CompuServe Messages

Gary, There's a couple of things you need to weigh before you make a final desicision. Will you need to go to tape often? What level of quality output do you need? If you plan to do a lot of recording, then you might look into a real-time solution that takes less time to record to tape. Such as the Matrox Illuminator Pro / MAX, or the PAR. These cards are capable of playing and recording 30 frames per second to and from your hard drive, andd you won't need a frame-accurate VTR (a VTR that is capable of single frame recording). So it takes you 1 minute to record or play 1 minute of video (pretty convienent). Or you can go with something along the lines of a Targa+ card where you will need a frame accurate VTR because the Targa+ can only display one full resolution true color frame at a time. This will give you 30 frames per second output, but you'll have to wait about 10 sec per frame as it pre rolls and records each frame individually. If you will have the leeway with time and deadlines to let it run overnight this might do for you just fine. Another thing about the Matrox and PAR solutions is that you will need a dedicated video hard drive (usually beetween 1 – 3 Gigs) which starts to rack up $$$. Also, the cards are more expensive. However you won't need a frame accurate VTR which brings the pricee back down. Then you have to decide upon the quality of your video. If you are going to brodcast situations, I strongly suggest BetaCAM SP, I have one and I love it. However, BetaCAM brings a hefty price tag with it between $8000-15000 for the deck. The next step down might be SVHS or Hi8 which would bring you into the market of $3500 – $7000, for frame accurate recording. So here's my advice: If you will only need to go to tape periodically, would suggest either a Targa+ or an Illuminator Pro (no MAX card), a frame accurate deck suited to the video quality you are looking for, and Soft VTR (this is a software package that enables your computer to talk to the VTR). If you are going to be grabbing video and laying it back down to tape really often (daily). I sugest that you look into the MAX or PAR. and a VTR suitable to your output needs. And a BIG Hard drive (1.7 Gigs will hold about 9 min of video) —Note— If you have an EISA system and you initially get the Illuminator Pro, you can get the MAX upgrade card at any time! (the MAX is EISA specific) If you have an ISA system, you would want to go with the PAR. (the PAR is ISA specific) Right now, I use a Targa+, Soft VTR, and a BetacamSP VTR. Hope this helps! -Kyle