hi all,
i’m currently teaching a class for polyphase called intro to video feedback with cameras and i was working on a section of my class wiki about how to go about capturing an analog signal. as i was writing it, i realized that the information could be useful for any class dealing with analog video, not just mine, so i broke it out into its own wiki:
i wanted to share it here because 1. it could be useful information and 2. i welcome any feedback or suggestions of things to add, especially specific capture devices that can record uncompressed analog inputs, and that are available and supported on current operating systems.
we do have a wiki post on the same subject here on scanlines, but it’s a little outdated, and mine is more geared toward beginners and providing more instructions. i also mostly tried to only include ones that i have specifically used or know someone who uses one. and i didn’t include recording to VHS since one would likely still have to digitize that eventually anyway.
on a personal tangent, recent OS updates have rendered my blackmagic intensity shuttles useless (very annoying, because i have 3 of them, all thunderbolt. if anyone wants one, hmu.) i think they are still technically supposed to work on my computers (all non-m1 macs) but i gave up troubleshooting after crashing my system a concerning number of times.
anyway, due to that, i’ve been thrust back into the position of needing to do some research on the current state of capture solutions for myself as well. currently, i have no way to capture analog video directly into my computer, but with the combination of a v4ex as an upscaler/hdmi converter, and a magewell HDMI capture card, i’m able to do what i need to do. the Magewell USB Capture DVI Plus seems to offer composite/component/YC and even HDMI via the breakout cable, and have drivers for current OSes, but at a price point of over $400 USD, it’s a bit steep for me at the moment. curious if anyone has tried it and can speak to how well it works.
it seems like the state of affairs in this space is pointing more and more toward converting to HDMI as opposed to capturing analog directly. so i’m also curious if anyone knows of any affordable composite to HDMI converters that aren’t absolute trash, since i can’t really recommend people starting out to buy a v4ex at their current going price.
so yeah, hope the wiki is helpful, and please let me know if you have any thoughts on this topic.