The Video Quick Questions Megathread - The Something Awful Forums

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Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Crazy_Taxi posted:

I typed a big ol' post and it didn't go through.

How do I make my Sony HDD camcorder's video (60i) look like 24p?
The only program I can edit the raw files with is VirtualDub, but once I convert them to 60i divx videos, I can edit with anything.

VLC Media Player's X deinterlace is almost exactly what I'm looking for.

Later today I'll upload an example file if anyone wants to try their hand at it.

There are several deinterlacing filters for VirtualDub.

What is Deinterlacing? Facts, solutions, examples.
Smart Deinterlacer Filter
VirtualDub Filters

What format are the raw files? You can probably edit them directly if you install proper codecs. You could also consider compressing them with Huffyuv in VirtualDub so you won't lose any quality to compression.

# ¿ Mar 24, 2007 10:46

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# ¿ May 22, 2013 16:10

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

ShoogaSlim posted:

Tried it and used it to create a custom resolution of 1024x1080 but my TV didn't accept it and just went black until I reverted. How come it feels to me like that resolution is out of whack? The page for my TV shows that as it's resolution, though.

Right now I have it set to 1280x720 and it's as close as I can get to actually looking decent but some image is still spilling over each side and text looks fuzzy on it.

I guess you could say that resolution is out of whack. The display uses ALiS technology and you could consider it an interlaced display like CRT televisions. That TV apparently doesn't accept 1080p input, so I would try using 1024x540 or 1024x576.

Another problem is that the TV seems to be using overscan. It seems some of the aspect ratio modes desable overscan in 1080i and 720p modes. Try "16:9 STANDARD 2" mode.

# ¿ Mar 24, 2007 15:38

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

clredwolf posted:

I assume you're talking about an RCA to minijack converter, like so?

MonoPrice has those pretty cheaply.

3.5mm Stereo Plug/2 RCA Plug cable - 6ft

# ¿ Mar 27, 2007 17:31

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Sgt. Rock posted:

This is sorta what I need, but in the other direction. The Xbox cables are RCA, and the TV has a Mini-jack. so I need a RCA ---> Mini-jack converter.

Right, the Xbox has a special cable. Then just get this.

# ¿ Mar 28, 2007 17:01

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Iron Squid posted:

Ah I didn't know component cables could also do HD. I'm kinda new to this, and I think it shows.

At the risk of sounding dim, do I need to remove ALL the video cables from the cable box that go into the TV in order to get HD?

No if you setup the TV and box correctly, but there is no advantage of running more than one video cable.

# ¿ Apr 6, 2007 11:32

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

ShoogaSlim posted:

Sorry to bring this back up after so long but I haven't been messing with the TV but I still can't get the resolution right. I've tried the resolutions suggested and just about every other one I could think of but it either displays and looks fuzzy or out of whack or my TV will just not recognize the resolution and stay black until I revert.

I never thought it would be so hard just to get a resolution to display correctly on a TV. Can anyone offer any new suggestions?

You should probably check the Official Hitachi 42HDS69 thread at AVS forum. This post seemed to have relevant information.

# ¿ Apr 10, 2007 15:56

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

ddblue posted:

Is there such a thing as a Firewire to USB connector/adaptor? My new Sony digital video camera only seems to work with a firewire cable, and that's all fine and good when I'm near my desktop PC, but when I'm on the run with my no fire-wire port havin' laptop and want to transfer stuff over, what can I do?

There probably isn't. Your best option is to get a firewire PCMCIA or Expresscard.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/con...409&Q=&O=NavBar
http://www.amazon.com/Card-PCMCIA-F...e/dp/B00008AB53
http://www.firewire-1394.com/siig-f...expresscard.htm
http://www.firewire-1394.com/siig-f...expresscard.htm

# ¿ Apr 15, 2007 11:43

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

The Flying Clog Wog posted:

I'm not sure if anyone knows about this.

I have a continental European television, a very old and small one, that I have been trying to use in the UK. While I can get perfect picture, I am not able to pick up any sound at all. Apparently this had to do with different standards that exist.
I have been trying to do this by just using an aerial and picking up the analog signal. If I get a Freeview box and digital television, would I then be able to get sound on my tv here in the UK?

Alternatively, I could get a more modern tv shipped from back home (the continent), is there any chance that newer models will support the UK audio standards?

Thanks for any help.

