8 Capture Considerations: What to Look for in a Digitizer or Capture Card for Video (page 2)

A good indication of the quality and professionalism of the card is the inputs. While the standardized nature of FireWire means that the quality is identical no matter what, it is a different story for analog inputs. Most analog cards have RCA (composite) and S-video (component) inputs, but more serious cards might also have a FireWire input onboard. Professionals may need YUV inputs with BNC connections or an SDI interface.

It is a similar situation for audio. Some cards have two RCA jacks for left and right audio or even a simple stereo mini-plug. A number of cards will actually leverage your existing sound card to capture audio. Once again, more professional solutions will have more professional inputs, such as XLR.

We know what is lurking behind your computer: inputs, outputs, cables and wires. It can really be a nightmare if you need to connect and disconnect your camcorder all of the time, as most of us without a dedicated playback deck in the edit bay do. One really great solution is a Breakout Box or BoB. BoBs vary in quality and utility, from simple cables to rack-mountable steel cases, but all bring your connections out from behind the computer to someplace (anyplace!) more convenient. We especially like the BoB for the Canopus DVStorm Plus ($1,299) that fits in an empty drive bay on the front of your computer. The most affordable BoB we've found comes in Pinnacle's Studio 8 Deluxe package ($300), which is an introductory card that captures both DV and analog footage.

What if you just want to edit a few home movies without opening up your computer to perform major surgery? We have seen the emergence of a number of reliable external capture solutions in recent years. Do not confuse these devices with low-quality Web cams. Products like Dazzle's Digital Video Creator 80 ($70) convert your analog video into a digitally compressed format (usually MPEG-2) that can be sent over a USB connection. Again, MPEG-2 isn't the best format for editing, but for simple no-nonsense, no-installation video capture, this may be the answer.

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