grey bar over it (indicating it needs no render)? If not, what colour is the bar over it?

I want to produce wedding dvds.whats the best software to use...final cut x I'm thinking but what about the quality of the dvd?

i want to produce wedding dvds.whats the best software to use...final cut x I'm thinking but what about the quality of the dvd? Can i use idvd?

The only Programms I worked with are DVD Studio Pro and iDVD. You can burn a Video-DVD with Toast but there is no real option to design your Menu. Just a few themes as far as I discovered.
Do you have a Blue Ray Device to burn* the HD-DVD? Are the Bride and Groom able to watch the Blue Ray?
* which is only possible with DVD Studio Pro and not iMovie as far as I know.
This might help
For better quality I would go the Compressor & DVD Studio Pro workflow I just learned.
Export the Movie as is from Final Cut Pro and then use Compressor to encode the File.
Consider delivering the Movie in a different way like a private video on vimeo, a Website or on an SD card which is not really romantic...

What's the Difference Between Better Performance and Better Quality

I am making a DVD of a wedding from a tape and I usually create an image and then transfer it to my PC to burn because my Mac Mini doesn't have a DVD burner. It is telling me that my project has exceded 4.2 GB which I figured would happen but would dread if it did. Well i was wondering what type of quality loss would happen if I used Best Quality? Or is there a way to make a Disc image that I dont know of? Any suggestions would be helpful.

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=164975
If you don't have a DL SuperDrive, I don't think you can create a disk image over two hours.
Well i was wondering what type of quality loss would happen if I used Best Quality?
Best Quality is just that, best quality encoding. I use it for every project.

What is better sound quality headset MH 710 ot MH700

As the headline says which headset gives better quality sound...I own the HPM77 and want something as good as that!
thanks
Solved!
Go to Solution.

If you look on Amazon UK, these headsets are very similar in terms of both specs and price (£13-£15), and both have excellent reviews, so judging from that , I would say that they both have very good sound quality, so I don't think you will find any discernible difference between them.

HDV captured create movie for iDVD, lot of jitter and jagged interlace play

Not sure what I'm doing wrong. I wanted to downconvert from HDV capture / edit, and then just create a standard video dvd for normal tv playback. Picture looks like it will be outstanding, but any movement results in horrible jitter and jagged edges. What am I doing wrong?

Wow thanks for quick reply. Apologies I didn't give full info.
I am viewing DVD on TV - well a plasma being played via DVD on PS3.
BUT, DVPRO50 is the only output that shows a "smooth" movie, if I playback on the canvas at 50% the interlace line are gone due to the scaling BUT the movie plays jumpy, so the DVPRo50 method is the only way I can get a smooth pan for example, every other method just gives a jumpy playback on DVD.
iDVD is set to Production quality, when I do a QT movie direct to iDVD without the DVPRO50, the quality is better but the movie is jumpy.
The movie is also 47 minutes long - it's quite big, file produced is about 19GB.
Also I understand about getting HD quality and BlueRay disk etc, but I would expect to get DVD quality from iDVD, doing the DVPRO50 conversion makes it pretty bad. but smooth!
As I said the anooying things is when I exported to MP4 on quicktime at 1080 HD and 18000kbps and 29.97 it also plays smooth for a short bursts of a few seconds (albeit jumping every second to 25 -> 29.97 issues), in 25 fps it's just blurry and jumpy. (playback on PS3)
Thanks

5.1.4 update breaks HDV capture? Unable to Initialize Capture Device

Problem:
Final Cut Pro cannot capture standard 1080i60 HDV footage from Sony FX1 camcorder. FCP reports "Unable to Initialize Capture Device" when the log and capture window is opened. However, the footage CAN be captured in iMovie (which is interesting, and unacceptable). When HDV>DV downconvert option on camcorder is activated, footage CAN be captured as anamorphic SD, so the camcorder and FW do work.
The problem is occuring on a rock-solid FCP system that I use on a regular basis (mainly for SD editing). It has been approx 2 weeks since I last attempted a HDV capture, the system has been working great with SD footage (still does).
Factors that have changed to my knowledge since HDV capture was last functioning properly:
*Added a new external FW drive into regular usage (a different brand than normally used, no issues with it so far).
*Updated FCP to 5.1.3, and then 5.1.4 when that fix came out. All SD captures and work have been fine so far.
Here's what's interesting...I had a copy of the FCP v5.0.4 .app that I had saved an archive of prior to the crossgrade update. Guess what? I can load it up, and it captures HDV without any problems! With that in mind, this looks like an FCP 5.1.4 issue. But I am at a loss on how to proceed further in troubleshooting. Many thanks in advance for any assistance.
Matt Jeppsen
FresHDV.com
---NOTES---
What I have tried:
*Attempted capture with a different Sony FX1 camcorder.
*Swapped firewire cables and system firewire ports.
*Attempted capture with camera FW chained to an external HDD.
*Unplugged all other external firewire devices from the system.
*Trashed FCP prefs using FCP Rescue 5, created new project using Easy Setup (for HDV).
*Tried different variations of FCP A/V settings, tried all the HDV FW device control presets and the HDV AIC capture preset.
*Per instructions at http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301852 I removed the numbered Quicktime pckg Receipts and re-installed the latest version (7.13). Post-install/reboot, I repaired Disk Prefs and Verified the disk using Disk Util.
*Have also attempted installing QT 7.13 2 and 3 times in a row, also trying disk prefs repair BEFORE the post-install reboot.
Final Cut Pro Audio/Video Settings:
Sequence Preset: HDV-1080i60
Capture Preset: HDV
Device Control Preset: Sony HDV Firewire
Sony HDR-FX1 IN/OUT REC settings:
*VCR HDV/DV: HDV
*COMPONENT: 1080i/480i
*i.LINK CONV: OFF
*TV TYPE: 16:9
*A/V->DV OUT: OFF
System/Software Facts:
*Final Cut Pro 5.1.4
*Quicktime 7.13
*PPC Mac G5 2.7 Dual (2.5GB RAM)
*35GB free on System, 45GB free on internal FCP Scratch disk
Final Cut Pro 5.1.4, G5 DP 2.7 (PPC) Mac OS X (10.4.8)