Depends on what country it is from. I think most European countries use NICAM stereo sound but some like Germany and Italy use Zweikanalton/A2 Stereo. You need to fins the specifications or manuals for the TVs. You could try setting your TV to use mono sound, I think it has the same standard everywhere. The Freeview box might work, depending on if it will encode the audio in NICAM before sending it to the TV or if your TV has separate audio inputs. Tell us the models of the TVs and someone may be able to help more.

# ¿ Apr 17, 2007 16:25

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

GWBBQ posted:

My boss, who was skeptical about how much it would improve and never wants to change anything if it isn't broken, actually asked me how easy it would be to rewire all of our classrooms with component instead of composite or S-video.

I wonder if it would be possible to run component over the existing composite and s-video if they have both. There may be problems with impedance and shielding among other things, but it could be worth a try.

# ¿ May 12, 2007 18:38

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

trenchfoot fetish posted:

Can I use three composite cables in place of expensive "super-platigold oxygen-diffused also with magic beans" component cables? If not, why not?

You can, but you can also just buy non-expensive component cables. Never buy AV-cables from retail stores.

# ¿ Jul 1, 2007 20:27

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Up Yours Pal! posted:

I'm trying to connect my PS2 and XBox via a new Psyclone Essentials Universal S/AV Cable. Upon connecting my PS2 to my television, I get sound from both channels, but the picture is in black and white. My XBox produces no sound and the picture is in black and white as well.

Check that the TV is configured to receive s-video instead of composite.

# ¿ Jul 4, 2007 16:13

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Drone posted:

I have a DVI-HDMI cable to connect my 32" LCD TV to my Media Center computer. Everything works fine (short of aspect ratio problems, but I can sort that out later). The only problem I have is with playing certain video files encrypted with the DivX codec. My video card (Radeon X700) is currently outputting to my monitor (via VGA) and the TV (via DVI) simultaneously. Video shows up fine on my monitor, but on the TV it's just a large black space. Is this a codec issue? Is there any way around this?

It's probably a problem with overlay. Overlay video usually only works with the primary display. You could try configuring your video player to use VMR7 or 9 instead of overlay.

# ¿ Jul 11, 2007 17:57

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Atomic Edge posted:

Now how bad is the Wii going to look if I just use a scart connection? I have seen my mates using a 3xPhono with a scart adaptor, and it looked a bit shite. Will it look better with a proper scart lead?

If that 3xPhono carried audio too then it used composite video, which is one of the worst quality video connections in use. RGB-SCART should be significantly better, about the quality of component, just interlaced and not supporting high definition.

# ¿ Aug 16, 2007 02:31

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

butterypancakes posted:

Virtualdub should work just fine for you. Just make sure you set the video to "direct stream copy."

And the audio too, but that may have been the default.

# ¿ Oct 18, 2007 09:56

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Kaf posted:

I've got a DivX video file with built-in letterboxing. My cheapo LCD HDTV does not have any zoom modes.

Is there any simple way to remove the letterboxing from the file to make it true widescreen and thus fill my TV screen?

You can crop the video with VirtualDub, but you'll have to reencode it.

# ¿ Nov 18, 2007 11:40

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

xie posted:

I'm trying to get my mother an upconverting DVD player for Christmas, but I'm stuck. I know you can only upconvert over HDMI/DVI, but the TV doesn't have HDMI, only DVI and component (and the component is taken by the cable box) - so I'm looking for a unit that will use DVI, otherwise I'm stuck with a regular DVD player over composite.

Any suggestions for a cost-reasonable? I have an HDMI->DVI adapter, but will that work with copy protection?

There's no sane reason why a DVD player would require copy protection and HDCP can work through DVI just fine. HDMI and DVI are pretty much the same signal, HDMI just has added features. I would expect the adapter to work fine.

# ¿ Nov 22, 2007 10:55

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Zand posted:

oh my I need help quick please aim me at zandxps or post here if you know the answer to my question~

I don't know anything about monitors or DVI or anything, but I'm going to buy a 22" monitor today because compusa is having a sale. Anyway, my videocard has DVI output on it but I don't know if the monitor will work with it properly because the monitor says it takes DVI-D. I do not know what this means, and I want to know if my card can output a DVI-D if it outputs DVI. the video card is an old Radeon 9700 Pro by Sapphire, and its fanless, for reference.

edit: oh my video card has the plus sign thing too on the side and it also has 3 rows of 8 pins each i think so I think that it is DVI-I

Yes. There's three kinds of DVI. DVI-D has the digital DVI pins, DVI-A has analog VGA pins and DVI-I has both DVI and VGA pins. Computers usually have DVI-I connectors so you can directly connect a DVI cable to it or use an adapter to connect VGA cable.

