Pixelvision Open Source Project

Rob Lohman · September 9th, 2005, 01:07 AM

I've moved the thread (with redirect from the old forum) to the alternative
imaging forum. Have fun!

Daniel Kohl · September 9th, 2005, 12:51 PM

Thanks Rob,

It makes more sense to have it here I guess. Anyway now it's in both places now. Good idea Roger.

Michael Gibbons · October 1st, 2005, 08:43 AM

So, Sean could you give us an update on the progress of your technicle wizardry?

Sean McHenry · October 1st, 2005, 09:02 AM

Well, between shooting/engineering for work and tthe whole DVC3 thing, I had set it down and almost forgotten about it. I have yet to find anyone that can supply a belt for the drive.

I am going out location scouting today so maybe I'll try to run some footage of it in downtown Columbus here. I have also been working on building my server to host my video files in-house so if I get the chance to shoot some, I'll post a note here and post the video where we can see it.

I will have to use the video out and run that into my cheap-o TRV22 to capture it on miniDV. Cool thing is, then I can bring it directly into the Avid and play a little.

Thanks for reminding me about it. I have the stills in my camera phone from when I opened it up and I'll build a little page about it and put it up tonight.

Stay tuned.

Sean

Sean McHenry · October 3rd, 2005, 10:43 AM

OK, found out a bit of bad news this weekend when I went to hook the Pixelvision to the miniDV camcorder I was heading out with to scout locations, the signal level into the DV camera isn't hot enough to record. I did hook it up to my VHS deck at home and it will record that way so I will do some shooting in the house this week and string it together and post it.

I think it needs the 1 transistor amp option.

Now where's that 50' BNC cable...

Sean

Jason J. Gullickson · October 3rd, 2005, 12:53 PM

This is a bit off-topic but I was reading the thread and it shed some light on a problem we've been having with some PXL-2000 footage.

We are trying to capture some PXL footage from VHS tapes that are about 15 years old. Normally we use a Pyro box to capture VHS footage, but when we feed it this PXL stuff it doesn't see it. Is it possible that the signal from the VHS tape has the same low-voltage problem?

If so, is there a "cheap" way to address it? We've resorted to using a different capture system (that is less sensitive) but the resulting quality, well it sucks :)

Sean McHenry · October 6th, 2005, 03:35 PM

You probably need a strictly analog capture card. Try to find a Miro DC-30 or some other older Pinnacle capture card. Maybe some graphics card like the ATI All-In-Wonder series would do it.

As soon as you capture as a high quality AVI file, drop it in a good NLE and bring the levels to spec. You should then be able to spit out a DV compatible file.

There may be issues with your sync pulses and so on but you would need to get a qualified bench tech with a scope to check out the waveform. Look for a studio or friend that has a Waveform monitor and a "Proc Amp". There should be a way to save the footage. The cludged video output from these isn't really setup correctly to be a true NTSC signal.

If you are in need of an anlaog capture card, I happen to have a Miro DC-30 I could sell off really cheap...

Try going in strictly analog or find a proc amp. Let me know what you find.

------- EDIT -----------

PS, a truely analog capture card will not use Firewire or USB to get the video/audio into your PC. You need a PCI based capture card that would be installed in the PC. At least that's my theory.

Sean

September 9th, 2005, 01:07 AM	#16
Rob Lohman RED Code Chef Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Holland Posts: 12,514	I've moved the thread (with redirect from the old forum) to the alternative imaging forum. Have fun! __________________ Rob Lohman, visuar@iname.com DV Info Wrangler & RED Code Chef Join the DV Challenge \| Lady X Search DVinfo.net for quick answers \| Buy from the best: DVinfo.net sponsors

September 9th, 2005, 12:51 PM	#17
Daniel Kohl Contributor Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Frankfurt, Germany Posts: 571	Thanks Rob, It makes more sense to have it here I guess. Anyway now it's in both places now. Good idea Roger. __________________ Daniel Kohl Frankenstein meets XL1

October 1st, 2005, 08:43 AM	#18
Michael Gibbons Major Player Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Loveland, Colorado, USA Posts: 292	So, Sean could you give us an update on the progress of your technicle wizardry? __________________ " When some wild-eyed, eight foot tall maniac grabs your neck, taps the back of your favorite head against a bar room wall, and looks you crooked in the eye, and he asks you if you've payed your dues, well, you just stare that big suker right back in the eye, and you remember what old Jack Burton always says at a time like that, 'Have you paid your dues, Jack? Yes sir, the check is in the mail."

