I read advice from C.H. and went to the Canopus forum for help; sorry, but I hated it! Even though it's getting HUGE, I like this "kennel" best and hope no one minds the extra thread.

The motherboard compatibility table on the Canopus site doesn't list ours anywhere. We're thinking of using the DV Storm but are getting tired of compatibility issues. Does anyone know of a problem w/DFI, AD70-SR?

Bringing things back "home" I read of audio syncing problems with the XL1s and Storm. Any problems, of any kind, out there? We use Premiere 6 on Win98 (only OS that supports my partner's audio needs).

I'm out here and have problem too! I have shot 25 hours on XL1 for mega-documentary and bought a storm to cut it. If I capture an hour tape from XL1 via DV in - the audio lags by 6 or so frames. Tried Canopus UK and ini.file suggestions didin't work. If I go S-video or composite out of XL1 to Storm then it's fine.
Heard on a Canopus forum that Storm was designed for use with SONY cameras?! I used a DVCAM PD150 recorded tape as an experiment into Storm and it was fine!

yours pulling hair out and looking for a fix !

Craig Pancrack, Middlesbrough, England.

Turn key System: Windows 2000 Pro, Pentium 4 1.7, 512 RAM,75gb hd,StormSE Plus with DSR11 DVCAM deck ( and that didn't help either!)

For what it's worth...

I am a Mac/Final Cut Pro user and I don't know anything about DVStorm. But Craig's remark about the audio lagging by 6 frames during Firewire captures clicked a light bulb in my head.

Apple's Final Cut Pro site's device qualification page (http://www.apple.com/finalcutpro/qualification.html) notes:

"Requires FireWire Basic. When the Canon XL1 is editing to tape, it will come in up to 6 frames early, then duplicate that first frame up to 15 frames. "

FCP compensates for this but perhaps DVStorm needs some spec adjustment.

Just a thought.

See this Canopus Hardware Compatibility link:

http://206.111.152.200/ProductIssues/Motherboards/Motherboards.php

At the bottom of the page, you can input DFI to search for compatibility issues. The return is: AK74 no, but AK75 & AK76 are okay. No mention of AD-70SR.

My own urgent sugestion regarding any PC-based NLE including Canopus products is to build the system around the card. So instead of dropping Storm into an existing computer, consider an entirely separate workstation built around Storm for NLE only. I have a Canopus DVRex RT built for me by DVLine, using dual AMD Athlon 1.2 GHz CPU's on a Tyan Tiger motherboard. Works great! Hope this helps,

Wow. I may be reading too much between the lines, but it sounds like Storm must be pretty powerful if you built a system around it. Funny you would mention that; my partner, for different reasons, was wondering if we should build separately for video. This may tip the scale. Thank you.

It's not so much that Storm is so powerful (it is) but that non-linear editing on the PC platform is still a mix of equal parts voodoo and rocket science, even with Canopus products which are renowned as being the best in the business for platform stability.

My NLE system is for editing video and producing DVD's... that's all it does. You would not want to do word processing, web surfing or play MicroSoft Flight Simulator on that system. So I have a separate PC for all that other stuff while my NLE system is for video editing.

It's a matter of how delicate this stuff is moreso than how powerful it is. Canopus products are more robust than its competitors but like all PC-based NLE's, they are both delicate and powerful all at the same time. Separate machines is a smart way to go! Hope this helps,

Thanks for responding all of yer - my storm system was purpose built around the storm card for video only and i like it very much. Kills Pinnacle equivalents and my mate's G4 mac / media100 ( which cost about 6 times as much 3 years ago)...Word processing, internet etc were added by me due to not being able to buy a separate pc, my specialist system builder advised me not to do this to eliminate all risks and potential infections. However, I bought a Symantec Norton Ghost programme with it which has customised all settings back to day one when it was bought should there any calamities. A cool investment for piece of mind and one that will keep me making money so that i can buy an office/net pc sooner rather than later!

Secondly, i cracked the XL1 audio sync problem today - yeehaw ! - In Storm Edit, open batch capture box and click SEAMLESS CAPTURE - type in 10 mins as duration and multiply six times - the result is one hour captured perfectly when assembled on the timeline - no jumps, no frame duplication, smooth and IN SYNC - yours gone to the pub!!!!

