Avid Refugee Searches for a Reasonable Alternative

[Bret Williams]

There are so many things wrong with the above that I wonder if your Avid problems are user error. First, you can’t capture anything via RS-422. It’s a machine control interface. VHS doesn’t have RS-422. VHS doesn’t have timecode either for that matter. Drop frame or otherwise. Maybe you’re using some sort of Super VHS?

I’m thinking you simply get a HDV deck (you may already have one) that supports Component in EE pass through to DV. If your sources are HDV, VHS, and Beta, then you certainly have no need for working in uncompressed. It’s just going to eat up your drives. Use RS-422 to control the Beta and digitize through the HDV deck. Same with the VHS, although RS-422 will do nothing for VHS as I mentioned. And load the HDV directly through the HDV deck via firewire of course, but have the deck convert it to anamorphic DV or letterbox DV.

For your output, buy squeeze for flash. It’s the cheapest way into squeeze and will also make wmv files, although you’ll have to stick to a couple (completely useable) presets. If you want to do any other formats, compressor will take care of it.

[Andy Mees]

you’ll ceratinly want one but given your formats (and budget) you probably don’t need one
obviously HDV you can capture via Firewire as native, AIC or ProRes
for capture from analog sources with RS422 control you’ll need a Canopus ADVC700 or similar

then again, if you have larger longer term ingest format goals especially of the SD-SDI and HD-SDI variety, then the Io HD may well be the better long term investment, its certainly a desirable box.

[Mark Job]

Hi Brett:
First, allow me to point out that the VHS format does and was designed from the very beginning to have time code. Few manufacturors ever botherd to include TC in their decks, since TC is not needed by consumers, but the spec is there. I use the Panasonic AG – 7750 S-VHS/VHS Record/Player Editor VTR. This VTR reads and Regenerates, VITC, LTC, and CTL on VHS and S-VHS cassettes. I never wrote that I could not capture timecode VHS tape to my Avid at all, only that I could not capture tapes with a Drop Frame based TC. I use Avid Xpress Pro and capture much of my VHS via standard RS 422 without issue – until I have to batch cap a tape with DF time code and it won’t work. I went to the Avid forums, many folks tried to help me, but no dice. I can’t get my system to batch cap DF TC VHS tapes into my Avid. (A major problem for us in post, since we are doing more and more transcoding and formats conversion work these days). We always log and batch cap our tapes in AXP and throw them on a time line and check for color correction and audio quaity levels, etc, before spitting back out on SD DVD or web formats. I can crash record, or simply turn off the TC button in my capture console and manually capture those cassettes, but when you have 60 plus to do, then you want to simply log and batch cap, since this is the fastest way to plough through this manny tapes.