# ¿ Nov 23, 2007 10:20

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

TraderStav posted:

My Question: Do Widescreen DVDs ALWAYS have some sort of letterbox effect be it small or really large or are there some solutions that really do not have ANY black on top or bottom of the video?

That depends entirely on the DVD. Most movies are simply wider than your widescreen TV. Widescreen TVs are a compromise between the aspect ratios used in movies and the 4:3 aspect of stardard definition TVs.

Aspect ratios - Widescreen.org

# ¿ Jan 16, 2008 18:56

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Myden posted:

Yep! I'm satisfied!

http://users.eastlink.ca/~garrymullins/setup3.jpg

My new command centre

That doesn't look very ergonomic to me. The Samsung is too high and the laptops are on the sides.

# ¿ May 2, 2008 12:36

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

brysonpare posted:

I know you read my post. It's probably that I don't understand yours, but I have this

http://www.eforcity.com/pothxxxxad0...08=pothxxxxad08

which I have connected to the DVI cord and plugged into my projector. Will that just not work for my projector?

That's a wrong type of adapter. You need this kind of adapter that you connect to the graphics card and then use standard VGA cable to connect the projector. That kind of adapters usually come with graphics cards.

Another option is to get a DVI-D to M1-D/A adapter or cable. That connector is also known as P&D.

Saukkis fucked around with this message at May 30, 2008 around 19:17

# ¿ May 30, 2008 19:12

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Aglar posted:

Yeah, the projector also seems to have a VGA port as well, so it makes me wonder why he wouldn't have just used a VGA cable if that's all his PC has. One way or another, something here doesn't entirely make sense.

The projector has a DVI input, put it uses an uncommon M1-D/A connector that requires special cable or adapter. I think his computer does have a DVI output and it may not even have VGA port. The problem is that the OP had used a DVI cable and a special adapter to connect it to the VGA port on the projector, but this won't work. What he needed was a common DVI-A to VGA adapter that usually comes with graphics cards and a VGA cable.

# ¿ Jun 1, 2008 10:54

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

MariusMcG posted:

Here's a quick question...

My birthday was yesterday and someone gave me a copy of a Studio Ghibli DVD that hasn't been released in North America. This is region coded to Japan, so my DVD player won't play it. I'm not very familiar with how region coding works, but would it be possible for me to rip the DVD to my computer, re-burn it as an R1 disc, and then play that in my DVD player?

Most likely, these should be able to help. Another option could be to hack your player to support other regions.

# ¿ Jun 2, 2008 15:27

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

SynMoo posted:

If you want to play your PS3 on your monitor, you're better off with:

If you have an HDMI PS3 and a DVI input on your monitor:
HDMI to DVI Cable
RCA to 3.5mm for Audio
3.5mm coupler so you can use Computer speakers

I think PS3 also requires HDCP.

# ¿ Jun 16, 2008 17:08

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

harperdc posted:

didn't see a thread on this and didn't want to post a full thread either, but I've got question about DVD/VHS recorders - you know, the ones that can go DVD->VHS and VHS->DVD, specifically the VHS->DVD recording.

I'm doing the hunting for one of these for my parents so they can consolidate a big bookshelf full of VHSes into a poo poo-ton of burned DVDs, and the few articles I'm finding on it on Google just say "oh you can't burn commercial VHSes, there's copy protection."

I can't see how that's really possible on old VHSes. Most of what they have is old, original-run Disney and stuff from the late 80s to early 90s, and a few others - I can't see how those would have anti-copy protection, or how or why the DVD recording side would say "nope, not going to burn that." so, goons, help me figure out whether this will work or not.

I can work out the particulars of everything else, just need to know about this mysterious copy protection on VHS that may or may not exist.

Retail VHS have Macrovision copy protection. You need a special device between the VHS and recorder to remove it.

# ¿ Jun 25, 2008 10:14

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

SnatchRabbit posted:

Does anyone have a resource for short 1080p clips, preferably free so that I can test out my setup?

Microsoft has some WMV9 videos.

# ¿ Jul 8, 2008 16:13

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

TiCK posted:

I need to connect my DirectTV receiver to my computer monitor.

The reciever has S-Vid, Composite, and old Coaxial outputs for video. The monitor has RGB in and HDMI in (the DVI in is being used by my computer).

I am sending the audio from the reciever via RCA cables to my computer's surround sound system.

What's the best option here as far as a simple, cheap cable I can order? S-Vid to RGB? Composite to HDMI? S-Vid to HDMI? Composite to RGB?