Craig Pancrack

After reading about chronic audio sync problems with PC systems, I will offer the following info. There are two avi file types currently available, type 1 and type 2. Type 2 is the most popular because of its compatibility with M$ vfw drivers. What does this have to do with audio sync probs? Well, it turns out that native DV has audio/video information interleaved in the stored stream(in effect, locked audio). When a native DV stream is put in an AVI wrapper by strictly adding header information, you get a type 1 avi file. vfw can't read the info in this format, so the audio and video info is split out into seperate data streams. This is a type 2 avi file. Almost all current PC NLE's on the market, with a few exceptions, use type 2 avi files. The BIG drawback to type 2 is that the audio and video is no longer synced...ie, it's unlocked. As a result, very long video clips will lose sync because of the drop frame format of 29.97 NTSC video. It's a BIG problem. Type 1 DV video uses directx and is the prefered type to avoid audio sync probs. M$ has announced that it will no longer support vfw apps. Why do the major NLE manufacturers persist in using type 2 avi files?

cutting your files into 10 min captures will fix the problem....

as far as why do mfg stil use avi2 formats, its because they are able to achive a higher quaility and faster rendring codec using them..hence the canopus codec

thanx, John. I'm wrestling with this issue, but making some headway.

I have a Canopus DVStorm NLE system.

I tried capturing a 30-minute film from MiniDV to my RAID today, but Storm Video stopped capturing after the file reached 4 GB.

I know there's some simple workaround for this, but by golly, I can't figure it out. And I'm embarrassed to admit I've never captured video data larger than 4 GB; all of my projects to date have been editing together smaller clips.

My OS is Win2K, and my RAID uses the NTFS file system (although the partition of my main drive where the OS resides uses FAT 32).

Thanks for your help.

You've probably solved your own problem there. Try converting you system drive to NTFS as well and all should be apples.

Open the Command Prompt box through Start > Accessories > Command Prompt.

Then type in the following command.

convert drive letter: /fs:ntfs

you'll have to reboot for conversion to happen.

Are you serious? You think the fact that my OS resides on a FAT32 drive is the issue (despite the fact that I'm capturing to an NTFS drive)?

I don't want to be hasty converting the drive's file system.... Are there reasons why I *shouldn't* perform this conversion? Will I lose any other functionality? (What's the worst that can happen?)

I really don't see why this would be the problem, but if I have nothing to lose by taking it from FAT32 to NTFS, I don't see why I shouldn't try it.

FAT32? You must have upgraded from Windows 98 or something to Windows 2000. NTFS supports larger partitions, and better security. I don't know if converting a FAT32 drive with a live OS would be a good thing. You might have to boot form a floppy with the tools and then do it.

Then again I question that fixing the problem. What I would think might really be the problem is something lurking around from Windows 98/ME which only supports a Max file size of 4 GB.

Sorry to add this, but I did find this on MS's site.

Table 13.6 FAT32 Size Limits

Description Limit
Maximum file size 4 GB minus 1 byte (232 bytes minus 1 byte)


Best,
James

Here is what I found on NTFS:

Table 13.5 NTFS Size Limits

Description Limit
Maximum file size Theory: 16 exabytes minus 1 KB (264 bytes minus 1 KB)
Implementation: 16 terabytes minus 64 KB (244 bytes minus 64 KB)

Best,
James

Robert,

Yes I am serious.

FAT 32 is the default FS for Windows2000 and yes it has a 4GB file size limit.

Think about it. Your OS is what runs your computer, if the OS says I am using 4GB file limit then that's exactly what it will do as I bet your NLE application is on the FAT32 disk.

It is perfectly safe to do a live conversion from FAT32 to NTFS. You will not lose anything, it's simple to do, and it will get rid of your 4GB file limit. NTFS is also more stable than FAT32. If you follow the direction I gave you you will have no problems. However, when making any changes to you OS you should always back up your inportant files.

The main reason that FAT32 is included in Win2000 is for compatability with older Windows9x OS. NTFS can read FAT/FAT32 but not the other way round.

I converted my Windows 2000 OS drive from Fat32 to NTFS about 6 months ago using the exact system Adrian described above. NOTHING bad happened. It took a bit of time, but not as long as you might think. You have everything to gain. The only problem might be if you have another computer on the network that is formatted with fat32. The two computers may have some problems communicating properly, or at least that's what I've heard.

Since converting to NTFS I have made sure that each and every one of my files is 16 terabytes large! :)

NTFS can read all file systems supported by windows, it can even read OS2 fs. FAT32 however cannot read NTFS.

FAT32 is not designed to be a network file system, that is the job, and the forte, of NTFS. FAT32 is designed for standalone computers that don't have huge loads placed on them.

With NTFS you gain speed, security(down to file level), stability and complete networkability. It is the only way to go for safe, secure networking.

