Our answer for component capture?

[matrix35]

http://www.snappymultimedia.com/products_main.htm

Has built in IRblaster. but I believe it downconverts HD component signals. well its a start.

[stanger89]

You can record record downconverted HD already with a set top box and TV card.

[elaw]

Yes but wouldn't the video quality hopefully be a bit better with this device? The thing encodes in DVD resolution (720x480), and I think the PQ would be better with component HD input rather than s-video or composite.

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by elaw

Yes but wouldn't the video quality hopefully be a bit better with this device?

Maybe marginally, not significantly, maybe not even noticably.

The thing encodes in DVD resolution (720x480),

So do all the curent cards.

and I think the PQ would be better with component HD input rather than s-video or composite.

But it's not HD, all that device does is delay the downconversion until later.

[lobosrul]

Hmm, I cant find anywhere if this is 480i or 480p. If its 480i its not better than S-video, well maybe very marginally better. 480p would be a step up from s-video.

[PhillJones]

I'm sure the quality would be better over component than S-video. To do a simple comparison, connect a DVD player (provided it doesn't up convert to HD) via component and S-video, although the resoultion is the same, the image quality when using component interconnects is far better. It's particularly noticable with things like text.

Back home in Britain, before the night and day difference of NTSC in S-video vs ATSC in component, I had a digital sattelite box connected to my TV with a 'scart socket'. These can transmit in all three common formats; composit, S-video, RGB (similar to component), I could make like-for-like comparisons on the fly and there really was a big difference on my 29" widescreen CRT.

Many of the reasons why SD looks so bad are connected with NTSC and outdated crappy equipment owned by networks, it's not just about lower res. When your weakest link is the input image to your system, component cables aren't worth bothering with but with the high quality image of HD, even downgraded to 480i, the type of interconnect used makes a difference.

just my 2c.