October 1st, 2005, 09:02 AM	#19
Sean McHenry Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Hilliard, Ohio Posts: 1,193	Well, between shooting/engineering for work and tthe whole DVC3 thing, I had set it down and almost forgotten about it. I have yet to find anyone that can supply a belt for the drive. I am going out location scouting today so maybe I'll try to run some footage of it in downtown Columbus here. I have also been working on building my server to host my video files in-house so if I get the chance to shoot some, I'll post a note here and post the video where we can see it. I will have to use the video out and run that into my cheap-o TRV22 to capture it on miniDV. Cool thing is, then I can bring it directly into the Avid and play a little. Thanks for reminding me about it. I have the stills in my camera phone from when I opened it up and I'll build a little page about it and put it up tonight. Stay tuned. Sean __________________ ‘I don’t know what I’m doing, and I’m shooting on D.V.’ - my hero - David Lynch http://www.DeepBlueEdit.com

October 3rd, 2005, 10:43 AM	#20
Sean McHenry Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Hilliard, Ohio Posts: 1,193	OK, found out a bit of bad news this weekend when I went to hook the Pixelvision to the miniDV camcorder I was heading out with to scout locations, the signal level into the DV camera isn't hot enough to record. I did hook it up to my VHS deck at home and it will record that way so I will do some shooting in the house this week and string it together and post it. I think it needs the 1 transistor amp option. Now where's that 50' BNC cable... Sean __________________ ‘I don’t know what I’m doing, and I’m shooting on D.V.’ - my hero - David Lynch http://www.DeepBlueEdit.com

October 3rd, 2005, 12:53 PM	#21
Jason J. Gullickson Regular Crew Join Date: May 2005 Location: Madison, WI Posts: 170	This is a bit off-topic but I was reading the thread and it shed some light on a problem we've been having with some PXL-2000 footage. We are trying to capture some PXL footage from VHS tapes that are about 15 years old. Normally we use a Pyro box to capture VHS footage, but when we feed it this PXL stuff it doesn't see it. Is it possible that the signal from the VHS tape has the same low-voltage problem? If so, is there a "cheap" way to address it? We've resorted to using a different capture system (that is less sensitive) but the resulting quality, well it sucks :) __________________ Jason J. Gullickson Producer the second society http://2soc.net

October 6th, 2005, 03:35 PM	#22
Sean McHenry Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Hilliard, Ohio Posts: 1,193	You probably need a strictly analog capture card. Try to find a Miro DC-30 or some other older Pinnacle capture card. Maybe some graphics card like the ATI All-In-Wonder series would do it. As soon as you capture as a high quality AVI file, drop it in a good NLE and bring the levels to spec. You should then be able to spit out a DV compatible file. There may be issues with your sync pulses and so on but you would need to get a qualified bench tech with a scope to check out the waveform. Look for a studio or friend that has a Waveform monitor and a "Proc Amp". There should be a way to save the footage. The cludged video output from these isn't really setup correctly to be a true NTSC signal. If you are in need of an anlaog capture card, I happen to have a Miro DC-30 I could sell off really cheap... Try going in strictly analog or find a proc amp. Let me know what you find. ------- EDIT ----------- PS, a truely analog capture card will not use Firewire or USB to get the video/audio into your PC. You need a PCI based capture card that would be installed in the PC. At least that's my theory. Sean __________________ ‘I don’t know what I’m doing, and I’m shooting on D.V.’ - my hero - David Lynch http://www.DeepBlueEdit.com