I'm not sure if this will solve your 4GB capture problem. Why?
He is capturing to a drive that is NTFS. What drive the OS is
should not be a problem at all (read the SHOULD here). I think
it probably is a problem with the program or the AVI type you
are using. Make sure you are capturing in AVI 2.0. Most DV
capture application go with AVI 1.0 with a certain DV type
(Type 1???) and with AVI 2.0 for the other DV type (Type 2???).
This is worth some experimenting before doing your FAT32
to NTFS conversion.

It might be wise to go with the NTFS conversion anyway
primarely of increased proteciton against data loss. For
most people security is a non-issue since they are in their
own home or inside a company where everyone has
access to all. The primary advantage of NTFS is the extra
layer of protection for your data when a system is crashing.

When converting to NTFS from a FAT32 disc remember the
following:

- Do you have a Windows 9x installation on it as well (Dual boot)?
Windows 3.x/95/98/ME? If so, these will not boot after the
conversion!!
- If you want to be able to read your partition under any of
the above mentioned OS-es (NOT over a network, but perhaps
by putting the disc in another machine) it will not be able to
read the NTFS disc after the conversion
- If you have other OS-es in your network they *WILL* continue
to read your drive over the network because a network (and
the computer on the other side) do not care what type the drive
is on your computer
- make backups of your critical data before doing such a
conversion. I know it should work, it worked flawless here,
but it might go wrong.. you never know

That should cover it...

As far as I know there's limitation on canopus side. Just go to canopus forum and ask question there it'll be explained.

Canopus uses it's own dvcodec and wrapper.
There are modes seemless and batch capture, which will create many sequential files. You can convert those to standart dvcodec with canopus utility

canopus site: http://www.canopuscorp.com - you need to register with canopus in order to gain access to forum

There is a workaround in Canopus for the capture limit. If you are using Canopus to edit, you can capture a reference avi. This is a bunch of two gig avi's that use an index as the video. You can play the index.avi like normal, and it goes from avi to avi automaticly.

It sounds cool, works fine... until you try to edit with Premiere. If you have no problems using the Canopus editing software, you'll be fine.

John Crowe had suggested cutting your capture down to 10 minute clips, which is the easiest way of keeping your audio synced. However, you said you were running Win 98, which probably wouldn't handle the large file sizes. Try 4 minutes each, which would mean 15 capture clips. Seamless capture works fantastic.

As far as Win 98 goes, you said your partner needs it for some apps. Go with a dual boot. Have Win 98/Win 2000 on one drive with two partitions. Use another Harddrive just for the video. Win 2000 is much better for video and larger files. Using the secondary drive for video works faster.

Sorry, but I can't help with the board, but I can recommend Abit KG7 raid. Get all the updates and newest bios, and it is a rock steady board.
Keith

Dear Capt. Quirk,

Love that name. Anyway, your idea about the dual boot, etc. is really interesting, though since I first wrote I've installed Premier 6 on my PC which runs W2K.

Because I didn't think I could afford to build a system around a Canopus card I went w/Pinnacle's Pro-One. Have had nothing but trouble in trying to trim files, work old Premier-only projects--you name it. If I see that generic "disk full" error message one more time...

But, I appreciate so much your input; maybe it will help someone else out there!

I wish I had posted sooner. I was stuck between Canopus DV Storm and Pinnacle Pro One. I had decided when I built my video machine, I would go with Win 2K, because it is more stable and handles larger files, as well as a raid array.

Pinnacle lost because they didn't have the Win 2K drivers. I had heard about problems with some Piannacle systems, but was willing to try them.

Anyways, like you, I have apps that won't run on Win 2 K, which is the only reason I still have Win 98. I just don't use very much :)
Best wishes with your new system,
Keith

Has anyone out there got any experience with the Canopus JD-1 jog/shuttle controller ??

I have just got one to use with my Storm edit suite, and cannot find any drivers for the controller. The only reference is to get them from my Windows 2000 system CD.

Queries to Canopus have gone unanswered (is this typical or am I just unlucky)

Any advice would be appreciated

Thanks

Steve G

As a matter of interest to those who visited this post, I have been in touch with Canopus support, and they tell me that the install instructions in the manual are incorrect. All neccessary drivers are included in the Canopus install disk.

Regards

Steve g

Has anyone experienced the following:

On my dual AMD system using the Canopus Storm card. The system frequently freezes, usually when trying to drop clips into the time line, or manipulate audio. The only solution is to completely restart the system. If I perservere then the next stage is the system just powers down on its own.

