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Kona 2 and Multibridge HD issues
Hi there…
I apologise in advance if my tech knowledge is not up to scratch…..
i have just got a Kona 2 card to play around with and have it connected via SDI to a Multibridge HD box. I am trying to capture some footage from a VCR (PAL). I am going into the Multibridge via a composite cable then out via SDI to the Kona 2 and then FCP 5.1.4… I can get an image on the screen in FCP but the best way to describe it is it is jagged? with lines all through it??? I am relatively new to these two devices and am not sure if i have hooked them up correctly?? I have looked through the posts here and followed some advice from the likes of Bob et al and still cant seem to crack it. I have tried all sorts of settings in the Kona 2 control panel to no avail. I am assuming that both devices work OK. Is there an easy way to test them???
The video input in the Kona panel is set to 625i25, frame buffer is set to the same and output the same as well. I am using an easy setup for Kona 2 PAL in FCP….
System is Dual 1.8 G5 with 5gig Ram, tiger OSX, Kona drivers V3.4 (latest allowed for this system)
For work with DVCAM it has been fine for ages and i am just trying to upgrade my system with the hopes of obtaining a HD camera in the not to distant future. The only way i can test this gear at the moment is in the capacity described above (i think??)
Once again any help would be much appreciated and i apologise if this has been covered elsewhere but as i said i have followed most of the posts related to this and am a bit stuck…
If you require more info please let me know and i will try to provide…
Any suggestions???
Thanks
Julius
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4 Replies
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the vhs is putting out a very unstable sync signal. The Kona 2 (and all modern SDI inputs) wants to see a STABLE SYNC SIGNAL. This means putting the VHS VCR into an (expensive) frame synchronizer, to replace the horrible sync signal coming out of the VHS machine. The Blackmagic Multibridge is not a frame synchronizer, and will not help you.
If you do not own professional source VTR’s, and work with this as a hobby, and want to use VHS into your FCP system with a MAC, there are companies like ADS that make simple composite video to firewire adaptors, that cost very little money, and will allow you to proceed. I don’t know why you own these expensive boxes (AJA, Blackmagic) if you are working with DV and VHS. If you are a pro, and are forced to deal with these formats, you would buy the proper equipment to translate unstable synce sources to a stable SDI source (like a frame sync).
There is no “free” answer for you, but an ADS Pyro for about $100 will fix your issues.
Bob Zelin
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Thanks for you reply Bob
I think the problem is differnt. I have tested as you suggest in another post to just try and get colour bars on an external monitor. I have done this from the Kona Control Panel – not even in FCP yet….
When i try this the image on the external monitor (Sony PVM) is all jagged as well. So i am not even inputing any VHS source into it – just trying to get bars up from inside the Kona Control Panel… I have tried as both an RGB signal and a composite signal to the monitor from the Kona breakout cable and no luck….
Thanks for your assistance and is there anything else you could suggest???
Julius
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the Sony PVM monitors (PVM14M2U, PVM20M2U, PVM20M4U, PVM14M4U, PVM20L5/1, PVM14L5/1) use Y Pb Pr, not RGB.
Bring up color bars in your AJA Control Panel. Go to the ANALOG OUT tab, and switch it to COMPOSITE, not component. Plug the Out Y cable into the Line A Input of your PVM. Do you see good color bars? No? Make sure that EXT SYNC is not selected on your PVM monitor. Do you see good color bars yet ? If not, plug in something else, like a camera, or VTR (your VHS VCR) into the Line A input of your PVM. Do you see a stable picture ?
If you do see good color bars, plug the Y Pb Pr signal from the Kona 2 into the Y R-Y B-Y input of the PVM. Go to the analog tab on the Kona control panel, and switch the ANALOG OUT tab to COMPONENT(Beta) – NOT RGB !!!!! Do you see good color bars now ?
Bob Zelin
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Thanks for the advice/help Bob… It ended up being a problem with the card itself…… Just to let you know the Sony monitor i have (PVM-1442QM) does have RGB inputs. May be a real dinosaur…. Thanks again for your time…
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