I think I figured out this vexing problem. I too was having the same issue. Check to see that your Quicktime is newer than 7.1.2. If it isn't you'll have to upgrade it. I only upgraded to 7.1.6 here because I was afraid of going to a really new version. http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/quicktime716formac.html. After I upgraded my quicktime, I ran software update and the Final Cut Pro 5.1.4 update appeared. I hoipe this helps.

Are there benefits to the Blackmagic Intensity Pro for HDV capture ?

Are there benefits to the Blackmagic Intensity Pro for HDV capture ?
I have a Sony HDR-FX1 that records in HDV 1440 x 1080
I have already captured the footage to miniDV tape.
Can the intensity card get the full 1920 x 1080 video ?
I now use Premiere to capture my video and my HDV is in mpeg2 and my SD is in DV type 2 AVI
What format does the intensity card capture at ?
Are there other ways to capture that would make the footage better.
From what I have read allot of people have had problems with these cards.
Im just looking for the best way to get the footage off my camera with the best resolution.
Thanks: Glenn

Glenn,
I have posted this before in the PC Buying Guide (post #23 and later), but have a look at this diagram:
The problem is that once recorded to tape, the material is compressed to MPEG and there is no way to get the data back, that were lost during compression. The only thing you achieve is that you lose device control, lose all timecode information, lose all metadata like date and timestamp and exposure data and lose the capability of scene detection. There are no gains to compensate the losses.
Compare it to a glass of orange juice, that was made by heavily compressing oranges. How do you think you can reconstruct the original oranges that the juice came from? Were there 4 large oranges or 6 small ones or a mixture? Were they light colored or were they dark or a mixture of light and dark?
BlackMagic in their marketing may lead you to believe otherwise, but the truth is they can only guess at how many oranges were used, their size and color. It is nothing more than a guess.

Best way to produce good quality DVDs?

Hi,
Am using FCE, external LaCie DVD burner and Toast.
When I convert a FCE project to quicktime, then transfer to DVD, using an external LaCie burner and Toast, the resulting quality is very poor.
I had previously thought this was just par for the course with the footage I was producing, however I recently had a film shown at a cinema (straight from tape) and the quality was amazing - even on a large screen.
I commented to one of the guys who worked at the cinema that I was surprised by the quality of the footage given that my DVDs are so rubbish. He told me that they are so poor because of the equipment I am using to burn them and that if I had it done professionally, the quality would be much better.
What causes this?
Is there any software/hardware I can upgrade to which will produce good quality DVDs?
Nicola

Hi,
Am using FCE, external LaCie DVD burner and Toast.
When I convert a FCE project to quicktime, then
transfer to DVD, using an external LaCie burner and
Toast, the resulting quality is very poor.
Which version of Toast are you using? Are you using Toast's encoder to create the disc image? The latest version of Toast (Titanium 7) is supposed to have a much improved encoder. Also iDVD5 and iDVD6 show big improvements over earlier versions. However, I don't think MPEG2 DVD will be the full equal of the original DV, but it should come close. I suspect high-end DVD mastering programs are needed to get the best results.
867 MHz PowerPC G4 Mac OS X (10.3.9)