Edit: I have an S-Vid->Component adapter too if that helps.

Edit2: Would this work?

If you mean component output with three plugs (reg, green, blue) when you talk about coaxial outputs, then that would offer the best quality. Unfortunately, unless you have a special monitor that accepts component or s-video signal, then you need a converter device. Component to VGA offers best quality, but s-video to VGA converter would be quite a bit cheaper.

A cheaper option is to buy a TV tuner or analog capture card with s-video input, but then you would have to deal with Windows and drivers. It can be frustrating when your favourite series is starting and the tuner refuses to work.

That Monoprice cable won't work. It's meant to use with special graphics cards that can output s-video signal from their VGA outputs.

# ¿ Jul 12, 2008 08:24

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

ZeeBoi posted:

To connect a PC to an AV receiver, all I need is a 1/8-inch or 3.5-millimeter stereo-mini-to-stereo-RCA cable?

Yeah, that's the most common way.

# ¿ Aug 28, 2008 18:38

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Heran Bago posted:

I'm working on a MAME cabinet built off a shitbox PC until I pony up the cash for a new motherboard/cpu. Right now I'm figuring out the video setup. The cheapest option is a TV but I have no s-video.

How well do VGA to RCA/composite cables work? Something like this:

It seems too good to be true, and they're super cheap on eBay... I won't be doing anything with high graphical demands but it's no use if the video is really that bad.

Those require a video card that can output S-video or composite out of the VGA port, yours probably won't. Your other options are just buying the cheapest graphics card with S-video out you can find or buying an actual VGA-to-S-video converter box.

# ¿ Oct 8, 2008 18:12

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Heran Bago posted:

What's wrong with VGA-to-RCA? Isn't it 480i just the same?

Yes, but s-video separates luminance and chrominance so the picture will be better. There's more to image quality than just resolution.

# ¿ Oct 9, 2008 15:56

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Sniep posted:

For all intents and purposes, it will either work or it won't. There is not "signal degradation" as there is with analog connections (More static, hiss, graceful quality degradation.)

butterypancakes posted:

You will see degradation over VGA. DVI and HDMI are both digital are will give you the same results, if the signal can get from one end of the cable to the other there is no quality loss.

This is incorrect, there can still be signal degardation with digital. AFAIK, DVI and HDMI don't even have error correction, so when there is an error in the data the display just has to do the best it can.

Digital Cables vs. Analog Cables -- What's the Difference?

# ¿ Nov 11, 2008 20:12

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

MacGyvers_Mullet posted:

I have a DVI-I dual link to DVI-D dual link and VGA Y cable that currently connects my computer to my monitor (which uses the DVI-D branch), and I'm wondering if it's possible to hook the VGA branch up to my HDTV to use it as a second monitor.

I've used the TV as a second monitor for another computer in the past, but I can't get it to work through this cable. Is it just not possible for a single Y cable to transmit two images simultaneously or am I probably doing something wrong?

The cable should work just fine, it doesn't do anything fancy, but I think the graphics card needs to support that setup too. The card needs to output both DVI and VGA video simultaneously and I wouldn't be surprised if most cards aren't designed to do that, they'll probably only output the one or the other. You could try connecting the VGA to your monitor too. Also try shutting down your computer and then disconnecting the DVI to make sure the cable is working.

# ¿ Nov 16, 2008 13:46

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

MacGyvers_Mullet posted:

I was under the impression that since the DVI branch was dual link that I could output an analog signal through it, so it'd work with the VGA, but I don't know if that's even possible. It's an 8800GT, and it has two DVI ports, so I guess I'll have to pony up $5 for a dvi-vga converter and dig out one of my old VGA cables.

The dual link only concerns the digital DVI part, it's needed for running large ~30" LCDs. Older cards only had single link DVI with a maximum resolution of 1920x1200. You may be thinking of DVI-I, which is the most common DVI connector type. It has both DVI (single or dual link) and VGA pins. DVI-D only has DVI and DVI-A only the analog VGA pins.

# ¿ Nov 18, 2008 21:09

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

UndyingShadow posted:

Why do I need a splitter at all? I'm used to Media Center diving into the video container and just playing the video and audio stream. Is there some reason why .mkv files can't work the same way?

In another vein, I read that .mkv files can support multiple audio and video streams. How do I choose which stream is selected? Is this apart of the splitter, or some aspect of the player?

Media Center has to know how to open matroska files and splitter is the one that takes care of this. Windows has built in splitters for some older file formats. Think of it the same as how Windows XP can open .zip files by itself, but if you have .rar or .7z files you need to install WinRAR or 7-zip.

