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Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity
Posted By: Nabsuh <darkgundam@gmail.com>	Date: 5/23/08 10:01 a.m.
In Response To: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity (Cody Miller) : So there's been some talk about HD capture for Halo 3 on these forums. I just : started doing it, so I figured I'd let everybody thinking of doing the : same know what's up, and what you need. There's really only one good : choice for cheap HD capture, and that's the Blackmagic Intensity. It's : quite the amazing card. The standard version comes with HDMI in/out. If : your Xbox doesn't have an HDMI port or you'd rather use component, then : you need to grab the Intensity Pro, which has analog in/out. If you choose : to capture and edit from an SD source, the analog connections are top : notch and look wonderful. : Pros: : Cheap : Very good quality : Works with nearly every video standard : Cons: : RCA connectors for the analog inputs : No SDI input (most HD tape decks and cameras output using SDI). : Stiff Requirements. : If you're thinking of getting it, make sure that you meet the requirements: : -Intel Mac Pro or a PC with a PCI Express Slot (PPC Mac support promised : in the future) : -OS X 1.4.8 or later, or XP Professional/Vista Ultimate : -2GB RAM minimum : -7200RPM disk(s) and lots of free space : -Quicktime Pro 7.1.3 or better : -Cables : -Media Express (comes with the card), Premiere Pro, or Final Cut Pro for : capture. : Once you have all that, you can capture Halo 3 in 720p! The intensity can : capture 1080i as well, so it should work just fine with the PS3 and Gran : Turismo 5. : Setting up- : Install the Blackmagic software and codecs. : There aren't any cameras with HD inputs or tape decks that are reasonably : priced, so the only practical option is to capture directly to the hard : drive. Connect the output of the Xbox to the input of the Intensity. If : you need to play while you capture, connect the output of the Intensity to : your TV. : Open up the Intensity System Prefs/Control panel and select the inputs and : outputs you intend to use. Y, R-Y, B-Y means component, HDMI means HDMI. : Capturing- : You can capture from Blackmagic Media Express, or from Final Cut : Pro/Premiere. Those are your only 3 options. Final Cut Pro or Premiere : will give you more control over the way your video is captured. : The first thing you need to do is decide what codec you're going to use when : you capture. HD video consumes a lot of bandwidth, and if it's not : compressed, even the fastest hard disk won't be able to keep up. Final Cut : Pro and Premiere give you additional codecs to use, so if you may not be : able to use them if you're capturing from Media Express. Here's what you : can use: Uncompressed- Choosing this will by default capture the video : uncompressed and be sampled at 4:2:2, which is standard for HD. This will : run at 106.8 megabytes per second, which is more than any one drive can : handle. If you have a RAID of 3 or more drives, you may be able to capture : using this setting. Truthfully, if you intend to distribute the video over : the internet, there is no reason to capture as uncompressed. By the time : you compress the video for distribution it won't be in tip top shape : anyway. : Photo JPEG- Blackmagic's codec. The bitrate is adjustable, but defaults to : about 5 megabytes per second. This is your best choice if you're on a PC : and capturing from Media Express. : DVCPro HD- This codec is broadcast quality, and is used a lot for editing. It : runs at 14 megabytes per second. You may or may not have this option : available from Media Express, depending upon whether the Quicktime : component is installed. Choose this if you can, or if you can't use : ProRes. : ProRes- Only available in Final Cut Pro. Runs at around 30 megabytes per : second, but is of higher quality than Photo JPEG or DVCPro HD. You need a : beefy mac to use this, but if you have the CPU power and a little more : disk space, this is by far the best choice. : Pick your codec, and open whatever app you intend to capture through. : Select your video format and compression type. The video format for Halo 3 : will be 720p at 59.94fps. : In media express, select your video format and compression type by selecting : 'preferences' from the menu. In Final Cut Pro and Premiere, select a : capture preset matching your choices or create your own. : If you need to be able to play while you capture, be sure to connect the : video out from the Intensity to your TV. : Hit the big red 'REC' button in Media Express, or the Big Red Button in : Premiere to capture. In Final Cut Pro, set your device control to 'Non : Controllable Device', then hit 'Capture Now'. : That's it. If you used Media Express, you can simply take your file and : import it into iMovie or whatever program you wish to use to edit. Be sure : to get one that supports HD. : Issues- : General problems might be caused by software versions. Make sure you meet the : requirements (if you're running Vista, Ultimate really is a requirement). : Dropped frames: Either your disk(s) isn't/aren't fast enough, or your : computer is too slow to compress the video in real time. It's most likely : the disks. Choose a codec with a lower bitrate. : Sync errors: You must capture at the correct framerate of 59.94. Capture at : 60, and you will lose sync. Make sure when you are capturing or : compressing that you specify the correct framerate. Since Halo 3 only runs : at ~30fps, when you export your movie for the internet you will want to : specify the framerate as 29.97 (half of 59.94). : No video: Make sure you select the proper inputs in the intensity system : prefs / control panel. : Downscaling the output to SD while capturing doesn't seem to work for me (but : it works elsewhere). I have this CC, and I use the SDI Input for now. It works great either way, however if you want to work in HD, make sure you have a nice computer for rendering it in. Otherwise SD Quality works great. I use it, and it works for me. I'll link some raw footage so you have a rough idea of the quality (NOTE: Raw footage from the CC). This is captured in Pal 60 (Equivalent of NTSC in England), so for those of you having problem with PAL 60, this is a great counter to it.

Standard Capture (NTSC/PAL)

Message Index

'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Cody Miller	5/21/08 6:17 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	sharpsniper99	5/21/08 6:52 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Cody Miller	5/21/08 6:53 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	sharpsniper99	5/21/08 7:06 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	jazo	5/21/08 9:49 p.m.
And I'd have to imagine...	stan	5/21/08 9:54 p.m.
Re: And I'd have to imagine...	stabbim	5/21/08 9:59 p.m.
Re: And I'd have to imagine...	Bry	5/21/08 11:16 p.m.
Seems to me...	stan	5/22/08 12:46 a.m.
Re: Seems to me...	Bry	5/22/08 10:38 a.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Captain Spark	5/21/08 11:42 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Simpsons Rule	5/22/08 1:13 a.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Louis Wu	5/22/08 7:03 a.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	trigger119	5/22/08 8:51 a.m.
Am I missing something?	CYBRFRK	5/22/08 10:42 a.m.
Re: Am I missing something?	Cody Miller	5/22/08 10:48 a.m.
Yes, your cornea. *NM*	Miguel Chavez	5/22/08 12:10 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Captain Spark	5/22/08 8:36 a.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Urban Reflex	5/22/08 8:05 a.m.
If SD capture looks too dark...	Urban Reflex	5/22/08 5:20 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	trigger119	5/22/08 9:02 a.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Evil Otto	5/22/08 11:51 a.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	mnemesis	5/22/08 12:01 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	elessar787	5/22/08 12:23 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Louis Wu	5/22/08 12:56 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	z	5/22/08 3:39 p.m.
QuickTime PRO Capture settings / HDMI Input	Van Helsing	5/22/08 4:37 p.m.
You don't NEED to use Media Express.....	Ultimate_Dragon	5/22/08 5:44 p.m.
Re: 'Cheap' HD Video capture with the Intensity	Nabsuh	5/23/08 10:01 a.m.