HDV capture card

I'm looking for a capture card that support HDV camcorders, for G5.
But it seems that doesn't exist any card: I found only HD or SD capture cards.
The only HDV capture card that is able to native editing hdv video in realtime from hdv camcorders is the canopus EDIUS NX (and canopus velxus 300 in Japan); but the problem is that canopus hdv card is only for PC.
I called canopus and they said me that these cards will be for MAC when Apple will release the new powermac intel-based.
So I read in the apple FCP 5 HD page this:
"Native HDV Support
Final Cut Pro 5 supports native long-GOP MPEG-2 editing for working with camera-original HDV video. Unlike other solutions, Final Cut Pro 5 acquires HDV media via FireWire and keeps it in the original format, transferring it into the system without any generation loss. Output via FireWire back to an HDV camera or deck, or transfer your native HDV to DVD Studio Pro 4 for an end-to-end native HDV workflow."
I know that it is not possible capture a video by firewire from a camcorder without further compressing it. I know that it is for this reason that pro use capture cards (that have dedicated processors for this).
So I think that there aren't HDV capture cards for mac because the hardware companies don't make new cards for only few months, so they're waiting the new intel-based macs. If so, this firewire technology of final cut pro 5 is a compromise for these last times, or is it really like the capture-card processing? and if so, how is it possible capturing a hdv video by firewire without further compressing it?
Do you know about a HDV card for MAC or is it really good using Final Cut Pro HD 5 with firewire ?
Thank you.

It all depends on what type of work you are doing...
Capture Cards are for use with other formats that cannot be captured via firewire: BetaSP, Digibeta, HDCAM, D5. They are also require for outputting to these formats.
Not many broadcast facilities will take a DVCAM master...some will, but most won't. And depending on your client, they may or may not take an HDV master. They may want an HDCAM or D5 master if they are producing HD content. For that you need a capture card and high speed drive RAIDS.
Why do other pricier systems come with capture cards? Because they are sold that way. FCP, out of the box, is ready to edit DV, DVCPRO 50, DVCPRO HD and HDV...FULL RESOLUTION...no compression. Any need to do higher end requires a capture card.
Shane
"There's no need to fear, UNDERDOG is here!"

Correct settings for HDV capture

Hi. I'm using Premiere CS5.5. I went on a few forums to get the correct settings for HDV capture.
I can record the footage fine. However I saw a few things which didn't seem right.
After capturing the HDV footage, the file was a .mpeg file. Secondly, the clip was 1 hour and 10 minutes and
it was only 11.3 GB. Does this sound right? A 55 minute .avi file is 11.6GB. I thought a HDV clip would be quite a large size file.
If this dosen't sound right, is there somewhere I could go to, to check that my settings are correct? By the way I'm filming and capturing with a Canon XHA1.
The footage is 1080i. HDV. I've exported it and it looks fine. Just want to make sure I've captured it correctly and to the best quality.
Thanks for your help.

The HDV format was advanced by Sony and others to use the same miniDV tapes used for SD. In fact, your Canon XHAI can record and play either without changing the tape transport speed.
Your observation in relative file sizes is due to the fact that HDV is highly compressed (MPEG), whereas, SD (AVI) is not as highly compressed. This is one of the reasons folks (such as Harm) don't consider HDV to be an edit format, but just a delivery format.
Note that what Harm was saying is symantics--you capture an analog source through a capture card that digitizes it. When you transfer a image file from HDV or SD, it is already digitized, so a bit-to-bit transfer occurs.

8mm film scanned - DV or HDV format - which is better?

I have about 8000 feet of very old home movies I am going to get scanned by one of the many companies out there that provide this service. Some will scan and dump DV format, other will dump HDV format.
Since I'm not doing the capture and I want to use FCP to edit and do the final composing what are the advantages/pitfalls of the different formats? I am a nuibe when it comes to FCP and video editing for that matter but it appears, at least to me from what I've read, that DV works with FCP better for editing as it is true frame by frame reproduction. HDV on the other hand I can only edit the i-Frames and I believe I need to do a transcode or something on that order to work with it FCP. Is this true?
MacMini, MacPro Mac OS X (10.4.9) Linux FC5, FC6 servers

I have about 8000 feet of very old home movies I am
going to get scanned by one of the many companies out
there that provide this service. Some will scan and
dump DV format, other will dump HDV format.
Since I'm not doing the capture and I want to use FCP
to edit and do the final composing what are the
advantages/pitfalls of the different formats? I am a
nuibe when it comes to FCP and video editing for that
matter but it appears, at least to me from what I've
read, that DV works with FCP better for editing as it
is true frame by frame reproduction. HDV on the
other hand I can only edit the i-Frames and I believe
I need to do a transcode or something on that order
to work with it FCP. Is this true?
MacMini, MacPro Mac OS X
(10.4.9) Linux FC5, FC6 servers
I think you should make the most of this situation and go with Studio X's suggestion to DVCPRO HD and find a way to archive to tape or Blueray for backup. You will like the all I frame editing. If you can only find HDV 1080i you will be able to down convert with a rental Sony HDV camera to DV. Edit now in DV and have HDV on mini-dv tape for your family’s future needs. This is a no brainier. HDV is only the beginning of highly compressed formats to come and it really looks beautiful. HDV is a great acquisition method. Plus you can have HDV captured to DVCPRO HD. Have one reel done at the local place and see for yourself.
Good Luck
Z1&V1user

HDD vs. HDV capturing. What produces better quality

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for