I'm not really sure at what stage the stream selection happens. The splitter could only output the channels that are asked for, or it could output all of them and let later stages do the choosing. But the player should have some way of choosing what streams to use. For example Windows Media Player has them under the Play-menu.

# ¿ Feb 7, 2009 06:26

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Interlude posted:

Just installed a Radeon HD4650 in my HTPC to utilize HDMI for audio and video to my receiver.

My 42" LCD doesn't seem to like this thing via HDMI (or DVI to HDMI using an adapter). At native res (1900x1080) at 60hz, I get a nice clear picture with random white/blue static. If I drop refresh to below 50hz, the static goes away but the picture looks lovely. If I drop resolution to 1280x720, I can run it at full 60hz with no problem. If I use DVI it works fine at max resolution but I need to use HDMI for video switching/sound. Anyway, this poo poo should work.

Why is this loving thing staticy at high resolution?

I believe higher resolution and refresh rate require more bandwidth and higher frequency transmission. You could try shorter or higher quality cable to see if the static will go away.

HDMI is also quite new technology, so there can be all sorts of incompatibilities between devices. Few years ago we had a bunch of student computers connected with DVI that didn't work right with 60 Hz refresh rate. The screens had frequent blanking problems, they would go black for a second and then return the picture. At worst cases they would blank every ~10 seconds. This problem went away if you raised the refresh rate to 75 Hz.

# ¿ Aug 2, 2009 13:25

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

Egbert Souse posted:

What do I need so I can edit/convert AVC-HD video? I'm using a Canon. As for software, I already have Sony Vegas 7 and Nero 9 (Windows). The software that came with the camera only seems to transfer files to the hard drive, without any other function (Pixela?)

There's programs I've found that do conversion to AVI, MOV, etc. but they're $30-75. Is there at least a free program I'm able to use without watermarks/limited time, or is there a plugin/codec I can download for Vegas or Nero?

You might be able to use ffmpeg or MediaCoder.

# ¿ Nov 29, 2009 16:43

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

khysanth posted:

I'm not at home so I don't know what outputs my PC has, but I'm sure it doesn't have any that I need because the mobo is cheap and old - that's why I said I was willing to buy a PCI-e card or whatever is necessary to get an HD signal from my PC over to my TV.

Best bang for buck?

You also mentioned controlling the computer from where I'm watching the TV and I hadn't really thought about it. I guess I just planned on getting up, walking to the PC, starting a movie, then going back to the couch. If there are more convenient and reasonably priced options for remote control, however, I would be glad to hear about them as well.

"PC Input: Analog RGB/Mini D-sub 15-pin" is the standard VGA connection "Not Memorable" mentioned and pretty much every computer has it. If the computer has DVI connector then getting DVI-HDMI cable or adapter may be the best option.

Something else to consider is if you want to use splitter/clone view where the TV and computer monitor would show the same picture, but that works best when the monitor and TV have the same resolution. So if could be good to know the model of the monitor too. Other option is dual view where they show different picture, but that requires that the computer has two separate video outputs. It would be best if you can take picture of the back of the computer and find out the motherboard model, maybe checking in the BIOS.

# ¿ Dec 31, 2009 20:07

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

There are also differences on the quality of upscaling. The LCD on your iMac wasn't meant for showing non-native resolutions, so if it's doing the upscaling it probably won't do very good job of it. But most likely the upscaling is done by the DVD player software so you could try if there are some settings to improve the upscaling or try to find better player software. The plasma TV on the other hand could be expected to play mostly non-native resolution video, so it has to be designed to do upscaling well.

# ¿ Jan 30, 2010 16:48

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

vanilla slimfast posted:

I don't think there's such a thing as VGA to S-Video, as they carry completely different signals (similar to what I described above). You would need a video card that does native S-Video output

Or a VGA to S-video converter device.

# ¿ May 29, 2010 09:40

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# ¿ May 22, 2013 16:10

Saukkis: May 16, 2003

LastCaress posted:

Can I transform the analog signal to a digital one (I know the other way is common) in an workable way? Could I get a digital signal from the sat box? (It has a IF out port but I have no idea how to use that). Should I just buy a new pvr device? Thanks!

Yeah, get DVEO's VGA2DVB-T converter. It costs about $11K. Your other option is to get an indoor DVB-T antenna, or build your own, (2). Some people have managed to get a signal with straightened paperclip

# ¿ Jan 22, 2011 17:48

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > The Video Quick Questions Megathread