I have had the system back to the suppliers twice, the first time they said there were software conflicts, but I had not loaded any new software on since getting the system from them, they now tell me that I have contracted a virus, but I have not loaded on any s/w from anything other than manufacturers CD's and I have kept my system well away from any web or dial up access (I do not have any modem or network connected to it.).

The funny thing is this only happens in Storm Edit, I can burn discs for hours with no problems whatsoever

I am now having the hard disc completley reformatted, and a new mother board fitted (thank goodness for back ups) but I am not convinced that it is a virus. Does anyone out there have any similar experiences

Thanks

Regards

Steve G

Burning disks is not the same thing as editing video.

Number one you should be running no less than W2K, or XP Pro. Make sure all your hardware is on the HCL (Hardware Compatibility List at MS).

As far as motherboards go, get a recommendation from other Canopus users using multi-AMD processors. No sense in re-inventing the wheel, especially if some one has a working wheel.

Reformatting the hard drive is a good start. I would do a clean install too and ** NOT ** restore from backups: whatever problem you had earlier may still be in the backups.

The next chunk of s/w I install would be the Canopus. This way it has a better chance of working as it will be entered into the registry sooner.

Once you have this config working make your backup then! After that add your burning s/w and other stuff.

Make certain you read the Storm installation sequence.

Premiere, MSPro both need to be loaded first along with xPlode Pro drivers, etc. It really makes a difference.

You must have been given one of the incompatible motherboards by your systems house. There are one or two. YOu can find out which ones on the Canopus Web site.

If your systems house build a non-compatible system for you, they owe you. Big time since the AMD MOBO issues are well known.

What motherboard do you have?
The 2460 or 2462 Tyan are the only Motherboards that are approved for running dual AMD CPU's.
If you have one of these boards you are in good shape.
1) Upgrade to windows XP if you are running 2000 or NT.
2) Check your IRQ addresses for shared hardware.
3) No cards should be in PCI slot 1
4) Your memory must be seated well and on the Tyan list for compatibility.

Take a look at my configuration page for Tyan 2460

This is an issue with the Storm and RaptorRT in Win2K.
It's unstable.

Windows XP fixes the problem for most users.

George
http://video.mylittlefamily.com

I've been using the "older" raptor card for a couple years, and would like to get into the "new" card that offers RT effects. I can't seem to get info from the Canopus website- can someone tell me what the minimum processor requirement is with the RT card? It runs only on Win2000, correct? Is there still a "trade-in" available with Canopus to swap out cards? Mike Rupp, Phoenix

Got to the site without problems.

http://www.canopus.com/US/products/dvraptor-rt/pt_dvraptor-rt.asp

Mike, I don't know how much you want to spend, but you might want to look into the brand new DV Storm 2 (announced today), same pricing as the original Storm and a significant leap in real-time performance over the Raptor cards. In my opinion, the Raptor RT, which isn't really RT, is the red-headed stepchild of the Canopus product line. Storm, however, is Number One Son.

Saw a DV Storm 2 presentation (quite a bad presentation I think)
on IBC. It looked like a very nice realtime product indeed, but
I had my thoughts about the quality (but that could also have
been the screen I was watching it on). It was hard to judge
though because I had just seen all kind of professional stuff
do amazing things in realtime (pinnacle professional stuff, discreet
and da vinci etc.).

Canopus is releasing a RexEdit software upgrade for thier DVRexRT and DVRexRT Pro. $99.

Sounds like it will be nice.

Was the oft-touted Storm Edit 2 ever released, or was that a myth all along? I still have Storm Edit 1.02 on my machine. (I don't come across much Canopus news any more since I stopped visiting their forums.)

I am definately underwhelmed. The upgrade has a couple of nice features - eyedropper white and black balance and some nice PIP effects. Otherwise it is just more cheesy transitions. Unless I am missing something, there is not much there there.

Rick

I'm hoping they will have fixed some of the bad programming that has been in RexEdit since the beginning.

Auto white balance and PIP upgrade is worth $99 to me.

Transitions are not something I use with a lot of frequency but I like the choices when I need them.

I've just about given up on Canopus and am a bit leary to send any more money their way for less than a real upgrade.

I have just about gotten comfortable with adjusting white and black levels with the YUV curves in RexRT. The new upgrade feature would be easier but then I can live with the old way. Don't need it that often. (I actually like some of the color corrections in Premiere better. Of course they are not only not real time but they crash whenever I use Canopus transitions.) I find I can do almost the same PIP effects with the tools I have. And I can't recall when I last used an Xplode transition.

Today I will be opening my editing box to drop in an OHCI card so I can install Vegas. I will probably take the time to copy the Canopus serial #s off the cards just in case I change my mind.

And who knows maybe Canopus will get its act together. And maybe the White Soxs will win the pennant and we will all live to see world peace.

Rick

has anyone captured video onto the Canopus Dv Storm??

i recently captured some footage from DVD to edit in Premiere.
After the capture the footage appeared very interlaced and choppy, even
mostly noticable to the average eye when played back...

Ive noticed this happening on both Canopus DV Storm and Rex.

Is there a compression setting to eliminate that annoying
interlace buzz?? As if this is a result of the compression itself?

anyone know?

Thanks

I have used both Rex and Storm, capture worked fine, video looks sweet.....one possibility..maybe two.....is the hardware new?? possible its defective...I know someone who had to return a Rex box, was getting funky results.....remember the codec is hardware, so if the chip is bad, it may not de-compress properly. Also , there is AVI1 and AVI2....look at the Canopus web site for info on the difference and a conversion utility, althoug I have never had to use it myself. Be sure to double check all the setup parameters for the plugin in Premiere.

well i doubt if its a fualty chip. I used both a Rex and Storm and they both produced the same results...its not that the footage is bad, its actually clean.
it just looks as if its really interlaced, even when you have a still frame, you
can see the jumpy interlaced fields....strange

Did you check out the Canopus site re: avi1/avi2??? what kind of deck are you using? is it on the Canopus compatibility list?? You didn say whether these are new systems that have always done this or whether they have both DEVELOPED this problem. If the systems are new, did you make sure that the motherboards and chipsets are on the Canopus Hardware compatibilty list? its not as stringent as Avids, but it defintely should be taken seriously. I have had bad playback on a few occasions with captured footage on my system due to communiacations problems via Firewire....I have seen this happen on a lot of machines....try turning off your deck/camera, shutting down Premiere, then re-stating your deck, and then re-starting Premiere, in that order....thats always cures it on my system. Syntoms included white horizontal flashes, a bit of choppiness, and bad audio...the above fix cures the problem. I also suggest going to the Canopus FAQ's and user groups for good info.
www.canopuscorp.com
also, be sure to defrag your drives after capturing.

It just occured to me that you are capturing off of a DVD......using the anolog ins on these products?? S in or Component in?? its possible that the problem is from a Copyguard....try capturing from a TAPED source into the analog ins to check that possiblity. make sure you KNOW the source is good material, maybe something you have worked with before. Some analog signals can be so poor that they wont capture with out a TBC.

good advice...

i am primarily working on a in deck DV storm which is fairly new.

i had a DV Rex board a while back in which did the same thing.
I no longer have this board.

I doubt if this is an issue of bad hardware communication. i think it may have something to do with the frame rate from the DVD..I viewed it frame by frame
and noticed a chronilogical pattern within the interlacing. It maybe minimal
for the first 3 frames and progress accordingly for another 3...not sure if that is exact.

When i used my Rex i always thought this was the actuall interlacing from the
camera, so i never thought nothing of it. This "interlacing" occurs when the camera pans or an there is an abundant amount of motion. When i watch it
straight from the DVD the picture is crisp and no interlacing to be seen.
This only occurs after capturing.

I havent been to the site yet but am going to give it a look. The dual AVI option sounds interesting...

you might try using an infinite window TBC if you can get a hold of one, and process your video thru it before cabling to your cards....you ARE capturing twice compressed analog video here....your hardware may not like it...I have seen less than stellar analog video totally freak out some machines....a good tbc will strip and re-generate digital synch and control track and output a very stable analog signal that your Rex or Storm will like. Analog is a whole different animal.....I have had capture problems with bad SVHS......

The Rex is capable of defeating Macrovision but the Storm is not.

(Cf. http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1487)

If this isn't your problem, you may have inverted your field dominance, that is, maybe you have your video settings set to lower fields first when it should be the opposite (or vice versa).

Since you're working on a Storm, try applying an antiflicker filter to the clip. See if that solves your problem.

no i dont think the security lock is my problem considering the DVD was
authored from an induvidual I know. I think it may be something to do with the Canopus compression. But i could be wrong. maybe ill upload some images.

Have you tried capturing using StormEdit or RexEdit? I never captured in Premiere (though these days I usually use Vegas Video). If found it easier to capture outside Premiere and then import the clips.

What are you watching the captured footage on? A monitor or the Premiere "monitor" windows? I can get funky video if watching on the computer screen while getting good stuff on my monitor.

Rick